Rating: 
Summary: A Very Useful Book
Review: I think this book has been a great starting point for our family who is preparing my dd for 1st grade!
Rating: 
Summary: Very Basic
Review: I think this is a fine book. I bought it expecting a list of things that my child should know prior to entering Kindergarten. Instead what I got was a book that I could use to teach my child. Excellent! I think it would be better with a comprehensive list of expectations and/or goals that every child should reach by the time they are through with Kindergarten. That is the teacher in my coming out. I found that the social studies section was amazing. I didn't realize that kindergarten children could comprehend so much. Word of Warning: This is ONLY the very basics that a child should be able to learn. This is NOT the be all end all of a kindergarten curriculum to use for homeschooling. However, it can be used as a place to jump start your learning. You will need to add more literature and poetry and math activities. However, it's a well rounded, full of information, useful book.
Rating:
Summary: This well rounded book covers all the bases!
Review: I was really glad to share this book with my child. It gave me a million rainy day ideas. Great for the preschooler! I loved the way it incorporated classic tales, nursery rhymes, mathematic basics, geography and scientific information in a way that is both simple and exciting. The activities are really enriching and interesting to the child. Every parent should own a copy of this book!
Rating: 
Summary: Too basic for most inquisitive children
Review: If a school doesn't address the information in the books or provide a simple way for a child to learn it, it isnt' doing it's job. Period. I dont' believe that this curriculum provides anything that a school can't provide with other, better educational methods. The example of why this by-rote schedule is necessary is ludicrous. They offer a classroom of children beginning to learn about world exploration and Magellan. The children are asked to trace a route on a globe from Europe to North America, but some can't because they "didn't do that last year in Mrs. Jones' class", others in "Mr. Peach's class did that last year" and the children who just moved in from another school "did Magellan last year". I would be surprised if any child with basic map literacy couldnt' find a route on a globe, and for the children who did that last year, they should be able to offer different, possibly more complex views on the subject. Any child exposed to a library or even a small home book collection should be able to have the "cultural literacy" base this curriculum would like to provide. The cultural background presented in this book is weak, without any discussion of where these fairy tales and nursery rhymes came from. No child needs to learn "Jack Horner", etc. in school. If it is taught, it should be at a level where the child will learn the origins of these things, and maybe learn to act them out. The history portion was severely limited. Most children will pick up the very basic elements of what was offered just by looking at and asking about the presidents on our money. Math is very weak. Again, talking with your child and reading a few basic books would teach everything offered here. I explored several "focus" schools in my district for my daughter. After looking into Core Knowledge, we named it "American Myths and Legends" and rejected it for our child as too rigid, without an ability to meet the needs of specific children. In some districts, a core knowledge school may work as a selection factor, if it is one of the only choices available. Parents who care about their children's education may send their children to the available magnet school, so the school may well be populated with families who care about education. It doesnt' work that way in practice in all districts though. One thing to keep in mind is that this curriculum was established by concensus. Therefore, anything viewed as "radical" or outside of the mainstream would not have passed the review committees. I think they probably lost a lot of value due to the process. If you are starting a new school in your district or looking to homeschool a child to make sure she loves learning, look into William Glasser's "Quality School". We create community and love of learning and manage to score at 100% on statewide tests. We love our school.
Rating:
Summary: Too basic for most inquisitive children
Review: If a school doesn't address the information in the books or provide a simple way for a child to learn it, it isnt' doing it's job. Period. I dont' believe that this curriculum provides anything that a school can't provide with other, better educational methods. The example of why this by-rote schedule is necessary is ludicrous. They offer a classroom of children beginning to learn about world exploration and Magellan. The children are asked to trace a route on a globe from Europe to North America, but some can't because they "didn't do that last year in Mrs. Jones' class", others in "Mr. Peach's class did that last year" and the children who just moved in from another school "did Magellan last year". I would be surprised if any child with basic map literacy couldnt' find a route on a globe, and for the children who did that last year, they should be able to offer different, possibly more complex views on the subject. Any child exposed to a library or even a small home book collection should be able to have the "cultural literacy" base this curriculum would like to provide. The cultural background presented in this book is weak, without any discussion of where these fairy tales and nursery rhymes came from. No child needs to learn "Jack Horner", etc. in school. If it is taught, it should be at a level where the child will learn the origins of these things, and maybe learn to act them out. The history portion was severely limited. Most children will pick up the very basic elements of what was offered just by looking at and asking about the presidents on our money. Math is very weak. Again, talking with your child and reading a few basic books would teach everything offered here. I explored several "focus" schools in my district for my daughter. After looking into Core Knowledge, we named it "American Myths and Legends" and rejected it for our child as too rigid, without an ability to meet the needs of specific children. In some districts, a core knowledge school may work as a selection factor, if it is one of the only choices available. Parents who care about their children's education may send their children to the available magnet school, so the school may well be populated with families who care about education. It doesnt' work that way in practice in all districts though. One thing to keep in mind is that this curriculum was established by concensus. Therefore, anything viewed as "radical" or outside of the mainstream would not have passed the review committees. I think they probably lost a lot of value due to the process. If you are starting a new school in your district or looking to homeschool a child to make sure she loves learning, look into William Glasser's "Quality School". We create community and love of learning and manage to score at 100% on statewide tests. We love our school.
