repeat after me...

Oh Kumon...These feel a bit like TD bank to me. It's like one day I just saw five Kumons and TD banks throughout NY, whereas before that day I didn't even know they existed. I know parents at our school choose to send their children to Kumon so I will avoid too much commentary. What I will do is share this article from the NY Times and two quotes from the article that resonate with my own educational philosophy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/15/fashion/with-kumon-fast-tracking-to-kindergarten.html

“We are in a culture where education is the path to success, and it’s hard for people to recognize how deep and profound learning is when children are just playing.”

“When you’re putting blocks together, you’re learning how to be a physicist,” agreed Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, a psychologist at Temple University and an author of “Einstein Never Used Flash Cards.” “When you’re learning how to balance things and calculate how tall you can make your building, you’re learning how to be a physicist. Having your kid drill and kill and fill in worksheets at 2 and 3 and 4 to the best of our knowledge so far does not give your child a leg up on anything.”

We want to nurture a generation of thinkers, innovators, creators, and leaders. I fail to see how worksheets and following the commands of adults, without question, does this. Okay, I'll step off my soapbox now...and get ready for a day of play.