Wondering About Getting My 4 Year Old into Kindergarten

I'm not sure about Arlington, but Fairfax County answer would be no way. My two oldest kids have been in advanced programs, honors, etc. since elementary school (now in 7th and 11th grades.) They are the youngest in their classes. We really wanted to get them out of day care so we started them when they were eligible. They're also very athletic. We wish we would have waited a year to start both of them. They'll only be 17 when they start college. I have a third child. Her birth is the first week in Oct. We tried to get her to start early and the answer was no even though it was only one day past the cutoff. We put her in a day care kindergarten program. She thrived, but we chose to keep her in kindergarten the next year to bond that first year in public school. School was easy and we just worked with her reading skills at home. She's the oldest in her class and enjoys learning. She'll be 18, almost 19 when she graduates. Good luck ...keep kids interested in reading!

Hi L.! If you have your heart set on getting your daughter into school early then don't listen to me. I just wanted to give my opinion/experience in case it might help in some way. My oldest daughter turned 7 on August 28th - we sent her when she was eligible so she is now in 2nd grade. While she is doing just fine, academically and socially, I still worry a ton about whether or not I made the right choice. Soooooo many people in Northern VA hold their July/August/September kids, so now I am finding that the majority of my daughter's friends have already turned 8. She is small for her age anyway, so the difference between her and her classmates seems even bigger. In hind sight I probably should have held her back. She'll do just fine the way she is, but I feel like she would've been a better leader if she'd been more on the older side.

I have a second daughter who turned 5 on November 9th. She missed the school cut off by 5 weeks, so she'll start kindergarten next year. At first I was disappointed about that (we recently moved from NY where the cut off is December 1) because I would have liked my girls to be two years apart in school. But now I see that my younger one is actually at an advantage. She'll be almost 6 when she starts next year (and it sounds crazy but there will be SEVERAL kids older than she) and I just feel like she's ready to take on the world! I can't imagine sending my 4 year old to kindergarten with kids who turned 6 over the summer. I worry enough about my older daughter!

So that's that. Good luck with whatever you decide to do (or whatever the county lets you do!)

K.

Hi,
What kind of daycare is she in? She may be ready emotionally and socially, but what about academically? You should talk to the daycare provider to get their input, and if they also feel she's ready, you have to contact the school district about getting her tested.

In what kind of daycare has she been?