Kindergarten for Aug 30th Birthday Boy (teachers, classes, reservations)

[toot68]

Our son (now in 6th grade) was an August birthday and we started him in school at age 5, and we have regretted it. He acts young relative to his peers, and socializes much better with kids a year younger. This has been more pronounced in the last couple years as opposed to his first few years in school.

He had an enormous vocabulary and great communication skills leaving preschool, so we thought he was more than ready, but really struggled getting going with reading and writing relative to his peers...his reading has now caught up and he's a grade level or two ahead now, but the writing is still a grade level behind. Its been a struggle, and he is aware that he struggles with things relative to others in his class which makes it harder.

So if you are on the fence, particularly on the social end of things, we'll throw a word of caution out there.

[sonderella]

I started my July birthday child "on time" at the advice of preschool teachers, and she's done great. She's in 4th now, no problems at all. She's happy, popular, at the time of her class academically.

On the other hand, my February birthday child would have been a disaster if he'd had to start right at age 5. Luckily for us, his birthday was such that he had another 6 months to mature (school started in August) and in that extra time, he improved a lot.

I really think it can go either way, depending on the individual child. From OP's description, it would seem that this particular kid would be fine to start.

[koolstar16]

thanks for the input

[Trishyluna]

Hi,
People tend to focus on the younger years when assessing whether a child should start K . I think an important thing to remember is the later years. My husband was a late Oct birthday and started K when he was 4, therefore, he graduated HS when he was 17. This also meant that he started college when he was 17. For some kids, that is fine and well as they are mature enough. When it was time for college, his family suggested taking a year off for travel or work but he really wanted to go. Now, he looks back and realizes that they were correct and he should've taken that year. It is hard to reason with a 17 year old about putting off college (and freedom and parties and girls) for a year. Its much easier to start a bit later and then you are prepared, especially if your child tends to be a bit more immature than their peers. But, for many, especially boys, another year could make a huge difference. My daughter (now 13) had a late Oct birthday as well. At the time our public school had a Dec 31 cutoff. We decided to hold her back primarily thinking of the later years. When she is just turning 15, she could easily have friends getting licenses, etc. Sometimes there is a huge differences in maturity between an almost 14 year old and an almost 16 year old. I would rather know that my child may be a bit more mature when navigating the difficult terrain of the adolescent and young adult years. Just a thought.

[TarHeelNick]

Redshirt....always redshirt when they are close the cutoff...especially for boys. I've been working in youth development for years... the youngest ones in the grade always have more stress and anxiety and it carries on through high school and college! They won't get their learners permit/drivers license until almost a year after all their friends....won't be able to go to the bars for their 21st until a year after all his friends either haha ( I joke but it is a milestone!)

[enTERPRising]

Unfortunately, this is probably only a trial by error situation - people can only chime in on their own experience or things they've heard or read, which can only serve as a measuring stick.

I think teachers are the best source and judges. At the preschool, I would safely assume they've faced these questions before...and, if there was a dissatisfied parent, I'm sure they've heard about it and tweaked their evaluation process over it.

Here's something to think about...you can always hold the child back once you start the journey. But, it has become very rare these days for children to skip grades. (Funny going back to my first paragraph) but I've "heard" from many a parent who's children were "advanced" that they had to pull them out of the school for another solution (private school, homeschooling, etc.) The underlying principal I've "heard" is that since the inception of "No child left behind", classrooms can now only progress as quickly as the "slowest" child. In some cases, if it's become too drastic, they will discuss dropping the slowest student down a grade.

Also, while I understand the age thing, nowadays, it's become more and more clear that parental involvement is playing a big role in development. For example, while this child may be one of the youngest, they could already be one of the best readers, etc. At this age, the "decision" to move up is based on factors as reading, math, and BEHAVIOR (including the social aspects). If they want another opinion, they could probably set up an eval session with the actual Kindergarten teacher at the school. But again, teachers are probably your best outside influence for this decision.

[rnc2mbfl]

I started kindergarten the year I turned 5 and it wasn't until September. I was totally on the small side of kids as well and I had absolutely no issues whatsoever. Even though it meant that my first month in college was as a 17 year old, I am absolutely grateful that my parents didn't take a year away from my earning years post college by keeping me back.

[jelenap]

I started school a year earlier and had no problems whatsoever due to that. Did much better academically than most kids in class, even though some were almost 2 years older. After school, the extra year helped me to better understand what I really wanted to do. I dropped from one major and re-enrolled in another. Did perfectly fine with my life, I think. Really glad my parents did not hold me back.

Note: I was a girl and I already read fluently when started school (was bored out of my mind for 3 years). I was 3rd tallest in class. There were some awkward moments later, e.g. when other girls got their period etc. but I had good friends who never gave me any hard time because of such differences. IMHO it's never too late to hold back, but you won't get another chance of an early start. Good luck!

[Sal_M]

Originally Posted by rnc2mbfl

I started kindergarten the year I turned 5 and it wasn't until September. I was totally on the small side of kids as well and I had absolutely no issues whatsoever. Even though it meant that my first month in college was as a 17 year old, I am absolutely grateful that my parents didn't take a year away from my earning years post college by keeping me back.

Same situation here. I started kindergarten at 4 did not turn 5 for three months. Started college at age 17. I don't feel that I was at any disadvantage. Due to the 8/31 cut off here, even summer birthdays are 5 by the time they start on the traditional calendar.

[CVAlicia]

Several people have posted that being sent to kindergarten young worked fine for them. Don't forget that kindergarten now is like first grade then. There is little play time. It's worksheets and more worksheets and you better be able to read just a few weeks in to school. I have asked a young (July birthday) neighbor of mine how kindergarten is going, and every time she gives a very half-hearted, "Fine."

I actually skipped kindergarten, and while I technically did great throughout my school years, I will never know how being the youngest affected me in other ways. If you are looking for confidence and leadership, pushing kids a year early might not be the best idea.