To cultivate joyful and resilient futures for children by developing and providing ethical, personalized AI tools that support emotional, social, and cognitive growth.
It was one of those evenings. An idea sparked, and I just had to run with it. The concept was simple: a clean, fun, and straightforward web app for kids to practice basic addition and subtraction. No frills, no complicated sign-ups, just pure, simple math. I wanted to see if I could go from a thought to a functional product in just a few hours. This is the story of that little coding sprint.
The website is already online at MathWhiz. In the beginning I used Gemini Pro 2.5 in AI studio to make it happen. However, when things gets more and more complicated, I went ahead to integrate with VS Code to work on more complicated structures.
“vibe code” is about perfect, scalable, enterprise-level architecture. With a few promts I am able to get a prototype working. However, AI is not perfect. When I am trying to replace the SVG generated giraffs with a png image, it didn’t work immediately. However, I ask Gemini to debug, but it kept doing stupid things by changing the directly of the image again and again and without resolving the real problem: it turns out the picture was broken somehow. At last, we spend time to manually carefully investigate and found the root cause.
While program specifics can vary, high-quality public school districts like the Cupertino Union School District (CUSD) provide a standardized, academically consistent curriculum for kindergarten. CUSD’s foundational program is meticulously aligned with the rigorous California Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards, employing a holistic approach designed to cultivate confident, curious, and lifelong learners.
The CUSD curriculum focuses on core academic and developmental areas, preparing students to become deep, critical thinkers and strong communicators. The primary focus areas for the kindergarten and elementary grades include: English Language Arts (ELA), Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, and Fine Arts/Physical Education, all supported by a strong emphasis on Social Emotional Learning (SEL).
The CUSD curriculum focuses on core academic and developmental areas, preparing students to become deep, critical thinkers and strong communicators. The primary focus areas for the kindergarten and elementary grades include: English Language Arts (ELA), Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, and Fine Arts/Physical Education, all supported by a strong emphasis on Social Emotional Learning (SEL).
IXL aligns its content to the Common Core State Standards and also to the specific educational standards of all 50 U.S. states Zern is a similar website.
English Language Arts (ELA)
The comprehensive English Language Arts (ELA) program is aligned with the California Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and centered on the five pillars of phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. The development of early literacy skills is essential, as is ongoing assessment to personalize instruction and monitor progress.
The CCSS for Kindergarten ELA is structured around four major strands: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, and Language. Specifically, the CUSD curriculum aims for students to master the following foundational skills:
Print Concepts: Demonstrate understanding of the organization and basic features of print, including following words from left-to-right, recognizing that spoken words are represented by sequences of letters, and naming all upper- and lowercase letters.
Phonological Awareness: Demonstrate understanding of spoken words, syllables, and sounds (phonemes). This includes recognizing and producing rhyming words, blending/segmenting syllables and onsets/rimes, and isolating the initial, medial vowel, and final sounds in three-phoneme (CVC) words.
Phonics & Word Recognition: Apply grade-level phonics knowledge by producing the primary sound for each consonant, associating long and short sounds with the five major vowels, and reading common high-frequency words by sight (e.g., the, of, to).
Writing & Language: Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and early writing to compose narratives and informative texts. Students are guided to use frequently occurring nouns, verbs, and prepositions, and to start capitalizing the first word in a sentence and the pronoun ‘I’.
Mathematics
CUSD’s kindergarten mathematics program is guided by the California Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for Mathematics. The program blends content standards with mathematical practices, focusing on three foundational domains with concrete, measurable outcomes (examples can be found here):
Counting & Cardinality: Students master number names, counting sequences, and the one-to-one correspondence principle, achieving the core goal of counting fluently to 100 by the end of the year.
Operations & Algebraic Thinking: Foundational arithmetic is introduced, allowing students to solve addition and subtraction word problems and fluently add and subtract within 5. Students are also expected to solve problems using objects or drawings within the larger scope of 10.
Geometry: Focuses on identifying, describing, and comparing basic two- and three-dimensional shapes, as well as describing object positions using terms like above, below, and beside.
For families in the Silicon Valley, the choice between public and private kindergarten is rarely simple—especially when situated within a high-achieving public district like the Cupertino Union School District (CUSD). While CUSD guarantees access to top-ranked, rigorous public schools, this very environment often prompts parents to seek alternatives that offer smaller class sizes, specialized curricula, or unique philosophical alignments.
It is important to note that CUSD public schools follow a standardized curriculum and share a high degree of academic consistency. Conversely, the private school landscape is extremely diverse, with each institution offering a unique philosophy, from intense academics to religious or specialized curricula. The table below shows the factors for overall considerations.
Factor
Public School
Private School
1. Cost & Funding
Free (Tuition-Free). Funded by local taxes and state funds.
Significant Tuition. Private kindergarten tuition in the South Bay can vary from $22,000 – $45,000 annually. Financial aid is available.
2. Academic Quality
Exceptional & Rigorous. CUSD schools consistently rank among the top public elementary schools in California. The curriculum is highly accelerated and the environment is often described as competitive due to the high-achieving student body.
High & Specialized. Curriculum can be tailored, often accelerating academics or incorporating specific philosophies. They do not have to adhere strictly to state standards.
3. Class Size & Attention
Larger Ratios. Typically follow district/state ratios, often in the 22:1 to 26:1 range in the main district schools.
Smaller Ratios. This is a primary selling point. Ratios are often lower, sometimes 15:1 or even less, allowing for more individualized attention and quicker identification of needs or advanced abilities.
4. Educational Philosophy
Standardized & Balanced. Follows California state standards, focusing on core literacy, math, and social-emotional learning (SEL).
Flexible & Mission-Driven. Schools can choose a specific pedagogical approach (like project-based learning, inquiry-based, or strong arts focus). Religious schools integrate faith into the daily curriculum.
5. Special Needs Support
Mandated & Comprehensive. Public schools are federally required to provide services (IEPs, special education, speech therapy) at no cost.
Limited/Variable. They may offer excellent support in-house, but generally do not have the same breadth of mandated public services. If requires formal special education services, the public system is usually better equipped.
6. Community & Diversity
Broad & Diverse. Reflects the socioeconomic and cultural makeup of your neighborhood and the greater Cupertino community, notably featuring a very high proportion of Asian students (around 70%+ in the district).
Selective & Homogeneous. The community is often defined by those who can afford (or receive aid for) the tuition and share the school’s specific mission/values (e.g., faith, academic pace).
The inspiration for this site is deeply personal. As a mom with a three-year-old and a one-year-old, I’ve spent countless hours searching for clear, comprehensive resources to guide my children’s early education. It’s a scattered, frustrating process—relying on disconnected tips from social media, friends, and late-night Google searches.
I started this blog because I recognized the need for a single, organized place where parents could find the complete, shared experience of another mother navigating these same waters. This site is where I record the essential knowledge and decision-making framework for my kids’ education, transforming my personal journey into a publicly beneficial resource for every parent on a similar path.
