Reply to Not redshirting our May birthday boy?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Are these crazy 7 month redshirting parents only redshirting boys?  Are all the girls in the grade then younger than the boys?  That seems messed up.[/quote]

I’m in Texas and yes this is absolutely the case.

It is so so weird, I agree. [/quote]

It's big in the South because of football/other sports.  People want their boys to be as big as possible.[/quote]

Aren’t youth sports based on DOB though?  You can’t play U11 if you turn 11 before 9/1 (or 1/1 depending on if your league uses school year or calendar year).  So you can send your 6.5 year old to K, but you’d have to put him on a 1st grade soccer team.  At least here in DC area.[/quote]

Not in high school. High school sports, especially basketball and football, are partially determined by size and weight. A kid a year older who is bigger and stronger is going to have an advantage at the high school level. Travel team and AAU and the like are based on birth year.

Most of the kids I know who are held back a year have been done so for legit reasons, one had asthma and was missing a good amount of preschool because of health issues. One had a speech issue and was receiving services. One was just not ready and was on the cusp (born a day or so before the cut off). I have not known anyone who actually held a kid back because of sports. It does seem to be more regional, my friends in the Mid West are more likely to hold a kid out of kindergarten until they are 6. My Friends who are teachers actually think that it is not a bad idea because Kindergarten has become more academic then it used to be.

We sent our DS on time, he is a late June birthday, because he was starting to read (Bob books, nothing too exciting) and writing at his preschool. We thought he was ready for school and would have been bored with another year in Preschool. Virginia does allow for kids to start kindergarten at 6 because some kids are not ready at 5. There are some kids in his class who started at 6 but most started at 5.

I fully understand holding your kid back if the vast majority of kids are being held back.  I would not want my kid to be the youngest by more then a year. But I think that there are more kids who are ready to go at five then are sent. I think that most parents are trying to do the best by their kids. There are some who want their kids to simply enjoy being able to run around and not have a ton of structure for another year. There are some whose kids are not ready, regular melt downs and not able to sit in in the circle at pre school. There are some who want to try and game the athletic system but I think they really are the minority.

Kids react differently to it. My younger brother started kindergarten at 5 and was removed half way into the year. He restarted at 6 and then was held back a year (serious learning disabilities). He could care less that he was the oldest in his class. He never discussed it that I can remember and has never complained about it. I was the youngest in my class and I could have cared less. My son has a kid who was held back a year for legit reasons and he clearly cares. He actively discusses being on the older sports team then the other kids in his grade and being in the same Den as the kids a grade year up. Without saying it, he makes it clear that he knows that he is older then his classmates.

Overall people should make the decision that is best for their kid. Most kids are not going to care where they end up in the long run. If the trend in your area is to send kids when they are 6, there is nothing wrong with waiting. If you decide to send your kid earlier, then go for it and don't be worried about it. Someone is going to be the youngest. Just make the best decision for your kid. [/quote]

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