Full-Day Kindergarten Advantages

Posted by teacher on September 15, 2006

Herman (1984) describes in detail the advantages of full-day kindergarten. He and others believe full-day programs provide a relaxed, unhurried school day with more time for a variety of experiences, greater opportunity for screening and assessment to detect and deal with potential learning problems, and more occasions for good quality interaction between adults and students.

While the long term effects of full-day kindergarten are yet to be determined, Thomas Stinard’s (1982) review of 10 research studies comparing half-day and full-day kindergarten indicates that students taking part in full-day programs demonstrate strong academic advantages as much as a year after the kindergarten experience. Stinard found that full-day students performed at least as well as half-day students in every study (and better in many studies) with no significant adverse effects.

A recent longitudinal study of full-day kindergarten in the EvansvilleVanderburgh, Ohio, School District indicates that fourth graders maintained the academic advantage gained during full-day kindergarten (Humphrey 1983).

Despite often expressed fears that full-day kindergartners would experience fatigue and stress, school districts that have taken care to plan a developmentally appropriate, nonacademic curriculum with carefully paced activities have reported few problems (Evans and Marken 1983; Stinard 1982).