DD not ready for Kindergarten

[Blondie337]

My DD never went to preschool and she's very shy and just seems to hate people she doesn't know! I'm so nervous over her going to school this coming fall. I feel like she's gonna have such a hard time. Plus she still pees her pants almost every day. I have 3 kids and she the middle child and needs to be treat different from the other 2 because she's so sensitive. Does anyone have a child as sensitive as mine that I can relate with? Also everyone else that has kids the same age as her know way more then she does. I work at home to prepare her for school but my other daughter who's 14 months younger is picking it up better.

[pigpokey]

Does your state require kindergarten attendance for first grade? Mine does not.

[tinuviel_k]

How old is your daughter? What is her birthday in relation to the "kindergarten cut-off day" in your school district. Would it be possible to hold her back from kindergarten an extra year and put her in a nice preschool this year? The class size would be smaller and less intimidating, it might help her ease into school, and in preschool it is a little easier to deal with accidents than in grade school.

In our district the children need to be five years old by the end of August to attend kindergarten. My daughter was five by the end of July 2008, but I decided she just wasn't ready for kindergarten that year. She ended up having another year of preschool, and started kindergarten a month and a half after she turned six, in 2009. It has worked out perfectly: she is now emotionally and academically ready for kindergarten, and fits in well with her peers even though she is 4-12 months older than most of them.

[newbymom05]

Def what the PP wrote. Where I am it's very common to hold back young 5's. I know several parents who chose to keep their child in pre-k an extra year and had them start kindy at 6.

[omelette]

Originally Posted by newbymom05

Def what the PP wrote. Where I am it's very common to hold back young 5's. I know several parents who chose to keep their child in pre-k an extra year and had them start kindy at 6.

As a former Kindy teacher I'm all for delaying the start date for a child who is not ready for K. Starting them when they're not ready can set them back for the rest of their schooling 'career'. This can be both academically, socially and emotionally. If it is an option you might want to look into it and see about doing a pre-school program next yr.

[Ruthla]

Is homeschooling an option for your family?

[meemee]

Originally Posted by Ruthla

Is homeschooling an option for your family?

the april fools almost got me. it is sooo funny!!!

[eepster]

Research shows holding age eligible students back from kindergarten is detrimental. If you'd like to see some of the research, just search the forum for "redshiritng."

The best way to prepare a student for school is to send them to school.

When DS started school, he was also very very shy. The way DS blossomed in school was amazing. One of the big things that helped DS was sending him to the right school. He goes to a wonderful Montessori school. They let him bring his stuffed bunny for his first year there, and let me stay in the hall way till he was ready to separate.

Before you send her to school consider your options. Visit a number of schools, along with the public school many private preschools offer a kindergarten year. See how the public school deals with the transition into school, then visit a few private ones and see if they are a better match.