Would One TWIN Be Held Back A Year?

Question

Not sure if I'm explaining this well enough. Where I live ... I'm not sure about other states ... there is a cutoff date of Sept.30 for a child to reach his/her 6th birthday before being allowed to advance to the 1st grade. My niece was exTREMEly advanced at 4 years old. When she was 5 we took her to the school, where they said that - since she wouldn't turn 6 until Nov.20th - she had to be tested before they would accept her into the 1st grade. We were not allowed in the testing room; after about 15 minutes they came out and said that she wasn't at 1st grade level. This child knew her ABCs, her numbers 1-100, how to spell and recognize probably over 30 words (I'd taught her myself) ... AND she could read a few books! (Matter of fact, at PreSchool graduation she recited 'The Owl And The Pussycat' ... the enTIRE book ... word for word)! She also knew addition, subtraction and a little multiplication. I don't think I'd taught her division yet. If so, very little. Anyway, I

felt it was a scam. Well, she started kindergarten. And as she progressed to higher grades, she was bored as hell with the work. She kept a 4.0, without even trying. She ended up teaching ME some Algebra! She got into ALL of the advanced classes, and the teachers didn't know what to do with her. Hmm ... so much for not being at 1st grade level?

That got me thinking of how messed up the system seemed to be. And I started wondering ... hypothetically ... what would happen a woman gave birth at 11:56 on Sept.30th to one child, and at 12:01 or 12:02 on Oct.1st to another child. They are the same age ... however, because of the cutoff of Sept.30th, the first child is eligible to enter 1st grade ... while the second child - who technically doesn't turn 6 until after midnight on Oct.1st - has to be tested. Soooo ... the second-born twin will always be a year behind the firstborn twin because of these rules?!

Or do they make an exception because of the situation?

And would that be fair to OTHer children who fail to meet that cutoff?!

What I think, spadey, is that if you can't come up with a conSTRUCtive answer to my question, then you need to JUST MOVE ON ...

If you don't have the capacity to read a long question, then don't respond. Nobody's holding a gun to your head.

First of all, genuine ... I'm not a parent.

Second of all ... my niece's teachers have no reason to go crazy because of me. You can't even presume to judge my motives unless you've seen them at work. When, pray tell, did I EVer say that my niece was 'head and shoulders above every other student'? I stated facts ... which were, she knew more than enough to be prepared for the first grade. AND she proved it over, and over, AND over as she passed grade, after grade, after grade ... with a 4.0!

Thirdly ... you do NOT know every five year-old ... so you CAN'T say that five year-olds are NOT mature enough for the first grade. You speak out of BOTH sides of your mouth. To first say that if both twins are ready for the first grade - DESPITE the fact that the second-born is still five years old - they would be put into the first grade ... and THEN turn around and say that five year-olds are NOT ready for the first grade is BOGUS.

You offend me when you say that my niece

is 'probably nothing special'. And I certainly don't need your 'approval' on my 'teaching' her myself, as I did not do it for ANYone's approval. I did it because we both enjoyed it.

By the way ... my niece is VERY outgoing, AND works well with other children.

Before you presume to judge again ... DON'T.

Answer 1

First off, your niece sounded good-to-go for 1st grade to me, but I have no special training in child development. What I do know is that not all schools are good fits for all students. We had to pay out quite a bit of money to put our daughter in private school, and we aren't rich. Turns out that this was the best thing we could have done for her.

Your question about twins is intriguing. If the rules were enforced, that's exactly what would happen. But I think most schools are equipped to handle special cases, like this one, that are easily resolved.

Now, what if you had a genious 5 year old and an average 6 year old. The school tested the 5 year old and determined that he belonged in the 2nd grade. Would you allow the school to place the younger child ahead of his older sibling?

Answer 2

First of all, the choice lies with the parents and the school. Obviously, the best choice would be to keep the twins together. If they are both ready for first grade they would be put into the first grade, if they are both not ready they would be kept in kindergarten. Even if one child is more advanced then the other (unless the difference is drastic ie. one student is mentally challenged) they should stay together, the chances are that over the year the difference would even out.

Secondly, parents like you drive teachers crazy. You think that just because your child knows a little, they are head and shoulders above every other student. The chances are that the teachers at your child's school have spent much more time with children then you will in your life. Teachers are looking at more during that test then their intelligence level. Teacher are mainly looking at their maturity. Five year olds are NOT mature enough for first grade. They need to be able to spend a whole day away from you, listen, follow directions, work independently, and interact with other children appropriately. Knowing math facts and the alphabet may even come secondary. Good for you for "teaching" her yourself, but odds are that you missed a few facts. Don't be naive in thinking your child is the smartest in the class unless the teacher makes that clear to you, because she is probably nothing special.

Answer 3

About your niece- well, maybe she just wasn't paying attention, or maybe she was nervous. my sister was extremely intelligent as a kid and she cried throughout the entire kindergarten registration. She was just freaked out.

Also I would really be surprised if they held one twin back. This would also bring to mind another question... would the doctor give them the same birthday? or would they go through life being confused? I mean twins that were born like a hour apart, but on separate days. very interesting point you have brought up.

Answer 4

I don't think they'd hold one twin back just because she's a twin.

First, they could put them in separate classes.

Next, there might be things that they wanted to see in her SOCIAL development that she wouldn't be ready for.

Intelligence is one thing-- as in, academic intelligence. But kids need to be ready emotionally, as well, and that's something that rarely comes just from knowing math and reading.

Believe me, it's not them saying "She's an emotional cripple!" It's about her being ready to face situations at an emotional level with her peers. It's hard to be the youngest in your class-- no matter how much you know.

Cheers :)

Answer 5

U TYPE TO MUCH U MUST BE VERY BORED AND REALLY NEED A DOCTOR!!!!



p.s. right now