DD will only just be four when she starts school in September

[cardy]

DD will be four in the last week in August and will start school (reception class) in the second week in September. I haven't been too worried about this as she is usually quite out-going and confident and I thought she would be able to deal with starting school and even relish the challenge. However DD and I went to visit the school last week along with all the other children who will be in her class and I was quite surprised just how much older some of the children seemed, both physically and mentally.

DD goes to a private day nursery a couple of days a week and really enjoys it and from my experience seems to be average in terms of reading/writing/drawing. During the visit to the school I was surprised to see just how well some of the other children could write etc. Is it just because they are older (could be almost a year older)?

I was very happy with the school I hasten to add. I just would like to hear from other parents who have children who are the younger ones in their year. How did your children cope in their first year? In my limited experience there does seem to be a lot of difference between a child coming up to four and an almost 5 yo, intellictually, emotionally and phyically.

[Furball]

I've got another one, mr DS, who is 4 in August and starts school this year. He starts just mornings in October, then from November it's full time. The older ones start September. Scary stuff!

[chatee]

my dd is just finishing her reception year and will be 5 on 26 Aug, like you i was slightly concerned about the BIG difference in ability(my dd also has cerebral palsy)but she has come on leaps and bounds-the same as the other "younger" children in the class....it's great to see the difference in the work that she produced last October to the work she can produce now.
The teachers are very aware of abilities...please don't worry too much-enjoy her experiences with her-i was so proud when i went on the school trip this summer and got to see her with all her peers and how well she was doing and how well they excepted dd for herself and they are all so eager to help her if she gets stuck(physically).

[cardy]

Nice to hear some of you are in the same boat with the same concerns, lots of reaasurance here though.

Furball - I like the idea of the slow introduction. My dd will just do two weeks of half days. I have meet the teacher a number of times and she seems very nice and approachable, I am that will help.

[Littlefish]

At my school, the younger children do half days until at least half term. Some continue doing half days until Christmas if the teacher and parents think it is best for the child. Have a word with the class teacher and see if your child can do an extra couple of weeks of half days if you think it will help. You could always talk about it now, but not make a decision on it until after the first couple of weeks when you see how your DD gets on.

[patch]

My dd is just finishing her reception year, and won't be 5 (" big girl"!!) for another 6 weeks. She has coped quite well, for most of the year, but I was worried and the school (private) gave us the option of reception or pre-reception for her to start in. We asked dd's nursery for their opinion, as they had moved up to the preschool room earlier than normal the summer birthdays starting in September to get them more used to a school type setting ie no naps. They said go for reception, and we are pleased.

Our problem was that although dd is fine in some areas, she struggles with sitting still and concentrating. She still does, and her report highlighted that she loves talking and gets distracted easily. The reason we thought about holding her back was she has meningitus (sp!!) as a baby and delayed speech (did not say more than a couple of words until 2.5 years, although she is making up for lost time).

There is still a great deal of difference between the older and younger children, we frequently have to explain that so & so can do that but they are older than you, but strangely it is not to do with reading or writing more likely swimming and riding a bike!! Dd has shot up height wise this year, at teh start was in age 3 clothes and the second shortest now in age 5/6 clothes and the upper end of average so does not look that young.

I went on a school trip on Friday and had a group of three (two August birthdays, including dd, and a spring birthday) and there was little difference in ability to read and write. Although, towards the end of the day the youngest two were shattered and dd fell asleep in the coach and I was told to take her straight home not back to class. She also goes to before & after school club, because I work full time, and she has fallen asleep there (they either put her on a sofa/cushions or took her to a mat in prereception if they noticed before she went over).

I know this is a long message, but basically the teacher knows (well should know) everyones date of birth (to make allowances if necessary) although it is more important for them to pitch the work at their ability than age. Dd's school has high expectations of children and dd has been told off before for being naughty (sometimes acting her age or younger othertimes real naughty), but the teacher told us that she is very capable of the work just she struggles getting in done and needs to concentrate more. If your school's policy is all children to start in September, they will be used to the age range and it means that for the start of year 1 the difference will be less than if some started at Easter.

[cardy]

Thanks for that Patch. Your dd sounds like she is making real progress. I can understand the concentration thing my dd never sits still and would much rather be doing things and chatting than sitting quietly, I imagine that she will be told to stop talking quite often.