NOT redshirting an August birthday

[Anonymous]

We red-shirted our late August boy. He's intellectually gifted but had some social and physical delays. He's too advanced for kindergarten and is bored a lot, but he's also struggling (even now) with male friendships because he's not where the other boys are physically. He's been assessed and is not ND, but he's definitely on the quirky end of the spectrum.

We'll be asking his school if he should skip 1st grade or if it will be better to keep him with his current cohort. Bored at school is bad but so is beaten up.

My point is, if you do red shirt, there's nothing to say you can't advance to an age-appropriate grade level later.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have a boisterous child who misbehaves, can’t sit still, and struggles socially and/or has a diagnosed or suspected delay, then it may be a good idea to hold them back. Let them have another year in pre-K where they are the oldest and can hopefully work on being classroom ready as they mature. But I would absolutely structure a plan to make sure they are getting the academic challenges they need, so long as they are academically ready for K, so not to get bored and complacent.

My DD turns 5 the day before K begins. I am sending her because she is ready academically and can behave, even though she will likely be among the youngest in the class. She zips through the pre-k work and her teacher now brings in K work for her. I can’t imagine how bored she might be if I had her repeat the year and go back to the basics of identifying letters and numbers. Whether you hold your kid back or send them on time, you want to challenge an eager child. Doing remedial work for a year, without supplementing more advanced learnings they are ready for, may not have the huge advantage you think it will for them as it could backfire by making a kid dislike school when they already know how to do all the things being taught and aren’t being asked to level up and be challenged. So if you red shirt make sure they are working with you outside of school on K skills or K level work so they don’t stagnate.

Stagnate? You’re coming up with solutions to a problem that doesn’t exist. These kids aren’t any more bored than any other kid. Why do you even care about these kids so much? There are so many other kids worthy of your advice and concern. Worry about the kids who will never catch up whose parents can’t even provide the basics much less enrichment.

Well, if your child would not get bored relearning the same curriculum for a year, then clearly he or she is not academically ready for K. Some kids do need two full years of classroom instruction to learn to identify letters. I’m sure they will get there in a few years time!
And that’s ok!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have a boisterous child who misbehaves, can’t sit still, and struggles socially and/or has a diagnosed or suspected delay, then it may be a good idea to hold them back. Let them have another year in pre-K where they are the oldest and can hopefully work on being classroom ready as they mature. But I would absolutely structure a plan to make sure they are getting the academic challenges they need, so long as they are academically ready for K, so not to get bored and complacent.

My DD turns 5 the day before K begins. I am sending her because she is ready academically and can behave, even though she will likely be among the youngest in the class. She zips through the pre-k work and her teacher now brings in K work for her. I can’t imagine how bored she might be if I had her repeat the year and go back to the basics of identifying letters and numbers. Whether you hold your kid back or send them on time, you want to challenge an eager child. Doing remedial work for a year, without supplementing more advanced learnings they are ready for, may not have the huge advantage you think it will for them as it could backfire by making a kid dislike school when they already know how to do all the things being taught and aren’t being asked to level up and be challenged. So if you red shirt make sure they are working with you outside of school on K skills or K level work so they don’t stagnate.

Stagnate? You’re coming up with solutions to a problem that doesn’t exist. These kids aren’t any more bored than any other kid. Why do you even care about these kids so much? There are so many other kids worthy of your advice and concern. Worry about the kids who will never catch up whose parents can’t even provide the basics much less enrichment.

Well, if your child would not get bored relearning the same curriculum for a year, then clearly he or she is not academically ready for K. Some kids do need two full years of classroom instruction to learn to identify letters. I’m sure they will get there in a few years time!
And that’s ok!

There's more to kindergarten than learning letters. But that's probably news to you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Asians don’t redshirt.

This is untrue. Asians are second most likely to redshirt (6.4%)after whites (7.8%). And teachers are the most likely to redshirt.


https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2022/09/13/who-redshirts/

Love the hard data response to a vaguely racist comment!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have a boisterous child who misbehaves, can’t sit still, and struggles socially and/or has a diagnosed or suspected delay, then it may be a good idea to hold them back. Let them have another year in pre-K where they are the oldest and can hopefully work on being classroom ready as they mature. But I would absolutely structure a plan to make sure they are getting the academic challenges they need, so long as they are academically ready for K, so not to get bored and complacent.

