TK at Evergreen

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TK, or transitional kindergarten, is meant to accomplish one thing: give all 4- and 5-year-olds a chance to attend school before starting kindergarten. Since many low-income families cannot afford any type of preschool, the state wanted an option for those families. TK is offered based on your school district, so many of the low-income families in California can now qualify for some type of preschool. TK is meant to be a first year of preschool, not a first year of kindergarten.

 Absolutely not! TK is not a requirement nor is it meant to be a “first year of kindergarten.” TK is meant to offer a preschool option for low-income families and to capture 4- and 5-year-olds who have never attended school before.

The idea of TK and what makes a TK teacher is still evolving. The state is still working out what the qualifications for a TK teacher are and the logistics of what TK curriculum will look like. What we do know is that very few TK teachers, or programs claiming to be TK, have teachers who have a background in Early Childhood Education (ECE), which is specific to children ages 5 and younger. Very few teachers of school-age children have taken any classes that are specific to children 5 and younger; nevertheless, these teachers are now teaching TK programs.

The good news is that all teachers at the Garden School have taken at least 12 core units of ECE classes (often more!) and have dedicated their careers to working with young children. Developmentally, children who are ages 5 and younger are going through immense physical and psychological changes. The Garden School teachers have been specifically trained to help foster the growth and development of this critical time in a child’s life. As a staff, we are always seeking to learn more and keep up with the latest standards and “best practices” for teaching young children.

4- and 5-year-olds who are enrolled at Evergreen before entering kindergarten leave our program with all the same skills that they would get in a “traditional” TK program. However, children who leave Evergreen have the added benefit of having a leadership year. 4- and 5- year-olds in our program have the unique opportunity to develop self-confidence by mentoring the younger children in our program. Research shows that children retain 90% of what they teach to others. Our low stress environment creates a space for children to naturally share what they have learned with each other while also introducing new and challenging material as children’s curiosity evolves. Our curriculum is curated and created specifically for each individual child. Instead of teaching children through teacher created themes or purchasing curriculum from outside companies, our teachers create relationships and take daily observations to create curriculum that is unique to each child.