Rating: 
Summary: This book is not appropriate for children.
Review: If you are a loving parent who doesn't want to tell your child stories which are full of violence and death, then this book isn't for you. I was appalled when I read my 4 year old, the story of Casey Jones (p.105). The story was boring, and ended with Casey be killed in a horrific train crash. It goes on to explain how he was found, with his hands still on the throttle and brake. I guess I should have read it to myself first, but my son was so excited when he saw the picture of the train. YOu can only imagine the look of horror on our faces, by the end of this story. The rest of the book is FILLED with talk of violence and killing. In the story of Snow White, the queen says,"Put her to death, and bring me her heart to prove that you have done it. In The Three Billy Goats Gruff, it talks of violently beating up the troll, and pushing him over the bridge to his death. In the 3 Little Pigs, the wolf DIES in boiling water. I could site many more examples. If the authors really think these stories MUST be included in this book, why don't they find more humane versions. So, thank you Mr. Hirsch, and Mr. Holdren, for forcing me to talk to my son about violent and gruesome things. These are definitely not things Kindergartners Need to Know!!!
Rating:
Summary: Get them off to a Great Start!
Review: The Book "What Your Kindergartener Need To Know is a great book to use to get your child started in learning. Even if you didn't get your hands on it before Kindergarten it is a good review and will help you to see if you child has suffered any "gaps" in their knowledge to date. Since different states and school systems have different opinions as to what a child should know at what age, this book may not necessarily cover what your child has or is about to learn in your local school. From my analysis, the book covers more information from a cultural awareness perspective. This means that is basically is filled with things your child should have been exposed to by this point. They may not KNOW these things or be able to recite everything from this book, but they should have some awareness or have had some exposure to it at this point. When my children and I received this book, our first Core Knowledge book by Hirsh, we went through the books table of contents page with a pencil and marked off everything they knew. My children are in the 3rd and 1st grade, and the 1st grader "KNEW" much more of the items, which to me means she remembered more items since she had been exposed to them more recently. Although the word KINDERGARTEN was written boldly across the front, they took great joy in my reading the fables and testing them on the geography and math question at bedtime. I purchase these books in anticipation of beginning homeschooling, but we could not wait to get started on this series. I recommend this and the other books in this set to anyone considering homeschooling or even school-schooling. It is great fun to interact with your children and amazing to find out what they actually know. Contents include, but are not limited to:
Teaching your child to read and write
Introduction to literature
Nursery rhymes, poems, and Aesop's Fables
Children's Stories like Three Billy Goats Gruff
Simple history and geography, especially American
Visual arts and music
Math and math readiness
Science including plants, weather, animals, and the human body, all at a "Kindergarteners Level"
Rating:
Summary: A very informative book.
Review: The book is full of a lot of information. I'm using "What Your Kindergartener Needs to Know" as the base book for homeschooling my daughter. Not only are there many recommendations but, there are complete stories and songs in the book to allow you to teach without having to purchase other books. There is more information in the book than I thought my daughter could comprehend. But, I offer some of the information to her and she understands and wants more. If you want to know what your child should be learning or want an excellent book for a base for homeschooling, I highly recommend "What Your Kindergartener Needs to Know".
Rating:
Summary: This is a really good "base" curriculum.
Review: This book covers all areas. It is extremely easy to use and my son really liked me reading from it. It isn't a complete curriculum in any area but gives you a good base in all of them. It doesn't really cover phonics at all but has a lot of good stories and nursery rhymes in it.
Rating:
Summary: Must Have!
Review: This book is a must have! You can use this book as a guide line for your child's education. I love it as a homeschooling parent. It is a great book to use as a guide for what your child should know at what grade level. It has language arts, history, fine arts, and more all in one book. It is worth the money! It tells you "how to use the book" it gives parents and teachers introductions on each subject. It's a great book! Highly recommended for parents!I have more of these books I would recommend this book to parents of the appropriate ages of the books.
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