Is ”kumon” Compulsory ?

Discussion in 'Education & Personal Growth' started by anika987, Sep 21, 2019.

  1. anika987

    anika987 IL Hall of Fame

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    My daughter is six and she is doing what needs to be done academically.Her homework she does herself and concepts she mostly understands.Most parents around have already enrolled their kids in kumon at the age of 4..is kumon mandatory?will my kid fall behind in education?

    Has all you IL ladies have enrolled your kids in kumon?
     
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  2. rgz

    rgz Gold IL'ite

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    Nothing is mandatory! You make an assessment and if she is doing well already, then its fine. If you always worry about “what others are doing”, then its one after another. Go with how she is doing.
     
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  3. abcd5

    abcd5 Silver IL'ite

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    Kumon does get repetitive, kids normally don’t enjoy doing it. Now my son goes to the best brain and it really helps him.If you don't mind kids spending time on the computer there are a lot of resources online

    khan academy( free)
    IXL $20/month
    testing mom
     
  4. Laks09

    Laks09 Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    OMG Anika! You didn’t put her in kumon yet? :fearscream::fearscream::fearscream: How will she go to Stanford if you don’t do kumon starting at age 3?? Now you have to make do with state schools. It’s too late now:coldsweat:
     
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  5. Laks09

    Laks09 Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    Sorry, couldn’t resist. Hope you take it in the right spirit.

    Anika - I’m not sure what others will say. I didn’t do any classes. Just taught her myself. I have a masters in math though so didn’t think anyone was better qualified than me to teach.
    The only issues I’ve had are with dealing with a teen who thinks mom knows nothing or she knows better. When it got to a point where I was taking 2 hrs to teach a 30 mins lesson in the junior year or high school, I decided enough was enough and hired a tutor. Such a relief. Should have done it sooner.
    From my experience, in elementary age, you should be teaching her. It’s a bonding experience too. When they are in MS and topics get harder you can revisit tutors etc.
    Do Additional math with ixl and khan. I teach my son also after watching khan videos. They are really good.
     
  6. armummy

    armummy Platinum IL'ite

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    My kids go to Kumon. it is not compulsory , there are lots of kids who do well without kumon.

    But I am short on time and cannot spend hours searching internet to find good study material. So it helps us to have a routine of doing something more than school work regularly.

    If considering kumon I do
    Recommend English , which is very good

    Math is very repetitive , so later it will become a chore to make the child do the work.
     
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  7. mangaii

    mangaii Finest Post Winner

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    Pros
    1. Consistent practice instills discipline
    2.In Elementary they don't have much HW. You can use the time for cooking when the kid is doing K
    3.It helps them to think faster with numbers
    4.It is not expensive
    5.Some kids graduate and start working there during HS
    6.There is not contract involved. You can stop and start whenever you want.

    Cons
    1.It is repetitive. Some kids may not enjoy it
    2.If you are involved parent there are many online courses available and with little monitoring from parents , kids can learn way more stuff. But for this both the parties should have patience
    3.You can get the books from amazon and do the same thing at home. You will save money but this needs discipline from both kids and parents.

    The success of any program is determined by the parents and the kids. There is something good to walk away from everything. I would always say give it a try before making a decision. You can make the logistics and financial decision related to activities but your kid's interest will finally decide if she wants to continue
     
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  8. Vedhavalli

    Vedhavalli Platinum IL'ite

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    @anika987 are you my other personality???
    Lol.
    Kumon not necessary. I heard it gives them a disciplined and regulated learning time.
    Last month I went to Kumon, mathisum, aloha &other learning accelerating coaching centers by week.
    IMO it's take toll on parents than child, to complete homework n commute, waiting time. And kids get bored.
    Pls choose based on your child's interest and your time

    I live in bay area as you are, I know the parental pressure. (That's another thread)

    Pls try out online options
    1) Pinterest
    2) Instagram hashtags
    3) ThinkCentral
    4) Starfall apps
    5) abcmouse.com
    6) teachers pay teachers
    7) homeschoolers websites
    8) worksheets.com
    9) Open Maths Works for Grades K-6 – MathEngines
    10) beestar
    11) YouTube videos for ideas and learning skills.
    You have to invest time and print, regulate and operate with kid. It's lot better than sending to learning centers
    Pls find out math, reading, spelling bee other type of fun based competitions than fighting competitions with other moms.
    I will soon start a thread for learning resources for K-6 !
    Where we all can update the various specific resources and learn from each other.
    "Kattradhu Kai Mann alavu, kalladhadhu ulagalavu" - known is a drop unknown is ocean.
    Let's jump in ocean with ILs
     
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  9. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    Any academic or other activities done outside of school are for enrichment. Unless the child is struggling to keep up in class which rarely happens in elementary school.

    Kumon - the system is last century. It used to be the de facto math enrichment for asian-american kids born till the turn of the century. Over the last 20 years, many more options have come up. The classes are in-person, online (live), online (at your own pace), and more. I have heard of Mathnasium, Eye Level, Singapore Math Online. All of these have structured curriculum and beyond a casual eye on the kid's progress, parents do not have to research and find worksheets etc.

    Read up on what it takes to start a Kumon franchise and what are requirements of any hired staff to understand what instruction and teaching the owner and/or other staff there can deliver to the child.
     
    Last edited: Sep 21, 2019
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  10. nuss

    nuss Platinum IL'ite

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    Anika- my son is also six years old. We didn’t put him in any extra classes- Kumon etc. His teacher made accounts on A to Z kids and Khan academy for all students and provided login information to the parents. We haven’t used any of these online resources yet. Instead we use a lot of other options. Multiplication table, addition and subtraction flash cards, board games that make him think like sums in space and tiny polka dots cards etc.
    His teacher put him in accelerated class so he is taking math class with second graders. Instead of doing repetitive homework, we try to make learning fun and do math and spellings during cooking or bath time.

    So, to answer your question, no, Kumon is not mandatory.
    We didn’t put him in many classes anyway. He does gymnastics once a week, Spanish class at school (after school once a week) and ski during winter time.
     
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