Thursday, February 5, 2009
Dilema, Start School or Not
Conner is able to start school this coming year if I enroll him. We have year round school so he would actually start the end of July or there's a small chance he could start August 17 if he gets D track. He won't even be 5 yet when school starts since his birthday is the end of August. I was pretty sure I was going to enroll him but now I have mixed feelings. Anyone who is a teacher says to hold him back because boys are already more immature than girls, besides than he'll be the youngest in his class. I don't know what I'd do with him if he didn't go to school. He wouldn't be able to go to the school he goes to now since he could be in kindergarten. Besides I was looking forward to not having to pay that tuition next year. On the otherhand, he's so stinkin smart. I want him to start being exposed to more than I can offer him at home. Don't most kids all catch up down the road anyway. I just don't know and it's starting to worry me. I hate having to make these decisions that could affect so much of his life, who his friends will be, when he'll go on a mission, etc. I'm going to talk to his preschool teachers and ask them if he seems any more immature than the other boys in the class.
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3 comments:
You could always have him go to kindergarten and after the year if he seems younger than everyone socially then repeat it next year? My brother was born on Sept. 1st so my mom had the same dilemma. She decided to "hold him back" but he was super smart too and by 6th grade he wished he was a grade ahead. He stayed in his grade because of his friends, and went on a mission right after he graduated from high school. My other brother had an August birthday, and my mom sent him so he was the youngest, he liked that he had a year of college before he went on his mission. Okay, so that probably didn't help, but I think it would work out either way. Good luck with your decision!
Ben just listened to a book that talked about this same thing and it said that kids born Sept/ Oct and are older than their peers at school consistantly do better in school and have on average higher ACT/SAT scores. Nothing says a kid has to go on a mission the minute he turns 19. Ben's younger brothers both all waited until they were over 20 because they were held back in school and they have turned out fine.
If we have a son or sons born in the summer months we plan on holding them back. But at the same time, I think it is something that must be decided for each child. There really is no one size fits all answer. I would pray and fast about it (I am sure you are already planning on doing that) and I know you will discover the right thing for Conner. Plus I think talking to his preschool teacher like you are planning on doing and maybe even his pediatrician would be helpful.
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