When can kids start school: Best Age to Start School, According to New Stanford Study

Опубликовано: May 8, 2023 в 9:57 am

Автор: alexxlab

Категории: Kid

Getting You and Your Child Ready for Kindergarten

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kindergarten teacher at table with five students reading a book to them

If your child meets the age requirement (five years old by September 1), they may enroll in Kindergarten. There is no entry test for Kindergarten.

Enrollment in Kindergarten is not required in Michigan, but is strongly recommended. Enrollment in public or nonpublic school is required, however, for children who reach age six by September 1 of that school year.

Most children are ready by age five, so it is likely that your child will be, too. The important part of making sure they are ready is for families and teachers to work together to make sure each child feels confident and ready to learn.

Family support is the most important factor to make your child feel safe and ready for school. Do things like: keep a daily routine and make sure they have plenty of play time. Read to, play with and listen to your child. Also, make sure your child’s shots and health checkups are current.

Most public schools start sign-up in early spring for the next fall. The most common things you’ll need to register include:
- Your child’s birth certificate
- Immunization record
- Vision & hearing test results
- Proof of where you live and a health form
Check your school district’s website for their exact date and the info they want you to bring.

The most common ones needed are:
- birth certificate or other proof of birth
- proof of where you live
- vaccination and immunization records
- and vision and hearing tests

If your child is turning five after September 1 but before December 1, you can request early enrollment instead of waiting a year. Talk to your child’s school district about the early Kindergarten entry options. The final decision is always up to you.

A kindergarten class should support ALL children. School districts are required to teach children with special needs in regular classes when possible. If your child has an Individualized Education Plan (IEP), the school will work with you to make sure your child’s specific needs are met during this transition to kindergarten. You and your child have rights. You should receive a brochure explaining your rights from your Intermediate School District (ISD). To learn more about your child and family’s rights, visit the Michigan Alliance for Families.

An Individualized Education Program (IEP) team, including parents, teachers, and important adults in your child’s life, will be created for eligible children. The IEP will tell, according to federal guidelines, what supports, programs, and services your child will get, and how much time will be spent in regular class. Focusing on your child’s strengths and needs, the IEP will set goals and timelines for each service and support.

Although districts can choose to have morning or afternoon half-day sessions, full-day sessions, or alternate full-day sessions, most school districts in Michigan offer full-day Kindergarten. This allows children more learning time.

Some schools offer before- and after-school child care. There is usually a cost, but the benefit is that your child can stay in one place for the whole day. Schools that offer this should have a child care license from the Child Care Licensing Bureau displayed in their classroom or office.

If you live close enough, you may walk or drive your child to school. If you live a longer distance, riding the school bus may be an option. Contact your school or visit their website to learn about what bus routes are available. Some schools provide home pick-up and drop-off for kindergartners.

Call the school if your child is going to be absent. Make sure the school has phone numbers where you can be reached, knows who can be contacted, and knows who can pick your child up from school. Teach your child how to contact you, and put that information in their backpack. Choose an alternate emergency contact, and make sure your child knows who that is.

Teaching and materials are age appropriate and are held in a quality environment. There is a mix of active and quiet time. There is also a mix of group time and independent work time. Parents and their children feel welcome. Teachers respect your family’s differences and culture. Students take part in deciding what they do during learning time.

Your child will have active and quiet activities, in large and small groups. There will be time for your child to work alone on projects. There will be a snack time. Also, there may be extra classes such as gym, music, art, library, computers, etc. Ask your teacher for a sample daily routine.

The program will be more formal and structured, with teacher-led activities. There will be more group projects and less free time. Classrooms will be bigger, with more children in class. They will work on writing letters and numbers. Classwork will work towards meeting state of Michigan goals for kindergarten.

Research shows children this age learn best through play. Most kindergartners are not ready to sit and listen for a long time. Using play to learn helps keep children engaged. It helps physical skills by moving their muscles, social skills by boosting imagination, emotional skills through compassion and teamwork, and mental skills with problem solving.

Your child will start to learn reading and simple math skills. The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) has guides for each school on what should be taught in each subject or area. These subjects include science, technology, social studies, nutrition and health, physical education, the arts, and, for some, world languages. For more information on these subjects and the MDE guidelines, visit the Michigan Academic Standards page.

