DCPS to MCPS, September birthday

[Anonymous]

My child was born on September 21. I understand that DCPS uses a September 30 cutoff for kindergarten eligibility, while MCPS has a September 1 cutoff. Since we’ll be moving from DCPS to MCPS, I’m concerned that he might have to repeat a year solely because of the different age requirement. He has done prek 3 and prek 4 in DC.

Could you please let me know if there’s a process or exception that would allow him to move to the next grade when we transfer, rather than repeating kindergarten?

[Anonymous]

Are you saying he's doing kindergarten in DCPS this year and then you're moving to MCPS next year? If so he should be able to just be treated as a transfer: https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/dtecps/earlychildhood/early-entrance/

[Anonymous]

He is doing pre K 4 this year in DCPS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:He is doing pre K 4 this year in DCPS

Are you asking whether he will be allowed in MCPS kindergarten early based on the fact that his preschool labeled his class PreK 4?

No, he won’t. Which is great for you because he can attend a high quality preschool for a year and then get all the advantages of being old for his grade with none of the stigma of red shirting.

[Anonymous]

Test in or go private till second.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:He is doing pre K 4 this year in DCPS

Okay, not sure why you were talking about repeating kindergarten then if he's not in kindergarten?

Is the issue that you want him to start kindergarten early at 4 (almost 5) next year? If so you can try the early entrance to kindergarten process but it's pretty uncommon to get approved for that-- just find some other preschool for him for next year (or you can do private K but MCPS will still put him in K again the following year unless you pass the early entrance to 1st grade process, so you'd have to do two years in private and then transfer in 2nd if you want to be sure.)

[Anonymous]

We were in this situation. They will not care that you have done PK in DC. If your kid had already gone through K, they would honor the placement in 1st grade, but they will not honor going through PK (which is not a mandatory grade in MD) and put them in K automatically.

The only way to get in is to try for early kindergarten. There is a test that is administered in the spring before your child wants to start K. To pass, the kid essentially needs to meet end of K standards in all of something like 7 categories, including both academic and social-emotional benchmarks.

Mine didn’t and we were denied. We repeated PK privately, We were annoyed because my kid was already starting to read in PK, but you can’t just meet some of the standards—you have to hit them all. But honestly it is fine. Now that my kid is in 8th grade, I am happy they are in the older side.

[Anonymous]

^^Immediate PP agin. If you really do want your kid to be on the you get side, then your best bet is to move here after kid has completed K Ik DCPS. They will place the kid in 1st if you want. (They might also give you the option of repeating K — not sure about that.)

But keep in mind that many families redshirt in MCPS, especially with summer birthdays. Our kid will be substantially younger than others, which is not really what you want in MS. (I’m there now and am now glad oue EEK request was denied and my 8th grader is on the older side—still not the oldest, mind you).

[Anonymous]

Count your blessings and do not make him the youngest by over a year in his MCPS class.

[Anonymous]

There's no such thing as "repeating a year" in preschool/Pre-K, so there's nothing to worry about. Early childhood education is for play, exploration, socialization, etc, plus some very basix exposure to letters and numbers. if he has been somewhere for 2 years that has been treating Pre-,K like a grade with an academic curriculum and goals, he needs a year of real quality play-based ECE even more (maybe consider a forest preschool or something like that to fill in what he's been missing.) Kindergarten is ridiculously academic these days-- delay it for your child as long as humanly possible (assuming you can afford to.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^^Immediate PP agin. If you really do want your kid to be on the you get side, then your best bet is to move here after kid has completed K Ik DCPS. They will place the kid in 1st if you want. (They might also give you the option of repeating K — not sure about that.)

But keep in mind that many families redshirt in MCPS, especially with summer birthdays. Our kid will be substantially younger than others, which is not really what you want in MS. (I’m there now and am now glad oue EEK request was denied and my 8th grader is on the older side—still not the oldest, mind you).

