I am debating on sending my son to kindergarten this fall...?

Question

my son is 4 and he turns 5 in july. our cut off day is at the end of july so if i sent him he would be a young 5. he is in preschool right now and his teacher says that he is doing great. he only goes for 2 days a week for half a day. she said that she thought he would be bored in preschool again next year. well we had his preschool screening the other night and the lady said (in so many words) that she thought he would be too young for kindergarten in the fall and to keep him in preschool another year. she said that he falls in that grey area where he is borderline. so i talked to his preschool teacher about it and she said that since they said he is in the grey area to hold him back. i'm am more confused now than ever? any parents have any advice on what to do? thanks!

Answer 1

I agree...go with your gut instincts.  If I had a choice with my son I would have sent him because he was ready all around...It should be interesting this fall!  As it is now he'll be starting Kindergarten with all the Kindergarten academics under his belt already...and socially-emotionally he is just fine considering he is around children all the time-preschool and I do child care :-)  However...you know your child best...when they "test" them ...it's not always a great "reading" because children do not always "perform" as they are capable of doing.

Now on the other end :-)  Most boys are slower to develop social-emotionally than girls... including attention span development.  So it is usually encouraged that young 5s boys wait until they are 6 years old.  This is a general study and you know your child best.  They can't tell you no.  It's your decision.  Good luck!

Answer 2

It might be best to hold him back one year. As he grows up he will be a leader because he is more mature than the other students in his classes. I have been a Kindergarten Teacher for six years. Right now I have a student in the same situation in areas like motor skills he is behind. He is a good kid but it's easy to see the difference between him and older students. I don't know if you work but even though if he repeats Pre school. Spend some time with him and teach him how to write the ABC's and reading. Then when he starts Kindergarten he will be able to do everything already. This will give him excellent self esteem and confidence later in life.

Regards,

Answer 3

Remember that your child is a product of the environment in which he grows up. That environment includes his home. So you can also contribute to his emotional security and maturity by being an emotionally secure and mature parent.

Are ther any programs in your area which would allow you to attend preschool together with your son with you as a teacher's aide?

Answer 4

i had the same problem. my daughter bday is in nov and the cut off date is in oct. i did not want her behind a year. i had to send her to my mom in another state to start kindergarden where in that state kindergarden age is 4-5 yrs old.  she is above track!! she's doing very well in the 2nd grade reading above grade level and tutoring classmates in math. you should work with your son at home. purchase math and reading books for pre-k and kindergarden. trust me it's worth the time and effort. i don't think he is too young. it takes time and patience. good luck to ya

Answer 5

what my parents did is that they talked to the principle of the kindergarten school that my brother (the oldest) would be attending to. My brother's birthday is in august and so the cut off was close. But my parents talked to the principle and the principle said wait until he turns six to start him off. All of my siblings and I are mainly summer babies and we started at preschool at six. In the younger grades (1-5) people were like 'oh why were you held back were you dumb?' and so i just explained that my parents kept me in preschool for another year and they understood. so whatever you think is the right desicion. Do you feel like your son could handle kindergarten yet if not think about it and then wait till next year

Answer 6

My daughter was 4 when she went into full time kindergarten, she had two years of preschool and we all felt she was ready. My instinct would be to sent him, see how that goes ,stay in comunication with the teachers through out the year. The worst that will happen is you may decide to , along with the teachers to have him do another year of kindergarden, I think for the social and developemental experiance it would be good for him. Even though his teachers spend time with him, you still know him best.

         My daughter did stuggle a bit early on being so young, but now as a 8th grader she is a honor role student and does well with freinds and teachers, she is still the youngest in her grade. Good luck!

Answer 7

My son also has a July birthday.  He turned five last July, and could have started Kindergarten in the Fall.  We decided to wait another year...so he will start at the age of six this Fall.  I am glad that we waited.  He has developed so much socially in this past year.  His preschool is doing alot of things with him on his level and getting him ready academically.  I feel like he will do much better academically and socially by having this extra year of preschool behind him.

I remember that I started Kindergarten at the age of four.  Back then the cut offs were different.  I was always younger than my classmates.  I was picked on for this reason, and was just not ready.  I wished that my parents would have waited that extra year.  

I have heard from many parents that it is best to wait.  I have not heard anything negative about doing so.  If his preschool thinks that he will be bored than consider finding him a new one.  A good preschool will keep his mind busy, and will not allow him to be bored.  They will do activities with him at his level to prevent this.

Answer 8

Hold him back! It may not be a problem now... but when he is in middle school and through high school he may be less mature than the rest.... and in my brother's case he was too small to play sports.... but if he had been held back a year he would have made the varsity teams much sooner. It deals more with the future.

Answer 9

My schooling is year around, so my children were allowed to start school early as long as they turned 5 by Dec., of that year.  My oldest, being new to a child going to school, had turned 5 the day before school started, and it was a great experience.  My other two turned 5 while in kindergarten and were way above their peers in school, so I wouldn't worry too much.  

Most schools have the kindergarten children walk around the school, learn school rules, and learn how to work in a structured school environment, while having fun.  It also helps them prepare when they get homework for responsibility and accountability of their work.  For the most part my children were way ahead of others in kindergarten because in most public school standards if a child can count and recognize numbers up to 30 they pass standards (mine went over 100), and if they could read or at least recognize simple words such as “cat” and “is” then they were ahead of the class, mine were in chapter books.  I am explaining the standards because if your child has been in preschool he’s probably past the state standards in kindergarten and his preschool teacher may be correct in the fact he’ll be bored in preschool another year.

Answer 10

I think you should go with your gut intincts. Do you feel your son could handle it emotionally. It is more than just academics. If he seems mature enough then try it. If it doesn't work out just pull him and wait until the following year.

Answer 11

Give him the wonderful gift of time. The youngest boys in a Kindergarten class often struggle. Remember that Kindergarten is now more like First Grade and, as much as they might want to, many teachers don't have the time to deal with wriggly little boys. He would be far better off being among the oldest rather than the youngest.