I teach kindergarten. I have taught half-day kinder and I am currently teaching full-day kindergarten. I love kindergarten kids. They come to school so excited about school, new friends, and life in general. And at my school, I like full day kindergarten. But that is mostly because it is an at-risk school, meaning that most of our kids come from low income homes. That in and of itself isn't bad, but typically the parents have less education themselves. Many of my kids have little to no exposure to books prior to school. Some of their parents are functionally illiterate, even in Spanish, their primary language. I NEED the extra time to help them be ready for first grade. I need to try to cram all of that stuff into their little heads that mom and dad either didn't or couldn't. I know that in this forum, parents have strong feelings about to school or not to school. If you are actively involved in your child's education, at school or not, then that goes a LONG way towards insuring that your child gets the best education possible. Schools, would prefer to place your child where ever it is convenient for the school. They don't always have the best interest of your individual child at heart. They are trying to make the bigger picture work for the school as a whole. I would tell parents to check out the teachers, talk to other parents who have already had children in that grade and see who and what they like about the school and teachers. Don't be afraid to get pushy about what you think is best for your child. As much as I like and respect most of the teachers at my school, some of them I would not have teach my children or grandchildren. Some of that is because they are not strong teachers and some of that is because sometimes personalities clash. Some teachers are crappy teachers, and some are wonderful. You need to look out for the best interests of YOUR child.