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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I hate the term redshirt when used in this context. This isn’t about playing a college sport. It’s about developmental appropriate expectations in kindergarten and your child’s readiness.
I did however send my August birthday girl to kindergarten when she was 6, not 5.[b] I’ve taught kindergarten for nearly 20 years, it was an easy choice.[/b] She is now in middle school and I’m even happier with my choice than I was when she was 5/6.[/quote]

I'm interested in this. What about your experience as a kindergarten teacher made it an easy choice, and what benefits have you seen now that she is in middle school?[/quote]

It was an easy choice because I know that 5 year old children are not developmentally ready for what kindergarten requires
Of them now. They are not meant to spend their days doing worksheets and drilling sight words or phonics or addition and subtraction facts with one adult to 25 small beings. They are meant to be free to explore their world with support and guidance. They need attention paid to their social emotional development.  I knew that would not be my daughter’s experience in kindergarten and I chose to give her an extra year to grow. Not so that she could be better than the other kids but so that she could have a better, more meaningful experience and be more able to cope with the transition to the real world of big school. 
As for the long term benefits, she is more emotionally mature than her friends.  She is able to stay out of the drama and is a wonderful friend. She is a natural leader.  Is some of this her natural personality? Probably. But I do believe that the year before going to kindergarten helped her grow into the person she is.[/quote]

I am rolling my eyes so hard at the idea that your daughter is a natural leader.  No, she isn't.  She's more emotionally mature than her friends because she's OLDER than her friends.  She's a leader because she's OLDER than her classmates.  Do what you want, but the nonsense that some people tell themselves is ridiculous.  I've heard parents complaining that their kids are so advanced and so bored in the school--come to find out they redshirted them.  Yeah, no surprise your kid is "advanced"--he's doing work meant for younger kids.  He'd probably be right on track if he was in the class he's supposed to be in.

Also, the kindergarten my kid went to did not involve drilling sight words (or anything else) or doing worksheets.  It involved lots of exploration, stories, music, and art, and plenty of focus on social and emotional development.  [/quote]

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