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i was talking to my cousin about it on the weekend and were she lives (ivanhoe) they seem to send younger where as out my way the norm seems to hold back, i find this interesting!
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My Dd is an April baby. We were faced with the decision of starting her or holding her back. I spoke at great length to her kinder teacher who told me that my DD was very 'school ready'. She talked about emotional maturity, resilience and social skills. We did start my DD when she was 4 years 10 months and she has done very well. She is now in grade 3, excels in maths and is very much a leader within her peer group. We made the right decision for her. She is the youngest in her class, some of the kids are almost two years older then she is, but she socialises well and in some ways is more mature and more resilient than some of the oldest kids.
I would wait until the end of the year before deciding and look at your DS's independence and maturity at that time. I don't think there is a 'right' decision which will suit everyone as every kid is different!
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This has made me think, DS is in prep this year (hes a november bub so we didnt really have to think about this) BUT he has been to 3 birthday parties so far, and all three have been 6th Birthdays.
The school he goes to, and a few schools near us have prep-reception, which is sort of like kinder crossed with prep. Most of the kids there are 4 turning 5 before May.
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Thanks everyone, I have read each post with much interest and thought!!
I agree, having just turned 2 years old it's not completely reliable to be predicting how soon he will mature. I'm still going to defer 3yo kinder though and he can start in 2013. And if he does really well during that year and has that "switch" moment (I hope!!), then maybe we will forget about 4yo kinder altogether and he can go straight to big school, even though he will be one of the youngest. Either way he will be one of the oldest or one of the youngest!! Part and parcel of having an early year bub I guess??!
I'm glad all your decisions have worked out though - it's good that we go by school-readiness signs rather than strictly by the age cut-off.
Liz, I hope my DS has that moment and becomes more confident and independent! I know what it's like to be painfully shy and socially awkward throughout school, and it isn't fun! I wouldn't wish that for him at all.
Thanks again for all your replies. They have definitely reassured me :)
ETA, Olive - I think my area is similar to your cousin's in that most are sending their children earlier - well all the mums I know anyway! That's why I was confused in the first place! But a few of the kinders are recommending that extra year at home so, pfft, whatever goes I reckon!
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the same cousin used to live in camberwell and when there, it was the norm to hold back!
im not sure about doing 3 yr old then straight to school, 4 year old is very important in teaching basic school readiness
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Hmm well a few places I've enquired at (elcs and day cares with kinder programs) have a shared kinder room with multi-ages (3-5), and then off to school when they;re ready. So the 3 year olds are doing the same things as the 5 years olds, etc. I suppose it's different at each centre.
It would be good if there was consistency between them though??
Also, with the community/council-based kinders, I kinda just though 4yo was similar to 3yo but just more hours? Clearly I have no idea!! :p
We'll see how he settles in anyway - plenty of time to wait and see, although I'm pretty adament he'll be going to big school later rather than earlier :) And yes, I'd prefer for him to do 2 years of kinder before heading off to school too.
