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Post by Alice on Nov 15, 2004 9:28:00 GMT -5
Hi guys! Actually we've made our decision, but I would love to have your thoughts as well. Luke will be 5 this month and he is officially can start a kindergarten following fall, but his teachers at preschool recommend that he stays one more year to get ready for the school. We agreed on that, because we see that Luke is not ready yet; so when he starts his Kindergarten he will be almost 7. At what age did your kids start Kindergarten and what did you feel about your child being the oldest in his/her class? Thanks for your inputs in advance, Alice  |
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Post by Ericsmomma on Nov 15, 2004 10:32:14 GMT -5
Alice,
I've been thinking alot about this....Eric will turn 5 on June 27. I really wanted to keep him one more year in pre-school, but our district recommends he go to kindy.
I can't imagine him doing kindergarten. He definetly is not ready. He is still non-verbal, and tires easily. His attention span is good and he's very social, but all day kindy....Its funny, because when my older kids who didn't have any learning delays went to school, I held them all back one year (for kindy) due to summer birthdays. That USED to be the recommendation....kids with summer birthdays would benefit from one more year of preschool, but maybe its not the case now.
I'm going to have him evaluated in the spring, and really push for one more year of preschool.
I guess it depends on the child...if he/she is ready, by all means send them. If you know in your heart they aren't, then I'd keep him back. And there are so many kids starting later(for whatever reason), I don't think being alittle older will make a difference. And if your Luke is anything like my Eric, he is small for his age...he actually looks like he's about 3yrs. old.
Good luck with your decision...you know your child best!!
Dolly
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Post by ashliesmomheidi on Nov 15, 2004 13:39:07 GMT -5
Ashlie had 2 yrs of Pre School and started Kindy around 5 1/2 yrs old,
our kindy is all day here and I knew there would be no way she could handle that so she started off doing 1/2 days and worked up to all day by the end of the year,
She did stay in Kindy for 2 yrs as I knew she wasnt fully ready for 1st Grade, So she started 1st Grade a lil over 7 yrs old.
The Reason I went ahead and moved her to Kindy was because Ashlie really wouldnt benefit from a 3rd year of Preschool as much as I wanted her to stay cause her teachers were awesome, AShlie had allready learned everything and it was so routine to her that she would get bored.
Its a tough decision to make but only you as the parent really knows when your child is ready for Kindy.
Hugs Heidi
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Post by momofrussell on Nov 15, 2004 16:45:11 GMT -5
Russell was 6 when he started Kindy. We held him back in EC an extra year. Russell is VERY delayed and non-verbal, he was functioning at a 12-18 month level.. mostly 12 months, so keeping him back was a no brainer LOL... BUT... for most kids in our area usually move up to Kindy. BUT.. we have a BIG school district with typical kindy classes our kids can do, with pull outs, and then Self Contained classes like where Russell is, that is a K-2 class.. and so it also depends on where you plan to place him too. IF, Russell wasn't as delayed I would have had no probs placing him in the class he is in now, but at 5 instead of 6. If we are talking typcial Kindy w/pull outs and therapies that way, no way... he wouldn't have been ready. Russell is in a class with probably 8 others or so.. I think all have DS and the kids that are the same age as him, 6, were there last year, so they are in 1st grade and Russell is in Kindy. It all depends on the class setting you will be placing him in, and what he is ready for. Lots of parents have their kids w/DS start kindy at 5... self contained or typical setting. And remember, they WILL adapt to your child  They have to. So even if he may not "get" somethings, they have to tailor it for Luke's needs regardless of what class he is in. Good luck! A. |
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Post by Deborah on Nov 15, 2004 16:51:32 GMT -5
Alice, I am in the same situation. Jennifer turned 5 in October and is supposed to go to kindergarten in the fall. She is still not very verbal so unless she has a major speech explosion before August she will be going to preschool one more year. That will make her 7 yrs old right after school starts. But that is okay because held her back a year at church when she got Sunday School age and she will be attending preschool with the same group of kids she sees on Sundays. Jennifer can count to 10 and say all the alphabet, so I know by the time it's time for kindy she will be very ready to go.
Deborah
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Post by Mary_L. on Nov 16, 2004 10:41:31 GMT -5
Alice~I too have to face this decision. Patrick turned 5 in Oct. so he could officially stay at his preschool for another year or he could go to kindergarten. I haven't made the decision yet but am leaning towards keeping him in preschool for one more year because I dont think he'll have enough of the skills he should have for kindergarten. I think these decisions are so hard and it's nice to know there are others out there who are having the same struggles and thoughts~good to know we're not alone, not that you're having struggles! I know I didnt answer your question but Patrick will probably be the same age as Luke when he starts kindergarten.
Mary
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Post by Connie on Nov 16, 2004 11:17:39 GMT -5
Alice,
Collin turns 5 in February and according to our school district he has to go to kindergarden this coming fall (06). They have told me it is not an option to keep him in preschool because they will not pay for this.
But with some of the issues I am having with Collin right now he really really needs one more year of preschool to work through some behavior issues.
YIKES....this stuff is driving me crazy!!
