I am the mom of a bright four year old. She is an only child so everything is a learning experience for me. I can't compare anything she does with one of my other children, and I definitely don't like comparing her to any other child. She was a slow to crawl, slow to potty train, but sharp as a whip! She can memorize the words to any song she hears (wonder where she got that from!), she counts up to 30, knows her ABC's, can write her name and is just an all around fantastic young lady 🙂
She is a September baby so we are now faced with that question- do we start Kindergarten this year or hold her back? The cut off is September 1st and she was born the 23rd. We can still sign a waiver and put her in, but the question is….should we?
I was a young kid in school and can't recall it ever being a bad thing…well except for the fact that I was the last to get my driver's license! So with me in mind I thought putting Ella in Kindergarten instead of a second year of pre-school would be a great idea. She's quick to learn and very enthusiastic so what's the problem? There wasn't one until I started to share my thoughts with some of my fellow moms and teachers I know.
It's not that there's a problem, but just other factors I wasn't taking into account. Yes she may be ready academically and socially but what's the rush? Why put the pressure on her when she can take another year and just have fun learning? I can have her for one more year before she goes to college, and she can be the cool teenager who gets her driver's license before everyone else (well maybe that's not a plus) and did I mention I can have her, my one and only, for one more year???
On the other side though starting early would keep her challenged and prevent boredom. She would get the chance to meet a whole new group of kids and teachers and she would get to experience more.
But is starting her early for me or for her? We sometimes get wrapped up in the competition of our kids being the first and the best and brightest and make decisions based on our competitive nature instead of what's best for them. Who cares if they are the oldest or youngest in class? Has anyone you met as an adult asked you- "when did you start kindergarten….at 5 or 6?". No one most likely. As long as she is a sweet, caring, awesome human being I have done my job.
I don't think there's a right or wrong answer to whether or not you should put your child in kindergarten if they have a fall birthday- it's a personal choice and there are tons of young 5's who thrive. So with that said I'm curious…..what did or would you do in my situation? I'm still debating it but am definitely leaning towards waiting to be sure she's enjoying school and not struggling with it.
