Governments Making Push for Mandatory Kindergarten

Backed by HSLDA, homeschool parents across the country are taking a stand against policies that mandate kindergarten.

“Whether it’s compulsory kindergarten or the Common Core, more and more parents are realizing that the government wants more control over kids,” wrote Michael F. Haverluck in an article for OneNewsNow, “and many parents aren’t standing idly by as encroaching policies continue to usurp parental rights over their children’s education.”

In approximately 15 states, first grade students in public schools are currently required to have attended kindergarten. Now, recent cases in Ohio, West Virginia, and New York have attempted to expand those policies to include homeschoolers.

“This progressive agenda seeks to remodel the family, an institution that even the United Nations has recognized as the fundamental group unit of society,” wrote HSLDA in a response. “The family is where children are and ought to be raised. Parents, not government bureaucrats, are the ones who should make decisions about children’s education, health, eating, playing, socializing and all the rest.”

From its German origin, the word “kindergarten” literally means “children's garden.” This translation is the perfect analogy for the goal of kindergarten in a homeschool setting, where parents can plant the seeds for their children to grow in intellect and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.