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Anonymous wrote:It’s generally discouraged to enroll in a private K-8 or K-12 program with the intention of leaving after a year to repeat K at a more selective school. In most cases, it’s cleaner to either remain in nursery school for an additional year or attend public K as a bridge year, both of which are common for children with summer or fall birthdays.
Thanks. Is that mainly because more selective schools may be less inclined to take a student coming from another private school, in order to avoid straining relationships between schools? Or is it more about potentially harming the family’s relationship with the current school?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I’d apply from preschool. It’s what they do- help families get into kindergarten.
I agree with this. Especially if you are dead set on the private school track. Your preschool director will be the person speaking on your behalf to ongoing schools, and working with you to get your child in to the right school for them. This isn't the case if they are in public.
We stuck it out in preschool for another year (our child is a September bday, so past the private school cut off date) and my child got in to our top choice school for her.
She can read, write, do basic math etc. So she didn't lose any steam by not going right in to public K. Kids start to even out come 3rd grade.
Thanks, this is really helpful. I have a few follow-up questions. If a preschool keeps a student for an extra year, will independent schools still consider them even if they are technically past the cutoff? Also, have you heard of any schools that actually prefer applicants coming from an existing K program?
Anonymous wrote:I’d apply from preschool. It’s what they do- help families get into kindergarten.
Thanks. Aside from whether there is an exmissions support, do schools prefer applicants coming from a K program since they may already be more academically prepared?
Anonymous wrote:Having a kid repeat K (or even PK) merely because you didn't get into your first choice school is a bad idea. When is their birthday? Do you think they are academically and socially ready for kindergarten?
I feel that she may not be ready yet. This doesn't seem like a developmental concern, but rather a difference in her developmental timeline.
Anonymous wrote:The second piece depends on the school, but we ended up moving to a prek-12 school that just wasn’t a good fit for a child and because they did not have exmissions It was actually pretty difficult because they did not allow classroom visits or would be willing to speak to other schools.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Did you later move from K to another K, and does the other K prefer an existing K student since it's more academically ready?
We're trying to decide whether to keep our child in nursery for one more year or start a K program this fall and then reapply to a K program we like but didn’t get into this year. Is it generally better to reapply from nursery as an older K applicant or from another K program, and do K programs typically consider applicants whoever remain in nursery for an extra year even if they’re older for the grade?