Girl with August Birthday - when to start school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do I know if I should put my daughter in school this fall? (Montgomery County)

My daughter will be five in August. She has been going to daycare since she was an infant, has an advanced vocabulary for her age. Her preschool teachers say she is ready, however, she is extremely active and demands a lot of attention from her teachers. (She is in a class with ten kids and two teachers.)

I don't want to start her late and then have her bored in school (I was the oldest in my class and was bored out of my mind.) or start her too soon and have struggle. Are there places that can evaluate/test your child to give you a better idea of her readiness?

Thanks!

She makes the cut off with age. However, if you feel that while she's prepared academically, she's still a bit "immature" (such a ridiculous word to use - I realize!), you could put her in a K montessori for a year and then enroll her in K public.

If she demands a lot of attention, is she an only? (I'm an only, btw.) A montessori will squash that, as there are 25+ kids in a typical montessori setting, and she'll be expected to work on her own quite a bit.

Some kids need an extra year. My son, who's five, is in an extra year of preschool, and he's doing much better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Unless there are obvious reasons to start late (and demanding attention is not one of them), definitely start on time. DD has an August birthday, has lots of friends and is thriving at a hgc. We never even think about the fact that she is young for her class.

I agree - I wouldn't hold back unless there is a reason to do so.

[Anonymous]

Preschool teacher chiming in:

A girl turning 5 with an August birthday typically is better prepared than a boy with the same birthdate because girls develop executive functioning skills earlier than boys. If your preschool teachers think your DD is ready and you don't have any specific concerns regarding your daughter other than the date on the calendar, I would recommend sending her.

If your school is public, take your DD to the Kindergarten roundup program this spring. It is a way that the Kindergarten team can do an evaluation of your child and you can see how your daughter participates with this peer group. Call up the office at your local school to find the dates and schedule an appointment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: My son has a September birthday and there's no way we will hold him back just on account of his age.

FYI, in MoCo the cutoff is 9/1 so you won't be holding your kid back, he will just miss the cutoff and be one of the oldest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: My son has a September birthday and there's no way we will hold him back just on account of his age.

FYI, in MoCo the cutoff is 9/1 so you won't be holding your kid back, he will just miss the cutoff and be one of the oldest.

Any kid up to an Oct 11th can enter K if they test in. My daughter has 7 kids on her school with birthdays in Sept and Oct. she is one of them

[Anonymous]

^7 kids in her grade

[Anonymous]

I struggled with this issue too. We decided to send our son on time. He's doing great academically and socially.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: My son has a September birthday and there's no way we will hold him back just on account of his age.

FYI, in MoCo the cutoff is 9/1 so you won't be holding your kid back, he will just miss the cutoff and be one of the oldest.

Any kid up to an Oct 11th can enter K if they test in. My daughter has 7 kids on her school with birthdays in Sept and Oct. she is one of them

October 15. They need to turn 5 between September 2 and October 15 to be eligible for early entrance to kindergarten.

[Anonymous]

I have no regrets sending my august birthday daughter on time. She is in 2nd and in the highest reading group do would have been frustrated if she were in 1st now. I would listen to her teachers.

[Anonymous]

OP, unless your child has a developmental delay I would send her on time. My DS has delays that warranted holding back. Delays were significant and it was the right decision. My DD has a June birthday. She went on time. She is one of the youngest in her class. She is also academically ahead. Her closest friends happen to also have summer birthdays, so maturity wise she is in a good place. I never considered holding her back just because of when her birthday falls because she was ready. Just another opinion for you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: My son has a September birthday and there's no way we will hold him back just on account of his age.

FYI, in MoCo the cutoff is 9/1 so you won't be holding your kid back, he will just miss the cutoff and be one of the oldest.

Any kid up to an Oct 11th can enter K if they test in. My daughter has 7 kids on her school with birthdays in Sept and Oct. she is one of them

I am aware of that, but this parent won't be holding their kid back. They would be pushing them ahead in that case.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: My son has a September birthday and there's no way we will hold him back just on account of his age.

FYI, in MoCo the cutoff is 9/1 so you won't be holding your kid back, he will just miss the cutoff and be one of the oldest.

Any kid up to an Oct 11th can enter K if they test in. My daughter has 7 kids on her school with birthdays in Sept and Oct. she is one of them

I am aware of that, but this parent won't be holding their kid back. They would be pushing them ahead in that case.

But for my daughter, in my eyes, it was holding them back. She was socially and academically ready to attend school. So I get what the PP is feeling. It was only about 8yrs ago that they pushed back the entrance date month by month. And funny thing is, more people than ever are red shirting their kids, even with the age requirement going up. So now you have people that sit and wonder with their summer birthday kids. You shouldn't. They should be in K unless there is a developmental issue. A kid who can't sit still could be even worse waiting a year. They will be bored in class, not challenged and EXPECTED to be on good behavior, more so than the youngest group. I think red shirting backfires for the most part and moms are afraid to admit it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: My son has a September birthday and there's no way we will hold him back just on account of his age.

FYI, in MoCo the cutoff is 9/1 so you won't be holding your kid back, he will just miss the cutoff and be one of the oldest.

Any kid up to an Oct 11th can enter K if they test in. My daughter has 7 kids on her school with birthdays in Sept and Oct. she is one of them

I am aware of that, but this parent won't be holding their kid back. They would be pushing them ahead in that case.

But for my daughter, in my eyes, it was holding them back. She was socially and academically ready to attend school. So I get what the PP is feeling. It was only about 8yrs ago that they pushed back the entrance date month by month. And funny thing is, more people than ever are red shirting their kids, even with the age requirement going up. So now you have people that sit and wonder with their summer birthday kids. You shouldn't. They should be in K unless there is a developmental issue. A kid who can't sit still could be even worse waiting a year. They will be bored in class, not challenged and EXPECTED to be on good behavior, more so than the youngest group. I think red shirting backfires for the most part and moms are afraid to admit it.

This is 9:45. I don't think redshirting (and I don't like this word because I didn't redshirt my child--that I feel is the lingo when done for sports purposes--I held him back a year) backfires unless it's gone into just due to age near the arbitrary cutoff, size of child, perceived immaturity etc... I think if parents are really very well informed about their child's abilities (ie: developmental delays that are already causing significant issues) then it's probably the right path to take.

[Anonymous]

We have a daughter with a late August birthday and we sent her to Kindergarten on time. She was more than ready -- and would have been bored had we waited another year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Preschool teacher chiming in:

A girl turning 5 with an August birthday typically is better prepared than a boy with the same birthdate because girls develop executive functioning skills earlier than boys. If your preschool teachers think your DD is ready and you don't have any specific concerns regarding your daughter other than the date on the calendar, I would recommend sending her.

If your school is public, take your DD to the Kindergarten roundup program this spring. It is a way that the Kindergarten team can do an evaluation of your child and you can see how your daughter participates with this peer group. Call up the office at your local school to find the dates and schedule an appointment.

+1 from another preschool teacher