Connie
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Post by momofrussell on Nov 16, 2004 11:26:59 GMT -5
"They have told me it is not an option to keep him in preschool because they will not pay for this."
Connie.. they can't tell you things like that... really. It's NOT just up to the school district...
A.
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Post by meghans_mom on Nov 16, 2004 12:31:30 GMT -5
Meghan turns 4 this December, 5 next (obviously, LOL) and our school cut off date is December 1st so we kind of lucked out that she'll be almost 6 when starting kindy...
Most of my friend's kids (DS) who will be 5 up until Dec 1st have to start next fall.
I was just going to post and ask this myself...I am all consumed with the idea of kindegarten, even though MM has another 2 years in preschool.
laurie
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Post by ashliesmomheidi on Nov 16, 2004 13:53:02 GMT -5
I want to share a lil more on AShlie's experience with Kindy, I should have elaborated more as reading all of your posts reminds me of me when AShlie was faced with the decision of a 3rd year of Pre or going into Kindy.
AShlie Wasnt fully talking in sentences when moved to Kindy, She didnt know how to write her name yet, Or read simple 2 letter words But these are also things not really focused on in Pre and focused on more in Kindy and she needed to learn that, I was scared to death to send her to Kindy, She was smaller than the other kids and seemed so far behing but a 3rd year of preschool wouldnt have helped her any.
Ashlie had a One on One Aide as she wasnt fully potty trained to be trusted without someone asking her if she had to use the restroom and she still needed help with her clothes and snaps, All of Ashlie's work was modified for her so she could learn the same things the kindy kids were, She did get extra help from her AIde but she needed it.
What I thought was going to be a terrible mistake on my part for having her go ahead with Kindy was the opposite, I never regtreted it after I saw what AShlie had learned and matured from.
She was getting bored in Pre and knew what shape was what, And her colors, So she needed that extra push into learning new things. And thats what Kindergarten did for her, By the end of the 1st year of Kindy Ashlie knew how to write her first name with some assistance, ANd she was learning to count past 10. I then decided to keep her back another year of Kindy as she still needed to learn more and I felt it would have benefited her and she did 2 years of Kindy and it was worth it!
Im not telling you to put your kids in Kindy as you do know your kids better than I do, But I just wanted to share my experience and let you Mom's know that it doesnt have to be a scary and hard decision.
Hugs
Heidi
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Post by momofrussell on Nov 16, 2004 15:43:55 GMT -5
When you all are talking about Kindy and placement and your children ready or not ready to be moved on to Kindy, is the a TYPICAL kindy class where your child would have 1:1 and pull outs or whatever.... or is a spec ed ONLY Kindy class (self contained).. or is this a k-2 type kindy class, spec ed, self contained?
Are your schools giving you only ONE kindy option? Just curious..... because this all makes a BIG difference you know. I am curious if you are all talking typical kindy.
A.
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Post by Alice on Nov 16, 2004 16:44:49 GMT -5
~Thank you so much for your inputs!
I do not have much info about the options we have in our school's kindy, but now I know I have to find out.
I did not know that Luke may stay an extra year at pre-school after talking to his teacher who told me that pre-school stuff believes that one more year will greatly benefit Luke. We trust them, so we decided to stay one more year at pre-school and hopefully Luke will start talking better, will get fully potty trained, and be more mature at almost 7 when he starts his kindy (2006).
~Connie, maybe you need to contact your case worker. Collin is even younger than Luke. Why they say that they will not pay? Is this pre-school private? Or maybe all states and districts have different policies? Good luck to you!
Thanks again,
Alice
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Post by Deborah on Nov 16, 2004 17:44:53 GMT -5
A, in our case I am assuming that Jennifer will be in a typical Kindy class. I will be discussing that soon with her teachers.
Heidi..Thanks alot!! LOL Just when I had my mind made up on what to do, you go and post something sensible!!! I am going to be touring 3 schools after Christmas to help me decide which school I want her to attend. This should help in my decision for the fall
Jennifer is where Ashlie was..she isn't fully potty trained, knows her letters and numbers to 10, knows her colors and shapes. I just worry about the speech issue.
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Post by shellk on Nov 16, 2004 18:29:07 GMT -5
Kourtney started Kindy right at the age of 5..She turned 5 in March while in pre-k and went straight to Kindy in August..She is not in a TYPICAL Kindy class she is in what we call here and VE Kindy class which stands for Varitable Exceptionalities. She is doing great and still has her therapies all 3 once a week for 45 minutes a session. Being verbal has always been one of her strong suits. Although not all is clearly understood she sure will tell you over and over again till you get what she is saying. Good luck to all of you getting ready for Kindergarden we love it. Michele |
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Post by samanthajosmom_12 on Nov 16, 2004 23:17:18 GMT -5
we just asked that question tonight at her preschool conference. she will be 5 next yr and they told me we would tlak about that next yr around this time to see if we would want to enroll samantha in kindergarden in 2006 fall time. sue
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They have to. So even if he may not "get" somethings, they have to tailor it for Luke's needs regardless of what class he is in.
&&Mommy to Griffin (96), Gray (97) Collin (00) enhanced and Lauren (02) the little princess.