Letter: Keep emphasis on language arts
Classrooms across Long Island were empty on Thursday. Check our listings of delayed openings, closures and cancellations to see what's in store for Friday. Credit: Daniel Brennan
Three years ago I graduated college with a degree in communications and found work in my field. I consider myself very lucky to have gone through the public education system when I did; otherwise I might never have found this career path. Back in my day, kindergarten children learned many skills, including how to be resourceful, how to collaborate and how to listen.
Today's children are getting cheated of these life skills ["Tests put to test," News, Sept. 18]. Instead, according to the Common Core State Standards Initiative, "More learning time in Kindergarten should be devoted to numbers than to other topics."
So much focus is being placed on numbers, and not just in the curriculum. Students are threatened with test scores that could haunt them throughout their academic careers.
The focus on numbers is so great, in fact, that we're forgetting to teach children how to be children. Many of us miss the days when the hardest decision in life was which crayon to pick. Now, the crayons have been replaced by No. 2 pencils.
Rebecca Benison, Valley Stream
