Tell me about redshirting your late summer/fall birthday son before Kindergarten

[Anonymous]

My son has a mid/late September birthday. He will is going into pre-k this fall when he turns 4. We are starting the K admissions process but considering redshirting him, and I keep deliberating. Our school district and the private school he will likely attend both have a whopping December 31st cut off, so whether or not to delay kindergarten is entirely up to us. Most of the private schools around my area (northeast) have a September 1st or October 1st cutoff. I think DS could ultimately benefit from being older in the class, but right now, I don’t know if it’s entirely necessary- it’s too early to tell what his academic needs are, and he generally enjoys playing with older kids anyway. I just don’t want him playing catch up academically and socially as he goes through his school years. Anyway, I know it’s a hot topic, but would love to hear about other peoples experiences.

[Anonymous]

We redshirted our August 31st boy. One of the best decisions we've ever made for him.

[Anonymous]

Don't do it. You want your kid to be 19 at graduation? Since you asked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't do it. You want your kid to be 19 at graduation? Since you asked.

Um no. He has a September birthday. He'll graduate high school at 18, start college at 18, and turn 19 during fall of Freshman year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't do it. You want your kid to be 19 at graduation? Since you asked.

Do you want him to be going to college at 17 and in high school with 19 year olds. My son is in second grade and has two 9 year olds in his class. Do not send a September birthday boy on time. He will be the youngest by 15 months.

[Anonymous]

Are you in the NY metro area? We were in a disctrict with a December cutoff when we lived there. One of my ds's friends had a December birthday. They were in preschool together. The mother ended up sending him to public on-time for K, and then had him repeat K at catholic school as a 5yo who turned 6 the december of his K at catholic year. Her oldest was also a December birthday. She sent him on time (so 4 turning 5 in K) and said it was a mistake she did not want to repeat for her younger boy.

December cut-offs are very unusual. I would hold him back regardless, but even more especially if there's a chance you might move to another state at some point. My dd has an 8/23 birthday. We sent her to school on time, but I do see how much younger she is than her peers.

I would have a late September birthday kid start K at 5 rather than 4, especially for a boy.

[Anonymous]

Know your kid. Send him to school based on his strengths and weaknesses. Holding back a mature, socially adept, bright kid is in no one’s best interest. Holding back a less mature kid who won’t be completely ahead of the rest of his class is fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are you in the NY metro area? We were in a disctrict with a December cutoff when we lived there. One of my ds's friends had a December birthday. They were in preschool together. The mother ended up sending him to public on-time for K, and then had him repeat K at catholic school as a 5yo who turned 6 the december of his K at catholic year. Her oldest was also a December birthday. She sent him on time (so 4 turning 5 in K) and said it was a mistake she did not want to repeat for her younger boy.

December cut-offs are very unusual. I would hold him back regardless, but even more especially if there's a chance you might move to another state at some point. My dd has an 8/23 birthday. We sent her to school on time, but I do see how much younger she is than her peers.

I would have a late September birthday kid start K at 5 rather than 4, especially for a boy.

OP here. Yes, we are in NY. I don’t think we are planning to move, but the fact that most neighboring states and states across the country have September 1st cutoffs make me think that it’s something to consider for us. But we do know fall boys in his current class going to K on time, and just feel like he’ll be emotionally young if he starts on time, and older and physically bigger if we hold him back.

[Anonymous]

In a ACS hook with a December cut off you son will not be the youngest and if you redshirt him he might be 14-15 months older than some kids. If you plan to send to a school with a September 30th cut off, then yes, I would redshirt him. My DD is redshirted because she was born 5 days before cut off and she was very emotionally immature for her age. It has been a very good decision so far.

[Anonymous]

Our son has an early summer birthday, was at a private preschool program that had a Kindergarten. He did that K on time, then re-did K when he went to our local public school. Private K was play-oriented, and public K was desks and worksheets. He was always a little socially immature, and I feel confident we made the right choice. He is in high school now (we are now in private), and right in the middle of his peer group academically, and also fits in socially. I absolutely think it depends on the kid and you have to trust your instincts. That said, our decisions was driven by the very structured format of K in public school. If we had been staying with a private school for elementary, I probably would have focused on finding the right school for him and just keeping him with his 'assigned' grade.

[Anonymous]

We redshirted our summer birthday son with a Sept 1 cut off and it was a great decision. He has a fabulous year in K and all his teachers said it was the right decision for him. Kids do differ, but talk to his pre-K teacher. They have seen a lot of kids and will get a sense of whether or not he is a kid who would benefit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't do it. You want your kid to be 19 at graduation? Since you asked.

Do you want him to be going to college at 17 and in high school with 19 year olds. My son is in second grade and has two 9 year olds in his class. Do not send a September birthday boy on time. He will be the youngest by 15 months.

This is not the case at all. My son is a September birthday and went on time and he’s fine.. most of his friends all have birthdays May-September and well went on time. It should be on a case by case basis depending on the child.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't do it. You want your kid to be 19 at graduation? Since you asked.

So what if he's 19 at graduation? We held back our very socially immature July birthday boy and it was the best decision. He did K at a private school and then repeated K at public. We had kids, including neurotypical girls, with March birthday being held back in both classes.

[Anonymous]

We redshirted our September birthday daughter and it has worked out very well for her. The extra time was critical to having her be on par socially and developmentally with her peers. She's entering high school in the fall and won't be the oldest of her cohort. If we hadn't redshirted, she likely would have been the youngest, which we didn't want. I was a late year birthday and started on time. While school was generally fine, it really sucked to always be the last of my friends to hit a milestone. Being the youngest in a cohort is also often a detriment athletically.

[Anonymous]

Rising ninth grader, redshirted mid august bday with 9/1 cut off to start in kindergarten. BEST DECISION! So happy. Things are so rushed and what is expected in schools is not developmentally appropriate, and not just in K. This gives kids the gift of time.