Ask:
I know this has been talked about before, but now it is upon me. Kindergarten registration is next week. (Fortunately, my son is already registered since he is in speech through the school system, but that is another story. Just a yeah! One less thing to do!)
Anyways, my son will be 5 on July 30th. The cutoff for our school district is September 1st. I sort of assumed he would be my goof off, which he is to some degree, but I have been really, really surprised at how well he is doing in preschool. I think he might be my smart child! He is academically, very much ready for kindergarten if not first grade, but socially and emotionally he is a 5 year old boy.
I asked his teacher about it and she said, "He is a boy." She is in agreement with me that academically he is ready, but socially, he isn't necessarily behind, but just slower than say a boy born in January of the same year.
Should we go ahead and send him or keep him home another year?
If he is behind socially, will it hurt him in the long run? He is very outgoing and has not met a person he doesn't like (stranger danger is a challenge with him). I think he will be the class clown that everybody assumes is not very bright and then scores 1580 on the SAT and shocks everybody. That is his personality already.
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I would keep him back. Better to be ahead then behind.
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I'll be facing the same dilemma with my son in a year and a half. His birthday is August 27th and the cutoff here is September 1st. Even at 3 1/2 I have no doubt that he is intelligent enough to start at 5, but I am concerned about his ability to sit and listen as he is an active little boy. He is, however, very outgoing and will say hi to anyone.
That being said, I think it would take a lot of concern on mine and my husbands part for us to hold him back a year. That's not to say I'm not worried about it, because I am. I guess it's just my opinion at the moment.
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Well, you know that I lean toward sending him. Personally I think that unless you have a real definite reason to hold him back, he should go!!! Heck, kindergarden teachers should know how to deal with active 5 yr old boys!
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I would send him
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Personally i would not send him this year....that's the decision i've made for both my boys.
I'm sure the teachers know how to deal with them but will he learn as well as he might next year when he's a little more matured? I don't think i could have sent Riley to school last year and had him do as well as he is this year.
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Academically he is ready. I'd send him.
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I would send him. My ds's birthday is July 28th. I started him, and he is in 9th grade now and doing great. Not that we didn't have a few bumps in the road, but we always did the "extra" work at home. I am so glad that I did not hold him back!! Good luck!!
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I would hold him back. My ds's birthday is Sept. 5 and we also have the Sept. 1 cutoff so I didn't have a choice. He is very bright and could have done the work last year for sure, but I question whether he could have stayed in his seat and behaved himself for such a long period of time. We have full day kindergarten here and that is a long day for a little guy. Mine is in school from 8 until 2:30. He would have been climbing the walls last year! He has matured so much from 5 to 6. I will hold my other ds back for sure. He has an August birthday.
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As you can see from the opinions here, it's a tough one and only your family and any involved teachers can make that decision. I, personally vote for keeping him home another year. Yes, if they are behind socially, it can harm them -my son has Aspergers, which slowed him down socially. Your child is not Aspergers, of course, but my son has matured so much, I can see the differences so well. The lack of self-control will make it hard for your son to focus and may disturb others, causing social issues - kids are much more forgiving in Kindergarten, but will the teacher be that way?
My daughter is only 18 months, but her birthday is August 14, so dh and I have already decided we will wait until she is six before starting school, unless she shows more than the expected maturity when she turns five. She's smart, but I want her to have advantages of experience and maturity.. It's a toss up, because it's also hard when they are older - kids later may question whether she was "held back" and all. But, in my opinion, there's a world of difference between 4, 5 and 6 maturity levels. You know your child best and know what he's capable of and how he would best be served. Don't let anyone pressure against your instinct.