It’s natural to wonder about your child’s progress and learning. There are a number of ways to determine your child’s strengths and needs. This includes both informal (based on the teacher’s experience and observations) and formal assessments (using tools created by experts in child growth and learning). You play an important role partnering with the teacher to understand your child’s progress, goals, challenges, and any needs. Keep an open line of communication with the teacher with daily check-ins in person, online or through an app.

The school will do a language screening for your child to help the teachers plan for their learning and for supports. It is important that the school supports your child’s first language, while helping them learn English.

Children can learn two languages at the same time. Learning a second language should not replace your home language. If the language difference makes learning too hard, your child may go to an English as a Second Language, or bilingual, class. In those classes, your child will learn the same material as other children in the same grade.

Remember children learn at different rates. Talk to your doctor, teacher, and other people who know and work with your child if you have any concerns related to growth and learning. If you still have concerns, and it affects your child at school, submit a request for an evaluation to the principal or teacher. For more information on the evaluation and what happens next, the best thing to do is talk with your child’s teacher.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is the law that does not allow discrimination on the basis of disability, guaranteeing anyone with a disability equal access to education. A 504 plan is created for students with a disability who require support in order to be successful in the classroom. Children with a 504 plan are protected and should receive learning in a typical classroom, in a classroom with supplementary services or some combination of the two. To learn more about the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and a 504 plan, visit the ADA Guide to Disability Rights Laws.

Spending time with your child doing simple, fun activities helps get them ready for school. Some of these activities include:
- Reading to them every day
- Coloring and drawing with your child
- Talking and listening to your child
- Using a lot of different words when talking to them
- Being respectful with your child and others
- Playing with your child
- Cooking with your child

Reading, writing, speaking, listening, and viewing are all key parts to helping your child master and love reading. Talk with your child every day. Read with your child for at least 30 minutes daily. Point at words when you read them. Ask them to tell you a story. Have them watch you write.

Your child is influenced by the things you say and do. Show that you are happy and excited about starting kindergarten. Find and read a book about starting school. Start them off with a good breakfast before they go. Let your child take part in making decisions about things like what to wear and school supplies. Give a loving, but firm goodbye and let your child know when you will see them again.

There are some great books about starting kindergarten that are fun and can help your child learn what to expect when they start school. For book recommendations, ask your child’s teacher or a local librarian.

Being engaged in your child’s school helps them succeed. There are many ways to become involved. You can volunteer at the school, join the PTA, or serve on a committee. You can read and respond to the school notices or newsletters. You can also be involved simply by helping organize your child’s time, helping with homework, and talking to them positively about school.

Being in touch with your child’s teacher makes it easier for your child to move into kindergarten and more satisfying for you. Sharing your different points of view is important. Being a partner in your child’s education with their teacher is one of the best ways to support the learning experience. Keep communication open. Call or email the teacher with questions, respond to notes, volunteer in class, look at your child’s work, attend parent-teacher meetings, and use the app to check in daily if your school offers one.

Your family’s beliefs and customs have a great impact on your child’s life. Children find it easier to learn when their classrooms feel more like home. Good teachers accept and respect the beliefs held by families. Ask your teacher about opportunities to share your family’s culture with the school.

Kindergarten is a one-school-year program before first grade. There is a developmental kindergarten program to give children who are not ready an extra year of schooling. However, research has shown that for most children attending two years of kindergarten has no long-term benefits and, in fact, may negatively impact your child in the long run.

What Age Should A Child Start Preschool?

March 31, 2022

Many parents struggle with determining the appropriate age for their child to start their educational journey. Determining whether a child is ready for school or not is a big decision, especially between the ages of 3 and 5.

While there’s no compulsory school age, most states require children to be at least five years old by late summer to start schooling. If your child’s birthdate falls around the cut-off date, it might require them to start school as a 4-year-old or a newly turned 5-year-old. Children born after the cut-off may start school at six years. This awkward cutoff might leave you confused about what to do.

