To Kumon or not to Kumon. That is the question.

[megabored]

DD is starting school in September. Below are the Pros and Cons I have been debating recently.

1. She is bright, so should be okay without extra help in school
2. It is too early to put her through this
3. Kumon is expensive and time consuming.

The Pros

1. It may give her that bit of extra confidence at school
2. Earlier is better as then she can grow with that system
3. Its not so expensive as to be prohibitive.

I really cant decide either way. Please someone help?

I
Must file some of these quoted.

glaurung - Mine finished with the dot counting after 6 months which was shortly after he turned six. No, I am not stealth boasting ladies. I was just adding perspective to the comment about how older kids were still doing dot counting.

So its not normal to be doing dot counting at that age.

[inserts not stealth boasting disclaimer] By Year 5 DS was two years ahead of the national average for maths which is contrary to any claim that kumon centres typically starts kids low so as to create an artificial spurt of achievement.

A child needs to show mastery of a level before moving on. As a result less academic kids can repeat a level a number of times thus giving the illusion that kumon moves kids along at a slow pace.

why are you predicting an unidentified need?
not at school yet
I've never met a teacher who'd recommend kumon

scottishmummy - not predicting anything and not saying teachers will recommend it. Just trying to put across the point that i would only send my child (last resort kinda thing) if pushed by teachers (which would never happen).

Sigh... I don't support kumon at all but op does so trying to speak neutrally. Never mind.. .. :)

mumsofwliboys all the quotes and misquotes have livened this up again. not sure what you are tryin to say. Maybe I am exhausted today. Hit day here in sunny Surrey.

Hot!

you're not the op
she is anticipating a need
IMO wait on staff assessment and feedback

megaboard, sorry.. I haven't read that far. I am tired too so probably missing everything! :)

mumoft - You aren't comparing like with like :) I've only got O Level maths but DP has degree level maths. So between the two of us we could have tutored DS but we simply didn't have the time since both of us work.

And when we came home we wanted quality with the children so we didn't want to be doing maths with them. With kumon they either did it when breakfast was being cooked or when tea was cooked.

If either one of us was a SAHP then we would chuck kumon out the window. As it was, it suited our routine.

Between two evils, always pick the one you have never tried before'.

What I don't get is, a number of posters have recommended gcgrath tuition. No one seems to mind that. It does. It crest such polarity compared to kumon. Why?

kumon is pushy mom territory
bulgy eyed angsty do better types
kumon is shorthand for all of that

Last sentence should read 'it does not create as much polarity....

No idea, I've only ever heard of it on MN! I guess it takes a different approach?

The children should be children brigade don't like it because children shouldn't be subject to 20min homework a day.

The learning should be fun brigade don't like it because it is boring and repetative (it is) Oops, did I say that out loud? :)

mumsofwaliboys now, if I say, yes I agree everyone, kumon is the devils work, please forgive me. How could I possibly even consider it. Would you believe me? If I say, yes kumon is great and it's what pushed kids of pushy parents are made of. What reactions am I going to get? If I say, I will try out kumon at a later date maybe when dd is say 5, in 4 months time, what then? Why do I have to be in a camp either way?

push eating broccoli is boring and yucky. If given too much it is boring and repetitive. It will put dd off broccoli for life tasting that. Let my child be a child and I will only give her Haribo sweets. How is that?

what the hell mixed metaphor gobbledeegook was that

scottishmummy what mixed metaphor? . Maybe I'll look at it tomorrow. So tired today. Goodnight.

The playing adult steps sideward into another reality; the playing child advances forward to new stages of mastery.

Erik H. Erikson

The debt we owe to the play of the imagination is incalculable.

Carl Jung

Children learn as they play. Most importantly, in play children learn how to learn.

They're not saying you should just give them sweets, they're saying that too much broccoli too young might not be very nutritious as it could prevent them from trying all the other wonderful food available :o

A balanced diet can take some of both.

Same with play and worksheets - but too many worksheets runs the danger of putting them off maths.