Early Enrollment for Kindergarten

M.,
I am a mother of five. I have been in all situtations. I put my son in school at 4 and he did not do well. My next child, a daughter went in at five and did wonderful. In kindergarten now days you will have 4, 5 and 6 year olds depending on the cut off dates. Teacher's now days cater to the three different age groups with appropriate work to keep them motivated. I do not think you have to worry. They will grow up fast enough. I know that here in Raeford they will not allow you to start them before they are five.

Good luck, and relax and enjoy her. You will not let her down!
L.

I am in the same boat my 5yo just turned 5 in December. Unfortunately we missed the cut off, we moved from FL to here. Depending on what county you are located in you can get some information from Wake County. They told me after it was too late, but any way. You can take your child to the peditrician and get a psychologist referrell and they should be able to do a school readyness test that the ped and the county will accept if they all think that she is ready. I found out after we moved that they have to be registered for K within 30 calander days of school starting. But I think the sooner the better. I was also told that 2007-2008 Wake County schools start Feb 1st for enrollment.

I hope this can help you and maybe some other parents that are in a silimar situation.

I would say to start her if you know the class and the teachrs. My sister's kindergarten teachre wanted her to skip kindergarten, however, my mom said no because of the class of kids. Her class was much better than the one ahead of hers. I think it is definatly a good idea if she is really ready and the teachers and students are good.

After reading some of the other mom's suggestions, I basically agree with all of them, but I did notice one thing that hasn't been mentioned is a Montessori classroom. I am a teacher and they offer these kinds of classes at my school as a choice for being in a traditional class. While your public school may not offer it as mine does, there are many Montessori schools popping up all over now. The difference between a traditional classroom vs. a Montessori classroom is that in Montessori the classes are multi-aged and every child is taught lessons (mostly using hands-on materials with little to no worksheets) on his/her instructional level. My daughter is 3 and in the primary montessori class which consists of 3's, 4's, & 5's. She loves it and is really thriving. As she gets older, her lessons will become part of her "work plan" that she will be responsible for completing each day. If you want more info on Montessori, there is lots of it on the web. Good luck!

My daughter went to Kindergarten early then skipped 2nd grade (she is also a December birthday). She is now a 15 yo Junior in High School with a 4.75 GPA. You will face some small socialization issues, especially when they are older (all friends can drive/date/work, etc....) but they are easier to handle than a child who gives up on school because she is bored. If you feel she is ready, then I would definitely pursue it! Good luck!

M.,

It sounds like she is a gifted child,and teaching her at home before she goes to kindergarten would put her way above the rest.I`m a independant Bight Minds Consulant,a Divison of The Critical Thinking Company.www.brightminds.us/web/SouthCarolina777
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sounds like she might benefit from homeschooling...think about it. i had to home school my 5 children one semester and they advanced a whole year. they loved it. check your state laws. hope this helps.

it may not be what you had planned but consider home schooling or an advanced preschool that will push your daughter. working part time it amybe difficult to home school but it would definately be worth looking into. you'd be in control of what she learns and she can move on when she gets the new information instead of the review involved in public schools. she will finish faster and get a better quality of education. just don't forget to find her some socialization as she won't have classmates to bond with! good luck...

My son started kindergarten this year, he also has a December birthday, and just turned 6. For him, this was perfect. Kindergarten is way more intense now than when we were kids. There is less playtime, more work, they learn to read and do math problems. You also need to look at the social aspect, your daughter would be a 4 year old in a class with 5 and 6 year olds. All kids are different, you know what's right for your daughter. But I wouldn't rush this. Maybe you can find her a good pre-k program, this will give her the stimulation she needs, and have her ready to start school. Good luck!

Hi! I know what your going through. My almost 3 year old is extremely intellegint as well and i feel that i am holding her back by not puting her into a school of some sort classes/school, but she will only be 3 in March. I am looking for the same thing. I have heard that you can put kids in private schools early but i really don't have the money for that. If you find out anything please let me know as well. Good luck!!

