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Make sure the profile fits the child

For example, a child loves biology but is not very good at chemistry. In this case, the biological and chemical direction may not suit him. There is a risk that a teenager will fall behind classmates, start getting bad grades, and only lose motivation. In this case, it is better to choose a general education profile, and additionally study biology on your own or with a tutor.

Explore all options

Suppose a child wants to go to a specialized class to study literature in depth. And in your school there is only a humanitarian profile, where a history with social studies is attached to it. In this case, you can, for example, try to look for schools with a narrow philological profile. And vice versa, if a teenager does not decide in any way whether to enter a philologist or historian, a profile with a wider range of humanitarian subjects will suit him. There are even rarer specialized classes in schools. For example, in journalism, law, art. Perhaps the child needs one of them.

Estimate the upcoming workload

In profile classes, of course, they assign more homework and make higher demands on students. Not every child can easily withstand such educational and psychological stress. And if a student needs all the strength to “correspond” to the level of the profile, he can come to the exam physically and mentally exhausted. In this case, a regular class and additional classes with a tutor in the right subjects are more suitable.

At what age should a child go to school? Advice on what documents are required

What age to send a child to school

Every mother asks herself sooner or later, at what age should a child be sent to school. Sometimes it is really very difficult for parents themselves to assess the readiness of the child for school, to understand what initial knowledge a future first grader should have. Let’s try to figure out when you can send your child to school, and when you should not rush.

What the law says

The Law of the Russian Federation “On Education in the Russian Federation” clearly explains that children from 6.5 to 8 years old are taken to grade 1 *. The school can accept into the ranks of first-graders those who go beyond these age limits, but only at the request of the parents, with the permission of the school administration and after the commission, which will determine the readiness of the child for learning. In a word, it is quite possible that a 6-year-old and an 8-year-old will be at the same desk in the first grade. For parents, these 1.5-2 years seem like a whole abyss, because the memories of how they went for a walk to the playground with their newborn are still alive, and his current desk neighbor was already running and riding with might and main.

The oldest, the youngest – is it scary?

“What if my child will be the oldest or the youngest in the class?” parents are worried. In this case, it is worth paying attention to the readiness of the child to study at school. And this indicator does not consist of age or, say, gender, but of completely different parameters: health status, adaptive abilities, the ability to find a common language with new friends, and many others. It is believed that it is children who have reached the age of 6.5 years who have a level of maturity sufficient for learning. They are physiologically and intellectually ready for a new life stage, they are psychologically ripe for learning, they have the necessary initial knowledge and skills. But each child is unique: for some, school maturity comes a little earlier than for peers, and for some, it is delayed at the start. And all this is a variant of the norm.

Only 10 percent of 6-year-old first graders are truly ready to learn.

With “spring” and “summer” children, everything is easier: by the time they enter school, they are over 7 years old, and it is this ideal age that parents are guided by. “Autumn” children by September 1 are also close to the age of a first grader. But moms and dads of “winter” children have a choice: take the baby to grade 1 at 6.5 years old or wait another year until 7.5. Both fit into the legal framework, and choosing the right option can be difficult. Early or later? You will have to look at the criteria for the readiness of the child himself for school.

Find out the level of preparation of the child for school

How do I know if my child is ready for school?

Intellectual development

Should a child have basic knowledge when entering first grade? No, the inability to read and write will not be grounds for refusing admission. No need to hire preschool tutors. He may know the alphabet, write in block letters, but this is not necessary. However, there are a number of skills that he must demonstrate. For example, that he knows how to memorize and analyze the material. Can read a poem by age, retell a short text. He knows in which country, in which city, at what address he lives, what are the names of his mother and father – his full name, not his home one. It is important that he answers the questions not in monosyllables, but in detail, in sentences of 3–5 words, and knows how to use generalizing concepts. Describe an object, talk about a pet, name the author of a favorite poem – all this indicates that the child has a good “baggage of knowledge”.

+ Better earlier: the child is developed beyond his years and easily quotes his favorite works – it’s time for the first grade, regardless of whether he is 7 or not.

– Better later: the baby has difficulties in communication, it is difficult to get even a few words out of him, is he “confused in the testimony”? Leave him at home or in a preschool team for another year, work with him extra. Otherwise, learning problems will accumulate like a snowball.

Speech development of a first grader

The development of speech is very closely related to intellectual readiness for school. Good speech in many ways shapes the school maturity of the child, his readiness or unreadiness for learning – and suggests that he will learn to read and write easily.

