It's this attitude. Why does t matter? Kindergarten isn't mandatory. Okayyyyy. Did your redshirt your child?

Anonymous wrote:

I also hate the parents who redshirt. There should be a clear std for red shirting. Allowing parents to "decide" whether their child is ready for k or not is ridiculous.

Why do you care? Kindergarten isn't mandatory.

Anonymous wrote:I had a kid who was in the sixth percentile for height and weight for years, even though she was academically very bright. There were times in kindergarten, first and second grade that I actually worried that she would get hurt because some of the kids were so much bigger than she was.
I also had kids who were at the extreme ends of the bell curve in terms of maturing late. One daughter got her period when she was 16. I think the humiliation and embarrassment of not having boobs, etc. in tenth grade was probably greater since there were kids getting their periods in fifth grade -- and it wasn't because of hormones in the chicken, etc. but rather because they were 12 years old in fifth grade.

In short, I think that the kids who are really small for their age or who mature late can be somewhat affected by routinely being in classes with kids so much bigger and older than they are. And yes, you could have said we should have held our kids back but 1. we couldn't afford the extra years of daycare and 2. we kept thinking our kids would mature and join the rest of the pack but they never did -- until 11th grade.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why aren't the rules the rules? Why isn't the deadline hard and fast?

The cut-off in our area is September 1st, and DS was born September 9th. At first, we were somewhat relieved that he would have to wait till he was almost 6, but in the months leading up to his 5th birthday, it was very clear that he was ready for K and that waiting another year would drive him crazy. So we had him take an early entrance and he passed with flying colors, so he started kindergarten right before he turned 5. So technically, we didn't follow the rules either. Why? Because if we had just blindly followed the guidelines, he would be bored to tears. He's now 8 and in 3rd grade, reading at a 5th grade level, gets his work done early, and his teacher still has to find extra work to give him. I can't imagine what it would be like if he were in 2nd grade. The bottom line is that not one size fits all. If we had a child who made the cut-off, but had not been ready for K, we would have held him or her back. Kids need to be grouped by ability, not age. Just because a child misses the cut-off does not mean that he or she isn't ready for K, and just because a child makes the cut-off does not mean that he or she is ready for K. It all boils down to the individual.

but technically, you did follow the rules. you didn't just barge your way into K early. instead, your son took and passed the early entrance exam. those who pass go early, those who don't wait another year. got it?

I also hate the parents who redshirt. There should be a clear std for red shirting. Allowing parents to "decide" whether their child is ready for k or not is ridiculous.