Hello moms,
My middle daughter will turn 3 on October 18th and I am a little worried about her not going to Kindergarten untill a year after other children born in the same year because of the MISD school cutoff enforced. I didn't have this issue with my first child because she was born in May. I don't want her to be behind and she is always crying when she sees her older sister joining the school bus.
Please help
I'm with the other moms. Don't worry about it. My son's birthdate is Sept. 7 so he missed the cutoff by 7 days. He was bright enough to start in a private kindegarten but the maturity level wouldn't have been there. So we started him when he should have. Best thing we've done. One thing to think about also - look at the future. She will be among the first in her class to get her driver's license, etc.
Good luck !
Unless your 3 year old is just exceptionally bright, don't worry about her being 'left behind'. Enjoy having her all to yourself for those few months of her life. You can get her started on 'school at home' if she wants to play school, with workbooks and coloring and singing songs. She's much better off being older the next year in class than younger this year in class. Believe me, I know this from experience.
So many other kids will have similar birthdays so I wouldn't fear about her standing out. Also, it's normally to a child's best advantage to be one of the older, more mature, stronger ones in the class. I would consider that as a blessing for her self-esteem. :)
She won't be behind. The cutoff has been September 1st for as long as I can remember for all school districts and other states.
My birthday is September 20th and I had to wait another year as well. My son's birthday is 11/26 and we opted to put him in private school because the cutoff was December 1st.
This was a big mistake. While he was able to be in the same grade as other friends, as the years moved on he wasn't able to keep up because of his maturity level. He could do the work but was unable to focus because he was the youngest person in the class. Now, he's in his correct grade and is doing great.
Don't feel she's getting left behind because there are some parents who even wait until their kids are 6 before putting them in kindergarten. While I disagree with that concept, it works for others.
Try putting her in a preschool the year before she goes to Kindergarten. Maybe that will help. Highpointe has a great program and it makes them more than ready for Kindergarten. It's in Arlington off Matlock.
Our oldest daughter is 10/15 and it's the best thing that could have ever happened. Although she is one of the "oldest" in the class she is so much more mature both socially and mentally and she loves it and so do her teachers. I had someone tell me, back when we were having the same worries as you regarding her age,would you rather your 17 yr. old be leaving for college or your 18 almost 19 yr. old leaving for college? They also mentioned driving and age issues regarding peers etc. I got the point though and we realized how great it was for her to be older. Now we have the same issues with #2 & #3-they are 9/4 and 9/26 -we are glad that we have to wait. HTH
