In the past, kindergarten at Stedman Primary Elementary School in North Carolina was viewed as playtime, according to the Fayetteville Observer. That is because North Carolina is among the states currently in the process of implementing the Common Core State Standards (CCSS).
"You took your mat and took a nap after lunch," Deborah Faircloth, Stedman's principal told the news source. "Now, kindergarten is very academic. The teachers make it fun, but it's very academic."
In the Cumberland County Schools, the district to which the Elementary School belongs, the types of activities kindergarteners engage in today were typically reserved for first-graders. Recently, pupils in Alicia Knudsen's kindergarten class were asked to dissect words based on their sound. This is just one example of the more rigorous lessons students now tackle.
According to the CCSS' website, kindergarteners will be expected to master a range of skills that will prepare them for the rest of their academic careers. For instance, children will be asked to answer questions about important details in texts and understand mathematical concepts, such as addition and subtraction.
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