I don’t know any families who held back. There is a mix with September birthdays but those ahead are mainly those who went private.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There's no such thing as "repeating a year" in preschool/Pre-K, so there's nothing to worry about. Early childhood education is for play, exploration, socialization, etc, plus some very basix exposure to letters and numbers. if he has been somewhere for 2 years that has been treating Pre-,K like a grade with an academic curriculum and goals, he needs a year of real quality play-based ECE even more (maybe consider a forest preschool or something like that to fill in what he's been missing.) Kindergarten is ridiculously academic these days-- delay it for your child as long as humanly possible (assuming you can afford to.)

It’s not academic at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's no such thing as "repeating a year" in preschool/Pre-K, so there's nothing to worry about. Early childhood education is for play, exploration, socialization, etc, plus some very basix exposure to letters and numbers. if he has been somewhere for 2 years that has been treating Pre-,K like a grade with an academic curriculum and goals, he needs a year of real quality play-based ECE even more (maybe consider a forest preschool or something like that to fill in what he's been missing.) Kindergarten is ridiculously academic these days-- delay it for your child as long as humanly possible (assuming you can afford to.)

It’s not academic at all.

MCPS kindergarten isn't? Are you nuts? They don't get any playtime on a regular basis except for a half-hour of recess, and maybe sometimes another half-hour a day during FIT time if they're not getting interventions (but even then they often just have the kids doing more academics, on the computers, etc.) The rest of the time they're just plugging through the curriculum, listening to the teacher, doing worksheets, and that sort of thing. It's pretty sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's no such thing as "repeating a year" in preschool/Pre-K, so there's nothing to worry about. Early childhood education is for play, exploration, socialization, etc, plus some very basix exposure to letters and numbers. if he has been somewhere for 2 years that has been treating Pre-,K like a grade with an academic curriculum and goals, he needs a year of real quality play-based ECE even more (maybe consider a forest preschool or something like that to fill in what he's been missing.) Kindergarten is ridiculously academic these days-- delay it for your child as long as humanly possible (assuming you can afford to.)

It’s not academic at all.

MCPS kindergarten isn't? Are you nuts? They don't get any playtime on a regular basis except for a half-hour of recess, and maybe sometimes another half-hour a day during FIT time if they're not getting interventions (but even then they often just have the kids doing more academics, on the computers, etc.) The rest of the time they're just plugging through the curriculum, listening to the teacher, doing worksheets, and that sort of thing. It's pretty sad.

It’s school. They can play before and after school and weekends. I send my kids to learn not play. It’s not sad they are learning. Your attitude is sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's no such thing as "repeating a year" in preschool/Pre-K, so there's nothing to worry about. Early childhood education is for play, exploration, socialization, etc, plus some very basix exposure to letters and numbers. if he has been somewhere for 2 years that has been treating Pre-,K like a grade with an academic curriculum and goals, he needs a year of real quality play-based ECE even more (maybe consider a forest preschool or something like that to fill in what he's been missing.) Kindergarten is ridiculously academic these days-- delay it for your child as long as humanly possible (assuming you can afford to.)

It’s not academic at all.

MCPS kindergarten isn't? Are you nuts? They don't get any playtime on a regular basis except for a half-hour of recess, and maybe sometimes another half-hour a day during FIT time if they're not getting interventions (but even then they often just have the kids doing more academics, on the computers, etc.) The rest of the time they're just plugging through the curriculum, listening to the teacher, doing worksheets, and that sort of thing. It's pretty sad.

It’s school. They can play before and after school and weekends. I send my kids to learn not play. It’s not sad they are learning. Your attitude is sad.

Sounds like you don't understand what's developmentally appropriate for young children and how they learn. Play-based learning not only supports kids' mental health and social-emotional well-being, it actually helps kids academically as well. 5 and 6 year olds learn and remember things much better when they're made fun and interesting to them and get practiced through play; worksheets and lectures are much more likely to go in one ear and out the other.