Early Entrance to Kindergarten Experiences (Montgomery County)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am an mcps k teacher. I will not give details regarding the assessment. I will say that in order to pass your child needs to demonstrate end of kindergarten proficiency levels. In addition he will need to show that he is emotionally and socially ready. He will need to separate from you with ease during the assessment. He will need to engage with the teachers and other children. He will need to begin, sustain attention to and complete a non-proffered task.
If you believe he can do these things, or you’re not sure and want him assessed, make an appointment with the homeschool in the spring.
If the team agrees that he is ready, great. If they don’t, he does another year of prek.
Good luck.

My Oct. birthday kid turned 6 a month after K began. He could not do many of these things after completing K! (yes, we were called and emailed a lot.) Ours was a super crowded school witch packed hallways and "learning cottage" aka trailers outside. As a pp notes, I do think the early entrance to K process helps if you are not attended a fully packed school.

Good luck OP!

[Anonymous]

Our schools used to be that you needed to be 5 years old by December 31st and there are plenty adults who are doing fine. It was almost all boys who delayed though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you ok with the other boys being 12-15 months older? Or will you be here complaining that there's such a huge age gap, your kid can't play sports and shine, and other parents are the worst for bending the rules like you are?

This is a good point. It may see, fine now, but it is a lot harder socially when he is 12 and his classmates are 13-14.

The anecdotes of “when I was a kid” don’t really matter anymore. It isn’t the 1980s/90s. School is different. Kindergarten has vastly different expectations. Getting into to good colleges, internships, etc. is much more competitive than it was decades ago. I would send him on time when he is already 5, not early. Being in the 99th percentile is a better place to be than if you start him early and he sits at the 75th percentile...or wherever. Just an example, but point is he will have more advantages to be over prepared for schools than for being simply “ready”

I wrote about the changes that are from 2015. And every generation claims what you’re claiming.

[Anonymous]

I was one of the youngest in my class back before redshirting was a thing, and I was fine in every respect, not just fine, but thrived. Now that redshirting is so common, especially for boys, I would not send a boy early. My son is a spring birthday and one of the youngest in his class.

[Anonymous]

My daughter (a college sophomore) had two friends who do this. They were always top of the class academically. The boy ended up taking a year off before middle school. He was on the small side anyway and I think the physical difference with the other boys was just really a lot at that age and the parents wanted him to catch up so they took a phenomenal gap year. I don’t think that’s necessary but I do think things like — are you on the smaller or larger size as parents and did you have early puberty or late puberty might be relevant questions. If your son is smart but small and likely will hit puberty later, middle school might be hard if he’s a lot younger than other boys.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was one of the youngest in my class back before redshirting was a thing, and I was fine in every respect, not just fine, but thrived. Now that redshirting is so common, especially for boys, I would not send a boy early. My son is a spring birthday and one of the youngest in his class.

Not relevant as a spring birthday doesn’t do the entrance exam.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My daughter (a college sophomore) had two friends who do this. They were always top of the class academically. The boy ended up taking a year off before middle school. He was on the small side anyway and I think the physical difference with the other boys was just really a lot at that age and the parents wanted him to catch up so they took a phenomenal gap year. I don’t think that’s necessary but I do think things like — are you on the smaller or larger size as parents and did you have early puberty or late puberty might be relevant questions. If your son is smart but small and likely will hit puberty later, middle school might be hard if he’s a lot younger than other boys.

My kid is short, so should I have held him back a few years. Then what, in hs when he’s a super senior and still short. Being older doesn’t make you taller genetics does.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was one of the youngest in my class back before redshirting was a thing, and I was fine in every respect, not just fine, but thrived. Now that redshirting is so common, especially for boys, I would not send a boy early. My son is a spring birthday and one of the youngest in his class.

It isn’t 1987 anymore. When YOU started kindergarten 30+ yrs ago is irrelevant