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A lot of kids turn six after starting kindergarten. If the NYC cut-off is October 1, then he should attend kindergarten by reason of his birth date. I think you should follow through OP, let him have that extra year.
There is no cutoff in NYC. There is one for his catholic school. He is transferring to public school. Therefore, they want to push him forward to 1st grade. I do not want that.
I know my sons were not ready for 1st grade at the age of not-quite-six, and it had nothing to do with the workload. They still needed a lot of movement and playing at that age.
I know my sons were not ready for 1st grade at the age of not-quite-six, and it had nothing to do with the workload. They still needed a lot of movement and playing at that age.
That is my major concern that he is not quite mature. The public school system at least by me doesn't like to deal with that too much and will jump to labeling him.
most kids even who have gone to kindergarten are not mature enough for first grade, nor can they sit for hours. give it a chance and see how he does. he may surprise you!
I agree. Pre-k and K are the same except for a few minor details. I kinda wish my kids could have skipped kindergarten because they learned all the same stuff in pre-k so they were bored.
I started reading the newspaper before I attended kindergarten and I was totally bored when the very basic reading sessions were going on in the room. The socializing and crafts, not to mention the snacks, were OK though.
Only you know your son and if you think he is not mature enough then you already know the answer to your own question...a bunch of strangers on a forum that have never met your child don't really know what's best in this situation...
I started reading the newspaper before I attended kindergarten and I was totally bored when the very basic reading sessions were going on in the room. The socializing and crafts, not to mention the snacks, were OK though.
Kindergarten has changed dramatically since you were in school. In fact K has changed dramatically in just the last five years and it was already extremely academic at that point.
Even many Junior Kindergarten (4 year olds), in my area, do not have crafts, art projects, socializing or group snacks any more. And, at least in my area, it is very, very rare to have those things in kindergarten either (unless it is a craft directly related to a writing, reading or math curriculum goal).
Kindergarten gave up "free choice time" (playtime) about ten years ago (in my area). It is expected that children could play on their own time (ie. at home).
If he has been going to school this is a non-issue.
Kindergarten is important only for kids that have been home, the center of attention, and have no skills or experience in group settings. I can assure you, going to a pre-K Catholic school, he will have no problems, and will probably be ahead, socially, of many kindergarten grads.
When and where I grew up, 'kindergarten' was unheard of/unkown (AFAIK). "Pre-K"? Fuhgeddaboudit. Schooling didn't start until 1st grade...but then again, most mothers stayed home to take care of the kids and public-funded daycare wasn't needed.
I started 1st grade when I was 5. It wasn't an issue for me, nor was starting right off in 1st grade an issue for anyone, that I know of.
Quite frankly, I think that pushing kids into schooling too soon is a bad thing. I think kids need time to just be kids and being foisted off into a structured learning environment too early, under the guise of giving them a "head start", does more harm than good.
Kindergarten has changed dramatically since you were in school. In fact K has changed dramatically in just the last five years and it was already extremely academic at that point.
Even many Junior Kindergarten (4 year olds), in my area, do not have crafts, art projects, socializing or group snacks any more. And, at least in my area, it is very, very rare to have those things in kindergarten either (unless it is a craft directly related to a writing, reading or math curriculum goal).
Kindergarten gave up "free choice time" (playtime) about ten years ago (in my area). It is expected that children could play on their own time (ie. at home).
Similar in Minnesota. Kindergarteners are pushed academically here, nothing like it was ten and certainly 30 years ago. Those who come in to kindergarten w/o pre-k that included rote academics (reading, writing, addition, subtraction, colors, shapes, etc.), language skills and some exposure to arts and music will find themselves behind others (old report, from 2010: file:///Users/Techno/Desktop/downloads/Full%20Report-%20Accessible.pdf).
In Minnesota, full-day kindergarten at public schools is now state-funded. Our governor pushed hard to fund pre-k in this session, but bailed on it (despite support among voters, it was a concession he made in getting the overall budget passed in an extra special session).
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