Should You Hold Your Child Back a Year?by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger 21 Oct 2008 07:00 PM
Why is this happening and what should you do? There are a few reasons that parents are choosing to delay the start of a child's formal schooling. One reason is to ensure that the child will be at the top of the class or at least competitive academically. A child that is a year older than most of his classmates, the thinking goes, will be able to perform better than the rest academically, or at least keep pace with others. The thought is that a good start will stay with the child through his academic career, making him well known as a smart and good student. Some parents seek out a private kindergarten the first year and then send their child to a public kindergarten the following year. A good start may mean a choice among good colleges later in life. With the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act, there is increased pressure to perform academically. This may have parents panicking that the work required in kindergarten will be too much for their child, either mentally or emotionally. Some parents choose to delay kindergarten in order to ensure the maturity of their child in the midst of this pressure. Evaluations of a child's kindergarten readiness can be done by the in-going school, by a child's private preschool or by a third party evaluator. These results may influence the decision about holding a child back from starting school. Another reason parents often site for the decision to hold a child back a year before entering school is that they want that child to do well in sports. A year can make a big difference in the coordination, motor skills and strength of a young child. And sports activities are highly valued with schools and parents alike. Sports success also holds the possibility of scholarships to college and a professional and lucrative career. So what should you do as a parent? This is a complicated issue that requires some more discussion. Check back soon for more about this issue, and please leave a comment with your opinion and experience. Click here for more articles by Mary Ann Romans. Related Articles: Preschoolers and ADHD Research Why Don't School Buses Have Seat Belts? Backyard Preschool Summer Olympics Learn more about Mary Ann Romans  Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat. Relevanteducation tags User Comments Heidi (5269) 21 Oct 2008 11:40 PMOur son's b'day is 8/20 and the school cutoff dates here are 9/1. Eventhough he's only 2, we decided long ago (when we found out his due date!) that we were holding him back a year, primarily for maturity reasons. If he'd been born 11 days later he would be going to school that year anyway. (The school year here starts in the beginning to middle of August). Our daughter's b'day is 9/24 and she'll be going to school in the "right" year. jonesx6 (1606) 22 Oct 2008 05:03 AMEvery child is different. Some children need to be held back b/c they just aren't ready to head off to school. Our family has taken a very laid back approach to preschool-3rd grade. Meaning we didn't do a whole lot of formal schooling. We enjoyed tons of great books!! They enjoyed a lot of hands on activites also. My sons are doing very well in school and haven't suffered from a laid back approach to the early years of school. In fact I have no regrets b/c they sure do grow up fast enough. lol Laura  Mary Ann Romans (26876) 22 Oct 2008 10:15 AMIt is amazing what is required in Kindergarten. Students and my son's current school were writing in journals at the end of the year. Andilei (70) 12 Nov 2008 08:37 AMLike someone said before, every child is different. Being held back for a year can greatly help a child, developmentally. This can be either physically or mentally. Although I do not have children of my own, I did go to school with people that were held back for different reasons. The student that was held back because of physical reasons received a football scholarship at a very high ranking school for academics. Also, I have seen in other students that being held back helped them in academics and maturity, just because they were more on a level with students a year younger than them. Community Tags education, education pets reading books ele, holding your child back, preschool, starting kindergarten Discuss this article
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