My son’s birthday is July 5th. He turned 5 and started kindergarten right after. He is doing just great! He loves school. Today is Monday and their school is half days on every Monday. On the way to school this morning I was telling my kids “remember today is an early day, so I will be here after lunch”. My son said “aw man! I wish it was Tuesday so it was a full day!”. He LOVES school, his teacher and his friends. He is doing great and is right where he should be. I have no regrets at all about sending him at 5 years old. So far this year he has been invited to 3 birthday parties for 6 years olds in his class. I told him, we will have to send your birthday invites out about a week before school gets out since he won’t be 6 until July, lol!
My son’s birthday is July 18th. We kept him back, gave him an extra year of preschool, and I am very glad that we did. His kindergarten was full day – there was no half day option – and he was very young for his age. It was the best decision we have made in his education, and I have never heard anyone regret keeping them back.
My son has a late July birthday, and the cut-off here is Sept 1. We did not send him, and it was absolutely the right decision for him. He is in kindergarten this year and overall doing very well.
Preschool was a huge help in making our decision. We did send him for two years (first year two mornings a week, second year three mornings a week). He was timid at first but soon found his way and loved preschool. He made friends, had playdates, etc. His teachers said he was very bright and thought he was right on track. During his second year we (my husband and I and the teachers) all began to notice maturity issues. It started becoming noticeable that he was the youngest in the class.
Our school has kindergarten screenings and (thankfully) has a Transitional Kindergarten (TK) class. When I took our son for the screening, my husband made me promis that I would wait and see what the school had to say. They did recommend him for TK, and we gladly accepted. He loved TK last year, and is in Kindergarten now. So glad he had that extra year, and so glad it was at the same school.
I talked to so many parents in the year or so before he turned 5. I talked to parents of young kids and parents of junior high and high school students. Some said they were so glad they had sent their kids right away. Some said they wished they had waited. Some said everything seemed fine at first but they started to notice in 3rd grade or 7th grade that their child really wasn’t as mature as his/her peers.
Not one person said, “We waited a year to send him/her, and it was a mistake.”
Preschool will be a huge help. Seeing her with her peers will really help you know whether or not this is her ideal age group. Academic readiness is important, but I truly believe maturity and social maturity is much more important. She can be ready academically (knows her ABC’s or counts to 20 or knows her shapes or whatever), but if she doesn’t fit in with her peers or has meltdowns or has trouble listening to her teacher, that’s something that shows she’s not ready. These are the things you want to notice.
There are quite a few young kindergarteners in my girls’ kindergarten class. Tons of July and August birthdays (the cutoff is Sept 1). There were even two five year old birthday parties in the class after it started on Aug 15. I’ve talked to a lot of the parents and they’re all pretty happy with the choice they made to send their kids at 5. The only parents I know in the class who are unhappy are actually the parents of the oldest girl in the class. She turned 6 right before K started (they chose to hold her out) and she is a full head taller than everyone else and feels completely awkward.
It used to be “the thing” to hold your child out, but all the research shows now that it’s not the best thing for many kids. It’s still awesome for children who are very academically or socially behind, but for the kids in the middle – even if they’re mama’s girls – getting them in school with kids their own age is the best thing you can do. Besides, if she’s going to do a year of preschool she’ll be all ready by K.
When I was in school, the cut off was Dec 31st so kids with Sept - Dec birthday started when they were 4 turning 5. It was the norm. My birthday is late July so I had just turned 5 a month before starting school. No problems…I actually did very well.
My son’s birthday is Oct and he was ready for school but had a horrible teacher for K and not great ones for 3-5 so they sort of turned him off from school and I have fought that for a long time. I don’t think it was his age as the other kids in his K class were having the same problems regardless of their birthdate…yes, teacher was that bad.
The laws have changed and the cut off is August 30th now. My daughter was basically ready when she was 3 turning 4 but with a Dec birthday couldn’t start for two more years. She is striving and doing well (but she would have last year too).
In your case, I would only hold your daughter back if she was having real problems (either socially or academically) in preschool and the teachers (there and the ones at the elementary school) really felt she needed to wait a year. Otherwise, I would send her on time.
I’m glad you’re thinking about this now, but you still have 18 months to really make the decision. I would send her to preschool at 4 (this fall) to see how she does. Her preschool teacher can also give you some valuable input to help make your decision. I have two summer boys. My oldest was ready and is now excelling in 2nd grade. My other summer boy is only 2, so time will tell.
I agree with Gamma G. With people holding back summer birthdays now, the age difference in K can be almost two years. Used to be kids were held back if they were Nov-Dec birthdays. NYC does now allow this, if I remember correctly.
We also have a late July birthday child and had to make this decision a couple times. On the advice of her preschool teachers, we kept her in preschool for an extra year and therefore she has been the oldest in her classes for several years. Down sides: she resented the extra year in preK and she isn’t all that happy with the age difference, especially since she is academically ahead. However, we gave her that extra year because she needed the time to mature and acquire confidence, and I am certain that she is doing well precisely because we gave her that extra year. She is also physically a smaller build, so even with being 6-12 months older than most of the other kids, she is still only in the middle of the pack for size–a year earlier, and she’d be tiny by comparison. So for now, we have no regrets. I will say ditto to what the others said, namely just wait and see for the next year. The preschool teachers and others will be able to give you some perspective on what option looks best for your particular gal. They’re all different.
My daughter is now 18 years old. She was always shy and sensitive.
Her birthday is August 31st, and our area has a September 1st cut off for Kindergarten. Daycare, etc was not an issue as I do home daycare (I know this is sometimes a concern for parents…less to pay in daycare once they are in school for some?).
