Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Field Trips, Friends and Fretting About Futures

Today was a big day in our house!
Receiver had his Kindergarten field trip!
I remember taking QB on this same trip and man has the time flown by {anyone else feel like that?}.
 Also, QB had to memorize a Shel Silverstein poem and read it aloud to a small auditorium filled with parents, teachers and grandparents..HE DID AWESOME!
And, he made a 3rd grade Poem book...Yep- I cried ;)
You can tell his poppy is a pastor because he had ZERO issue with stage fright!!!

We had some great times today, it is soo fun to see my littlest guy with his buddies!
 However, I have a serious question I need to pose to all of you that have had children on the cusp of the birthday/school saga.

It was very evident to me today that Receiver is YOUNG.
I mean I had 2 kids in my group that are turning 7 in 3 weeks and they are heading into 1st grade in the fall.
I guess I am having a dilemma because I have enrolled receiver in Kindergarten and he is 3 weeks away from completion. Aside from his eyeglasses which give him problems with his sight, and his writing/reading he is absolutley fine in the comprehension department. In fact higher than I expected in some areas
{does NOT come from his Mom}.
 So- my question to all of you is, have you ever had a child REPEAT Kindergarten?
What are your thoughts on that because I waiver between NO WAY  I can not mentally do that to him and YES, it would be great for him to get an additional year of maturity under his belt before the smack down of first grade happens.......
Sometimes I wish I could just roll a dice...but this is BIG STUFF FOR ME!!!
Do share! I need some help!

Here are a couple of pics from our fun day@ the zoo!






16 CHEERS from the Crowd!:

Carrie said...

It's always hard to answer that...alex has a July birthday, so he was six when he started kindergarten and turned 7 then going into first grade {now almost 8 and going to second grade...yes it goes FAST!} Boys are just a little less mature at this age, Emily just turned six and is about to finish kindergarten, but she is different than Alex, I think she is more mature than he is... I do know a few kids in her class are repeting kindergarten next year, boys...but honestly, I think you would know what's best along with his teacher. I've heard from people that it's better in the long run when he gets older. You will make the right choice :) He's super cute and looks like a FUN field trip! Take care, don't fret!

Lori said...

this is always a tough decision. Some things to think about... don't just think about this year, but think in the future, if you think he needs more time to mature now, what will the gap be in maturity when he is older. if you have a concern now and think 1st grade could be tough for him then isn't it better to give him a year to enjoy school more instead of stress over it again next year? If he is young in his grade when he is in HS he will be the last to do everything, most likely the smallest and that will show up in sports and other activities. As a teacher, I was more likely to recomend retention to parents when I felt the child would benefit for both academic and social reasons. It is easier to retain in K as they will have another year of fun before the challenges and pressure of 1st grade. e-mail me if you want to

McCrakensx4 said...

So he's done kinder and you re thinking of having him repeat?? Is that it? OK...here are the deciding factors...can he write his first and last name?
Can he recognize letters..names & sounds? write them?
Can he recognize #s up to 20?
Can he count up to 50?
Can he blend sounds to read simple words?
I will tell you that in AZ they have to be 5 by Sept 1 to start Kinder...and we have all day kinder...I only have 1 kid that will be 7 when he goes into 1st grade (bcuz he was retained)but most others will only be 6 and some will still be 5 when they start (since we start the 2nd week of aug and they don't have a birthday until after)...as a mom...if you think he is able to handle situations socially and have the confidence and self esteem to go to 1st grade...I say do it! All boys are young mature wise at this age, but I don't think it's a reason to hold him back if he is acedemically ready. email me if you want more!! I hope I didn't ramble too much and it helps just a tad!! ;)

Bridget said...

Love those pictures of his field day!!

I know first hand that it's a heartbreaking decision, because we had to decide to let Kyle repeat Kindergarten. His birthday is in mid-July and while he is outgoing and very smart, he just wasn't focusing and keeping up with the kids in his class. He happened to be the youngest child in his class, having turned five three weeks before school started. It was a tough decision, but we let him repeat because we felt that if these issues continued throughout school, then it was going to be a long 12 years, but also, it would destroy his self esteem. We felt it wouldn't be near an issue to have him repeat kindergarted than to have to repeat, say, the third or fourth grade. So many kids (mostly boys, because girls mature faster) have to repeat at this stage and if you make that decision, it will be less devastating to have to do it now than to have him struggle and do it later.
I know it's not an easy decision, but I know you'll make the right one for you and your boys and it will be fine.

