{"id":323642,"date":"2025-08-06T22:35:32","date_gmt":"2025-08-06T22:35:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/323642\/"},"modified":"2025-08-06T22:35:32","modified_gmt":"2025-08-06T22:35:32","slug":"zookeepers-fail-to-get-stubborn-baby-hippo-out-of-the-water-then-mama-brings-the-stare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/323642\/","title":{"rendered":"Zookeepers fail to get stubborn baby hippo out of the water. Then mama brings ‘the stare.’"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s nothing new for parents to lament their kid\u2019s ever-growing list of school requirements. From piles of homework<\/a> to getting graded for school supplies<\/a>, the pressures seem to be not only racking up over time, but spreading to younger and younger grades. And it\u2019s not just parents<\/a> who have noticed the shift. <\/p>\n

Recently, longtime kindergarten teacher Ms. Kelli, of the TikTok<\/a> account @the_wondermint<\/a>, reflected on how different it is for students at even at the most introductory level: Kindergarten.<\/strong><\/p>\n

We all know how intense the pressure is for high schoolers looking to get into college. Two or three decades ago, SAT tutoring and prep courses were a luxury for wealthy families. Now they’ve viewed as essential<\/a>. But what’s taking parents, and teachers, off guard is how the elevated standards are trickling down to little kids who are barely out of diapers.<\/p>\n

In the clip, Kelli begins, \u201cSo I just gotta ask, as a 20-year kindergarten teacher myself, remember when we went to kindergarten that we just had to be potty trained and not eat the glue?\u201d Comparing that to the long list of requirements nowadays, the educator says she feels sorry for families going through it.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy heart breaks when I see all these videos of what do you need to do to prepare your child for kindergarten, and things your child must know before going to kindergarten, and these lists of things that parents need to be working on.\u201d<\/p>\n

One teacher agreed in a recent Reddit thread<\/a>: “When I first taught Kindergarten in Wisconsin in 2009 the standard was to count to thirty. By 2012, the standard had changed to one hundred.”<\/p>\n

\"kindergarten, Modern curriculums have teachers feeling like this. Giphy<\/a> <\/p>\n

Another parent chimed in: “Our kindergarten has them count to 100. Know 40 sight words by the end of kindergarten. Begins teaching reading and phonics … they learned to write their names within the first two weeks and are expected to do that and the date on every assignment. Each week they make a letter book for a different letter but they expected them to go into kindergarten knowing all their letters. They have math packet every week for take home. … I mean I love it, he\u2019s learning a lot but he does get quite a bit of work. Two packets do a week. So we do a page a night from each so it\u2019s done by Thursday night.”<\/p>\n

(Remember, these kids are about five years old. They can barely eat spaghetti without drenching themselves in pasta sauce, and we’re expecting them to sit down and do worksheets!)<\/p>\n

Another added, “My son\u2019s school routinely takes away recess. They do it if they don\u2019t get enough school work finished during the day, or if the class misbehaves too much, or one single child can get it taken away. It\u2019s also at the end of the day, so the kids are slaving away learning for six hours before maybe getting a break.”<\/p>\n

It’s not just the parents who are noticing, either. A study out of the University of Virginia<\/a> in 2016 found that kindergarten standards and curriculums at the time were far more similar to first grade curriculums from the previous decade. And the standards have only gotten higher since.<\/p>\n

Keli says she’s had enough. She argues that, \u201cHuman development hasn’t changed. What a five or six-year-old child is physically, mentally and developmentally able to do hasn’t changed, in all these years.\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n

Still, the standards have changed. And kids are paying the price.<\/p>\n

So she encourages fellow teachers and parents to not force the educational aspect.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe learning will come. The development will come, the ABCs, the one, two, threes, writing, all of it, it will come … Curriculum, it will happen. The learning, it will happen,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

@the_wondermint<\/a><\/p>\n

Little bit of a plea and PSA for the day\u2026 let them be kids! #teachersontiktok #teachertok #teachersoftiktok #iteachk #kindergarten #ilovekindergarten #iloveteaching #foryoupage #teacherforyoupage #fypage #teacherfyp #playbasedlearning #seethewonderkeepitfresh #handsonlearning #reggioemilia #letthemexplore #parentsontiktok #parentsoftiktok #kindergartenparents #kinderprep #backtoschool<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Instead of placing more pressure, Kelli suggests a gentler, simpler approach.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet them play, let them socialize with each other. Let them learn to be away from their mommy and daddy and be sad for a little bit and be comforted. Let them find friendships that are gonna make them laugh so hard that their bellies ache and tell stories that go home. Let them create something that they never thought they could. Let them do an art project where they turn a box into a robot and they\u2019re so excited to show their parents!\u201d<\/p>\n

In short: \u201clet kids be kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kelli\u2019s video seemed to really resonate with parents and teachers alike, who have definitely felt like certain aspects of childhood have been sacrificed in the name of \u201cproductivity.\u201d Especially when it comes to homework.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes! My son struggled in Kindergarten last year and even had homework! I could not believe what all he had to know. Teacher said he had a hard time paying attention\u2026 yeah he is 5!\u201d one mom shared.<\/p>\n

\u201cFinally someone said it,\u201d added another. \u201cThe curriculum is insane for elementary school kiddos. They have absolutely lost their childhood.\u201d<\/p>\n

One person noted that \u201cthe kindergarten report card used to be things like skipping, walking on a balance beam, the hardest thing was counting to 100.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"kindergarten, Learning to skip used to be the hardest part of kindergarten. Giphy<\/a> <\/p>\n

As for whether or not a more academic-focused approach to kindergarten is, in fact, less beneficial to kids\u2014 a 2019 study in the American Educational Research Journal<\/a> did find that it led to improvements, both academic and interpersonal, in the long run.<\/p>\n

But that doesn\u2019t necessarily mean we need to load them up with a ton of work for after school. Another study<\/a> reported that elementary school students, on average, are assigned three times the recommended amount of homework.<\/p>\n

This is why Kelli created a follow up video sharing why she doesn\u2019t assign homework to her own students.<\/p>\n

@the_wondermint<\/a><\/p>\n

Replying to @Drea_keevs Controversial but yet it shouldn\u2019t be\u2026 5 year olds should not be doing homework! Talk as a family, snuggle and read, enjoy their favorite sport activity, have a dance party! Their days are filled inside school, make the time outside of school good for their hearts and souls! #t#teachersontiktokt#teachertokt#teachersoftiktoki#iteachkk#kindergarteni#ilovekindergarteni#iloveteachingf#foryoupaget#teacherforyoupagef#fypaget#teacherfypp#playbasedlearnings#seethewonderkeepitfreshh#handsonlearningr#reggioemilial#letthemexploreparentsontiktok #parentsoftiktok #parentingtips #homework #homeworkhelp<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cWe are covering what we\u2019re covering in the five or six hours with these little babies, and if we can\u2019t cover that in that time, we\u2019re definitely not gonna get the best out of them at 5, 6 o\u2019clock at night when they\u2019re tired and they should be enjoying time with their family,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

She does, however, advocate trying to instill a \u201clove of reading,\u201d if you can count that as homework. But even then, that assignment looks more like snuggling in bed, cozying up with a book, and having their parents read it to them.<\/p>\n

Point being: of course school is meant to help set up students for success. But if it robs them of their precious, formative, and oh-so-temporary childhood, then is it really worth it?<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared last year. It has been updated.<\/p>\n