I am curious to know when the cut off for Kindergarten is where you live? - Page 4

[fullernj]

Boy this thread got me thinking. Our first is an end of Oct baby, so she went to K when she was almost 6. Cut off in SD is Sept 1. Our next will go at 5 1/2, he was born in Feb. But our 3rd was born Aug 13. If we send him when he is just barely 5 he will be one grade behind his older brother. Intelligence wise, I don't think we will have issues, he is pretty bright, but are we better off putting the boys close together in school, so they can share. They will have the same friends, be on the same teams in sports, and all that stuff. Or do we hold the younger one back so they have some independence. My older sister and I were one grade apart and we fought all the way through high school. My husband and his older brother were two grades apart and they were best buds. Is that just a girl thing.

[nancy926]

Didn't read the entire thread...but cut-off is Sept 1 here in VT. It's Dec 1 in NY, I believe, or at least it was when I was in school.

We're planning to homeschool so it's not really an issue, but if our kids went to school they'd be 2 grades apart; the older one would turn 6 a couple of months into k'garten but the younger one would be 5 all the way through.

[mamabeca]

Yup - Dec. 1 for NY. LOADS of mamas here keep their Sept and Oct boys home, and occasionally their girls if they're Nov, sometimes Oct. It all sorta pisses me off, not because of anything in particular, just the social pressure we put on kids.

[mamabeca]

Just a quick response to Josie - I think he should be with his own age-mates, independent of what his brother is doing. If they're good buds now, they probably will be in spite of school pressures, teams, etc. If they're not best buds now, they may grow closer, or they may not. My brother and I were 2 grades apart (i.e.: me 9th him 11th), and didn't enjoy each other's company. But my next door neighbor was just like my sister, and we were 1 grade apart (me 10th she 9th) and were just chummy all the way through. I don't think it's so much a gender thing as a personality thing. You know your boys - make the decision based on what's best for each of them individually. That's MY .02 lol!

[pigletof4]

Most schools in my area are August 31, but a couple of schools in the area are going for May 31. My daughter was a July birthday and I held her. My son who I was going to start this fall is a June baby. Unfortunately his preschool teachers do not think he is ready so he will not go next year.

[RubyWild]

Here they have to be 5 on the first day of class.

[chris88]

Cut off date for turning 5

Hi everyone,

I'm in Montreal, Quebec and our cut off date for turning 5 to be eligible for Kindergarten is September 30th.

In addition to academic readiness, one thing you might want to look at is your child's overall "school" readiness to determine if they are truly prepared to start Kindergarten.

By this I mean, does my child have appropriate social skills neccessary to function effectively in a kindergarten class? Can he/she follow routines and transition easily? Can he/she start a project and see it through to the end, working independently? Can he/she communicate wants/needs to both adults and peers in a way that is appropriate and easily understood? is my child receptive/accepting of others' opinions and can he/she work through a conflict non-aggressively?

I mention this for two reasons. Firstly, because my son was the youngest in his class when he started kindergarten (he's a summer baby) when a good many of his classmates were turning 6 the first few months of school. I really think for him that it made a difference and made things a little more difficult for him. Alot happens developmentally within a span of a year.

Secondly, because I run a pre-k program (privately) that targets these very skills and have seen that these are core areas that children really seem need to work on before they start school. It both better prepares them and increases the likelihood of their first school experience being a success.

Chris

[angela&avery]

Originally Posted by AesSedai

But I found grades 7-12 to be very difficult for me socially because I was physically not developed yet, and I was a late bloomer on top of that....didn't hit puberty until I was a sophmore.

my birthday was on oct 25, and i waited a year. I was always one of the oldest in my class... and actually Im tall for my age, so being older made me even taller which I hated.. and..

I was a late bloomer anyhow....so you never know in that department.

[MinnieMouse]

Interesting...

Beth will be 5yo in July and the cutoff date for our district here in PA is Sept 1. I haven't thought twice about sending her though. Beth has been attending daycare since 12wks old and currently is in their PreK program. She does beautifully both academically and socially. AND I'm not really concerned about the stamina issue as she's been going "all day" (albeit w/ a nap) all this time.

