Starting school full time - problems and concerns

[Tireless]

Has anybody else had experience of their children starting full time education when they had just turned four.

My daughter turned four at the end of august (last year) and then three weeks later started school. I believe this has had a dramatic effect on her behaviour, confidence and self esteem, she is clingy in the playground, rude to me (she was never this bad !!) and so unsure of herself around her classmates, some of whom are going to be six in september she is not even five until the end of august.
She seems so immature and young in comparison to some of the other children in her year. I wonder what the long term damage will be.

Does anybody share my concerns, or has anybody been in this situation before and found that it all works out in the end.???

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Just my experience, Ks, but I found that my children settled into school better once they had had their autumn holiday. It was almost as if it was all too much to take in at first, then they were able to think it over while on holiday, sort it out in their head and return, regarding it as something familiar, not as new and daunting as in the fisrt term.

I'm coming into this discussion pretty late, but have any of you who aren't happy with sending your children to school for whatever reason (too young to start, too formal, too much stress, etc.) ever considered home education? I've just started doing this myself. I'm not pushing it, or suggesting that school is necessarily bad, as it's a very personal decision to make. However, a lot of people aren't aware that it's an option. I certainly wish I'd known about it when my older son, who has a July birthday, started school 4 years ago.

If you want to know more, a good place to start is
www.education-otherwise.org, or www.free-range-education.co.uk

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Has anyone any ideas on this one?My son was 5 in september, starting school a couple of weeks before his birthday. As there was a larger than usual intake in Reception ( we live in a village,so classes are smallish) he went into year 1 with a couple of other children who he didn't know. His friends went into reception. we have been told he has a reading age of 9+ and is doing year1 or 2 literacy and maths but he seems reluctant to sit and listen to whole class activities, seeking adult attention ( mostly to talk about stuff, but sometimes a bit er "challenging" I believe. I think he has had quite a culture shock joining a class who are already well established,and being on the playground with all year groups, unlike his protected peers in reception. I also wonder if his intellectual ability and emotional skills are not in synch... could he be frustrated when asked to do manipulative tasks ( he's bad at it, eg cutting out, compared with writing etc)He sets such high standards for himself he'd rather not do something than fail at it, but some things are very easy for him and he finds it hard to se why others can't do them. (well, he is only just 5!)We have noticed him relax a little since half term but I'm still not sure if things are going OK. We have another school meeting in 10 days time and I'd be grateful for tips on what to ask from the school. At present they seem concerned that his behaviour is not in line.... HELP!

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Tufty, The national association of Gifted children often run local groups. There is one local to us that runs Saturday Morning sessions for the kids once a month and offers support to parents. We haven't been oursleves as our daughter although bright is not what I would call gifted, but our HV who is also a friend highly recommends them. We too live in a village so know what it is like, good luck and I hope your son settles soon.

Thank you very much for the tips. I've already found a local NAGC group who are meeting this Sunday!!! NACE were also very supportive and are sending me a pack... it seems my other 2 children aren't exactly average either (3 and 1 yrs)... I think I'll be well prepared by the time the school meeting takes place -watch this space for the outcome!

In case anyone is interested the school have been fantastic and are finding more and more for my soin to do, including enabling him to have time with ks2 children ! Having been to the NAGC meeting I realise that we are extremely fortunate with our school... tales of children being given different versions of the same task if they could do it quickly or being asked to teach others all day....and parents being told that most bright kids dumb down.. hm any views on this?
Our son is still a challenge but I am now sure that the staff are deteremined to rise to it! He likes them and they seem to like him too.
I was grateful for the back up of the NACE info.. special thanks for all the pointers!
If anyone else has a similar experience i'd love to know!