Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy Changes to kindergarten age rule proposed

I haven't read past your post so I might be duplicating but I know some states don't allow for this. They have it in their rules that if a child comes from out of state and went to a private school (IE. Kindergarten) they will accept them but not a child in state who did the same thing. Crazy!

I think what parents fail to realize, those who redshirt, is they are not allowing their children to grow, both academically and emotionally. IMO, it also teaches them to take that easy road, as by the time they are almost 7, and in kindergarten still, they are bound to at least understand the alphabet for a year, right? Obviously there are exceptions to the "rule", but still.

I'm still trying to figure out what the benefit is for having the cutoff? Why is physical age so important?

What's the difference between someone turning 5 by September 1st? If "Johnny" turns 5 on August 31st, and "Susan" turns 6 on September 2nd, of the same school year, Susan is an entire year older than Johnny.

If they did away with the birthday rule, they will still have kids that are 12 months older than the youngest... but I'm not sure, where the gain or, in this case, loss is for the calendar year vs. the "school" year.

And for the record, we start school in very early August, so what's the point of having a September 1 cutoff instead of an August 1 cutoff???

I believe that the assumed advantage to the state of pushing back the K cut-off is two fold. One, it saves them $ on the kids who won't be able to enter K that first year it is changed making for a smaller than usual K cohort. That only lasts one year, though. Two, it makes the state more competitive on a national stage b/c their younger kids aren't being compared to older kids from other states on the same tests.

Anecdotally, we have seen a lot of the older kids who were red shirted labeled gifted in elementary due to being higher achievers than the kids who are 12-18 months younger than they are.

And there again comes my question of saving money. How does it save money when all the kids that start a year later will graduate one year later. I assume that means that some states don't have high expectations of their children graduating by then? (<--note sarcasm, slightly).

I still think it does not make the state any more competitive in the long run. In fact, I personally think it does the exact opposite.

DS6 missed ONE question on the math portion of his 1st grade achievement test this year (DS6 was grade skipped from K in the beginning of the year). And what section did he get that one wrong? Numbers and counting. Yet he got all the questions right in geometry, analytical thinking, etc... I'm not certain, but I'm fairly certain his one error was not because he did not know the answer. So had he taken the K test this year, would he really have done as great? Probably not because the test would be totally boring to him, and he'd rush right through it. I think this can be said about all children, not just gifted ones.

Sorry for the ramble - I am not frustrated with anyone, other than those who created the cutoff... of course, now I don't have to fight it for DS6 anymore, but it doesn't make me any less against that darn date!!!

Even if those redshirted kids are labled "gifted" by the school, if I were a parent or another mom in the school it would not impress me since they basically got left back. That is what redshirting should be called BEING LEFTBACK and that is what I would say to any mom doing it "oh your kid was left back?" My friend who is doing it with her son is doing it hoping he will be the smartest in the class. That is crazy.

Thanks for the links. I couldn't resist taking a look and not shocking ... my DD was 98% ready for Kindergarten. Sadly, if she took this a year ago she would have still been in the same range. So glad we stumbled upon the school she attends since she has already been doing kindergarten work and this week was moved to the next class which is equal to 1st grade. I just shutter thinking what if we didn't find this gem of a school? My DD technically would not be eligible for kindergarten for another year since her birthday is in August. (Thank goodness, since I couldn't imagine a hard cut off date of September and holding her back yet another year!) But by the time DD is eligible for Kindergarten she would most likely be ready for 3rd grade!

And don't get me started on red-shirting. I really see this as part of the 'educational' push started by Baby Einstein with the ultimate of Your Baby Can Read. Let's face it ... our society is all about competition and red-shirting is the epitome of this. And we wonder why the famous "They all even out by 3rd grade" has such a bite. I think our society has it's priorities backwards... holding some one back is not only acceptable but encouraged but the minute someone dares to argue the intellectual advancement of their child; the knowing looks and catch phrases surface.

I believe in CA you'd have to also do 1st grade at the private school or they would make you repeat K as 1st grade has an age requirement as well.

I think they should have a Sep. 1 'guideline' but should be willing to allow in kids who fall within a certain range if they are ready.

I could tell the kids who were late fall birthdays in DS's class, some were definitely not ready to be there and I believe will really struggle in 1st next year. But that isn't the case for every one, some were obviously ready and did wonderfully.

It is my understanding that in Georgia you'd have to stay in private school until 2nd grade as well (ie, the kid HAS to be 6 to start 1st grade in public school). Unfortunately, many of the private schools in this area follow Georgia law, too.

I always thought the redshirting thing was more sports motivated. I like sports and competed at the college level myself but I don't understand the emphasis some families put on sports (I'm talking specific sports, not physical health and exercise). I mean, if your mom is 5'4" and your dad is 5'10" it's pretty unlikely that you are going to be a professional player of football or basketball. So why hold a kid back so they can make JV in 10 years?


But if a child is really not developmentally ready I think it's a great idea. I have no problem with the idea of my kids competing unfairly with older kids, because it's not a competition (at least not at the elementary level). They are going to learn more if the less advanced kids their age stay back because the teacher will be teaching at a higher mean level of ability.

Of course, there are specific circumstances where this could penalize a child. Recently both of my kids were rejected from a program for highly gifted children after an interview. I think my son who has a fall birthday might have had a better chance if he wasn't being compared to other kids just as smart or smarter, but a year older.

This is the reason we opted NOT to have DS6 start private school. It basically wouldn't have mattered. I found the private schools almost more strict than public ones. There is a "law" (in the fine, fine, fine print) about whole grade acceleration once a child enters K. This is how DS was skipped to 1st this past year. I don't know what county you're in, but grade skipping is possible, just AFTER the child has entered the public school realm.

We were very lucky to have a K teacher who recognized DS6 was far beyond any Kindergartner in the school. It might've helped that she has taught all the grades from K-3 at one point in her career. We could never thank her enough for recognizing DS6 needed more than just K.