Need help with grades (like K,1,2,3, etc)

[CortLong]

Ok, maybe I'm still too much of a newbie and I know I have a while to go, but I'm such a planner and this has been driving me crazy.

DD is 2 right now and will turn 3 this December (which will eventually be in the middle of the "school year") I am doing a basic letter a week program with her this fall (and winter and spring!) THEN if she was in public/private school here she would STILL have one more year of preschool, then a year of pre-K, THEN K.

So my question is....would you have your child start doing K work when they're 4 and will turn 5 in December (after starting somewhere in August/September) or would you wait and do Pre-K that year and have them do K work when they're 5 and will turn 6 in December???

I know not all children are the same, and I know that I probably have a little more structured view of homeschooling (aka- we're not unschoolers, I don't think....) so WWYD????

[SagMom]

WWID? I'd fight the urge to assign a grade level to everything. Seriously, what is "K work?" If your child is reading easy readers at the age of 4 will you not allow her to move on to more challenging stuff simply because learning to read is what she "should" be doing in first grade?

If she is having trouble forming letters at the age of 7, will you push on ahead to the next level because that's what kids in her grade are "supposed" to learn?

(I'm guessing the answers are "no" and "no.")

So, as she learns one thing, simply move on. Don't worry about naming what grade she's in. Even "school-at-home" families have kids working at different levels in different subjects. Let her interests and abilities guide you.

[Brenoi]

Right on Joan - I whole-heartedly agree with Joan - move at your child's pace. If dc is ready to move on, then go for it. Throw the year = grade concept in the garbage. As my dd now responds when someone asks her what grade she is in - "In what subject, do you mean?" She recognizes that she is at grade level in some subjects and above in others. Grade level is irrelevant except for when we sign up for sports in town.

[anythingelse]

I would wait.

POV here we call it whatever grade level the child wants to even if the dc is doing 2nd grade reading & preschool math, he can call himself a 3rd grader or 1st grader. whatever I don't care. the kids are with a variety of people and they are asked what grade are you in by strangers, other kids, neighbors, and extended family- they make up whatever answer they want LOL
there never was all this preK and preschool labeling stuff 15 yrs ago, this is newer lingo and I think because of the movement for lowering the mandatory age of school enrollment you may want to look at your state laws for madatory age of school enrollment and use that for a guide to choose which age is K


HTH
Mary

[atypicalandrea]

We also assign grade levels according to age, only becasue that is what others understand. Doesn't have a thing to do with the actually work level they are doing in any subject.

I've tried planning years ahead, and it just doesn't work. Those pesky kids go and learn stuff off-schedule. Just take a year, or even 6 months at a time.

My daughter is exactly a year older than yours, and we aren't doing anything formal but read her tons of stories. We also respond to all her questions and interests. She's doing awesome.

[MilkbarMom]

my daughter's bday is in Dec also.

We started "school" when she was 3-5. We did 2 years of "kindergarten" starting with Oak Meadow Kindergarten. It was very Preschool like to me. We just added it in to our every day life, and spread it out over 2 years. This past September when she was 5 nearly 6 we started our "official" Kindergarten with our charter home school. We started off slowly, and have gotten way more acedemic as the year has progressed. She works at a 2nd- 6th grade level in science, a K-1 in reading. She loves history, so I read her history stories. We just finsihed Little House in the Big Woods, and have moved on the The Box Car Children. We use Sing, Spell, Read and Write for our phonics leard to read program. Math I just try to incorporate into every day, it is very common sense to her.

So my opinion is like the other posters, take it at your childs pace. But if you have the desire to have a set curriculum, Oak Meadow is nice, with out being to pushy.