My DD turns 5 the day before K begins. I am sending her because she is ready academically and can behave, even though she will likely be among the youngest in the class. She zips through the pre-k work and her teacher now brings in K work for her. I can’t imagine how bored she might be if I had her repeat the year and go back to the basics of identifying letters and numbers. Whether you hold your kid back or send them on time, you want to challenge an eager child. Doing remedial work for a year, without supplementing more advanced learnings they are ready for, may not have the huge advantage you think it will for them as it could backfire by making a kid dislike school when they already know how to do all the things being taught and aren’t being asked to level up and be challenged. So if you red shirt make sure they are working with you outside of school on K skills or K level work so they don’t stagnate.

Stagnate? You’re coming up with solutions to a problem that doesn’t exist. These kids aren’t any more bored than any other kid. Why do you even care about these kids so much? There are so many other kids worthy of your advice and concern. Worry about the kids who will never catch up whose parents can’t even provide the basics much less enrichment.

Well, if your child would not get bored relearning the same curriculum for a year, then clearly he or she is not academically ready for K. Some kids do need two full years of classroom instruction to learn to identify letters. I’m sure they will get there in a few years time!
And that’s ok!

There's more to kindergarten than learning letters. But that's probably news to you.

Your kids should know their letters if they went to a good preschool or parents worked with them. Same with the other stuff.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have a boisterous child who misbehaves, can’t sit still, and struggles socially and/or has a diagnosed or suspected delay, then it may be a good idea to hold them back. Let them have another year in pre-K where they are the oldest and can hopefully work on being classroom ready as they mature. But I would absolutely structure a plan to make sure they are getting the academic challenges they need, so long as they are academically ready for K, so not to get bored and complacent.

My DD turns 5 the day before K begins. I am sending her because she is ready academically and can behave, even though she will likely be among the youngest in the class. She zips through the pre-k work and her teacher now brings in K work for her. I can’t imagine how bored she might be if I had her repeat the year and go back to the basics of identifying letters and numbers. Whether you hold your kid back or send them on time, you want to challenge an eager child. Doing remedial work for a year, without supplementing more advanced learnings they are ready for, may not have the huge advantage you think it will for them as it could backfire by making a kid dislike school when they already know how to do all the things being taught and aren’t being asked to level up and be challenged. So if you red shirt make sure they are working with you outside of school on K skills or K level work so they don’t stagnate.

Stagnate? You’re coming up with solutions to a problem that doesn’t exist. These kids aren’t any more bored than any other kid. Why do you even care about these kids so much? There are so many other kids worthy of your advice and concern. Worry about the kids who will never catch up whose parents can’t even provide the basics much less enrichment.

Well, if your child would not get bored relearning the same curriculum for a year, then clearly he or she is not academically ready for K. Some kids do need two full years of classroom instruction to learn to identify letters. I’m sure they will get there in a few years time!
And that’s ok!

A good preschool, should have taught them. It should not take two years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you have a boisterous child who misbehaves, can’t sit still, and struggles socially and/or has a diagnosed or suspected delay, then it may be a good idea to hold them back. Let them have another year in pre-K where they are the oldest and can hopefully work on being classroom ready as they mature. But I would absolutely structure a plan to make sure they are getting the academic challenges they need, so long as they are academically ready for K, so not to get bored and complacent.

My DD turns 5 the day before K begins. I am sending her because she is ready academically and can behave, even though she will likely be among the youngest in the class. She zips through the pre-k work and her teacher now brings in K work for her. I can’t imagine how bored she might be if I had her repeat the year and go back to the basics of identifying letters and numbers. Whether you hold your kid back or send them on time, you want to challenge an eager child. Doing remedial work for a year, without supplementing more advanced learnings they are ready for, may not have the huge advantage you think it will for them as it could backfire by making a kid dislike school when they already know how to do all the things being taught and aren’t being asked to level up and be challenged. So if you red shirt make sure they are working with you outside of school on K skills or K level work so they don’t stagnate.

No, it’s a good idea to get them assessed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have a boisterous child who misbehaves, can’t sit still, and struggles socially and/or has a diagnosed or suspected delay, then it may be a good idea to hold them back. Let them have another year in pre-K where they are the oldest and can hopefully work on being classroom ready as they mature. But I would absolutely structure a plan to make sure they are getting the academic challenges they need, so long as they are academically ready for K, so not to get bored and complacent.

