Redshirting in kindergarten?
Sunday, March 4, 2012
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Did you see this on 60 Minutes? Are you holding back your kid? To give them an advantage or for other reasons? Can this be attributed to Malcolm Gladwell's book, "Outliers?"
Here's another view from the New York Times: Delay Kindergarten at your Child's Peril. The authors argue that the early advantages quickly turn to detriment, because learning is so social.
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Wow, interesting. I have a soon-to-be-kindergartener that will turn 5 mid May, and he is only at the 5th percentile for size for his age, so very small compared to his preschool class. But I didn't even consider holding him back. I am definitely from the era where the old big kids that got held back were more chastised for being dumb where the smart kids (young or old) got all the positive attention. I guess things have changed!
I feel like he is more than ready academically for Kindergarten, and I would be blunting his potential to not give him that stimulation now. I'm interested to hear what parents around here think of this issue. Is this common in Stapleton? If it is, my son is definitely going to be the youngest (and smallest) in his class!
I wonder if it's common in Stapleton, too! I haven't noticed it in my son's kindergarten class - he's an April birthday and seems like he's the average age.