Luckily, some crucial indicators can help you decide if your child is ready for the transition. This post delves into basic yet essential questions you should ask yourself to help you decide. In the end, if you still feel your child isn’t ready, you shouldn’t rush the decision. Remember that all children develop at different paces, and there’s no need to rush them. Here are some questions to reflect on:

Does Your Child Follow Instructions?

While preschool doesn’t usually have strict rules for kids, your child could follow simple instructions by the time you enroll them in preschool. Teachers will expect them to follow snack time guidelines, clean up, walk-in line with their peers, and other small tasks.

If you feel your child has yet to learn how to follow instructions, you may want to start giving them easy tasks to do independently. For example, you can ask them to help with setting the dinner table or bringing in the mail. This routine will allow them to work on completing routine tasks, helping them in school.

Can Your Child Handle Transitions?

Schools have an established schedule they operate on, for example, moving from snack time to playtime. Schools expect that children can transition from one activity to another smoothly. If your child isn’t good at transitioning quickly, you might need to work on these skills before enrolling them in school. Learning to leave one activity and get engaged in another is a skill every child needs to learn before joining kindergarten.

Can Your Child Separate from You?

If your child is used to spending the day at home with you, they can develop separation anxiety when they start going to school. If your child gets upset when you leave them, you might need to spend some time training them to overcome their separation anxiety. The best way to achieve this is to leave the child in the care of a trusted friend or family member for short periods.

Use that time to run to the grocery store or take a quick walk within the neighborhood. The aim is to teach your child to separate from you and trust you’ll come back. This way, dropping them off at school won’t be filled with panic. Initially, they may be apprehensive about you leaving them behind, but their worry should subside with time.

How Well Do They Interact with Other Kids?

Consider how well your school-age child interacts with other children. If they have been around other children frequently, for example, in the neighborhood or church, you know how they might respond in school.

Learning social skills is crucial for preschoolers. However, if your child hasn’t interacted much with their age mates, preschool provides an opportunity to do so. Arrange for playdates or sign your child up for social activities for children.

Final Thoughts

The right age to enroll your child will depend on various factors, including their ability to interact with other kids, follow instructions, and communicate. If you’d like to know more about preparing your child for school, Casa de Corazón can assist with the process. We provide immersion child care for your child’s first educational experience to prepare them for their future endeavors inside and outside the school setting. Contact us today to learn more or request a tour of our facility.

At what age can a child be sent to school according to the law?

In accordance with Part 1 of Art. 67 of the Federal Law of December 29, 2012 No. 273-FZ “On Education in the Russian Federation”, a child can be sent to school at the age of 6 years and 6 months. However, the extreme limit is 8 years. But, in the presence of certain deviations in the physical or psychological state. For example, if your child does not speak well, and he still needs to work with specialists. You take a special certificate from the medical center and write a statement to the local government that your child is not ready to start studying at a general education institution.

At what age can a child legally start school?

The law provides that the age at which a child can go to school is 6 years and 6 months;
A child may be admitted to school earlier if the child is 6 years and 5 months old on September 1st;
If there are any medical contraindications, the child can go to school at the age of 8 years.

Thus, in our state rather strict requirements are set for the age of the child, regarding his admission to school. Many psychologists are sure that all mental processes in a child develop at the age of 7-8 years, so it is best not to rush to enter school. Other experts claim that a child from the age of six is much easier to adapt to the school environment than children from the age of eight. In principle, you need to think for yourself whether it is worth sending your child to school at such a young age. If you decide that your child needs to grow up a little more, then you need to write an application that your child will start attending school, for example, in a year, or at the age of eight years.

Correlation between law and child development

The letter of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation “On the organization of education in the first grade of a four-year elementary school” determines that a general educational institution may refuse to admit children to parents if at the time of September 1, the child is not 6 years and six months old. Many lawyers say that if your child is 6.5 years old, then you can go to school from October. After all, most often at this age, the child is asked to be picked up from kindergarten, since there are sorely not enough places for kids. Before you enroll in school, visit one or another educational institution and find out if your child can be accepted earlier than the specified date.

