Starting school as the youngest kid or oldest kid - redshirting

[stampsx2]

Really hoping there's some cp teachers that can help me out and offer some insight.

My daughter is eligible to start kindergarden and would be the youngest in the class (born in february) and am wondering if it's better to wait a year, especially since the education act in alberta is about to be changed for the 2018-19 year.

Just wondering from other parents if you held your kid back a year so they wouldn't be the youngest in their grade - redshirting. I find it's 50/50 between parents if it's a good idea or not. There seems to be a lot of studies that suggest it's beneficial to wait. Every teacher I talk to says they're waiting with their own kids and suggest waiting is better, especially for boys.

The education act is being amended in Alberta to have kids start later. Under current rules kids can start kindergarten as early a four and a half. Is that too early?

Hoping for some experiences and advice.

[Ashartus]

Teachers I've talked to (including my wife) seem to pretty much universally recommend waiting a year. I don't think they can start that young in any other province. My son was born in February and we held him back, I think it was the right decision. Often the youngest kids are far less mature and socially developed which can cause problems, a year makes a huge difference at that age.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by Ashartus

Teachers I've talked to (including my wife) seem to pretty much universally recommend waiting a year. I don't think they can start that young in any other province. My son was born in February and we held him back, I think it was the right decision. Often the youngest kids are far less mature and socially developed which can cause problems, a year makes a huge difference at that age.

There's a study from the Official Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics that suggests kids who are the youngest in the class also have a 50% greater chance of developing adhd.

http://www.adhd-inattentive.com/1821...cent-research/

[PIGL]

I have three boys. They are now in Grades 11, 9 and 8 respectively. The middle one is the only one for which we had this option and we held him back. He has the best grades out of all three of them and is way better equipped to handle school and always has been. That extra year of development is huge for kids. If I could have engineered it better, I would have tried to have all of my kids in January or February so I could have held them back. I think it's better for their school, sports and their social development. The analysis might be a bit different for girls as they are quicker to develop at an earlier age, but my other two boys would have benefitted from being a bit older. My wife is a teacher and advocated holding the middle one back (I was not in favour). She was very, very right, I was wrong.

[snootchiebootchies]

My son was born in November and we are going to redshirt him. For us, the decision is an obvious one based on what we've read and what works for our life. But I understand that an extra year of childcare expenses is also an important factor as well. My wife is willing to delay resuming her career for another year to look after our son. My wife is actually looking forward to having more one-on-one time with him after my daughter starts school next year, something we never got the chance to have much with him since he was a second child.

[Fire]

nm

[GGG]

We waited. Now our daughter excels. Is it correlative or coincidence? I don't know but if you look at athletics the average birthday of sports draft picks is early in the year. Essentially being older allowed them to excel at the expense of their peers. Now education isn't as cut throat as sports but education is designed to teach to the average student so if you are below average (and someone has to be) as a result of intellect or age school would be more difficult.

Now if your kid can read real books at 4.5 it probably doesn't matter. They will excel anyways. But on average your child will have an easier time in school if they are older.

You do cost them 1 year of compound interest in their retirement and they can buy beer in Grade 12.

[GirlySports]

I would hold back too. My daughter is born in October and even that feels young.

[tvp2003]

Ha! I had no idea "redshirting" was even a thing that existed outside of NCAA athletics

Related question: I've heard people in the US have their kids repeat 8th Grade (i.e. before they go to high school) to get a leg up on their peers (for athletic and possibly other reasons as well). Is that a thing in Canada?

[Qwerty]

January baby here - I wasn't held back.

It does a number on your social life (more in teenage years). I played hockey growing up and every second year I had to be on a team with everyone from the grade below (big deal when it's different schools, middle vs high) and not any of my friends because of the age cutoff. Something to consider if also putting them in sports.

Education wise I was fine, but the social/sport aspect shouldn't be forgotten.

Edit - Also your kid will be drinking even earlier in life as your friends will turn 18 a full year before, same with driving, etc. You spend a lot of time feeling behind in life and a fake ID is a necessity.

[Fuzz]

I'd wait. Nothing sadder than the first year university students who were to young to go out to the bars with everyone else.


Priorities.

[N-E-B]

February kid. Being the oldest was pretty cool. It got a little annoying once I started becoming the first of my friends to drive, be able to buy alcohol, etc. but nothing that ruined the experience. I don't know if it really makes much of a difference either way, but being older than everyone when you're 8 was a cool feeling.

[Galakanokis]

My son was born mid November and was also almost two months early. We should have held him back as he wasn't ready for kindergarten and now that he stated grade three as a 7 year old we are dealing with a few issues. He is definitely having focus issues especially during group activities which much of school is. One on one he is fine but...Lots of things still to come but I think he would have benefited greatly from being held back a year. My daughter on the other hand is blowing the doors off of kindergarten when she started at 5.

[Galakanokis]

What's the cutoff in Alberta? Here it is the end of the year so being born in January/February would make you the one of the oldest kids in class? Basically starting kindergarten at 5 rather than turning 5 after you start? Or are you talking about starting at 4?

[Amethyst]

I work with children this age and, without knowing your daughter, would recommend holding her back. In all my years working with kids, I have come across one child who I thought was ready to start young. With her being a February baby, not just is she young, she is one of the youngest. (September or October birthday might be a different story.)

She will likely be emotionally younger than children her age now, but often where it really becomes apparent is junior high years.

Could you enrol her in community activities instead, to give her something to challenge her if she didn't go to kindergarten? It's likely not the end of the world if she starts young - many do and manage - but if I had a child with a February birthday, I would definitely wait.

[Locke]

So is the moral of the story: "Dont lay in the hay in May?"

[Amethyst]

Originally Posted by Galakanokis

What's the cutoff in Alberta? Here it is the end of the year so being born in January/February would make you the one of the oldest kids in class? Basically starting kindergarten at 5 rather than turning 5 after you start? Or are you talking about starting at 4?

In Alberta, it's the end of February. So, kids could start kindergarten at 4 and turn 5 on February 28. Actually, it might even be March 1.

[annasuave]

I started school early, and it wasn't fun. I was also that poor schmuck who was underage at university and couldn't get served.

I say wait. Being the youngest certainly didn't benefit me in any way. I was a bit "young for my age" to start with, and being almost a full year younger than most of my classmates didn't help matters any.

I would definitely have been better off and had an easier time of things socially if my parents had waited.

Just my two bits.

[calgarygeologist]

It could certainly cause issues as some folks have noted. My kid is born in December and started early. There were a few issues in his first year such as him having trouble holding pencils and crayons for extended periods of time because he had weaker and less developed muscles in his hand/forearm. That improved significantly by grade 1 though. Socially, he doesn't appear to be any less developed than other kids and maturity is highly variable. There are some kids that he plays with that are quite a bit older and very immature (really bad influences on him.) My kid goes to the after school program at our community centre which helps immensely with social skills. He has friends up and down the grade levels from kindergarten to grade 6.

[CaptainYooh]

Originally Posted by Ashartus

Teachers I've talked to (including my wife) seem to pretty much universally recommend waiting a year. ...

I second that. What's the rush? Let your child enjoy another year of no peer pressure and no homework.