about summer born children and school

[chilled7up]

My DS a summer born (July). He is 3 and due to start Reception next year. I know that one year will make a massive difference in his development, but I feel he'll be too young and immature for school. I worry that a bad start will damage his confidence on the long run.

I'm I being unreasonable to think that parents should have a choice and should be able to decide whether a child should start school a year later? I know we can defer reception and go straight to year one, but that won't make any difference, just delay the problem.

I was August born and back in the day I started school after Christmas this was worse in my view.... I struggled to catch up with reading and writing, over half the class starting in the Sept with the rest of us starting later in the year makes it harder in my view!

My dd is June born and was so ready and excited for school, remember reception is very similar to preschool play lead... I think if you delay and he went straight to year one it would be harder as its a total difference yr1 they start to buckle down.... Also he misses a year of friendships being formed.... So I would have thought settling in would take longer!
My dd did 2 weeks of 2hrs a day (nightmare as could go and to anything) then to full days, parents have the option to have shorter days to help them settle in.... Personally my dd struggled just the two hours she wanted to stay longer!

We had a home visit from our class teacher she was lovely and reassured us about any concerns we might have had! Speak to the school and try not to worry too
Much!

YANBU. I really think that we should let parents of June-August born children decide which year group to start them in.

Thank you for your post nomorethan it's good to hear from a teacher's point of view

Spuddy, keep your legs and fingers crossed and it might be an early September baby for you? Best of luck to you. Most first babies are late aren't they? My first was 3 weeks early though and the second came along two weeks early so I am not a reliable indicator.

Mine are both summer born, with DS1 having dyslexia (so he always struggled before we even knew) and DS2 starting in September so I will be interested to see who our nipper gets on then.

how, not who ffs

DS is mid-August. He is in Y2 and we have just had his SATS results. He was above average for all but one of them. That is above the average 7 year old. He was just over 6 and a half when he sat them. So, I don't think that being the youngest in the class has hampered his development.

I have always felt that children should go to school when they are supposed to - that way they will be the same as the others. I think problems will start if they are made to feel "different". DS was kept with his peer group at nursery - so all his friends were those he would be in the same school year as. Nursery made a point of this and his best friend from nursery and now at school is a December baby so best part of 9 months older. There is no difference when you see them together. If we had then kept him back, it would have been worse for him as it would have made him feel different.

The school will work with you if you feel additional support is needed - but make sure you speak up, they won't offer it unless you tell them your concerns.

My Ds is a late August born ans is just finishing reception. I am worried about the transition to year 1, he does seem less able than the September born children, he still struggles with his fine motor skills and is notably behind in his reading, writing and maths.

However, his teachers have constantly reassured me that I have nothing to worry about, they are aware he is the youngest in his class. All children develop at different rates and they can see by his excellent language skills, imagination and social skills he'll get there, just in his own time.

Must admit I still worry though, he's going to get one hell of a shock when he's expected to sit at a desk and work next year!

all I can give is my own experience as a late July child - I started school at 3 and was initially in the year ahead, it was only when I was about 6 I was kept back in the class I should have been in by age - but still one of the youngest. For about 6 years me and another July girl were alternate top and second in the class (then I became a lazy-arse teenager, but still in the top division of all streamed classes). The point I'm rather badly making is that it may make no difference at all - an older child may be 'behind' yours - you don't know. I don't ever recall struggling or being aware that birthdays could make any difference at all and other girls might have been ahead of me because they were older (it was a girls' school).

Isn't reception more about them getting used to the idea of school, rather than formal education?

I am August-born, as is my 4 yo daughter. She is just coming to the end of Reception year this week. She is bright, clever, and involved in her class, and making really good progress. She loves going to school. I held her back in pre-school until January. She was the only child in Reception to be held back, and the school are still reminding me about this fact. At pre-school she had afternoon sessions which were in a ratio of 1 adult to 2 children, and they played games that brought out reading and numeracy skills. I wish I had known how good the attention she was getting at pre-school was going to be, as I would have kept her there till Easter!

