summer born children

[Cha]

Have just heard a Woman's Hour piece on summer born babies and how well, or rather, how poorly they tend to do at school. I gave birth to my ds just 6 days ago and he arrived 31 Aug at 8 pm. I think that this means he will be the very youngest in his year at school for his whole academic life. The radio programme said that summer born boys in particular have all sorts of problems at school as they are often a lot more immature than their peers and find it hard to concentrate, keep up etc. I feel bereft. I knew this would be a problem and couldn't believe it when I went into labour a day early (he was due on 1st Sept).

I would very much like to know if there is anything we can do - like keep him back a year at school, lie on his forms about his age (he misses the crucial cut off date by 4 hours!) - or is there nothing we can do but watch him struggle for the rest of his school life? Please help - anyone out there know how the system works?

Bobsmum - I am in Scotland and we always started school in August. When I was little it was usually around the 25th. My birthday is mid-August so me and my twin were only just 5 when we started school. Now school starts a week earlier as we have two weeks holiday for the "tattie holidays" to allow families to go abroad for a bit cheaper.

Anyway to return to the subject - I asked about ds (mid-July birthday) when I was enrolling him in nursery and he can do an extra year of nursery (paid for by the state) if he isn't ready for school. He would be just over 6 in that case.

I am a mid August birthday and wish that I had started school the year later - I flunked all my GSCE's the first time round but after a couple of months of college I managed to (somehow) get C's for most of them - those few extra months made all the difference

We are in Scotland too and my DS1 has a January birthday and should have started School this August, we haven't had any problems with making this decision although he is only now starting his second year of pre-school education (a funded playgroup and now nursery) as it was always our intention to send him at 5 1/2 rather than 4 1/2 so delayed his pre-school education also. My DS2 though is straightforward with a June birthday.

Can people clarify something for me? From what I can gather, I can keep him 'back a year' just by not putting him in a reception class aged 4? The next year he has to go to school (yr1, aged 5)and still be the youngest in his year? Is there any way that I can put him in the year he would have been if he had been born 4 hours later, at 12.05am on 1st September? Or is this impossible?

Cha, you would have to ask your LEA. Children with birthdays Sept - Feb are allowed to go up a year, and children who miss a lot of school because of illness are allowed to go back a year, so the system isn't completely rigid.

But as several people have mentioned on here, not all summer-born children find school difficult, and your little boy might be one of those. It is such a shame that you happened to hear that Woman's Hour programme when he is so tiny and you are feeling so protective and hormonal!

(Sorry, meant to say Scottish schools start back in August - have been living in Engerland for too long now )

Cha, my ds1 who is now 5 has an August birthday too and he started school a month after his 4th birthday. I definitely had reservations about sending him so young (a years difference seems a lot at that age). He is the second youngest in the class but has come on so well in his first year I am glad he started when he did. Something that helped was that in his first term the 8 youngest in the class did half days only, so they were eased in a bit slower. He started full time in the jan when he was almost 4 and a half.

Cha, in most LEAs you would need a jolly good reason eg mental or physical disability that had kept you away from school before they would clear you to go in the wrong cohort. Age alone wouldnt swing it. I`m really sad to be saying this to you because I can feel your concern - sorry.

Cha, school is a long way off and we may have switched to 6 term years by the time your son starts so the problem might just disappear.
If not, when the time comes you will know if you feel your son is ready, and if not you can keep him at home until 7 when the rest of northern Europe feel it's the right time to start school!

ds was born 22 Feb (now 18months) and is a scottish baby and so (as bobsmum described) will be the youngest in his year at just 4 1/2 when he starts school in 3 years time. I could keep him back a year and will decide on that closer to the time but at the moment the difference between him and children a year older seams very great, and difficult to make up in just 3 years.

Cha, sympathy over the four hours, that is annoying, I agree. But as some others have said here, it's down to the individual child and the support he or she gets from home that will determine how they get on at school. I am a late July baby (share my birthday with Harry Potter, I am sooo proud...) and did fine at school - and I had not been taught to read or anything like that before I went. Ds1 is also a summer baby and went off to school last week aged only four. He is settling fine in a class of sixteen and seems to love school. Dd is an August baby and no doubt we will have the same concerns in due course.
It's early days for your little ds (many congratulations by the way) and you may find the system more flexible and definitely easy for the rising fives to cope with by the time he is ready for school.
And you do always have the choice of opting for alternative forms of education - Steiner, where they start at six I think, or home ed, or a private school where the curriculum for the under sixes is more play-based.