+ Better before: the child does not know who a “speech therapist” is, clearly and correctly pronounces sounds, knows how to distinguish them by ear, find them in words. He has a good vocabulary appropriate for his age, he knows the meanings of words. His speech is coherent and expressive.

– Better later: if sounds are not given to the child. Vocabulary is poor. He does not know how to choose synonyms and antonyms (brave – brave, good – bad), or he needs more time to answer than other children. Shy, shy children can also experience learning difficulties.

Psychological readiness for learning

The psychological maturity of a child is largely an individual factor: someone is psychologically ready for school at the age of 5. 5, and for someone it’s too early at 8. Of course, the chances that a child older than 7 years of age is psychologically prepared are much greater. School maturity is demonstrated by an understanding of how one should behave at school, the ability to work according to the model, follow the rules, etc. Such an understanding of the situation (the so-called arbitrariness of behavior) is formed in children just in time for 6.5-7 years, and even at 7 years old it is still imperfect, therefore, when choosing a school, it would be appropriate to pay attention to the possibility of soft adaptation (which modern textbook systems allow, for example, “Primary School of the 21st Century” is one of the main educational systems recommended for use). This will allow children with different levels of psychological readiness to feel comfortable in the first grade.

+ Better earlier: the child has learned social norms, understands instructions, knows how to follow the rules, understands cause and effect relationships. He has a good working capacity, he is diligent, has self-control skills. He is not registered with a neurologist and a psychiatrist. Calm, does not suffer from insomnia, dizziness, hyperexcitability, etc. He is active, sociable, knows how to easily meet and make friends.

– Better later: the baby has a “weak”, exhausted nervous system, there is a neurological disease. He suffers from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Also, if he is anxious, withdrawn, everything falls out of his hands (which means that fine motor skills are also lagging behind), taciturn, conflict, restless and shows poor socialization skills.

The state of health of the future first-grader

All future first-graders must undergo a full medical examination and receive a doctor’s opinion on their readiness to study at a comprehensive school. Yes, compared to kindergarten, studying at school is a real job: instead of walking and daytime sleep, sitting at a desk, instead of playing, reading textbooks and the need to peer at the inscriptions on the blackboard. School meals are not for every child. An unusual environment, strict school rules make you nervous, and stress exacerbates chronic diseases.

+ Better earlier: if the child is completely healthy, does not suffer from chronic diseases, and has colds at most 4-5 times a year. His physical development corresponds to age norms or slightly ahead of them.

– Better later: the child has any chronic diseases (adenoids, diabetes, etc.), he gets sick 10-12 times a year, he is called “often sick”. It is better to devote an extra year to hardening, increasing immunity and general recovery.

Motivation to learn and willingness to learn

Trying to answer the question of when to take a child to first grade, mom and dad often forget to ask the child himself: does he want to study? Curiosity greatly affects at what age to send a child to school and whether it will be easy for him there. After all, if learning is interesting, you run to school, and if not, learning is equal to torment. If by the age of 6–7 the child does not show interest in learning, parents and educators should join their efforts in this direction: support the child in his desire to learn, talk with him about how interesting school life is, how many new friends he will have and It’s exciting to learn something new every day. You can play – “rehearse” lessons and changes, the answers are at the blackboard, you can go on an excursion to the school and look at the reaction of the child. And remember that the desire of the child, and not the ambitions of the parents, in this case is a priority.

What parents of future students should not be guided by:

• the opinion of others – “And the grandmother thinks that it’s time”,

• their parental ambitions – “Others went to school, but what’s worse for mine ?,

• the fact that a class is recruited by a good teacher – if the student is not ready, even a good teacher will not meet parental expectations,

• with their ideas about childhood friendship – “Oh, well, all his friends have gone to first grade, he will be bored!”,

• unwillingness to take care of the child – “They will teach you everything at school, I would like to give it back as soon as possible. ”

Child psychologists, defectologists, speech therapists offer their assistance to parents in matters of the child’s readiness for school. Today, specialists in the field of child developmental psychology have developed many tests that can be used to assess the level of development of a preschool child in different age periods. Invite your child to take an online test on our website, and you will find out the level of readiness of your child for school, get recommendations from experts on preschool and primary general education.

Main terminal

You should not send your child to school, focusing solely on the opinions of friends, the rating of the school, and scattered recommendations on forums on the Internet. Remember that you are responsible to the child in your choice, trust him to the best, in your opinion, the first teacher, choose the “right” curriculum for which the first grader will study. The kid should be comfortable and interesting to learn.