As it was, she started school in January and was the new girl. She knew many of the children in her class from pre-school or playing in the park, and they were delighted to have a new friend to play with. She was the centre of attention for a good couple of weeks, with other parents coming up to me and say all their child was talking about was the new girl in the class. As I said, the biggest area of grief for me was the fact that the teachers kept going on about how the impact of me holding her back for a term was going to affect her throughout her entire life. Personally, I think the school tend to exaggerate a lot of things anyway, but I calmly and politely point out that this is a decision I made knowing my child and I would like them to focus more on helping my child learn than on my perceived failings as a parent.

So, I don't think there is anything to worry about with an August child. All this stuff about August babies struggling with education and career are as much to do with the upbringing of a child and the expectations they are set of life as anything else. My daughter is doing much better in class than the October-born child of low-education parents who have never worked. Being born late is not a default position for failure in life any more than being early in the year is a recipe for success.

As for me - my mother held me back 2 terms, I was the only child to start after Easter. Clearly this was setting me up for a lifetime of underachieving. But she taught me well at home before I went to school, and I graduated at the age of 20 from a Russell Group university before going on to become an airline pilot. Not exactly what the Guardian would have you believe!

Both my ds's are late August born, so I understand where you are coming from.

I don't think it has done them any harm though, and they have both achieved well academically. I think much of it depends on the individual child. I work in reception and I know children who are amongst the oldest that are not really ready for year one, but other children who are younger that probably didn't really need a full year of reception.

Reception is still about learning through play, and I actually think a reception year is brilliant for most children. Your ds will be fine.

My eldest is lat August - she was fine though has need a bit of support at home but end of year 2 its all fine.

DS is a late Spring baby and its more noticeable that he is one of the younger ones - but there are younger and he will catch up and he does get a lot of support from us at home.

There are some DC you are slightly older or just about same age who appear and act much younger than DS. So I think it does depend on the DC.

The schools do have a lot of experience of dealing with summer born in their intake and should know how to support them. Keep an eye on things and if you feel there are issues speak up and if necessary offer more support at home.

I agree there could be more flexibility. There used to be the option of children starting mid-year (e.g. at the start of the spring term) if they were not yet 5 - is that not done any more? Might be a possible compromise if you feel he's just too little in September?

It's true though that someone always has to be the youngest in the year, there's not really any way around that.

My dd is a July baby. She is the second youngest in her year, and I did worry when she started school. She went part time for the first term, then full time from Christmas. As it turns out, she was more ready for school than some of the older kids in her class, but that's very much down to the individual child. Not saying was any more academically advanced, just that she is naturally very social, used to going to playgroups, nursery etc and quite independent by nature. Ds on the other hand was a November baby, and much less ready for school as he is very shy and struggles with confidence.

Yanbu and certainly nbu to be concerned. I would voice your concerns to his reception teacher and try to get a bit of reassurance and obviously give him lots of support at home.

All children are different my ds is April born and I would say he is miles ahead in some ways such as being independent, speech but behind in others and I'm concerned about his reading and writing, my neice is not 4 until August and is already reading and writing but is probably less physically independent partly because she is tiny, so every child is different.

Personally I'd be happy to see all children stay in a nursery setting until a year later as Summer born children are still bordering on being toddlers.

spuddy depends whether you're early or late. Few days late and they'll be the oldest.

My bil proclaimed similar because their baby was going to be super organised and come on the due date (yes he did believe that the due date was an actual will come). Their dc is well into September.