My DD turns 5 the day before K begins. I am sending her because she is ready academically and can behave, even though she will likely be among the youngest in the class. She zips through the pre-k work and her teacher now brings in K work for her. I can’t imagine how bored she might be if I had her repeat the year and go back to the basics of identifying letters and numbers. Whether you hold your kid back or send them on time, you want to challenge an eager child. Doing remedial work for a year, without supplementing more advanced learnings they are ready for, may not have the huge advantage you think it will for them as it could backfire by making a kid dislike school when they already know how to do all the things being taught and aren’t being asked to level up and be challenged. So if you red shirt make sure they are working with you outside of school on K skills or K level work so they don’t stagnate.

Stagnate? You’re coming up with solutions to a problem that doesn’t exist. These kids aren’t any more bored than any other kid. Why do you even care about these kids so much? There are so many other kids worthy of your advice and concern. Worry about the kids who will never catch up whose parents can’t even provide the basics much less enrichment.

Well, if your child would not get bored relearning the same curriculum for a year, then clearly he or she is not academically ready for K. Some kids do need two full years of classroom instruction to learn to identify letters. I’m sure they will get there in a few years time!
And that’s ok!

There's more to kindergarten than learning letters. But that's probably news to you.

Your kids should know their letters if they went to a good preschool or parents worked with them. Same with the other stuff.

Is that supposed to be the compelling reason nobody should redshirt? It’s pretty weak. The facts speak for themselves despite your insistence about letters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have a boisterous child who misbehaves, can’t sit still, and struggles socially and/or has a diagnosed or suspected delay, then it may be a good idea to hold them back. Let them have another year in pre-K where they are the oldest and can hopefully work on being classroom ready as they mature. But I would absolutely structure a plan to make sure they are getting the academic challenges they need, so long as they are academically ready for K, so not to get bored and complacent.

My DD turns 5 the day before K begins. I am sending her because she is ready academically and can behave, even though she will likely be among the youngest in the class. She zips through the pre-k work and her teacher now brings in K work for her. I can’t imagine how bored she might be if I had her repeat the year and go back to the basics of identifying letters and numbers. Whether you hold your kid back or send them on time, you want to challenge an eager child. Doing remedial work for a year, without supplementing more advanced learnings they are ready for, may not have the huge advantage you think it will for them as it could backfire by making a kid dislike school when they already know how to do all the things being taught and aren’t being asked to level up and be challenged. So if you red shirt make sure they are working with you outside of school on K skills or K level work so they don’t stagnate.

Stagnate? You’re coming up with solutions to a problem that doesn’t exist. These kids aren’t any more bored than any other kid. Why do you even care about these kids so much? There are so many other kids worthy of your advice and concern. Worry about the kids who will never catch up whose parents can’t even provide the basics much less enrichment.

Well, if your child would not get bored relearning the same curriculum for a year, then clearly he or she is not academically ready for K. Some kids do need two full years of classroom instruction to learn to identify letters. I’m sure they will get there in a few years time!
And that’s ok!

There's more to kindergarten than learning letters. But that's probably news to you.

Your kids should know their letters if they went to a good preschool or parents worked with them. Same with the other stuff.

Is that supposed to be the compelling reason nobody should redshirt? It’s pretty weak. The facts speak for themselves despite your insistence about letters.

Any child delayed enough to be held back should be evaluated and given help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have a boisterous child who misbehaves, can’t sit still, and struggles socially and/or has a diagnosed or suspected delay, then it may be a good idea to hold them back. Let them have another year in pre-K where they are the oldest and can hopefully work on being classroom ready as they mature. But I would absolutely structure a plan to make sure they are getting the academic challenges they need, so long as they are academically ready for K, so not to get bored and complacent.

My DD turns 5 the day before K begins. I am sending her because she is ready academically and can behave, even though she will likely be among the youngest in the class. She zips through the pre-k work and her teacher now brings in K work for her. I can’t imagine how bored she might be if I had her repeat the year and go back to the basics of identifying letters and numbers. Whether you hold your kid back or send them on time, you want to challenge an eager child. Doing remedial work for a year, without supplementing more advanced learnings they are ready for, may not have the huge advantage you think it will for them as it could backfire by making a kid dislike school when they already know how to do all the things being taught and aren’t being asked to level up and be challenged. So if you red shirt make sure they are working with you outside of school on K skills or K level work so they don’t stagnate.

Stagnate? You’re coming up with solutions to a problem that doesn’t exist. These kids aren’t any more bored than any other kid. Why do you even care about these kids so much? There are so many other kids worthy of your advice and concern. Worry about the kids who will never catch up whose parents can’t even provide the basics much less enrichment.

Well, if your child would not get bored relearning the same curriculum for a year, then clearly he or she is not academically ready for K. Some kids do need two full years of classroom instruction to learn to identify letters. I’m sure they will get there in a few years time!
And that’s ok!

