Principal won't answer question

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I can't imagine it would have taken longer than 5 to 10 minutes to look at the bdays the teacher had a list of

It's still a waste of five minutes. What difference does it make, anyway? If the OP's kid is having a hard time keeping up or needs more challenges, it doesn't matter whether s/he's oldest, youngest, or miraculously one of 23 kids with the same birthday.

[Anonymous]

sure it matters. It helps to put things in perspective on why her kid might be having a hard time, or why he might be bored in class - particularly if it's K or 1st where a Fall vs. summer Bday can still mean a lot.

[Anonymous]

OP, just put in an email to the teacher, cc to the principal, "I'm sorry my child is haing so much trouble with sitting still or handwriting compared with the expectatinos for the other children in the class. DO keep in mind that he is the youngest child in the class."

Then they will come back at you with "Actually, 12 chidlren in the class are younger than him so he is dead average for the age range of the class" and you will have your answer.

of course they can share this information; they will just share it when they want to!

[Anonymous]

I followed up with the principal acknowledging that I hadn't intended to involve her time and that it really wasn't an essential question, so to strike it. She responded saying she'd give me a call.

[Anonymous]

Why don't you ask your child? My child (in second grade) knows who has birthdays in which month. In K it was posted in the class, so I could even look! In 1st grade, I don't think it was posted, but DC could tell me who had October b-days, Nov, Dec, etc. up until "the summer." Kids talk birthdays A LOT.

[Anonymous]

OP, what grade is your child in and what month is his/her birthdate? It might be a valid question if you think your child is the youngest and the teacher commented about child's attention span/ maturity.

[Anonymous]

why would you ask this question? Children must be 5 by Sept 30 in public schools, do the math. There will be some older, some younger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I asked how many students have birthdays prior to X date. Just the number of students. My reason - wanting to know where my child stands age-wise in the class. Maybe that's considered idle curiosity.

Yes, it is. Principals have better things to do than entertain your PIA idle curiosity.

[Anonymous]

Sorry OP you don't really have a right to know when all the other kids' birthdays are. I get the curiousity and the desire to benchmark your child against peers, but it's just not your prerogative to demand this info. Ask your child's teacher if you want to know if s/he is on track for his age and cohort. If you're just trying to figure out who was redshirted, find another hobby. As the parent of a tall boy (who wasn't redshirted and is one of the younger kids in his class) it gets really old to have other moms digging to find out when he was born. Why do you care, really?

[Anonymous]

I think it is entirely reasonable to know where your child fits on the spectrum of age/birthdays. How can this be considered confidential information?

[Anonymous]

Frankly, if OP is wanting dates of birth, to include years, you're venturing into PII territory. I can see why the principal would be hesitant to just pass this out to a curious parent! And even if this hasn't -- yet -- crossed the principal's mind, there is no reason why OP needs this information. It's likely for comparative purposed and I, for one, really wish we would all stop worrying about everyone else's kid and start worrying about out own.

[Anonymous]

If the school/principal knowingly let in a number of kids who are much older or younger than the stated cut-off date and it is creating an issue for the OP, then she may have a legitimate issue. This happened to my DC. I just went into the class and looked at the birthday wall (it showed who had birthdays in each month). You can easily discern the birth year by double checking by chatting with parents on the playground.

Chances are, if you are asking, it is because you know the demographics of the room aren't right for your child. Just trust your gut, that's more important than what the principal tells you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If the school/principal knowingly let in a number of kids who are much older or younger than the stated cut-off date and it is creating an issue for the OP, then she may have a legitimate issue. This happened to my DC. I just went into the class and looked at the birthday wall (it showed who had birthdays in each month). You can easily discern the birth year by double checking by chatting with parents on the playground.

If it's a public school, the principal doesn't have much say in the matter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm interested in knowing where my son's birthday falls in relation to his classmates. Sent an email to the teacher, who forwarded it the principal, who responded without any information - referring me to student services. Student services won't know the answer to this. I was surprised by the response - Is a principal unable to give information like this? I wasn't asking for names, of course.

Every class in young elementary my kids have been in have posted all the kids' birthdays on a poster somewhere in the classroom. Do you never visit the classroom?

Just curious why you feel entitled to this information, anyway, and why your nose is bent out of shape b/c the principal has better things to do with her time than indulge this?

Ditto -- my son's class has them posted in bright construction paper on the wall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it is entirely reasonable to know where your child fits on the spectrum of age/birthdays. How can this be considered confidential information?

The benchmark for should be against standards, not kids in her class. It's none of OP's business when those complete birthdates are.