When is the right age to send your child to Kindergarten?

[MSPLove]

Originally Posted by redrunner+2

The danger in this is that they get to university but they have been coasting so they have to develop their study skills. I was young in my class and I still never had to try very hard in HS. I did the things you mention-- did a foreign exchange, took AP classes and then even took college courses at a local university, extracurriculars. Then I became a freshman at a large university and I had a tough adjustment.

It certainly would have been worse if I had waited a year to go to school. But I would not encourage my kids to coast. It does not serve you well in the real world.

Maybe "coast" isn't the right word. I mean since that's not an area where there is much of a struggle, the kid should just see it as a blessing and focus their energy instead on other areas of development.

I'm sure lot of other kids would love to devote more time to being in community theater or part of the band.... but they're struggling with their homework.

[BacktoCO]

Originally Posted by Kibbiekat

Interesting that you only mention size, not academics, not emotional or social maturity.

Of course the things you mention here are of more importance than size! Wow. Sorry if that is the way I came across. I thought that consideration to academics, social and emotional maturity is a given for any aware parent to consider and it has been discussed at length by previous posters. I was just trying to convey some of what my husband has communicated about being the smallest boy in the grade. He definitely feels it affected him- as shallow as it may be.

Also, both his younger brother and my younger brother had Fall birthdays and started at age 4 and were both held back. That really caused a great deal of emotional back lash for my brother and he still talks about "being held back" to this day! My point is, sometimes it is hard to know at age 4, 5 or 6 how an early start to kinder might affect the child later on down the road. But I agree with many who have posted here. It is definitely specific to the individual child. I have another friend who was not allowed to start her son in kinder and he has a Sept 3rd birthday. When he finally did start school he was a behavior problem because he was bored out of his mind. Turns out he is academically gifted but socially it would not have been good for him to have started earlier so the school was able to accomodate his needs by placing him in the Gifted and Talented program.