Another important aspect of admission to study at a general education institution is the passage of diagnostics of intellectual and psychological development. This test allows you to determine whether the child is ready to attend an educational institution. As a rule, this diagnosis comes down to the simplest questions that the child should answer without difficulty. If your child has not passed such a diagnosis, then no one has the right to expel you from kindergarten, since it is believed that the baby is not yet ready to study at school.

At what age to go to the first grade: the experience of mothers and the opinion of a psychologist he just goes to school. But if the baby was born in the spring, then for many parents this choice – to give it away at six or seven and a half years old – becomes difficult. How to understand at what age to send a child to school and is he ready for this?

On the one hand, the answer lies on the surface: it is necessary to act in the interests of the child, to be attentive to him, not to blindly follow stereotypes. On the other hand, there are quite a few factors that determine the maturity of a first grader: a child must be ready to become a first grader intellectually, emotionally, physically, psychologically. And, as it turns out, it is extremely important not to miss the moment of this readiness!

Going to school at 6.5 years old

As a rule, at the age of six and a half (or even earlier!) children are taken to school by ambitious parents, for whom a child’s academic success is a very important part of their own parental wealth. “Such parents pay too much attention to the intellectual development of their children, and it happens that by the age of 6 the child is really ready for school,” says psychologist Ekaterina Dolzhenko. – What can I say, I know a mother who laments that her child at two years old does not read well enough! But this is extreme, of course.

The child must be ready for school not only in terms of numeracy and writing, but also psychologically. The mistake of ambitious parents is that they often follow the intellectual path, when they need to look more broadly: the child must be flexible, must be ready to learn, physically just sit through the lesson.

It often happens that preschoolers who are purposefully prepared for school at home are well developed intellectually. But one cannot fixate only on the cognitive sphere, because, as a rule, such children turn out to be not socialized. They are not aware of the interests that other children live by, they do not know how to communicate and compete with them. And according to the laws of the collective, a child unable to compete with classmates is likely to become an outsider.

It is also important that it is often difficult for children to sit in class even for 35 minutes. But in the first grade there are 4 lessons and 5 lessons. A six-year-old and even almost seven-year-old child can sometimes endure such a program, but at what cost!

The haste of parents can result in health problems: among first-graders, cases of diseases of the nervous system, gastritis, and stomach ulcers are not uncommon. If the child was not psychologically ready for school, then in the first year he may get very tired or, instead of lethargy, become, on the contrary, very excitable and capricious. Also, the crisis of seven years can leave its mark on the behavior of the child. In this case, it is better not to react to whims, but to support the baby: “I know it’s not easy for you now. You are tired, and when we are very tired, we become irritable. It happens to me too.”

Before school, parents should check how ready the child is – emotionally, physically, psychologically, intellectually. Consult with a psychologist. Pay attention to whether the baby is anxious. By the way, sometimes there is an interest in the same school behind anxiety, and this is not bad. It is important to find out if the child really wants to go to school: children are very empathic and often involuntarily voice the wishes of their parents in their desires.

Personal experience

“My Zoya went to the 1st grade exactly at 6.5, which I don’t regret at all,” says Tatyana A. “I didn’t even think about leaving her in the kindergarten for an extra year. In a modern school, you have to study for 11 years, it’s a horror how long! Many people say that sending a child to school means ending childhood, but, in my opinion, this is not so: my daughter, although she is in the third grade, still plays with dolls and toys. And he studies well. I think my zeal is connected with my own life experience: I went to school at 7.5, although I should have gone a year earlier. I read from the age of 5, I understood well in mathematics – in general, I was well prepared for the first grade. But my mother was dissuaded from this step; I stayed at home for another year. It was an absolutely empty, meaningless year: I didn’t go to kindergarten, I sat at home with my grandmother, and I was unbearably bored!”

“If a child is fully prepared for intellectual activity, physically developed enough and psychologically strong, then he should be sent to school at six and a half, and even a little earlier,” says psychologist Ekaterina Dolzhenko. “But watch very carefully.”

Indeed, in the same situation, you can either give him an extra year of golden childhood, or do a disservice by dulling his interest in learning and thus depriving him of the opportunity to develop and study harmoniously. After all, studying (no matter how surprising it sounds!) Can bring pleasure, satisfaction, and the joy of learning.

Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash

Personal experience

“I was going to send my child to the first grade at 7.5 years old, believing that the later the little girl goes to school, the better for her,” says Natalia L. – But in the kindergarten they said that my girl is ready to study, and they recommended to give it a year earlier. What I, unlike her, was completely unprepared for: only six months remained before the start of the school year.

“But she’s small! Let him go in a year and be in the class of the oldest, strongest and most intelligent! ”, – I remember, I said then.

“Not at all,” the teachers replied. “On the contrary, if she sits out an extra year in the garden, she will not be interested in the first grade, and then you won’t force her to study at all!”

I showed the child to psychologists at school and in the kindergarten, consulted with the teacher… And sent him to school. Moreover, educational programs began to be curtailed in kindergarten, and one more year of preparation for school seemed redundant to me … How long can you prepare for it? Let her go and learn!

Almost half of the children in our first grade are six years old, and they are all doing well in school. My daughter copes well with the program, but she always does not fail to remind that she is the youngest in the class (although there is a girl in the class who is only two days older than her). But when she gets A’s for tests or wins the Olympics, this is an additional reason for her pride: I am the youngest, and at the same time so smart. True, there is almost no time left for playing with dolls. But to a greater extent, she is upset not because of this, but because you can’t take toys to school. But those are the school rules!

Go to school at the age of 8

The majority of parents still prefer not to rush to school. A simple example: if you type in the search engine “School at 6 or at 7”, more than one million answers will fall out, and most of them state that you should go to school closer to 8 years. Some even regret that it is impossible to give a child at 9, so that he can surely cope with the loads.

In contrast to the “ambitious”, the parents of “mitrofanushki” put not the intellectual, but the psychological and emotional readiness of the child at the forefront. In part, they are right: the outstanding psychologist Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky argued that in children from 3 to 7, the leading activity is play, and cognitive activity becomes predominant from 7 to 13 years.

But experienced educators and teachers know that the principle “better late than never” does not always work . This is confirmed by Svetlana Yuryevna Kondyakova, a senior teacher at the Zhemchuzhina kindergarten: “Indeed, there are children who, during an extra year spent at home or in a kindergarten, can easily lose all interest in learning. The saddest thing is that the motivation for learning and learning disappears. In the first grade, they will be bored and not interested, and if so, what academic success can be expected in this case? Children who have sat out stay for another year in kindergarten, where they continue to play, and in the future perceive their studies at the level of the game.

Overstayed children have a hard time. Almost until the third grade, they are forced to go through what they have long known, and school is a very boring story for them. What should a prepared child do in a class where everything is solved by 2 plus 2 equals 4, while he copes with fractions effortlessly? Psychologists believe that for a genuine interest in learning, it is this interest that is the main engine of school success and academic performance. The process of cognition should be a bit complicated, it should be in the so-called zone of proximal development in order to evoke the excitement of the researcher, the joy of the discoverer. This is very motivating!

And yet, at the age of 6.5, not everyone is ready for school. For example, a child may be able to read and count, be large and strong, but psychologically he still needs to grow up.

Personal experience

“I sent my daughter to school at the age of 7.5,” says Anna Sh. “At 6.5 she was still early: she is a homely girl, timid, at that age she had not yet read, and in our family there were no doubts or discussions about this. Now Ksenia is in the second grade, she is a good student, she takes assignments seriously, but among her classmates there are many children younger than her. In physical development, Ksyusha is ahead of many, she is the largest girl in the class. I think that the question of whether a child should be given away at 7 or 6.5 years old is decided individually. There are pros and cons to both options. The truth, as always, is in the middle: it is best to go to school at exactly 7. But what about those children who were born in the spring? They will always be either a little small or too big for first class. But I think that with growing up, this difference becomes less and less noticeable.

Photo: Carl Jorgensen/Unsplash

Your child is ready to go to first grade if:

He weighs more than 23 kg, his baby teeth are already falling out and he can reach over the top of his head to the left ear (the so-called Philippine test, which shows a sufficient level of maturation of the nervous system and the necessary possibilities for the brain to perceive information).