Her work has been published in The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, The Learning Site, The eLearning Site, and Internet4Classrooms. It would be nice to have a study to prove this one way or the other. In one study, researchers associated this poor academic performance with repeating kindergarten. We reluctantly decided to hold him back but I stayed up half the night researching and sent an email to the principal this morning about our struggle. A child who is ready for first grade can: While your childs teacher may make the suggestion that your child repeat kindergarten, its up to you, the parent, to make the final decision. Holding a kid back in kindergarten or 1st grade has nothing to with sports. She has been a regular education classroom teacher, a consultant teacher/resource teacher, an educational evaluator/diagnostician, and has also taught graduate students at the university level. The Australian Curriculum is fairly static, which means that by repeating a year, a child will have an opportunity to revise past learnings, fill in the gaps and retain the information. First, you need to remove all of the "you" feelings out of this equation. As a teacher, I have seen many students struggle as they are younger and immature compared to their cohort. All these things combined he has had a pretty tough Kindergarten. I do know a few who "red shirted" due to perceived immaturity who regretted it once the kids hit jr high & high school., jodifla WDW lover since 1972. To reading. Besides the pandemic delays he does good in my opinion and has Yes, some children learned to read on their own, but it was not a requirement. How could a child flunk out of kindergarten? Anyone have their child repeat kindergarten & regret it? Start . A 14-year study conducted by the Texas A&M University College of Education and Human Development has determined that Texas students who are held back during elementary school are almost three times more likely than their peers to drop out of high school. Not kind of reading but really reading. Sammy, for instance, could discuss ancient Troy but couldn't draw a stick figure. Emotional. Understood is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) charitable organization (tax identification number 83-2365235). How Ethical Is It To Move to A Neighborhood for Its School Rating? For some children, a bridge class between kindergarten and first grade offers time to grow. ended up repeating first grade. As a mother it makes me sad she wants to do this. I am not sending him to first grade. Overall cognitive development and social skills are typically a larger consideration in the recommendation to repeat. This is not about how smart your child is. What's more, kindergartners can range in age from 4 to 6 because about 5 percent of kids repeat the year and another 7 percent wait a year before starting, according to the latest figures from the National Center for Educational Statistics. My son did not turn the required age of 5 here in TN until May 2014. There is something schools could do, though you are more likely to find a willingness to do it in a private or parochial school. in his conversations with me, and he is 5 years old ! Rose. Repeating Kindergarten. Your grandson sounds like mine : very smart, maybe just a bit slower in maturity, but just waiting to really take off a bit later but not lagging because of IQ or skill performance probability in a very short while. If it doesnt work out, youll worry about it when the time comes. Learning differences: Is the child having trouble with reading, writing, or math? However, in years past, before standardized testing became so prominent, in the years when teaching to the test was an anathema, children learned to read in first grade. But generally, if the school wants your child to go ahead, thats what will happen. Lets follow Finlands example. Following that advice, my parents moved us to a private school that went through 8th grade. This can make them cranky during the day. Colors perfect gets along with other kids good, writes his name and letters and much more. I have never had such a tough time with something. I sort of understand. Before using this Expert Advice area, please review our General and Medical Disclaimers. Thread starter katie111; Start date May 30, 2013; K. katie111 DIS Veteran. This is by far the hardest decision Ive ever made. However, because kids often make sudden leaps in development later in the year, it can be hard to predict their performance in first grade. What can cause kids to seem immature. Constantly. Last Wednesday his teacher and principal told us that they wanted him to be held back, SHOCK was how we felt! School!. Age range. My best friend has a child who is 6 months old, a girl, and said to be 100% ready for 1st grade by her teacher. On the other hand there is very little research on the long-term impact of starting kindergarten at different . Staying in kindergarten means not only repeat exposure to the curriculum and so a greater chance of picking it up, but it also means being the oldest -- and most knowledgeable, mature and capable -- student in class, which can increase confidence dramatically, setting the tone for long-term positive self-concept and continued school success. This used to be Kinder requirements, now they are prek requirements. After multiple evaluations and what not the school has basically been recommending to promote. He's doing so much better. I feel bad for her emotional wellbeing. However, research is questioning whether repeating truly helps children. Im being pressured to follow the schools recommendations by family and the school, but I know my son. The study of 784 Texas school children followed from first grade until graduating or dropping out of school led by Dr. Jan N. Hughes, Professor Emeritus in educational psychology, found that even though grade retention in the elementary grades does not harm students in terms of their academic achievement or educational motivation at the transition to high school, it increases the odds that they will drop out of school before obtaining a high school diploma by 2.67 times. The child is not repeating kindergarten. It has been a nightmare to get help for them. . Think about it this way: if the teacher was asking out of malice for your child, she certainly wouldnt want to have him as