Beyond Finger Painting

Imagine, as best you can, your Kindergarten classroom from way back when, or that of your children's Kindergarten classroom, or perhaps one in which you teach or have taught. These are spacious rooms with tiny tables and chairs made especially for the small children who inhabit them during the school year. These small children are the future and their education in the early years is so important for establishing a set of skills and knowledge base to support their education for years to come. While all teachers are special, Kindergarten teachers take on the role of weaning children away from the home into the milieu of schooling. They often are a surrogate parent for these children who are away from home in a strange place without Mom or Grandmother or any other relative or familiar figure for the first time in their lives.