The Huffington Post – Stephanie Dua and Keith Meacham 
School starts back up in a few short weeks, and the youngest students will embark on an entirely new adventure – kindergarten. As they stock up on newly-sharpened pencils and colorful lunchboxes, many parents are wondering, “is my child really ready for this first big educational step, and what does it mean to be kindergarten-ready anyway?” According to the National Center for Education Statistics, students enter kindergarten at very different skills levels, which is natural given that children may be coming from a variety of early childhood experiences, ranging from highly-skills-focused pre-K programs, play-based preschools, Head Start, or no preschool at all. An average kindergarten class may have children with a five-year range of reading ability, from children who don’t recognize letters or letter sounds to those who can read short books. This range makes the kindergarten teacher’s job particularly challenging. But it’s also perfectly normal.(more)