her student again. He isn't ready for that. Emily you are 100% percent correct! Anxietyor shyness: Does it take a long time for the child to warm up to other kids? They might burst into tears when something goes wrong or get clingy when they feel insecure like little kids typically do. And those possible downsides are significant, too. But know that teachers don't make the recommendation to repeat kindergarten without a lot of thought. There is typically little-to-no social stigma with repeating kindergarten; kids are often all too happy to get to do so. I have an almost 6 year old. When a teacher or other education expert recommends repeating kindergarten, it's seldom (if ever) about a single skill your child is behind on. Pros. Im actually not liking it a bit! He was immature socially and emotionally but was sight reading at 4. They did some testing prior to the start I taught gifted children in my career as a teacher who were held back in kindergarten by demanding and close minded teachers and parents. Was my bright little boy going to flunk kindergarten, I wondered, because he didn't care about arts and crafts? What could be bad about spending more time on these skills before going to first grade? And if the issue is counting and numbers, or poor early reading skills, perhaps giving a child more time to learn numbers and letters; to hear stories read; and play with making rhymes, is indicated. Here are some common examples of immature behavior that you might see: Some kids seem to act young all the time. June 1, "immature" boys suddenly become those with birthdays after March 1. Given average per pupil spending of roughly $10,700 (the most recent national estimate), the direct cost to society of retaining 2.3 percent of the 50 million students enrolled in American schools . Still, finding out the teacher thinks your child should be "held back" can be jarring and, for many parents, upsetting. It could be he will find it comforting and safe to stay with his kindergarten teacher for one more year. While this justification has some merit, retention could actually be detrimental. If the teacher is concerned about the child's maturity or behavior, parents can ask for specific examples of behavior that cause concern. Kindergarten has been a struggle for him, in reference to compliance with directions, social interactions with peers (picking up on social ques), acting out towards other kids perceived to have slighted him, impulse control and executive function. Im having the opposite problem. I am also currently looking into private tutor for my My frustration is with the teacher and her seeming intent in holding my little guy back for whatever reason by not supplying the tools necessary to help him be successful in kindergarten. Repeating a grade at this age can sometimes be beneficial. Has a teacher recommended that your child repeat kindergarten? Find out what they notice, and work on ways to help kids develop skills like self-control. There should be 20% of the kids identified. That way youll know for sure, from an expert, if your child has a learning disability of some sort, such as ADHD, which could make it hard to sit still, or dysgraphia, which can make it difficult to write. We would re-run tests he had failed and realized there was a social issue to the testing he must of struggled with. Rather, it's about an overall picture of a child who may be too "young" -- physically, cognitively, socially or some combination thereof -- to thrive in first grade. Insecurity concerning her classroom authority will certainly compound any immaturity problems, especially with highly active boys.I would lean toward accepting the school's recommendation. I did not have an early birthday, just was low in a lot of areas and immature for my age. I think its interesting that even though retention was good for you, you made the effort to tell us that there are other, better ways to assist students, and that for most, retention is not ideal, in your opinion. 15 June 2012. A school psychologist should do a battery of tests to determine why a student isn't progressing. Your use of the site indicates your agreement to be bound by our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. "In addition to evaluating a child's social and emotional readiness for first grade, teachers now must consider specific grade-level standards instituted by the state or the school district," says Marilou Hyson, Ph.D., associate executive director for professional development at the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), in Washington, D.C. As a result, more children are in danger of not passing muster. So we entered him into kindergarten in August 2014. Communicate. Sleep: Many kids consistently sleep less than six hours a night. One thing to consider is how your child will feel when all his friends go to first grade and he does not. Hes very good with numbers, has a very extensive vocabulary, can spell a lot of his 144 sight words that I taught him because the teachers were not able to help him through them for some reason. She is the one who pointed me to the research that says retention is not a good choice. Time to catch up academically. Anxiety and shyness are surprisingly common in kids. Through the year he attended, we had several conferences to discuss his progress. Im ver sure I could have helped him read the schools books that they test him with that would have helped him with retention of sight words ( we continue to read ours), I am continuing to go over the sight words and he can put them into sentences and makes up stories as well. Oh my goodness, yes! She only just turned 5 this month while the other students are all turning 6. Repeating a grade at this age can indeed be beneficial. These test results were always provided in graph format. You may want to seek help from the school in having your child assessed for school readiness. Talking honestly but sensitively about their behavior is one way to start. My son is in what they call the foundation year, kindergarten. Here are more reasons kids may seem younger than other kids their age: Hyperactivity: Does the child seem to be driven by a motor, like the Energizer Bunny? But are concerned he will act out if he is bored. But know that teachers dont make the recommendation to repeat kindergarten without a lot of thought. He is constantly talking about being in the first grade next. My husband was 19 and I was nearly 19 when we started college. we are so lost. Increasing pressure to do well on standardized tests in elementary school has pushed the first-grade curriculum down to kindergarten. The kids are expected to write sentences and use inventive spelling (spell phonetically) for words that they havent learned yet. "When is it a good idea to repeat kindergarten?" It can feel like an insult: like your child isnt smart. 