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<p>I believe it. A literate, well-educated individual, like any undertaking that requires a lot of step-by-step building, needs a strong foundation to support the stuff that comes later. If education in grades K through 3 is so inconsequential why even have it? Just start everyone off in the 4th grade at age 9, because kindergarten and the first three grades don’t matter, right?</p>
<p>Any kid going into the fourth grade with poor reading skills is already behind. That kid, with extra attention from parents and teachers and a good dose of self-motivation, may be able to overcome this deficit. But poor reading ability is certainly a ball and chain that is to no one’s advantage.</p>
<p>If an alum of the of the Blue Man School turns out in the end to be literate and well-educated, it will be much more in spite of his/her early education rather than because of it.</p>