As a new mum it is hard to believe that a child just turned 4 will be able to cope with school. (Congratulations by the way) However this is why schools now have the Foundation Stage. Any Reception teacher worth their salt knows the ages of the children in their class and whether they were born near the beginning or the end of a school year. This knowledge and the use of it in preparing lessons is all part of the job. Baseline Assessment helps the teacher to meet each individual child's emotional, physical and mental needs.
However, you should remember that a child's ability to learn is not only reliant on their age, but their physical skills/or lack of them are usually where their age is more apparent. For example I have had a child in my class with an early September birthday who was reading the Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe before she started school, but could not hold a pencil properly to write, as her fine motor skills were fully devloped. Neither could she sit and listen for longer than 5 minutes, unless it was a story, of course! This is an extreme example but I hope it will help to allay some of your fears.
The best thing that you can do is to talk to your child's teacher when the time comes, they will understand your fears and should be able to reassure you. Children can attend school on a part time basis until they are 5, compulsory attendance is only from age 5. You may find that the year in school before he is 5 is actually of benefit to him.

I have two children, one born at the beginning of September, the other at the end of August. I have found myself 'expecting' the Sept one to do well because he is the oldest in his year. With the August one when he does poorly (and it is usually behavioral issues-- not academic) it is because he is the youngest and when he does well it is a triumph BECAUSE he is the youngest. I have found that time evens these things out and the Sept one is not that far in front of his classmates and the August one has caught up and even surpassed most of his classmates in all aspects of school life. I too was upset when the August one was born, but I think it is only something to be concerned about for the first few school years, not before because he is with you at home and not after because things even out.

I was an August baby, long time ago and started school quite early.
My mum gave me spelling and maths lessons before I started school, and I never felt behind as I had a good start and was the only one who could spell in my class for a long time.
My starting early turned to be a blessing as I could then take a year break at university without feeling old when I went back.

How do schools know how old a child is anyway? I've never shown them a birth certificate. What's to stop you from saying that he was born on 1 September?

How do schools know how old a child is anyway? I've never shown them a birth certificate. What's to stop you from saying that he was born on 1 September?

DS1s new school asks to see a birth certificate to ensure they're eligible to start.

My dd was 4 and a week when she started school (she was also born three weeks premature). She was the youngest in her year by a good three weeks, and the oldest boy was already five when they started. I had a lot of reservations about how young she was, would she cope etc etc She has just gone into year 2 and is doing really well and is consistantly above average in all her subjects.
I am so glad I didn't hold her back a year as I had originally wanted to do. She has thrived at school and even uses her being the youngest to her advantage at times! I think her being the tallest girl helps her though!

MrsE - thanks for that, very reasuring - I've recently been thinking that if my ds had been born on or after his due date (or even up to a week early) he'd have been expected to start school one year later than his is and so would have had more time to get prepared both for life and school - curious world...????

DS1 was 4 in August and I am currently holding him back. He will start either after christmas or easter, and the school he will probably attend has already sent annoyed messages, via a third party (he attends their pre-school), presumably because his teacher will have to start all over again with him when he eventually shows up. But I'm sticking to my guns. If it wasn't for the fact that he would miss reception year, I'd keep him back until next September.

I thought I would BUMP this up. My birthdate is 31.08.70, I have never had any trouble at school. In England when you register your child at school, the headteacher asks for a birth certificate. my kids=9years-june-2nd highest achiever in his class.=7years-september-highest achiever in class. 16months old-EDD-02.09.02-but he was 6weeks early-27.07.02, he is doing very well. Nothing at all to do with the month that they were born.

If your son is bright then being one of the youngest will be an advantage, otherwise he would be one of the oldest and miles ahead of his peers. Bright kids who are not challenged and tested often become the naughty disruptive kids - I speak from personal experience.

Just had a look at this thread again - ds now 16 weeks and all smiles. I think what a lot of you are saying is right - to wait and see how ds is when he is 4. His sister is 26 months and making complex sentences way beyond her age, potty trained herself at 21 months, dry at night by 22 months and a jigsaw genius to boot! If he is anything like his sister, what you said kas33 will be very relevant. So I am just going to see how he is.

My dd is an August 31st baby too. I could have held back for another hour pushing and she would have been 1st Sept! That close! Now that she is about to go in Sept, I know she is ready to go. She is a little on the weeny side bur makes up for it with her bossy boots ways! I do worry about her being the youngest but I'd rather her go at just 4 than wait until she's 5. Good luck and glad all is well with your baby!