SuperMom Blues said...

I totally get your dilemma - my DD is six and almost done with Kindergarten. To be honest, I am not certain that she is emotionally mature enough for first grade. But her teacher and principal advise me to not hold her back because her academic level is higher than most of the other students in her class, so they feel it would be detrimental to her success. What they told me was that often the child's maturity will catch up with them about first or second grade. That being said, only you can be the one to really decide your child's level of maturity - if you feel in your heart that he's just not ready, then you should follow what your heart tells you.

Stacy said...

In SC you have to be 5 by Sept 1. so all of our k5's are 6 or just turning 6. Just go with your gut and it will be fine.

Kelli W said...

That has been an issue with us a little too. My middle son will actually still be 4 when he starts Kindergarten because he has an August birthday. If you know they are ready, I say send them on. But if you are worried about them falling behind, I think sometimes it can be a good thing to hold them back. I would much rather hold a kid back, than have them struggle for a whole year if they weren't ready. I think struggling in school can be really hard on a kids self esteem.

Angie said...

Just want to say my son is not quite there yet but I completely understand! I am having a hard time just trying to figure out what pre-k to put him in and worrying about how he will do, let alone KG! So I think it's safe to say I will be a wreck when I get to that point! That said, I agree with most the others. Honestly I think as long as he is doing well academically, I wouldn't hold him back. If he doesn't do well in 1st, maybe then I would hold him back, but you won't know unless you try. I think when they have a summer Birthday it makes it easier for us parents to think they should repeat because they seem so much younger than all the other kids. My nephew did an extra year of pre-k and has a late August Birthday so now he will be just turning 6 going into KG. Good luck with whatever you decide!

Lara said...

I think the answer is different for every kid. If he's fine academically and socially, it seems like you should let him go forward and let the maturity come in time. But if he's struggling with either, then maybe another year is a valuable thing. Good luck with your decision.

Together We Save said...

My oldest daughter had an august birthday and I held her out until she was six because I delivered our 3rd 1 week before school started best thing I have ever done for her. Our Third wanted to go to school with her sisters so badly I let her start at 5 but then she repeated K and I know it was the best thing I have done for her.

My oldest will be 19 when she starts college. That is the best reason of all. Good luck deciding what is best for your family!!

Andrea said...

Yes, my middle son was a young kindergardener. He did well, but we repeated anyway...I have NEVER regretted it. Actually, I am thankful we repeated.
Blessings,
andrea

Unknown said...

Now being someone that was a former teacher I would say... WHY IN THE WORLD would you not? Yes, I would yell the 'Why in the world' part of it :)

Kindergarten is so fun. It is a great time developmentally. If they need more time, fer shizzle! What do you have to lose.

If I had to do Kaishon's schooling differently I would have enrolled him in a Friends school. Or another school that made learning exciting and FUN! I would have NEVER put him in regular school that is all about testing. Of course now he loves his friends in regular school (and I don't really have 12k a year laying around) but the older I get, the more I think education should always be a blessing and very exciting.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do!

Stephanie said...

that's a hard question. Both of my boys so far have late birthdays though I think if I were worried about it I wouldn't hesitate to do whatever I had to do. Boys are less mature at this age though so I would take that into account. Heck my 9 year old still acts 5 half the time.

He & Me + 3 said...

For Athletics sake...Agent would say keep him back:) I have to agree a bit with Teacher Turned MOmmy...but we have discussed this more in detail. Get all the information you need from teacher, principal and first grade teachers. If he is not ready and you send him on...it will be alot of frustration and work for you. But, we both know that he is smart enough.
I hate making those decisions.

Tracy said...

I am holding back my 9th grader! How about them apples! It can ONLY HELP him!

P.S. my brother was held back in K too!

Sonya said...

Good luck with whatever you decide.If you are going to ahve him repeat better to do it now than when he's older.Sweet photos from Como..what a beautiful day for a field trip. Quinn has hers at teh Mn Zoo tomorrow..hoping it's just as nice.