Is expecting our children to leave home at earlier and earlier ages, so they can get a head start with reading, writing, and arithmetic, actually giving them a head start?
Shouldn’t we first consider whether or not a child is developmentally ready for early education before deciding he needs it?
Can Your Child do This?
For starters, a child must be able to sit up straight in a chair for at least 20 minutes at a time, according to Dr. Susan R. Johnson, a pediatrician who does not advocate early education.
Most children under the age of six or seven cannot sit still for 20 minutes, yet most children under the age of six or seven are in school.
When you put a child in a classroom at such early ages and expect him to do things that he’s not developmentally ready to do, he begins to think there’s something wrong with him.
What’s wrong is an educational system that has unreal expectations of our children.
