Kindergarten was for two and a half-hours in the morning or afternoon. Learning social and language skills was the focus. Students were read to, but did not read. For most, it was their first time in school. Today, kindergarten provides a full school day of learning about subjects covered from grades first to fifth.
Students are ready to read and write in first grade.
Many of them have been in pre-school for three years. Even after-school has changed dramatically. Few youngsters go directly home. Instead, they attend after-care programs. Some go to childcare before school begins.