September babies in Kindergarden

ok, Jason is supposed to start kindergarden next september (07) but since the cutoff date here is Oct 1, he will mostly likely be the youngest in his class all throughout his school years. Since he has been in preschool for 2 years, I personally think he is academically ready. He can write every letter and number, he knows every letter sound, and he is working on sounding out words and reading.

I would have to register him for public school kimdergarden in a few weeks. I just found out that his preschool (my church) may be offering kindergarden next year if enough people sign up. It would be the same curriculum as the public school but with added Catholic Values and Morals. the church kindergarden will be full day (9-3). I was thinking of maybe sending him to the church next year, then sending him to public school kindergarden the following year. I know that academically, it will be a repeat, but then he'll be one of the older kids in his class instead of the youngest. I figure that the fact that it is a new school, with big kids, and a new friends, teacher and classroom, and he'll ride the bus maybe enough of a "new experience" that he won't see it as a repeat. The problem is that public school kindergarden is half day (9-11:30). he may see that as a setback.

has anyone held a child back just because of their age, and was it a good idea?

BTW- anyone I talk to about this thinks Jason is ready for kindergarden and I should just send him to public school next year and skip the church kindergarden.

Does he have to repeat K if he does Churhc this year and public next? cause here, you can do K anywhere you want but have to be 6 to enter first grade or compelted a K somewhere. (Public private or homeschool)
SO if he is K ready, and It were me I would do the Church one and then send him to public first grade like he woudl have if he went to public K. (especially since it is teh came K curriculum.) Have you checked with teh school on it? as far as doign k elsewhere then switchign in? IN al hoonesty, after a year of full time K regardles of where he takes it he shoud be ready fo rfirst grade. IF he's not then you can reassess adn make your decision then. BUT he is in fact spending more time in teh classroom by beign at teh church on rather than the 1/2 day at the school. SO he should be as ready as those other kids that went to the public one. And they would be moving on to 1st grade teh following year right? or do you plan to hold him in K another year if he does public as well? I really think that age has very little to do with it. maturity level, readiness and his acceptance of it is what matters. Remember that the date on a calendar is jsut that.. represents NOTHING about a child development. Some 4 year olds are jsut as mature and ready as some 5 year olds.. if not more so.. you know your child best. follow your heart! I'm sure you'll make the right decision!
sorry for any typos. feeding Graham while i type!

This post has been edited by 3_call_me_mama on Jan 16 2007, 09:38 AM

Zach goes to school, and he turned four just a week before it started. He's in the top 5 of his class. I'm sure Jason will be just fine... I'd send him to the regular school.

I would send him to kindergarten in September. Thomas (and me for that matter I am a December baby) started early and sure we were the younges in our classes and took a little longer to settle in but I wouldn't change it for the world. If he is ready and you say he is - send em to the kindergarten.

I'd send him if you think he's ready, especially since he can go. Kylie tested higher than a 5 year older level, yet because her birthday is 6 days past the school cut off of September 1st she is not allowed to go this year. She has to wait til next year, which I think is stupid. She'll be reading next year and in Kindergarten with at least 1/2 a class who doesn't read. She will definitely be bored.

This post has been edited by coasterqueen on Jan 16 2007, 10:00 AM

Ricky was a September baby and we red-shirted (held him back) him. He was academically ready, but in our opinion he wasn't emotionally ready for K. We sent him an additional year to pre-K and it made all the difference in the world. He was much more socially able to handle situations as the eldest in the class than as the youngest. That doesn't for a moment mean you should do the same thing. Evaluate his academic, emotional and social growth and decide from there what you think is best. Just wanted to add that I can't believe we're talking Kindergarten for Jason already.

There is a boy in O's class that turned 5 2 days before the cutoff and he's not having any problems at all. I think as long as he's socially (maturity wise) ready, he'll be fine. He sounds very academically ready.

If you send him to private school he'll likely have a much smaller class size than in public. O's Catholic school has a Kindergarten class of 10 kids as opposed to 23 in the smallest of the 3 Kindergarten classes in the public school she would have attended. Also, if you go private you might want to re~evaluate your plan of him going private K then public K. Here, the private school is at least a half year ahead of the public. Kids who go to Catholic K then public first grade are usually bored and repeating. The only way to know that for sure, though is to observe both settings and then decide. Of course, you have a year to do it so that's good.

