Hi, everyone -
My DS is 4 and has late August birthday. He is enrolled in a private gifted school that has two preschool levels. One is for 3/4 year olds, the other is for 4/5 year olds. The school also has a K-6 that most of the preschoolers eventually go to. Entrance is based on screening/iq tests in the 95th percentile minimum.
My son is very bright, but also immature socially. He has been reading since age 2 to give some gauge of his intellectual ability. He is difficult to manage in a classroom because he is stubborn and doesn't like to follow instructions if he has his own idea about what he wants to do. Getting him to sit in circle time, for example, is next to impossible.
So he's been in this new school now for two weeks or so. The teacher has contacted me and said he is the youngest in his class, and she feels he might fit in better with the younger group (the 3/4). This all would have the snowball effect of delaying his entrance to kindergarden until he is 6 (he would have just turned six around the week classes start).
Is this redshirting? I've heard many with son and a summer birthday redshirt... but is that wise for a gifted kid? The teacher says they would differentiate the curriculum to keep him challenged, but he would be with a more appropriate peer group if he is held back.
I should also mention that his fine motor skills seem well behind his peers in the 4/5 class. Some kids in the class are also more than a year older than him.
So... redshirting gifted kids?? Does it make sense? I'm meeting with the teacher next week and I'm trying to get my head around the idea. Thanks!