There's more to kindergarten than learning letters. But that's probably news to you.

Your kids should know their letters if they went to a good preschool or parents worked with them. Same with the other stuff.

Is that supposed to be the compelling reason nobody should redshirt? It’s pretty weak. The facts speak for themselves despite your insistence about letters.

Any child delayed enough to be held back should be evaluated and given help.

+1. Nobody is saying that a child who is not ready for the academic side of kindergarten should not be held back. They likely should. What PPs are saying is that if you hold back a child who IS academically ready (and socially, emotionally ready) you very well could face the issue of that child being bored and not challenged relearning the same content he already learned. I don’t get in that case what the advantage is. It’s like making a kid go back to using training wheels for another year once they’re able to ride without.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have a boisterous child who misbehaves, can’t sit still, and struggles socially and/or has a diagnosed or suspected delay, then it may be a good idea to hold them back. Let them have another year in pre-K where they are the oldest and can hopefully work on being classroom ready as they mature. But I would absolutely structure a plan to make sure they are getting the academic challenges they need, so long as they are academically ready for K, so not to get bored and complacent.

My DD turns 5 the day before K begins. I am sending her because she is ready academically and can behave, even though she will likely be among the youngest in the class. She zips through the pre-k work and her teacher now brings in K work for her. I can’t imagine how bored she might be if I had her repeat the year and go back to the basics of identifying letters and numbers. Whether you hold your kid back or send them on time, you want to challenge an eager child. Doing remedial work for a year, without supplementing more advanced learnings they are ready for, may not have the huge advantage you think it will for them as it could backfire by making a kid dislike school when they already know how to do all the things being taught and aren’t being asked to level up and be challenged. So if you red shirt make sure they are working with you outside of school on K skills or K level work so they don’t stagnate.

Stagnate? You’re coming up with solutions to a problem that doesn’t exist. These kids aren’t any more bored than any other kid. Why do you even care about these kids so much? There are so many other kids worthy of your advice and concern. Worry about the kids who will never catch up whose parents can’t even provide the basics much less enrichment.

Well, if your child would not get bored relearning the same curriculum for a year, then clearly he or she is not academically ready for K. Some kids do need two full years of classroom instruction to learn to identify letters. I’m sure they will get there in a few years time!
And that’s ok!

There's more to kindergarten than learning letters. But that's probably news to you.

Your kids should know their letters if they went to a good preschool or parents worked with them. Same with the other stuff.

Is that supposed to be the compelling reason nobody should redshirt? It’s pretty weak. The facts speak for themselves despite your insistence about letters.

Any child delayed enough to be held back should be evaluated and given help.

+1. Nobody is saying that a child who is not ready for the academic side of kindergarten should not be held back. They likely should. What PPs are saying is that if you hold back a child who IS academically ready (and socially, emotionally ready) you very well could face the issue of that child being bored and not challenged relearning the same content he already learned. I don’t get in that case what the advantage is. It’s like making a kid go back to using training wheels for another year once they’re able to ride without.

Weird that this isn't actually a huge concern or issue for people who have redshirted. Very few have regrets. Why do you think this PSA is so necessary? Is this a huge issue at your school? What is your real agenda here?

[Anonymous]

if you’re still here, OP, I would send your kid with his cohort to preschool. A couple of years is a lifetime for little kids, so you will know if it’s not working and you can reassess when he is about to start kinder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our son has a late August birthday, and we are planning to enroll him in PK3 next year. He is very verbal and seems to be enjoying his current full-time daycare. I hadn't even considered holding him back until a few people asked me about it, and I see it mentioned here all the time. Are there specific things people look for when deciding to hold a kid (boys, especially) back? He's only 2.5 so there's only so much I can "judge" him on at this point haha but want to be sure I'm not missing or considering something. Thanks!

Wonderful! My mid -September born nephew will be greenshirted. Maybe they will be classmates.

[Anonymous]

Idk. Seems like one of the PPs has two redshirted kids doing well at Ivies. Hard to be dumb there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our son has a late August birthday, and we are planning to enroll him in PK3 next year. He is very verbal and seems to be enjoying his current full-time daycare. I hadn't even considered holding him back until a few people asked me about it, and I see it mentioned here all the time. Are there specific things people look for when deciding to hold a kid (boys, especially) back? He's only 2.5 so there's only so much I can "judge" him on at this point haha but want to be sure I'm not missing or considering something. Thanks!

I'm a fan of redshirting. With what you describe, were it my son, I'd hold him a year.