How Would You Tell Your Child That They Have to Repeat Kindergarten?

My son will not turn 6 until this summer and even though he has made remarkable progress with his social and academic skills could benefit from another year of kindergarten. We have decided to tell him that some kids who don't turn 6 while in kindergarten get to go to the "next" kindergarten class. I am also trying to get my husband to realize that our son did not "fail" kindergarten. He could have benefit from another year before moving into first grade.

I am assuming she will be repeating at the same school, but you might consider seeing if they will allow her to attend a near by school, which may help with her other friends knowing. I agree about being positive, and how much your attitude will shape the outcome. I might tell her that the teachers needed someone who could be there to help the other kids coming in, so they wanted her to do kinder again. She will be a big help, so it is not lying to her..more giving her something good to focus on. I am not sure that at this point I would say anything about her learning differently than the other kids, or needing more time, mostly because I would not want to impose that kind of label on a child so young. What happens in these early years shapes how kids view themselves, so we have to be so careful about planting ideas in their heads that may stick. While you want to be honest and real with her, sometimes I feel like a little protection from the hard truths of life are in order, and once she sails through this next year and is on a good path with learning and education, she will be more confident and you can help her understand why she needs more attention or assistance than others. As far as graduation, i would speak with the teacher. I think she should be treated like any other child..she is graduating from this year of kindergarten, and should be rewarded for the hard work. If they are not going to treat her as such, first of all I might raise a little heck!! But then, i think I would not send her for that portion. I would insist that she be treated exactly the same as the other children, and be allowed to graduate with her class. What happens next year does not bear weight on how well she has done this year. I hope that helps some..sorry so lengthy! Good luck with this decision, I am sure it is a tough one ~A.~

Is she on the young side for her grade? Did she have a very positive experience in school this year? You could say that you talked to her teacher and she has agreed to let her stay in Kindergarten one more year so that she can help the children just coming in to Kindergarten and sort of show them the ropes.

As for the graduation, I think the key is to make sure that it is handled like a celebration of all the hard work they have done the past year, and less about moving on to 1st grade. I would make sure to be there myself so she would know just how proud I was of her efforts this year.

I second what the other poster said about taking advantage of any services you can squeeze out of the school district. If she has a learning disability, she needs to make sure to get the help she needs (and deserves) while it's only Kindergarten so that she doesn't struggle more than necessary in the future.

Good luck! :)Hope I helped some!

Hi there! I think the best thing to do is to tell her what's happening in words she can understand, don't give more explaining than she needs or you think she can handle. Then after telling her the reasons she will be in K again, tell her all the exciting things that means, such as she will make all new friends and she will be able to help some of them understand what is going on or what they do since she has been in there before! I think that as long as you stay positive she will stay positive! Now, on the Thursday thing, I would probably keep her home. Just from past personal experiences, my mom would let me stay home on awards day if she knew I wasn't getting anything... I appreciated that. Also, I think it will confuse her to go through the graduation if she isn't graduating.

K.
Helping MOMS work from home!
http://www.stayinghomeandhavingfun.com

I don't know if you know this or not, but Kindergarten is not mandatory in the state of TX so it is entirely up to you whether she moves on to 1st grade or not. If you feel she is not ready then you should deffinately retain her another year. I would tell her that as her mommy who wants the best for her, YOU asked the school if she can stay in Kindergarten another year and they said yes. Make her feel like she will be the more experienced student and can help the new kids adjust. This will give her an advantage in the future.
Hope all goes well. Good Luck!

I would tell her that you just want to make sure that she's ready for first grade. Also, you might tell her that she learns differently than some other kids and that sometimes it takes her longer to learn than others, so you and the school want to make sure that she is learning everything well, so that she can succeed. Also, I do hope she gets a different teacher UNLESS this one has been really good. And, I hope that you are taking advantage of the additional help you should be able to get from the school district since she has been diagnosed with a learning disorder (if that isn't the case, you really should take advantage of the testing they provide).

It really depends upon her relationship with the other kids as to how important the graduation might be. Honestly, at this age, the social aspect of school is equally as important as the learning. If she has friends, then I see nothing wrong with letting her participate. Indeed, it might even help to encourage her to get a nice photo of her and put that somewhere in the house, telling her how proud you are of her efforts in school this year. I think that trying to avoid the situation has the potential to cause more harm than to help the situation. Also, it might just be re-assuring to her to know what will be happening again next year. In my experience, if you handle the situation in a positive manner, it will positively impact her. If you in any way make her feel that something is wrong with her, then she will begin to believe that - which is why I think going to the graduation is a good idea.