In a very "duh" moment recently, I discovered that apparently kindergarten is not required in most US states. In fact, apparently only 15 states require it, and I live in one of them (VA). My first reaction was "wtf, I can't believe most states don't require kindergarten!" but then the more I thought about it, and the barrage of news recently on how competitive and not little kid friendly (no play, long sitting times, etc.) the education system is becoming, I actually started wondering if kindergarten might be more a problem than an advantage.

So, just wondering what the others think on this, especially if you're in a state that doesn't require K (table here - http://www.centerforpubliceducation.org/Main-Menu/Organizing-a-school/Starting-Out-Right-Pre-K-and-Kindergarten/Kindergarten-requirements-by-state.pdf- in case you're curious).