FYI, if you go private be prepared to love it. We're already talking Catholic HS and the kid is not even out of K yet! We are totally in love with the family style atmosphere, the academic excellence and the small class sizes.

well, its not really catholic "school" ........ our church has preschool and they are deciding to have kindergarden too, but that will be it. He;ll have to change schools for first grade. Since I am a public school teacher and we live in a great district, Jason will definately go to public school. My point in sending him to church kindergarden is really just to delay him because he is so young and small. I still don't know what the best thing to do is.

I think I am going to register him for public school kindergarden since registration is next month, but I guess I can always pull out if I change my mind.

Thanks everyone for your help

We are in a similar situation. Jamison's birthday is 3 days before the cut-off. She has been the youngest in preschool both years and she's done fine. Our church run preschool has an alternative Kindergarten of young 5's. It is somewhere between PreK and K they go longer but not as long and they start doing more academics. We are debating that vs. Private K and public K. I kind of want to keep her out one more year so I have another year with her but that's not a real good reason huh?

The church K might be a good option for him since they will probably have a smaller class size, which may mean more one on one with him. If that isn't a big concern though, sending him to public school for K may be what is best. Honestly, I have talked to so many parents about this issue and each child is different. You know your child best and whatever choice you make for him will be the right one. Weigh the pros and cons and make a decision based on what you think would be best for him. Include him in the decision too and see what he would like to do.

Well, we are having Sophia repeat a curriculum this year because of this issue, and she is doing just fine. I worried that she would be really bored and act out, but that's not the case. She won't start kindergarten until 2008.

I think it might be better to hold him back because he's a bit on the smallish side if I remember correctly (just like Sophia). My thinking is that she would fit in more physically if she was the oldest in the class.

We're in the same boat. Ashley would turn 5 a week after starting Kinder and barely makes the cut-off. Unlike you, I don't like our public school system and I have been looking at private schools. The class sizes are smaller and I think she'd learn more. I think she is academically ready, but I worry about the fact that she is always the youngest. She tends to be easily influenced by the other kids and I am sure it has to do with her maturity and being so young.

But, then I think of how she would feel always being a year older than the rest of the kids as well. I don't think I'd like that. Especially being a girl ... when she gets in the older grades she will mature faster than the other girls and that might cause some teasing. Just another thing to think about with a girl, I suppose.

Both her preschool teachers say that she is ready so I am planning to send her this year. I am not sure if I have helped, as I am struggling with the same issues.

Although Daniel is a late November baby, we're in the same boat because the cutoff here is December 1. So he'll be the youngest (and one of the smallest!) in Kindergarten if he starts this year. Like Jason, he's had two years of preschool and is on track academically and it's just a question of other types of readiness (emotional, social, etc.).

We're going for half-day at public school (hopefully the Open school I talked about on another thread)---but I'm nervous and reading all these responses carefully. If you think he'll do better at the church Kindergarten, I'd just do it. Then you can decide whether he needs to repeat at Public or can move right into first grade when the time comes next year.

A mom of a little boy in my daughter's preschool class is doing the same thing.
Oh, and I didn't know they still had half day kindergardens. They are all full day around here.

Here's another option, I think. At least here in SC it is not a law that you have to send your child to Kindergarten anywhere. You can sign an opt-out form for his K year. If that's a possibility in your state, then you could always send him to the church K program this year, then if he's ready for 1st grade send him there. That gives you the best of both worlds, and you don't have to worry about sending him through K twice, esp since they're half-days there.

In the past, I wouldve said "send him"-

My son missed the cut-off by about 9 days. I considered having him tested but the fight to get in a child who missed the cutoff was just...too much. After researching, the hoops you had to jump through were not worth it for me. So, my son is 5 and he is in K4, he is one of the oldest in his class. He's very smart, so he has had NO trouble in class, and was ready last year. However, he isnt a big kid (he's not tiny, he's just sort of average...) and maturity and emotion wise, I am very glad I held him back instead of fighting. He is at the top of his class, but I am so glad I waited anyway. I also kind of like that he will be one of the oldest in his class. My 2nd son is a Jan baby so he will be one of the older ones in his class, and then my daughter & youngest son will be some of the youngest due to their birthdays and I am still deciding if I am going to hold them both back or send them....it'll just depend on the situation once we reach that stage.