Is this normal behavior....

We had Back-to-School Night a few nights ago and I had the opportunity to speak to my DD's Kindergarten teacher. She said all great things about her, but then she said when it comes to some sort of "quiet activity" (where the kids should be sitting quietly working, etc.) my DD has a habit of either talking or singing and needs to be told repeatedly to stop doing so. She will stop awhile, but start again. I'm not sure if other kids are doing things like this, but it seems other parents got reports of not sitting still enough, rolling on floor a lot at circle time, etc. My DD is a very "excited" child...She LOVES to sing, dance, and talk A LOT (laughs at everything, too). I can definitely see her doing these things in school inappropriatly as she does it at home all the time. (I am always telling her to sit still, quiet down, open your listening ears more, etc.) I do know this teacher is very strict, as reported by other parents - she used to teach 3rd grade for 16 years and suddenly jumped to Kindergarten out of no where this year! My neighbor's son had her last year and she said she is very tough with discipline and has high expectations for the kids. (She actually handed out a full page of "discipline rules in the classroom" for the parents that night to review with the kids at home when we get the chance!)She even expects them to be writing in journals on the weekends come March! (5-6 year olds? Not mine...lol ardon: )

Anyway, back to the topic...Is the behavior I mentioned normal for a new Kindergartener? I am just a little concerned she is the only one doing this I suppose. I do think she is just being a little tough...I personally think this is probably typical 5 year old behavior. Just wanted to see if others here had their kids have this issue in the classroom. (It's a full day program, too, with all the bells and whistles from math, science, social studies, language arts, reading, spanish, and writing...ALL, everyday. So maybe that plays in to it...Long day for the little ones to be paying attention for 7 hours! :blink

Thanks for any input

 

Did she go to any kind of preschool before? If not, I wouldn't worry at all, it's probably just a new concept she has to get used to.

 

Jess is my singer and half the time she doesn't realize she's doing it. I'd practice at home with the quiet game.

 

I would say it depends.


K is a big leap, but consider there are 20-24 kids in a class if ALL of them were singing/dancing/rolling it would be chaos. Most kiddos that have had preschool often 'test the waters' upon K to see what the ground rules are, but should be able to attend for short periods of time and also work quietly independently for 5-10 min periodically (more so in the AM vs PM). Developmentally ALL day is a long time, but if the K program is set up right then there should be a lot of movement, singing/dancing/, short bursts of learning, short bursts of independent activities, and short times of free play/centers. If the class is not set up developmentally for 5-6 yr olds it may be hard for active kids to follow the pattern because they may or may not developmentally be there yet.

Also, most teachers are tough on the kids in the beginning--- that way it is much much easier to let up on discipline than try to reign it in later in the year!!

A few things:

1. Yes, the start of the year is a bit of an adjustment no matter what. Some kids are more prone to push boundries and see what the rules/concequences are. Once routines are explained and if expectations are developmentally on target then most negative behaviors should settle down after a few weeks.

2. If the teacher is saying all or almost all the kids are getting negative reports, the teacher may have unrealistic expectations for attention span/activities for 5-6 yr olds. Did she just switch to K this year?

3. Yes, it is not unheard of for K kids to do journals in March. That is so many months away. By the end of K, many kids are sound spelling and able to write simple sentences with illustrations. ( I ce a dawg. OR I luv my mom. OR We whent to the zoo on Munday or I lik pizza and ic kreme.)

4. Try to get a sense of the intensity of your DD behaviors. Singing a few times and stopping after reminders is fairly standard for adjusting to K-- singing constantly and refusing to stop when made aware that her singing is disruptive needs to be addressed if it continues.

Remember a young 5 yr old will have much shorter attention span than a 6 yr old. So the attention expectations should be adjusted accordingly.

Also-- why do you think your DD is making noise/singing?? A kid that is doing it out of nervousness is much different than one that is being defiant and that is much different than a kiddo that is just 'chatty' and unaware of how much noise she/he is making!

I would go over the rules with your DD. Practice doing things she may have trouble with in the classroom. For example if she sings while coloring- have her try in a positive way to color for 1 min. and not sing and then 2 min, Keep a positive running dialouge why the class has certain rules as well ( when it is quiet my classmates can think). Practice quietly looking at a book or attending to a story for a short time (and gradually lenthen it) to help her practice expectations- also keep talking about what she should do during the times you know she might be chatting too much. It helps to reinforce the idea of 'what' is supposed to be happening and being proactive about potential behaviors before instead of strict discipline after the behavior occurs. I am all for proactive when possible!

Keep in touch with the teacher and make sure to touch base often. That will make sure you are being proactive and also connect with the teacher so that a small issue does not get big.

 

I would also try to get to the bottom of the issue with "why" your daughter is talking/singing, etc. If it is anxiety, that is one thing. If it is missing expectations (not knowing or remembering the rules), that is another thing. And, if it is just a part of her personality, that is a third thing to work on.

One of our kids had a "strict" teacher last year in kindergarten. It was hard in many way, but that kindergarten year is such a big one of adjusting in any event.

Also, our teachers reminded us that it takes 3 weeks to change behaviour (and 6 weeks for kids to settle in well to the school routine), so keep that in mind, too!

Good luck~!

Meg -- mom to 6.5 year old boy/girl twins