She started Kindergarten a few short days after her 5th Birthday. Other than Math never being a good subject for her, she always did well, took some honors classes, did a rigorous Math and Science program for 5 years, and spent the last 2 years of High School at an Art school. She is talented and starts college next week after many scholarship offers. She did begin at an out of state college in the fall, but being away from home did not suit her, so we are back to my first choice for her! (back to that shy and sensitive thing!)
We never regretted the choice and in grade school she gravitated to 2 particular girls who skipped a grade and were even younger than her in school. They are all still great friends, even though life is taking them in completely different directions now with college.
I myself am a June birthday from the olden days and my husband is an August birthday, so maybe that was part of it for us?
Good Luck!
Your daughter is 3 1/2 and you are worrying about this now?
Give yourself a stress break. Send your daughter to preschool in the fall. By the time the school year is ending - April-June 2014 - you and the staff will know what the best decision for your child is. Trying to decide now is selling your child short.
Girls are usually okay being on the younger side in school. My daughter was extremely shy and a mamas girl at 3.5 but as soon as she turned four she found her voice, and will do just fine at full day k next year!
I regret it big time, with a summer birthday. Next time I will wait until the child is 6.
I don’t even want my April baby to start kindergarten in September, but this one will. But no summer birthdays. Kindergarten is the new first grade.
my daughters birthday is august 2. We kind of had our decision made for us. we were on the fence about starting her at a young 5, well we did the testing for the private school we wanted her in and she was first on the waiting list so we said if she gets in we will start her and if she doesnt we will wait. well they didnt have an opening that year so we waited. BEST choice for us ever. she is in 4th grade now doing very well. she is not the oldest either which is nice. academics were never a worry by the way.
good luck to you
My 16 yo has a very early September birthday. Was very advanced as a toddler and could have tested to go ahead and start school when she was barely 5 but I am very glad we didn’t send her. She has always been mature compared to other kids in her class and I like the idea that she will be older when she graduates and leaves home:).
We have four summer babies, all who were/are eligible to start kindergarten at age 5. While weighing the options of when to start them, we ultimately decided that a year of kindergarten would be more beneficial than a year of daycare/pre-k, and if they didn’t progress as much as we wanted, then repeating kindergarten wouldn’t be the end of the world.
Both my kiddos have August birthdays. The cut off here for K is in May, so we knew from the get go that we would be waiting until their 6th birthdays to put them in K. My daughter is 6 and in K and before that she did a year of Pre-K. She has always been very mature for her age and very smart. But, I am sooo thankful that we didn’t test her into K when she was 5. I can’t believe all the work they have to do in K now. It’s crazy! There is literally barely any “play” time…it’s all work work work. Her teacher even told us that she hates that they don’t have much down time, so she carves out at least 15 mins each day for them to play a game or play on the computer.
My son is 4 and in Head Start. Next year we could test him into K, but again…I won’t do it. He will do a yr of Pre-K and then do K when he turns 6. They will not be the oldest in the class. My daughter is def not the oldest…she has many friends that are 6 and even a few that are 7.
I also like the idea that they won’t be 17 when graduating HS. They will be a little older. My brother was 17 when he graduated because he started K at 5. My mom still regrets it to this day that she didn’t hold him back a year. He just wasn’t mature enough. He ended up basically partying all through college. I’m not saying that if you start your kid at 5 they will end up like that, but it’s just the maturity factor.
JMO
My son has an August birthday. Our cut off date is Sept 1 and his birthday is August 15. So, litterally the youngest kid in his grade. Academically he was ready so we saw no reason to hold him back. My thought was if he cant handle it this year, then we can repeat K, which lots of kids do. He is very smart, but the issue we run into is his behavior. Several of the kids turned 8 right after he turned 7, so maturity wise, he is a year behind! He is also small for his age. Sports teams go off the age/grade standard, so even though he is the smallest kid in the football league, he is 7 and in 2nd grade so, we have to play him that way, against some kids who are almost 9 and in 2nd grade. Ultimately you need to decide what is best for her. If you think she is ready at 5 academically, then go for it! I have heard other parents with the same debate. Some say they held them back and it was the best decision they ever made. Others say the didnt hold them back and it was the best decision they ever made. Good luck! I remember this struggle. Regardless, kids tend to rise to the occassion!
Your child is three now. You have a year and a half til she could possibly start kindy. She’ll llive 50% of her life again before then. Lots of time to mature. If she goes to preschool, her preschool teacher should be able to tell you, during her 4 year old year, whether she is developmentally ready for kindergarten.
When is the age cutoff where you live? Where I live, it is December. My kids were both born in late June, so they fell right in the middle of the ages, and were expected to go to kindergarten at 5 years 2 months in September. I’m not a fan of holding kids back who make the age cutoff. Being the oldest is not necessarily more beneficial than being the youngest.
She’s 3. I think there is no way to know if she’s going to be ready when she’s 5, especially if she’s not in any kind of daycare or preschool now. It’s too soon to know. I think you should put her in PreK assuming that she’ll be ready. And if she’s not, then you do a second year of preK.
My son has a late June b-day. I’m so glad I sent him at age 5. He would have been completely bored in preK for a second year, and in fact he was bored academically in 1st grade, and they’ve bumped him to 2nd grade for some classes. It’s been no problem at all, and I think that waiting to send him would have been a disaster - bored kids act out in class.
I sent my summer birthday’s to school. I regretted it much later. I agree with most posters, put her in PreK and see how she does!