Starting Kindergarten or First grade-my son is 5.5 yrs in Sep 1st 2014 (Houston: credit, school districts)

[rj_nr]

I need a clear understanding about school admission age for a first grade.

My son turned 5 this Feb. Which gives us an option to put him to a kindergarten in September 1st 2014. But I have a question if he can join first grade instead of going to Kindergarten at the age of 5.5 yrs?

IF he is already in first grade in a different country and is moving to Houston, can he join first grade even he is 5.5 yrs?

Is their a test or any other option for us to go thru to get him to first grade?

Thanks

[MAROON79]

I know at 5 yrs old its hard to tell, but does your son have interest in sports now and do you see that as something he might want to pursue in high school? If so, put him in kindergarten in the fall.

the maturity differences of kids who start their freshmen year of high school at 14 yrs vs 15 yrs is striking. My son is a 15 year old sophomore and is just starting his growth spurt while many of his classmates will turn 17 this school year. Its been an upward climb for sports.

for academics there has been no issue at all.

[EasilyAmused]

Not to mention that parents have made holding their kids back a year a Texas Sport. Your child could be two years younger than his classmates in HS if you push him forward. Socially it's hard enough with one year difference in middle school. Two would be a disaster..

I'm just blown away at the number of freshmen HS students having drivers licenses.

[PedroMartinez]

We are holding our 5-year-old back to repeat kindergarten. He just has not matured to the same level as most of the other kids in his class.

I know a lot of parents hold their children back for sports, but that is not a factor for us. (Personally, I hope my kids are only interested in wakeboarding, wakesurfing and jetski riding)

Personally, I wouldn't want my child to be one of the younger children in his class. I feel that just opens them up to more social issues and stigmas. But, that's just my opinion.

Our daughter is at the right maturity level in comparison to the other kids in her class, so we never considered holding her back. She's in second grade.

[14Bricks]

Originally Posted by rj_nr

I need a clear understanding about school admission age for a first grade.

My son turned 5 this Feb. Which gives us an option to put him to a kindergarten in September 1st 2014. But I have a question if he can join first grade instead of going to Kindergarten at the age of 5.5 yrs?

IF he is already in first grade in a different country and is moving to Houston, can he join first grade even he is 5.5 yrs?

Is their a test or any other option for us to go thru to get him to first grade?

Thanks

The law is your child has to be five years old before sept 1 to enter kindergarten, and six before Sept 1, to enter first grade, and there are usally no exceptions.(My mother had to learn this the hard way since my birthday is in October). I did find this on the Katy ISD website, not sure if this applies to all Texas school districts.

First Grade

"To qualify for first grade, the child must reside in Katy ISD and be six years old on or before September 1 of the current school year. Exception: students who have been enrolled in the first grade or have completed kindergarten at an accredited public school in another state may be eligible to attend first grade."

Registration

[swopoe]

For a lot of schools, there is a firm cut off of 5 years old by September 1st for kindergarten. I would talk to your school district.

[Trae713]

My parents had the option of holding me back in kindergarten. I was just very young, with a late august birthday. Most people throughout school were almost a year older than me at least. When I was in hs, there were people 18 months older than me. You really don't notice it that much, until everyone is turning 18.