My birthday is mid-Nov and when I entered school back in the early 70's in NY the cut off date was Dec 1. I think I did just fine in school, in fact academically I think I did the best out of all of my siblings.

My sister was a March baby and then my brother was born Dec 31. The year he went into K they changed the date to Jan 1. With him being the youngest my mom was buddies w/ the K teacher and she had a LONG convo w/ her before enrolling my brother. Even though he was young (technically not the youngest...someone was actually born 2hrs after he was) he was extremely tall. Even being as young as he was in his class, he towered over everyone else. The K teacher felt that he was ready so mom sent him "on time."

Socially, he was great and through elementary school his academics were fine. In jr high and high school though they were spotty. I think this was more his personality (if he liked the teacher/subject he got an A, if not it was a D or worse!) than an age issue.

I totally have no qualms about Beth being ready for K in the fall...heck she probably could have done it LAST fall to be honest! W/ our son Ben, he was a December baby so I won't have to worry about that at all.... unless they change the date on me!

[amberielle]

I am homeschooling, but we checked into to appease MIL. The cutoff date is age 5 by September 1st. No exceptions whatsoever. DD was born on Sept. 7th and they said no way no how.

[Mavournin]

I haven't read the whole thread, but wanted to respond.

Here is it Oct. 1st. Dd will be 5 mid-October and I've heard that getting a younger child in is very very difficult if not impossible. I've talked to a couple private schools who said "maybe", but we really can't afford that even with financial aid. I've thought about pushing the school system to let her in - she's tall and fairly advanced for her age. At 4.5 she's starting to read simple words and lately has been really inquisitive about mathmatics and can figure out a few basic addition problems on her own (2+2=4 etc.) She's been writing her name for a year.

As of right now our plan is to homeschool. I know that making her wait until 5 yrs 11mos to start kindergarten would really hold her back in many ways. But I'm still not quite sure I want her in the school system. Homeschool just seems like the best option now.

[LIZnCHAD]

I *think* it's September 15. I know it's sometime in September. MIL is way overly ecstatic that they might "pass a law that says they can go at 4". I have no idea what this means, if they will push it back so they are 4 when they start but turn 5 in a few months, or if they have to be 4 by the first day of school. I told her dd probably wasn't going to go until she's 6 anyways as she's a fall baby for one and two, the older the child generally the longer the attention span so she would get more out of it.

[Trishy]

We are in KY, the cutoff is October 1st. School starts early here too, in mid August.

[PaganScribe]

Our cutoff is Sept 1 (I'm in Texas). It was the same where I grew up (in Mississippi).

My birthday is Aug 1. My middle sister is Sept 5. My baby sister is Aug 29.

So the baby sister and I were among the youngest in our classes, and the middle sister was almost always the oldest in her classes.

It worked out very well that way. Had my middle sister been one of the "early" ones, Mom probably would have held her out another year. She was not ready for school the year she turned five.

On the other hand, my baby sister and I would not have benefited from waiting another year. As it was, I was offered the chance to skip a grade, and given the research I have been exposed to (being a teacher specializing in GT kids), I think my mother made a very poor choice not to have me accelerated because she was worried about my age.

I never minded at all being one of the youngest in my class; in fact, I don't remember it ever really being an issue. My baby sister feels the same way.

My middle sister enjoyed being the oldest in her classes.


Interestingly enough, the baby sister and I both went directly from high school to a four year university >500 miles away from home. The middle sister did not feel ready for a 4-year universtiy, and continued living at home and went to a junior college first and was very grateful for the transition.

I don't think age is the most important consideration in making the decision about when (or if) to go to school.

[northwoods1995]

The child must be five before Sept 1st here. No exceptions. My son misses the cutoff by two weeks but it's just fine by me!

[IamCoupongirl]

Where we live, the cutoff is December 5. My 5yo (March baby) will be starting kindy this fall, so she'll be 5.5 by then. My 2.5yo is an October baby, so technically she will be able to go....I was planning to send her the year she is 4 (almost 5), unless her preschool teacher strongly indicates she isn't ready.