Topic August babies and kindergarten

BlueJewelM · August 2014

So have you been asked about *gulp* school plans yet? The district here requires a child be 5 by September 1st to attend kindergarten. Most parents here start their summer bday kids a year later. We are waiting until the time comes to make the decision but I was wondering if any teachers had some insight on the topic.

I've already had 10 people ask what our plans are. Sheesh! He's only one! I haven't really given it much thought. But I thought I'd throw it out just for giggles. Sorry if it's been brought up...6 months ago.

pixiexkp · August 2014

I haven't been asked but I have 2 August babies and they will both start when they turn 5.

J&Jaggies06 · August 2014

As a 2nd and 3rd grade teacher I can say that 95% of my struggling kids had summer birthdays. Now that does not mean that just because a child was a summer birthday they were struggling though. Many parents say they don't start to see the differences until they are in 3rd grade then the gaps academically, socially, and physically start to become more apparent.

If you are debating when it gets closer, it is easier to start kinder later than the possibility of holding them back later.

My DH and I have are prepare to keep DD in daycare an extra year. Thinking very log term to high school and college. We don't want to have one of the youngest girls in the class or send basically a 17 year old to college.

EricaLee2013 · August 2014

As a kindergarten teacher, I see a huge difference between the LOs that just turned 5 and ones that are a little older. I will be waiting until my August baby turns 6 to start kindergarten unless I see that she's socially ready. My friends all say that I will have her ready bc I teach kindergarten but I'm hesitant if she's not socially old enough.

Michelle N · August 2014

Where I was raised, we went by calendar year. I have a December birthday, so I was 17 and going off to university. I wanted to do everything quickly, so I would have been really upset if my parents held me back.

There has to be a "youngest", so unless they are behind with their milestones, I wouldn't hold them back.

TeacherMom210 · September 2014

My mother held my sister and I back an extra year so that we wouldn't be the youngest in our classes. I can't see that it did any harm. We weren't summer babies, though. In our town, the cutoff was during the school year, and we just missed it. I haven't thought about it for DD yet.

BlueJewelM · September 2014

Mlc10811 said:
. Although, I have been asked twice. I was dumb founded and didn't really know how to answer at the time.

Right?!? I was too. DS1 is an august 2011 baby and I haven't decided for him...much less the august of 2013 baby.

ReggieLou13 · September 2014

Our cut off is in September. Our district offers TK (transitional kindergarten) for kids born after September 1st, so my November baby will start TK at , almost 5 and kindergarten at 5, almost 6

EmR22 · September 2014

Our school has a Sept 1 cut off but we also have early learner roundup where they "test" every child in the district during their 2nd and 3rd year to make sure they are prepared and mentally/ socially ready to start 4k which we have in our area. When they evaluate your child if they feel there is a lag they suggest early childhood classes which is through the school.

I think it's ridiculous to automatically hold a child back because of an august birthday. My 5 year old did just fine and so did my husband who has a very late august bday. I wouldn't want to hold back a child who is ready just so they won't be the youngest.

janneann1127 · September 2014

ReggieLou13 said:
Our cut off is in September. Our district offers TK (transitional kindergarten) for kids born after September 1st, so my November baby will start TK at , almost 5 and kindergarten at 5, almost 6

This. Our oldest will probably do TK but I have no idea about D yet. I will probably just wait til he is 4 and see how he's doing. I don't see any reason you need to make any decisions anytime soon!!
Fwiw, I am a late Nov birthday. Cutoff when I was a kid was Dec 1 so I was always way younger than the other kids in my class. Academically I was never behind. Socially, maybe. But in the end, it never really made any difference. But it did suck when all my friends turned 21 and I couldn't go to the bars with them.

BelhurstBride · September 2014

Our district has a December cutoff, so it won't effect us, but I really believe it depends on the child. (I say that as a parent and former early childhood educator.)

Here they do a screening in order to help determine a child's preparedness. You really should utilize those types of tools when making the decision on whether or not to hold a child back.

thoughtfulmommy · September 2014

Our schools go by the calendar year. DS will be four when he goes to kindergarten but fall babies will only be three (for a few months). Many kids are 17 when they go off to university here.

vulpini · September 2014

I don't know what the cut off in our district is. I think it changes.

EDIT: Just checked the website and they switched it from October 1st to September 1st this year and offer TK for kids born September 2nd to December 2nd. If the dates don't change again, DS will be eligible to start kindergarten at just barely 5.