I am not sure that what we went through applies to what you are going through or not, but I wanted to relay my situation to you. My stepdaughter is now 8, but when she was 4 she was in 4k for 2 hours a day during the week. However, her younger brother is now 5 and in 5K, but he was ready for 4K at 4 years of age. The problem here was that 4K is described as "preparing the child for 5K". My stepdaughter was really there to learn to obey rules, identify shapes, letters, numbers and colors, and to blend in with the other students. For a lot of kids, that is something that seems to be needed, but there are a lot of kids that are aleady to that point as well. My stepson was already able to identify his numbers, letters and pretty much his shapes and colors. The day care we had them attending offered a 4K based program that seemed to help him out a lot, learning to be part of a group. I do know there are websites for homeschooling that also have activities for the preschoolers as well. Since you feel your child is ready for school, (I have no idea what your schedule is like or if you would even be willing to do this) you might could set up a couple hours a day to have school with your little one. Or check with some of the churches in your area that may offer the 4K program. I know around here there are several churches that offer a 4 hour program for 4 year olds. Just thought I would share what I have learned trying to find something for my stepson. Now he is in 5K and his problem is following instructions and completing his work independently. Good luck and I hope you find something that works for you and your little one.

Hi M.,

I looked into early K admission for my son. It can be done, but it's not easy. First, there are two sets of testing that have to be done at your expense (about $800 total). Second, the testing has to be done after a certain date and before a certain date. Third, the first test has to be done by a licensed psychologist. If you get a bad tester, it can sway the test one way or the other. The tests are not so much about how much they know as they are about specific information. Last, the child has to score in or above the 98% on both tests to be considered. With a bad tester, my son scored in the 97% on the first test. After talking to the tester, I didn't know what answers he was looking for to some of the questions he said my son struggled with. He told me that they don't recommend testing more than once every two years, but he'd recommending bringing him back in in 6 months to re-test. We didn't do it.

My son has a November birthday, so he only missed the cut off by about 3 weeks. He was reading, writing (including a whole list of silent E words), doing addition, subtraction and starting to teaching himself multiplication. He loves creating science experiments. I started homeschooling him, which is not what I had planned, but it has worked out beautifully for us.

Good luck!

WOW, can I ever relate to this story. I have 5 kids, 3 boys and two girls. My oldest daughter was reading by 4 and also ready for kindergarden much sooner than they were allowing kids to go. WHen she finally got into kindergarden, she was BORED stiff. This turned her into not caring because she was not challenged at all for the first 6 years of school. Her first year with challenges was 7th grade.. not a good time to all of a sudden HAVE to learn to study (you know, puberty, boys and that is the year my ex left us) My youngest daughter also having a winter birthday was the same way, she was reading 5th grade books by the time she was 4... SO, I got her enrolled in HOME school kindergarden and worked with her an hour a day. By the time she was the "age" for kindergarden she was at a 5th grade level for most everything but higher for reading! She was tested so I know what I am saying is fact! They wanted to bump her directly to 5th grade when she was 5... being TINY for her age and all we decided she could just jump one grade. That way she also learned social skills, and I kept her in BOOKS daily by going to the library. The school also allowed her to check out books of a much higher level than her grade. This kept her CHALLENGED, and interested in school. MY POINT? my oldest got bored and eventually not interested in school... never went to college and never excelled in HS because she never learned to study... the youngest on the other hand being challenged all the way, graduated from HS early, and at the ripe OLD AGE of 19 is already a sophomore in college! and.... get this.. made straight A's alllll the way~~~NOW she is not instant learner...she has to study and work at it, but since she was kept challenged and praised all the time for her good work, she loved to learn, the oldest was not allowed that because they school district we had her in would not allow her to bump up because of her birthday! Will they ever learn ? I was also told My youngest son should WAIT a year before going to school because he was a boy and had a summer birthday and boys are slower than girls... hmmm okay, what does that have to do with it.. I know he could read already also... I sent him on to K that year ... he has never failed one grade, class or even a paper.. he is a straight A student also, and is presently a full time computer tech, going to college and a husband and father at 21... My advice... get her registered in HOME SCHOOL Kindergarden with the school district, they will provide you with all your materials. You can also get her envolved with other home school kids her age through the district that way she will learn social skills too. (and learn the ones you want her to learn, not the naughty ones!) You can homeschool K even if you work full time because it's short lessons daily!
Hope this helps! OH ... my first daughter, NOV baby and my youngest.. also a Dec. Baby... Us December gals must be smart! LOL