4. Published August 17, 2017. So here in 2020, I find this article. In spite of how often this happens, it can come to a shock when the kindergarten teacher asks to speak with you suggesting your child repeat kindergarten. We both went on to finish college. We put him on Adderrall to help him little bit with his ADHD during the school hours. They feel repeating would be a good option so his social/behavior/impulse control and executive functioning to catch up. They did some testing prior to the start of the school year and told us they . Repeating Kindergarten. More academic focus. Hi first time mom with a kindergarten 6 year He has some learning challenges (I think a learning disability), and has been in speech since he was 2. . They are pushing kids too hard these days and are expecting way more than when I was in kindergarten 22 years ago. They also were 3.3 percent more likely to graduate from . If she has time she works with those having trouble. Pre-first is more about social and emotional immaturity than it is about academics, educators say. Because children develop at such different rates and the kindergarten age span can run from 4 to 6, there is a tremendous range in social, physical and cognitive development. Immature behavior can look different in different kids. Is this a public or private school? That is all I want. You can hire an education lawyer. Posted on 1/25/23 at 9:54 pm to WhoDatKrewe. There is a vast amount of scientific research showing that children do not benefit by being held back in grade school. Is he good at sharing? This, in my opinion could greatly help my son with almost zero downside. Andrew mined two large data sets in a way no researcher has done before and concludes that kids who repeat a year between kindergarten and fifth grade are 60 percent less likely to graduate high school than kids with similar backgrounds, and even . Your child may not mind this as much as you think. These teachers, trying to put all kids in a peg as either Got it or Did not get it, are unconscionable ! Ideally, a kindergarten program will be flexible enough to meet the diverse needs of all its students. For more than 20 years, Eileen Marzola has worked with children and adults with learning disabilities and attention deficit disorders, and with their parents and teachers. Holding back in failure of an entire school year that soon cannot be explained well or documented. Is this fact likely to upset him a great deal? These questions concerned me, but I knew that repeating kindergarten was the right thing for my son. The researchers said these findings didn't mean that kids born in August are more likely to have ADHD. At the end of the year, most of the children go to first grade. First should we allow him to repeat kindergarten ? And should my husband and I agree to have him held back or "retained" if that's what his teacher ultimately advised? Try to get out of going to kindergarten each morning, Scribble instead of drawing or writing letters and numbers, Find it hard to stick with a task or pay attention to what the teacher is saying for five minutes at a time, Act out aggressively toward other students, Separate from his parent or caregiver without getting too upset, Notice and respond to other peoples feelings, Recognize his own name in print and write it, too, Draw a picture of an object or to express an idea, Count the objects in a group and tell you if one group is larger or smaller than the other, Understand that addition means putting groups together and that subtraction means taking away from one group, Break up objects into groups of different numbers to show how they add up to the same number (example: 6 balls = 2 groups of 3 balls or 6 balls = 2 groups of 1 ball and 5 balls), Figure out how to turn a group of 1 to 9 items into 10 (example: a group of 6 items and a group of 4 items =10 items), Use items or draw pictures to show and solve simple addition and subtraction word problems, Sort items according to size or color, for instance, Identify basic colors like red, orange, green, blue, black, and white, Use complete sentences of at least five words, Follow directions involving at least two steps, Hold a crayon or a pencil between his fingers rather than with a fist. Your child only turned 5 in August. Children who are behind in these areas late into kindergarten may: In deciding whether your child should repeat kindergarten, it is important to consider whether he has all the skills he needs to go on to first grade. Parents can ask to see examples of their child's work compared to the work of other children of the same age. - The youngest kids may be slower to develop physically, shorter, and less advanced with sports and other interests. Ive seen the damage done to countless students by the change, and much joy and celebration robbed from early education. May 30, 2013 #1 . Sammy, for instance, could discuss ancient Troy but couldn't draw a stick figure. Kids who are much younger than grade-level peers and who have a history of struggling academically can benefit from repeating a grade. They seem to retain NOTHING from the entire day at school! She doesn't know her letters, their sounds, or her numbers. He has been staying after school to work on blending. Hes on the low end of the spectrum. Your child is young for the grade, however, and repeating might give him more even footing with the other children in kindergarten. Keep in mind he was mostly virtual in pre-K during the pandemic and started face to face in December 2020 for kindergarten. Ive asked multiple times to please send books home so I could help him with reading to give him the confidence he once had back, up Ive been denied every time with the excuse that he first needed to demonstrate his reading at schoolI even know their strategy that was confirmed by the teacher and still only a very few books sent home. We missed the registration for pre-k by a week. There may be individual cases in which a child benefits, such as if she's missed a lot of school because of illness or a move, or if she has significant delays in all areas of development. 