Hi Miss-H. I can't help with the legal requirements for WA, but I wanted to encourage you to stick with your guns & hold your dd back. I have taught kindy for years, and have (sadly) failed to convince many parents that it's better to hold a child back than to start them early, and have seen so much evidence that it is better for the child. I have never heard of a parent who has been unhappy about this decision (at both the kindy end of things & the high school end of things), but I have (sadly) heard many parents regret later not holding their child back (but it was too late).
In Scandinavia, chn don't start formal schooling til nearly 8 and they have the absolute best literacy rates in the world. I taught in England for a while where chn generally start 6-12 mo younger than in Australia & it broke my heart. I taught kids who were real strugglers, and it just put them further behind, right from the start.
If it was my child, I'd hold them back, so I just wanted to give you my personal opinion from my experience. I hope this is encouraging for you! Good luck.
I received a reply from the moron principal. I am so bleeding mad! He basically said no and that all children settle down after a while and went on and on about his huge waiting lists for his school as if he is telling me that he doesn't need my child! I have calmly answered him but if it doesn't go my way, I will need help to fight this I think.
Well, it seems I'm the fool as the Dept says that the maximum age to enter Year 1 is the beginning of the year in which they turn 6 years and 6 months. She will be 5 years and 7 months when she enters and will be 6 yrs 6 mnths in December that year so he has every right to refuse my daughter. Basically I'm screwed and she has to go now or not until Year 1 where she will be way behind everyone else. I feel so deflated!
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