Holding back a child with a May or June birthday who doesn't have significant delays or issues is ridiculous and shouldn't be allowed. Plus it must stink not having confidence in your child or his school.

What's really bothering me about a lot of the anti-redshirting parents is that there reasons for being against redshirting have nothing to do with how it harms the redshirted child, but rather how it harms THEIR child. My son has an August birthday, and I sent him on time. However, my reasons for not redshirting him had nothing to do with other students, but everything to do with him. I know that if I had redshirted him, he would be crazy bored. He's appropriately challenged, but is still doing well. Also, I felt that I have given him a head start in life. He'll graduate high school at 17, and he'll be able to take a gap year before college without having to worry about so old(almost 20) when he starts college. If he doesn't want to go college, he'll still have more time to decide what he wants to do with his life. If I thought that redshirting him would have benefited him somehow, I would have done it. As parents, it's our job to do what's best for our child, not other people's children. If you're against redshirting because you think it affects the redshirted child, then I'm all ears, but many of these parents made it clear that they felt redshirting would negatively affect their child, and didn't say anything about how it would negatively affect the redshirted child. If you don't think redshirting has any negative affect on the redshirted child, then it is selfish for you to be against it. If you feel like other parents redshirting puts your child at a disadvantage, you also have the option of redshirting, and if you want to follow the guidelines, you can homeschool them so they won't be around the older kids. To sum it up, if you're against redshirting, you have to think of ways in which it negatively affects the redshirted child, and if you don't think redshirting has any negative affects on the redshirted child, you have no reason to be against it.

In Loudoun, the rule is: children who are 5 by September 30 MAY attend, children who are 6 by September 30 MUST attend. So there is one year of wiggle room, no explanation required. I think they do ask to be notified however.

Anonymous wrote:I don't think anyone would have an issue with a Sept birthday kid going as a rising 5 or a rising 6. It's the May/June conundrum that's at issue.

I agree.

A kid turning 6 in September no big deal.

You have your kids best interest at heart so own your decision. Don't let anyone else tell you what's best.

My sister recently told me both her and her husband wished they had been red shirted ( aug birthdays) and struggled academically in the early years. I do remember her struggling with reading. they are both extremly smart and financially successful in life. Their son has an aug birthday and they went to great lengths to get him into early learning at 3. He's going to be 5 soon and needs fine motor help, he already reads and is a Lego genius.

Every kid is different, and you are doing what is best for your kid- I wish more parents would be as concerned with their kid.

I am giving my June birthday boy an extra year. He will start K at 6. Just hold your head high! You might want to look into an independent private school where it isn't even a question. Public school parents are the ones who freak out about this. The prep schools have given the kids, especially boys, more time to play and mature for a long time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the rule is: A child who will be six years old on or before September 30 must attend school. A qualifying parent may elect to provide home instruction for his or her school-age child in lieu of school attendance. More information is also available by calling 571-423-4460. Kindergarten programs are housed in FCPS elementary schools.Apr 4, 2013

Then explain to me how kids are able to be redshirted.

What is your question? Did you read the Fairfax website and conclude that 6 year olds go to K? Because in Fairfax, 5 year olds go to K and 6 year olds go to 1st, unless they are redshirted.

If you child is turning six in Sept they must go to K. A lot of "rising 6 year olds" born in Aug and Sept go to K.

If every child followed the rules there would be no issues.

What about my child who turned 5 two weeks after school started? So a "rising 5yo"? Should he/she go on time or wait until he/she is a "rising 6yo"?

Technically he/she is not legally reguired to attend K until the following year. It is optional to you at this point. Most do because they do not want to pay for preschool.

Also true for any child - technically even those born in May or June.

(Sorry - meant to reply to this one.)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think anyone would have an issue with a Sept birthday kid going as a rising 5 or a rising 6. It's the May/June conundrum that's at issue.

I agree with this statement as well.

If turning 5 in Sept your child will be the youngest in the class, if turning six in Sept (at least by FCPS) you are just following the rules and your child would have been on the older end (well not anymore with May and Junes)

Also true for any child - technically even those born in May or June.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So your kid will turn 7 in kindergarten? Yeah I wouldn't celebrate his 7th birthday with his kinder friends. My son who just finished 2nd grade is still 7.

I agree. That is insane. My child will celebrate their 5th birthday in kindergarten. The fact that your 7 year old may be in class with my 5 year old is ridiculous.

Yes my kid will be 7 the entire 2nd grade school year.

May is ridiculous but it will come to bite the in the ass with travel sports which go by birth date not school year.

Your kid will not be allowed to play with teammates. Zero exceptions. It's National Standard for sports like soccer.

Nothing comes back to bite you in the ass for travel sports. There are many teams - it's not like you play with tons of kids from your own school?
Most do t may travel sports. Also some kids play up on teams.
There is a wide variety of schools , age groups and grades represented on travel sports teams.
Chill pill people.

Anonymous wrote:If there is one thing redshirting debates tell me is that the decision to start formal schooling at five is a misguided one as a matter of policy. I come from a country where children begin school at age seven, yes, seven, and there is no such thing as redshirting there. Everyone is ready at age seven. If anything, there are families who petition to enroll their children at age six, since some kids are ready sooner than seven. But five is just too young. Hence the hand-wringing over it.

