Happy the family in which a cheerful mom stays home all day, does the housework and cares for the children, while the dad goes to work and earns enough to maintain his brood in a comfortable lifestyle. Unfortunately, the Cleaver-type family, in which Beaver and Wally grew up, disappeared for most people in North America in the 1960s and 1970s.
In today's troubled economy, most parents, mother and father, have to work. When both are employed in a low-paying jobs, a significant amount of their salaries goes to pay a baby-sitter. If a full-day kindergarten program was available, funded through the school board budget, the entire family would be assured a better quality of life.
The availability of an all-day kindergarten program would be a favorable option for many individuals and families. As well, it would be beneficial to the economy of a state, province, and country. Here's why:
* There are many single parents who want to work and support themselves and their children, but the cost of childcare is prohibitive. As a result, they stay home and collect welfare. With full-day kindergarten programs available, many could return to the workforce one year sooner than they could otherwise do.
* Registered and inspected day-care providers are expensive. Often working parents will make use of the services of a relative, neighbor or friend as baby-sitter. Unless the care-giver is trained in early-childhood care and education, these arrangements may not be in the best interests of the child.
* Sometimes it's hard for an only child to separate from his parents when he has spent four full years at home as the center of attention. All-day kindergarten will give him more chance to develop and practice socialization skills before he is thrust into the formal Grade One program.
* All-day classes introduce the child to the routine he will follow in Grade One: morning session, lunch, afternoon session, home. Next year, when the serious study begins, he will already be accustomed to the pattern of a normal school day.
* Children with no siblings would benefit from learning to play and cooperate with their peers for an extended period every day.
* One-half of contemporary marriages end in divorce. "Relationships" which are common today, are probably even more unstable. When there is turmoil and emotional upset at home, the child will benefit from having a stable, predictable environment in which he can spend his days.
* Knowledge in the twenty-first century is expanding at a greater rate than ever before. When she has access to them for a full day, a creative teacher will be able to devise and present many "mini-lessons" to give the children a head start in the first grade.
* Full-day Kindergarten classes will stimulate the economy. Besides the extra teachers who will be hired, assistants will be necessary, at least one per classroom, depending on class size. Can you imagine having to put on and remove 25 snowsuits all by yourself several times on a winter day? Besides time and effort, there are safety issues involved. What will the other children be doing while the teacher is occupied in the cloakroom?
* With extra time at school, the health issues of the children can be addressed more conveniently and reliably. Medical and dental checkups could be performed, vaccinations given, and speech problems identified and re-mediated, (all with the parents' permission, of course).
While it is generally agreed that the ideal family situation would be a loving, intelligent parent at home interacting with and caring for five-year-olds every day, this is seldom possible in our pressurized, fast-paced society.
Many would agree that the second-best option would be a secure and stimulating all-day kindergarten program where a child can be with a caring teacher and many friends until his parents return. Until society can return to a time where the norm will again be a Cleaver-type household, this alternative appears very attractive.
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