1) confirm that your kid can go to public 1st after private K if they are the age for public K. In many districts you need private K and 1st if the kid’s birthday is past the cutoff.
2) does your area have transitional K? I didn’t know about it until after I could have used it for my fall birthday kid.

I would do private K, and then repeat K. With that birthday, he will be the absolute youngest (I have a September child we sent but I wouldn't for a December birthday. If the cut off is December for your state, then I'd probably do private K and then 1st, but otherwise do K twice.

I would talk to his current pre school teachers and she where they think he will fit best. My kids were in public school but my impression is that private schools tend to skew older than public so private K may not take a kid with a December bday for kindergarten. I think most kids would be fine long term either way so factor your convenience and cost in for sure.

I don't understand the two options you are choosing between..one is (1) a kindergarten room at your Goddard and the second is, what? I'm in the Chicago area, so maybe I don't understand that there is some kind of universal public pre-k available where you are?? Is that the second option? What is the age range of the kids in the Goddard kinder room?

FWIW, my 4.5 year old is at a Goddard in a Chicago suburb. She is in the oldest classroom at our Goddard...it's called a pre-k room and it has a mix of 4 and 5 year olds in the room at this point in the year. It is absolutely FANTASTIC. The best year of preschool/pre-k/whatever you want to call it any of my kids have had at the many different schools/centers we have been at (we've moved a few times, switched up childcare arrangement, etc.). But, I don't know how meaningful this is because I have friends with kids at a Goddard in the city (Chicago) and they are quite unhappy...

My daughter is an October birthday but was "young" for each of her preschool classes -- e.g., they let her into the 3s class when she was still 2. Because she was past the cut off, by the time we got to the end of the progression at her preschool, she was in the junior K with basically 100% redshirted boys. It was a good experience for her to have that last year in preK be with similarly aged (i.e., all within a 4-5 month range) kids. She went onto K and is now in 1st in public and is socially thriving, loves going to school but claims she never learns anything.

OP here, wasn't saying I would send him to First Grade just pointing out that is an option. Settle down with your language and response- kindness matters! You could have said, "something to consider is he would be the younger than the youngest in the First Grade classroom if you sent him to First Grade."

Anonymous wrote:WTF would you send him to 1st grade where he'll be younger than the youngest kid by 4 months??? I can't believe anyone would even consider that.

OP's kid might be very advanced. You are not old enough to remember when grade skipping was common and something parents of smart kids even pushed for. Nowadays the fad is to delay K for as long as possible, but some still favor the old way.

WTF would you send him to 1st grade where he'll be younger than the youngest kid by 4 months??? I can't believe anyone would even consider that.

DS will turn 5 in December 2024 so he is not eligible for public school kindergarten until August 2025. Our Goddard offers a Private Kindergarten program that he could join this fall in lieu of Pre-K (he's currently in their Pre-School program). Realizing each Goddard is different, opening the floor to thoughts, advice, etc. on moving him to Private Kindergarten vs Pre-K. Based on what I understand, come August of 2025 DS could do Kindergarten again or go to First Grade at public school if he were in the Private Kindergarten program. Thanks in advance!