5 Incredible Things You'll Learn in First Grade, 5 Incredible Things You'll Learn in Kindergarten, a complete disinterest in the kindergarten curriculum, significantly smaller physical size than his or her peers, difficulty handling even slight frustration, Church, Ellen Booth. What kind of long-term effects, if any, can result from repeating or not repeating a grade? Anyone that can offer advise Id appreciate it. This situation is a fairly common scenario. Was a stronger speaker, reader, simple math, etc. On the positive side, keeping your child in kindergarten for another year certainly reduces the likelihood he or she will begin first grade in a rough spot that could lead to long-term academic and social insecurity. His academics are really good. Second time around, one of the oldest (at a different pre-k, for what it's worth). If starting school is postponed for boys with birthdays after, say, June 1, "immature" boys suddenly become those with birthdays after March 1. The recommendation to repeat the year is not a comment on your child's intelligence; it's a comment on your child's maturity. He loves school and I would hate to give him the stigma of repeating when it's something he doesn't have control over. In the past, repeating a grade was more popular and was typically suggested if a child was viewed as underachieving or unable to cope due to various factors such as social immaturity, long-term absences, long-term illnesses, behavioural or emotional challenges. Some young children attain the age of reason, the ability . Backing up . Second do you have any suggestions on how to teach him to blend sounds into words? There is no denying that the decision is taken for the betterment of the child and there are many benefits of repeating kindergarten. In your parents' day, kindergarten was a pretty laid-back affair. I was continuously told what an eager happy angel we had, however he never progressed to the standard. Copyright 2014-2023 Understood For All Inc. developmental milestones at different ages, Annoying other kids by talking too much or barging in on their games, Overreacting to what seem like minor things and taking a long time to calm down, Clinging and not wanting to be apart from you, Having to be told the same rule over and over again, like Its not OK to climb on that furniture, Struggling with bathroom issues, like bedwettingor being afraid to poop, Being overly sensitive to things like loud noises or the way clothes feel, Using baby talk or speaking in ways that are hard to understand, Having trouble with things like putting on a coat or gripping a pencil. He gets out of school in 3 weeks and we are just hearing about this issue. I know thats tough to implement, but grade retention isnt the answer. Hyperactivity, trouble with focus, and not getting enough sleep can be factors. Many of them suggest parents seek independent evaluation for specific developmental delays and then, if the results warrant it, spend time in occupational therapy over the summer to try to catch up. In our CA school kids are expected to be reading at a D level by the end of Kindergarten. As for seeing his friends going on ahead, I sympathize. Then, for a few years, I taught in a school for behaviorally disordered children. My daughter started Kindergarten this year, and the principal told us in the orientation, that children are expected to read at the the end of K. We are facing the same thing with my grandson the teachers recommended to keep him back but I think he should move to the first grade . Im not a parent or teacher, just happened to stumble across this page while doing personal research and I would like to share my story. Shes also going to attend a reading program over the Summer. My 5 year old has math, reading, and spelling homework now. If you decide to have your kid repeat kindergarten, be sure to look at this k-8 public charter school option. I got held back in preschool for crying too much. I would love to get your opinion concerning my 5 year old grandson. However, I believe talking with a school councilor, which we are going to do with ours, and also, having him tested by a very knowledgable but retired elementary teacher friend, is what we are going to do next and then keep researching for stat on this and what the experts say. WORLD of difference. I was keep back in school and I hate it to this day. Exactly! They did some testing prior to the start Also, learn about developmental milestones at different ages. He or she probably could have used a bit more time before going to kindergarten, but you took a chance. It is also seen that being older in the class may help your . . He lives with adults and communicates like a little adult. For more information on grade school, child development and related topics, check out the links on the next page. Our son barely showed up on it. All in all we just think its not right move for him to move up, but we are struggling mostly with how he will react when he sees that all his buddies are in a different class and hes not able to interact with them the same way he used to. Does he know how to compromise and adapt? Every week! This is not about how smart or good or "normal" your child is. Your gut reaction may be to defend your child. But then again I just cant understand why 1st grade cant help him write his letters perfectly? And in fact, thats what im going to do. Once I got to middle school I started to notice that all the other kids looked really little. It should be criminal to do that to these kids. Every child is different. Being one of the youngest in the class can play a role. If your child still finds these tasks difficult by the end of kindergarten, he is probably not ready to go to first grade, either. She is such an amazing little person. There's no right answer, and it's important to keep in mind that we're talking about 5 and 6 year olds here. Hes great at math though. Marzola is an adjunct assistant professor of education at Teachers College, Columbia University, and Hunter College of the City University of New York.

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