My ds s June birthday. Academically he's fine. Just had his report and on the academic stuff he's on full marks. Socially he's not brilliant, probably about ready to start now. Ideally he'd have had another year before starting. But then maybe he'd have been bored academically. Just don't know.

i think that it really depends on the child. my dd2 has her 8th birthday today and although she looked like a toddler when she started in reception, she had great language/ social skills and is in the top third of the class academically.

i think that for some children, though, who are a bit lower attaining, it can be a double wammy being a summer born.

imagine a a child who is performing at 6- 8 months behind their expected level. if that child is an autumn born, they are still performing within the normal range for that year group, despite being 'behind'. if a summer born is even a little bit behind, their attainment will put them 'in the year below' iyswim.

i guess i'm saying that it can make a big difference if your child has some significant learning needs.

our school system def puts some children at a disadvantage.

i speak as a teacher and a parent...

however, it is way too early to worry about your LO. he will come on hugely in a year

Where I live in Australia you can choose. School year starts in January. Kids have to be at school by the time they are 6. You can start them so long as they turn 5 by 31 July in the year they are starting school. However you don't have to and most people hold back kids who yurn 5 after february of that year. I say that but because the cost of child are is so extortionate, not everyone can hold them back. So it can mean up to 18 months age gap in a class.

It's incredibly confusing and people are even more likely to hold boys back so you can get 5 and 3 quarter year old boys towering over little 4 and a half year old girls when school starts. It's just a bit odd if you ask me. Not to mention the agonising that goes on by parents to send or not to send.

I think it's better that all start at the same time. There has to be a cutoff somewhere.

Clear as mud eh?

In Scotland the cut off is the end of feb. So if you turn four before the end of feb you can start school that August. DS was just at this cut off so we had the option to send him to p1 OR defer him and keep him in nursery another year. There will always be people a year older in the class, he was four in a class with people who were five, turning six. We moved him up as he was ready. However I believe you should have the right to defer. You cannot enter school here before 4 and half. I think four is quite young. Grew up a lot in that 6 months.

cunning, that sounds much more sensible!

i agree that the cut off has to be somewhere, as many point out, but the trouble with the current cut off in England is that those 'just turned 4 yos' are simply too young.

the Scottish 'youngest children' are still the youngest, true, but they face that challenge at 4.5 yo instead. genius!

My July born DS2 has various SEN and as a consequence we've been seeing an Ed Psych. I was all for pushing back his entry to Reception for a whole year but on meeting him and observing him she reckoned he'd be fine. No, he's not doing the academic stuff at all yet but socially he's really confident and ready. It's the individual, isn't it and it would be so much better to have a choice.

i agree with betsy. there should be a choice.
i feel that its unfair that some children's first experience of school gives them a sense that they are 'not up to it' academically when they are simply developmentally not ready.

I think I'm right in saying that, depending on when your DC's birthday is, you can start school later in the year. The start date can be pushed back incrementally, depending on when their birthday is in the year. So, for the late ones, it's April that's the latest time they can start Reception. So if you wanted it, they could also be 4.5 when starting school. The downside to that is that they are entering a class that's been together since, in most cases, September. LAs don't advertise this I think because the school won't get funding for the pupil until they start attending full time despite their place being held until they do.

But forgive me if I am wrong!

I had this issue too. My eldest has his birthday on the 26th August and started full time school exactly a week after his fourth birthday. I feel that he was too young. He was like a tot that first year I don't think he really understood what was going on. he's just finishing year 3 now and I feel that he has finally caught up. He's always been fine with the work, but he has lacked confidence with friendships, something which has improved so much this year.
If I could go back I'm not sure what I would have done. It wasn't right for him, but I don't think holding him back would have helped either. I think it would have been better with the two intakes they used to do. It's interesting that we all have different takes on it and how it has affected the children differently, showing that it really does depend on the individual child.
One practical thing I did do was that I often kept him off in reception. If he was very tired I'd let him have a day off, and his teacher was quite happy about that.
Good luck with what you decide to do, I thinkwe are programmed to feel worried and guilty whatever we do anyway!

The lack of any flexibility over year bands has meant that there have been cases of twins (in at least one case identical twins) born 31 August / 1 September whose parents have been told they'll have to go into different school years.