We red shirted an early summer bday daughter. She is very smart but still even in her teens, immature. It's the right place for her still
It was strongly recommended to us, not our idea. No school has ever even hinted that it was not the right choice.
She is in a more challenging school for academics - the rote stuff you learn in the early grades is really of little consequence (daughter went to already bad school for elem). Most of early years is about social. Smart kids learn basic read/math through play and life.

In elem school another mom came up to me - never met her before then - and chewed me out bc my daughter was older (she's real wacky and always stressed)
Her daughter cried at school and had academic trouble for literally years at school. And again - early learning is mostly developmental. They learn when they are ready and not before . Being late to read doesnt mean the kid is dumb (nor does early reading necessarily mean giftedness)
Others also told us that their young for school kid was always on a different social level all through their schooling days.

Crying girl was finally redshirted in 6th grade. It's a lot more traumatic then.

Also at private school they MAKE some kids stay back. It's just developmental - does not mean they are not smart.

Don't ask for opinions from parents (these comments are nuts) just ask school/other professionals and move on


Many kids at top private schools are older. It's more like college work in last years of hs so makes sense.

Id personally love for said teen to go off to college now(omg !!! To have the sweet elementary school days back...) but you have to do what you have to do to raise them

Anonymous wrote:I don't think anyone would have an issue with a Sept birthday kid going as a rising 5 or a rising 6. It's the May/June conundrum that's at issue.

I agree with this statement as well.

If turning 5 in Sept your child will be the youngest in the class, if turning six in Sept (at least by FCPS) you are just following the rules and your child would have been on the older end (well not anymore with May and Junes)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the rule is: A child who will be six years old on or before September 30 must attend school. A qualifying parent may elect to provide home instruction for his or her school-age child in lieu of school attendance. More information is also available by calling 571-423-4460. Kindergarten programs are housed in FCPS elementary schools.Apr 4, 2013

Then explain to me how kids are able to be redshirted.

What is your question? Did you read the Fairfax website and conclude that 6 year olds go to K? Because in Fairfax, 5 year olds go to K and 6 year olds go to 1st, unless they are redshirted.

If you child is turning six in Sept they must go to K. A lot of "rising 6 year olds" born in Aug and Sept go to K.

If every child followed the rules there would be no issues.

What about my child who turned 5 two weeks after school started? So a "rising 5yo"? Should he/she go on time or wait until he/she is a "rising 6yo"?

Technically he/she is not legally reguired to attend K until the following year. It is optional to you at this point. Most do because they do not want to pay for preschool.

I don't think anyone would have an issue with a Sept birthday kid going as a rising 5 or a rising 6. It's the May/June conundrum that's at issue.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the rule is: A child who will be six years old on or before September 30 must attend school. A qualifying parent may elect to provide home instruction for his or her school-age child in lieu of school attendance. More information is also available by calling 571-423-4460. Kindergarten programs are housed in FCPS elementary schools.Apr 4, 2013

Then explain to me how kids are able to be redshirted.

What is your question? Did you read the Fairfax website and conclude that 6 year olds go to K? Because in Fairfax, 5 year olds go to K and 6 year olds go to 1st, unless they are redshirted.

If you child is turning six in Sept they must go to K. A lot of "rising 6 year olds" born in Aug and Sept go to K.

If every child followed the rules there would be no issues.

What about my child who turned 5 two weeks after school started? So a "rising 5yo"? Should he/she go on time or wait until he/she is a "rising 6yo"?

Anonymous wrote:If the rule is: A child who will be six years old on or before September 30 must attend school. A qualifying parent may elect to provide home instruction for his or her school-age child in lieu of school attendance. More information is also available by calling 571-423-4460. Kindergarten programs are housed in FCPS elementary schools.Apr 4, 2013

Then explain to me how kids are able to be redshirted.

This is true for many areas, including MCPS--parents may delay kindergarten for a year, and only a year, unless they opt for home instruction. So, a child who will turn 6 on or before Sept. 1 (MCPS cut-off) or Sept 30 (FCPS cut-off) must be enrolled in school. Most of those children will already be enrolled in school, in first grade, but some who are red-shirted or retained, will be in kindergarten.

I teach kindergarten (in MCPS) and a 7-year-old child in kindergarten is not the end of the world. I whole-heartedly disagree with the OP as she has presented her case, but let's not confused the notion of a kid turning 7 in May of their K year with a kid turning 7 at the beginning of their K year. I have a lot of international students, and this past year I had a boy who had never been to school before and was six years old. He was enrolled in kindergarten (in his home country, children start school at 6-7 instead of 5-6). He turned 7 in early May. It was NBD. Because of his language proficiency, he was academically on par with the other students. Yes, there were some kids who turned 6 after he turned 7, so for a few short weeks, I had a 7-year-old student and 5-year-old students in the same class. Everyone survived.

Having said that, though, I would definitely NOT recommend keeping an academically and socially ready child from attending kindergarten on time.