I already was reading at around age 4. Nobody taught me I just wanted to have access to the stories whenever I wanted. Kindergarten was a blast, except for naps. We played, learning to use our hands and imaginations with clay, paints, crayons and other crafty stuff.
1st grade was not so much fun for me because of reading. I was reading several grade levels above the Dick and Jane and Spot primer. It was so BORRRRIIINNNNNG! So I learned to read upside down. When the teacher noticed she said calmly with a note of concern in her voice for me to read aloud next. I keep the book upside down and continued to read better than all the kids before me. Next came, "Turn that book rightly and read!" I complied and continued to read while thinking "I could read this sideways, I could close the book and know were this stupid story is going" but I continued to read.
All of my fellow students were reading to grade level soon and continued to get better. When they started pushing kids to read in preschool and kindergarten I think certain manual skills are not as developed. And don't get me started about math skills. I know kids in 7th and 8th grade who can work a quadratic equation but can't divide 84 into 1948 without the help of a calculator.
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