How to Decide Whether to Hold Your Child Back from Starting Kindergarten

More and more parents these days are deciding to hold their children back a year from starting kindergarten, also called "red shirting". The main reason why parents "red shirt" is because they do not feel that their child is mature enough. This article will list a few reasons why and why not to hold your child back from starting school so you can make the correct decision for your child.

Instructions

1. Parents of children who will meet the age requirement to start kindergarten by only a few months (especially if they are boys) often rethink starting their children in kindergarten because they feel that they are too immature. Unless the parent is a qualified educator, this is just a guess. Consider getting your child tested or get the advice of qualified educators for their opinion. I would suggest getting many qualified people's opinions instead of one person's opinion. Do not feel peer pressure from neighbors or family members who are not qualified to know what is best educationally for your child.

2. If you feel your child is not ready for kindergarten, is it possible that your child has a learning disability? Many school districts offer special pre-Kindergarten schooling for children who have learning disabilities or are not fluent in English.

3. If you decide to hold your child back, what education will your child receive compared to if he went to kindergarten? Will your child be at home watching cartoons or in a structured school environment? Do you think that your child will mature in 1 year to make a big difference in his ability to learn? If your child is not in a full day educational environment, consider putting him in a 2 day per week Mothers Day Out or comparable program in which he will learn acceptable classroom behavior.

4. Consider sending your child to kindergarten to test the waters. Worst case scenario, he will be timid and have to repeat. If he repeats, he will be relearning everything from the year before and will have confidence in his work. Do NOT send him to school expecting him to repeat because he will meet your expectations. Send him to school with the expectation of him graduating to first grade so he will strive to do his best.

5. If your child is held back a year, when he gets to his senior year of high school he may be too old to play sports his final semester. However, if your child is small, he may have a better chance in sports if held back a year.

6. Kids can be mean. Unfortunately, kids may say that your child "flunked" kindergarten since he was held back. Kids are observant - they know if a kid is older than everyone else in the class. A child that is held back may be the tallest in the class, which may make him uncomfortable.

7. When I went to school, I learned my ABCs in kindergarten. Now kids are expected to be able to read a bit when starting kindergarten. Every day you spend with your children should be a learning opportunity, whether you are grocery shopping, cooking dinner, or watching TV. Reading should be stressed daily starting at age 3 or earlier. If your children watch TV, make sure it is educational, not basic cartoons. Ask your children lots of "why" and "how" questions so they get used to having to verbalize things.

8. Holding a child back from kindergarten has an economic impact. It may delay a parent from entering the workforce or it may cost more to put the child in daycare. The child will spend one more year being dependent on his parents before he gets a job.

9. Studies have shown that holding a child back in kindergarten may cause the child to do better initially, but the effect fades away totally by 8th grade or sooner.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are concerned that your child may be too immature for kindergarten, consider talking with a qualified educator about what you can do to help his maturity. You can give the child more responsibility to help improve maturity, such as bathing himself with your supervision, setting the dining table, helping plan out the weekly meals, helping cook, and other decision making activities that helps the child feel more adult.

• Look online for a list of kindergarten sight words and quiz your child on a daily basis.

• Do not "red shirt" your child because everyone else is doing it in your part of the country. This should be a well researched decision among parents and qualified educators.

Resources

• How to Teach Your Child to Read Using Videos
• How to Get Your Child Ready for Kindergarten Reading