Normal to feel this anxious and school start

[Kadyrose]

My DS is due to start school in September, I had been feeling ok about this until the last few weeks. I'm suddenly feeling very anxious about him starting and not being ready. DS born in August and will likely be one of the youngest in the class. Nursery has said he is ready and not to worry. I've started trying to teach him phonics and basic sums as I'm so worried he'll be behind ones nearly a year older. Nearly everytime I try to teach him I end up shouting at him as he doesn't pay attention and then I feel terrible and worried I'm going to make him hate learning. Is this normal to worry, my DH has said I am being ridiculous and doesn't seem concerned. Other parents I speak to are all excited for their ones to start school which makes me feel even worse, anyone else have an August child and feel sick with worry or just me

There is not really some magical advantage to being a few months older. It is totally dependent on many other things - natural intelligence, parental involvement, previous experiences, health etc etc
The eldest manner of our current reception class is also the one who is struggling the most with many of the expectations for their year group.

I think you need to calm down OP. You have another 15 odd years of the education system to navigate. Your DS is healthy and starting school. Thats enough. Pick your battles. My DC are July and August born and thankfully, academically soaring. Ease off the tutoring, focus on his social and emotional development and happiness.

Thanks, I know deep down everything will be fine even if he does struggle academically I won't mind as long as he is happy and enjoying school!

Ok new plan is to just try to have fun with him before September, thanks everyone!

Honestly he will be fine. It sounds like he has most of the personal care skills. I would just play, have fun with him and try and relax about it, importantly let your child see that you are relaxed about it, so they don't think they need to worry about it either.

My DS is in reception now. They do a lot of play, a lot of different activities, very few workbooks or traditional methods as I would think of them. When we met his teacher for the first time she recommended colouring, play doh, lego and anything that helps him with hand strength and general co-ordination. And reading to him, as much as possible. So that's what we did, and DS is doing absolutely fine. His phonics class is grouped into little groups by ability, but it's not top and bottom, it's red, orange, green, pink etc. So all the kids in that group are at the same point in the learning process. They move around the groups a lot too, so it's not strange for people to move in and out of the groups, depending on where they need to be.

Definitely don’t worry about teaching him; evidence shows that teaching formal stuff before 7 is actually detrimental over the longer term. Reception teachers are aware of the difference in summer borns so don’t worry too much. I do get the anxiety though; this time last year we were comparing our august born to all the September borns who were starting school able to spell and read books and do arithmetic and it was a world away from our just turned 4 year old who could only write his name and had only just mastered phonics. We did end up delaying his start as a result as just felt so unfair on him and as you’d expect, he is now in the same position as the September borns able to do that stuff and I see how much kids develop in that year. But the school will hopefully be supportive and will accommodate the additional needs, if indeed they are present, it’s not all summer borns that struggle by any means and there are plenty of people on here very determined to remind everyone their august born is now a surgeon barrister astronaut etc so don’t worry :)