We'll wait and see how he is socially when the time comes. If we're not sure, I'd rather hold him back in preschool. DH and I both did very well in school academically, so I doubt that starting earlier will be a problem for DS in that regard. In fact, if he is ready socially, it might be nice if he starts earlier and things don't always come super easily for him academically in elementary and middle school like it was for us - it's good for a kid to learn to have to work at things so that when things get harder at an older age, they aren't just overwhelmed and afraid to fail.

BlueJewelM · September 2014

It's nice to see so many responses! I've missed you all.

We haven't decided what we will do with either kiddo. The older one is in speech therapy. We found out he couldn't hear very well around 2 years old due to fluid in his ears, which obviously affected his speech/learning. So we are waiting until the time gets closer to decide for him. He's very intelligent and making great strides in his communication. Time will tell if he's ready or not. If we end up starting the older one late we will probably do the same with the younger one since they are pretty much exactly 2 years apart, and would rather they be 2 year apart in school as well. Not one.

I'll sit here and think of a new discussion. This was fun.

carrotcake06 · September 2014

I've given it a passing thought, but it really comes down to the kid and the family. It's a very individual decision and one that we don't have any way of saying w certainty what well do right now.

My big one is an April bday, so he'll go next fall 2015 after he turns 5. We only have half day K here and he's been in FT daycare/preschool for years so I'm not worried at all from that standpoint.

Since the twins were early, their bday is late June. Who knows, but I'd imagine I'd send them as a "young 5". They aren't currently in daycare but will be starting within the next year.

Anecdotally, I'm an Aug bday and went "young/on time" and I excelled in school and have always enjoyed it. MH is a Sept bday and went young also. My sister is Oct and did a pre-K year which was the right move for her since she wasn't emotionally ready. It just depends on the kid, really.

alexkylee · September 2014

seyah said:
I have an August birthday and always excelled in school. I don't plan on holding my LO back, but I don't feel like this is something anyone has to decide or even think about right now. When he's 4 then we'll determine how he's doing compared to the other kids his year in preschool.

This exactly. I was the youngest in every class and youngest in graduate school. I've gotten used to it and am so glad my parents started me at 5. We'll see when we get to that point but I prefer to start at 5.

Caz1221 · September 2014

It's really helpful to read all these answers. The cut-off in most of the towns around here is 8/31 or 9/1, so DD would either be just 5 or just 6. We're planning to assess once we get closer to decision time to see if she is ready (and to see if whatever town we end up in has a different cut-off).

catskitch · September 2014

I just had to double check the cutoff. cutoff is the end of the year, so as long as he turns 5 that year, he's eligible. I plan on pre-k at 4 yrs old though.

Slpafford · September 2014

DH and I recently touched on this subject and both decided we will wait until time gets closer to make any decisions and see how mature DS is at that time. I see pros and cons right now with either decision we would make. I started school when I was 4 and I was always the youngest person in my class all the way through college. I excelled in school both academically and socially. My brother on the other hand did not, I think it depends on the child. However, I do think holding DS back a year in the begining will be a better decision than possibly having to hold him back in later years because he is struggling. DH thinks it would help him be a leader and better in sports if he is one of the older children instead of the younger one on the team. We will see, we still have a lot of time ahead of us!

MitsB707 · September 2014

Our daycare has a pre-pre-k and a pre-k program that we intend on sending DS to. He will likely start kindergarten when he is 5. I don't see the big deal with starting college at 17. I did it. I was also always the youngest since I have a 12/31 birthday, and excelled in school.

Eta: I was 4 when I started kindergarten and turned 5 halfway through the school year.

MissyCee · September 2014

I hadn't even thought about it but I have no plans to hold DD back unless there's a huge reason to, which I definitely don't expect. I turned 5 when I was in kindergarten. I was younger than most kids, but I also was in advanced classes and did really well in school.

Khaleesi07 · September 2014

Interesting topic! We haven't given it too much though, although it's in the back of my mind, since her birthday is September 2nd--right after the cutoff date in most districts in our area. We plan on buying at some point in the couple of years, and it's something we need to consider, since the cut off date varies by town. We'll probably cross that bridge when we get there, but if we end up in a town where she misses the cutoff, I don't see a reason (at the moment) to fight it, or ask for testing.

kmr333 · September 2014

I wonder if gender may factor into this decision somewhere. It would definitely depend on the child, but girls tend to mature faster than boys. Some people also hold boys back so that they will be better in sports. I'm more worried about the mental maturity, but then again my child is probably going to be super slow, athletically speaking, considering the genes he likely inherited.

Caz1221 · September 2014

For anyone interested, here's an article on "redshirting" from the New Yorker (September 2013):

https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/youngest-kid-smartest-kid

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