March 6, 2006

Jack R. Christianson, director of the Orem Institute of Religion at Utah Valley State College, will speak on "Families in Troubled Times" as part of the Family Lecture Series on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the American Heritage School , 736 N. 1100 East, American Fork. Christianson is widely published, having written several LDS and general-audience books as well as produced numerous talks on tape.

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February 7, 2006

Students from the American Heritage School in American Fork entered the State Capitol Complex on Monday to hear their teacher tell lawmakers that parents can do a better job with kindergartners than teachers.

They left unhappy with the 7-5 House committee vote that will bring the debate on full-day kindergarten to the floor of the House of Representatives.

For $7 million per year, the state Board of Education would use the extra half day to target students less prepared for learning than their peers.

"By providing the funding for this we are trying to get at those specific students who have not been as successful," said Rep. Kory Holdaway, R-Taylorsville.

Kindergarten pre-assessments would determine who fits into the "greatest need for additional instruction" category. The bill says they would have to compose at least 85 percent of the students in full-day classes.

The other 15 percent could serve as role models, Holdaway said.

Schools with the highest percentage of children eligible for free lunch would receive funding first.

The program is being promoted as a way to help children who don't get a lot of learning time with parents who may be at work during the day. Tim Bridgewater, former education deputy for Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., told the Utah County Republic Women on Monday that many Utah parents do a great job of preparing their children at home for their education. "If your kids are taught at home in kindergarten and you don't have to take them to school, that's the best education they can get."

The program would serve only the students with the greatest need, he said.

But some see it as government encroaching further and further into family life.

"What about childhood? At what point are we going to say that childhood matters and that time at home matters?" asked Rep. Margaret Dayton, R-Orem.

Holdaway said in an ideal setting he couldn't agree with Dayton more, but added, "We don't live in the ideal world anymore."

Bridgewater said all-day kindergarten would better prepare students than the current system does.

"We have a half-day kindergarten system that really is a tradition more than it is the very best dollar spent in education, because our kids go to kindergarten to get socialization skills, but their improvement in academics does not improve like it needs to," Bridgewater said.

Two school districts -- Salt Lake and Box Elder -- have experimented for more than a year with full-day kindergarten and reported significant gains in learning abilities. The districts have used money from other programs for support, and told legislators the funds are maxed out. Four Salt Lake schools that used state money to start all-day kindergartens last year were overwhelmed with interest, with about 400 children interested in the programs, Bridgewater said.

But Rep. Gregory Hughes, R-Draper, said he saw full-day kindergarten as a new program to draw money away from where it might be better spent.

Lauri Updike, from American Heritage School , agreed. She said the students who attend the private school's half-day kindergarten outscore the state's students in full-day kindergarten "across the board."

"With parents is the best place for children to be," she said.

Holdaway said full-day kindergarten was merely an option, and that it wasn't designed to replace half-day kindergarten.

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January 12, 2006

FAMILY LECTURE SERIES -- January's lecture, "The Play's the Thing," by Kay Terry Hanson, a professor at BYU, will discuss bringing the fine arts to children. 7:30 p.m. Friday, American Heritage School , 736 N. 1100 East, American Fork. 642-0055. www.american-heritage.org .