My 5 year old daughter is entering 1st grade and may not be ready?

Question

My daugher is getting ready to go to the first grade and may not be ready. She was the youngest kindergardener in the entire district and her teacher even from day one was like i think she needs to develop her ability to focus more. We recently got her report card on which the teacher commented that socially she was o.k but cant perform basic functions and is easily distracted. When i ask her to do the same things she can. I know shes high strung but my question is should i let this teacher influence me and hold her back or just she how she does in a new classroom and enviorment. I know she knows more than what the teacher said she does b/c shes proven it to me before.

Thanks

Answer 1

Have her evaluated independently.

Answer 2

As a teacher, I have to say that your child's teacher probably has a pretty good perspective on what is typical for your child's age and has a good comparison of her to others in her class. If she is having difficulty focusing in class, she may just need a little more time to mature. Perhaps another year in kindergarten may help her develop a little more. Being the youngest in an entire group of children can have its disadvantages... if the child is not mentally ready to be able to perform tasks that require a level of attention (when in a crowded environment like a classroom) then maybe you should take the teacher's advice. It is probably not at all a question of whether or not your child is CAPABLE of the tasks... but whether or not she is able to do them in the classroom setting where distractions abound. Being able to pay attention is a fairly necessary ability for school... and it may just be that at her young age she is not there yet. Perhaps a bit more time will help.

Answer 3

I was held back and didn't even start kindergarten until I was 7. By that time, I flew through the material and was so bored with how easy school was that I skipped a whole grade in 5th grade. But because I was so advanced in school compared to my classmates those years, I felt confident and smart and loved learning. On the other hand, my brother started kindergarten at 7 and it ended up being a really good thing for him because he was so physically mature compared to his classmates that he had an easier time getting college scholarships to play sports. The "right" age for a kid to start school depends on the child. The best thing to do is to ask the advice of the teachers and counselors to get their opinions before making a decision. They deal with these questions all the time and would be honest with you. But you are the parent and you know best! I believe she would be okay academically (as there are a lot of kids who don't read fluently going into 1st grade), but if she is not physically and psychologically mature enough to be with the 7- and 8-year-olds then she might have a tough time at school. How is her attention span? Ability to follow multi-step directions? Listen without interrupting? Her fine motor skills? There's a lot more to consider than just her math ability. And look down the road... Will she be emotionally mature enough to enter high school at 13? Would she feel left out if her classmates hit puberty a year or more before she does? If she competes at sports she may have a tough time because she could be going up against students up to 5 years older than she is (with 5 more years' practice!). I don't want you to put your daughter into a classroom where she'll be bored with learning. But I think it can give a child a real confidence boost to be one of the more advanced in their class instead of one of the smaller kids. When they look around at their peers and see that they know and can do more things than their peers, they feel happy and confident and learn that they are capable of learning, whereas students who start to realize over time that they are "behind" either physically or academically can get frustrated at school. But please understand that I am not being rude when I say this: Doing 2nd-grade math at age 5 does not make your child a genius. Many parents believe their children are incredibly smart, but they often view their children through rose-colored glasses. It is good to believe in your child. It is also good to recognize that your child is not that unique. If you follow this track, she'll be taking Algebra at age 12. Many 12-year-olds have a hard time solving abstract math problems, because their minds are still in a more "concrete thinking" stage of development. Even if she has exceptional math ability, she'll also be taking English and History at a higher level, since most class schedules are the same across every grade until high school. Just something to think about.

Answer 4

I would recommend you request a case study evaluation from school. Being the youngest child offers no benefit in my opinion. Some feel retention to be devastating to a child, but I think promotion can be worse as you may set up for a non ending bad situation. You may want to consider a repeat of kindergarten or first grade. I would repeat first grade if she has the skills needed to enter because first grade is such a reading year.If she does not have the knowledge of letters, basic handwriting skills or attention span, keep her in kindergarten. It might be difficult now, but will be worth it in the long year. Good luck.

Answer 5

I would let her go on to the 1st grade if you feel shes ready. If at any point that teacher or you feel she needs more help than have her evaluated. She may just have been distracted by the chidren and it was her first yr. school. They could always take her in a smaller class for more one on one with a special teacher my cousin went through that and he's fine now. Just do what you feel is best shes your child. Good Luck.

Answer 6

I have somewhat a different perspective as I'm a fourth grade teacher so I've seen the results of repeating kindergarten.

Keep in mind that being "ready" for 1st grade involves more than just being academically ready. Maturity and social skills play a HUGE role in school sucess. If there's a time to repeat a grade, it would be now. It gets more and more difficult socially to retain/repeat a grade as a child gets older.

I've had students over the years that have repeated kindergarten and have done very well in my class (I teach 4th grade and looked at their records to see if they repeated). Socially, they are more mature, can handle situations better, and tend to have more leadership skills than their younger peers. Academically, they've kept up well. I know they would have floundered if they had been in 5th grade at the time (I've also taught 5th grade so I know the rigors of that grade level).

It's an agonizing decision for you I'm sure. You should talk with your child's kindergarten teacher and pricipal ask their opinion.

Answer 7

We have decided to hold back our 5 year old from kindergarten. She's there socially, smart as a whip but has a hard time concentrating on anything. When we had her tested, they said that they would have her come to school, but take her out of class and do one on one time with her. I said no way. Give your daughter the chance to excel at school. If she is behind, she will always be behind the other kids. You have some kids in her class that are almost seven!! There is a big difference there. Have her take another year of kindergarten. Then you can say you have the smartest kid in the class!! Good luck

Answer 8

Theres not a lot of time left before school starts? But try giving her some coffee with a lot of cafineene and see if that calms her down- its call the "Paradoxital effect"

It may be that she has ADD and a small amount- based on body weight of Ritilan- around 4 mgs might help.

I have both ADD and ADHD- however, I am 45 and I have learned how to hyperconcentrated- which is the opposite of ADD & ADHD- and when disturbed I get almost violent (Ask the wife!) because it literally scrambles my brain to go from complete, total, intense focus to a total different subject.

Good Luck

Answer 9

If it's a good school they should test her before she they will allow her to attend. She might have a learning disability which is what it sounds like to me since she can't focus.

If I were you, here's what I would do. Keep her out of school for one more year (shouldn't hurt since she's the youngest in her class) and just work with her on things. Get her workbooks and have her do a page a day or every other day. Get her some learning videos or learning programs to do on the computer. Help her with her focusing and do everything you can do to help her and then have her tested next year and she should be ready to start school. If you have any other questions, feel very free to contact me. I'd be happy to help. God bless. :)

Answer 10

take her to class because you saw that she can do things. I was 4 when i started 1st grade and I graduated as a 16 year old. Age does not say whether they will be good or not in class. As long as your daughter can do the work and is happy with her friends, she should be fine. I would allow her to try out 1st grade and ask how she likes it and see if she can cope. If she can, then YAYYY! if not, then take her back to kindergarten. She has shown you that she can, so don't worry, and don't listen to the teacher until you see what your daughter can do in school.

Answer 11

She could possibly have an attention defecit disorder . . which makes it hard for her to focus in a large group setting. If you think she is capable of doing the work, I would say let her try the 1st grade and see how she does. You might want to request a smaller classroom setting and see if that improves her performance.