DD with Aug birthday - has anyone delayed entry into reception?

[ladyandthechocolate]

So, DD was born 28th Aug 2008 and is due to start school Sept 2012. I was the youngest in my year and have reservations about this for her.
I phoned the school admissions department of our council and they said obviously we could defer her entry until later in the year but that would still make her the youngest in the year. If we wanted to delay her entry so that she starts reception at 5 then she would need to be assessed by an educational psychologist.
Does anyone have any experience of this?

My understanding is that to be held back a year (ie still start in REception but not until Sept 2013) she would ahve to be assessed as being significantly behind her age, at least a couple of years I believe (but I'm sure someone will be along soon to put me right on that!). So all delaying her for a year would probably acheive would be that she'd go straight into year 1 and would possibly ahve all sorts of disadvantages as a reult (and possibly no place). Do you ahve concerns thats he is significantly behind where she should be? If not then I'm not sure what an ed psych would be looking for that would justify keeping her behind a year.

It depends where you live - in my school we regularly have children who delay their start into Reception and start a year later (and remain a year older than their peers throughout their primary school life).

My DD started in the January. There were a few issues - such as her being put in a remedial group because 'she is summer born and started late' to quote her teacher. But generally she was fine. I kept her half-time until Easter, and the school was very flexible about allowing me to build up the time she spent at school slowly.

Now my DD2 is four, and I can't believe DD1 was supposed to start at the same time.

I think it is a good idea to delay entrance because they are pretty tiny to cope with a school day at this age. MIne is fine now (in year 2) but I do still think she gets more tired than a lot of her classmates.

Whilst your DD doesn't have to start school until September 2013, if you delay until then most schools and LAs will insist that she starts in Y1 so she would still be the youngest in her class. Even if there was evidence that she was significantly behind her age the school may still insist on putting her straight into Y1. Most schools will already be full up in Y1 so your choice of schools will be very limited if you delay for a year and don't manage to persuade the school and LA to allow your daughter to start in Reception. You also have to think ahead to secondary school and check what would happen there. Even if you manage to persuade the primary school to let your daughter start in Reception a year late, some secondary schools will then put her straight into Y8, missing Y7 completely.

If your daughter is going to Nursery she will find that Reception is very similar. Both follow the same curriculum with the emphasis on learning through play. Reception is intended to be a gentle introduction to school, preparing her for Y1 which is where it becomes more serious. Indeed, if you do manage to get the school to agree to admit her into Reception in September 2013 your daughter could end up repeating the work she had done in Nursery in 2012/3.

My dd shares the same date as yours albeit she's older by some way. I deferred her entry to pre-school for a term thinking it would give her time to mature and get her ready. Unfortuately all it meant was that she joined the class once everyone had formed their friendships and she was always the "new girl" to the others. I was very surprised that happened as the children were so young, but it did. I wouldn't delay entry based on my experience.

my dd is now in year 1 but has a birthday on the 30th August so effectively children who were born 2 days after her have only had 1 term in reception.she was full time within 3 weeks

I didn't consider deferring her entry as I knew the school have a very strict play learning ethos in reception, she didn't get a a reading book sent home till summer term for example.Socially she did very well in reception and is doing fine at school and enjoys it.I couldn't tell you where she is interms of her acheievments against her class mates as its really not that type of school( thank goodness!)

If we had deferred her a year they would have put her straight into year 1 and that would have been such a shock to her little system learning all about school rules, building friendships and proper sit down learning all at once.

I think it is very rare indeed in our borough to get a deferred entry into reception as an August birthday.

My DC's are both late August babies. DD is now in year one and DS will start in September.

I think you need to ask yourself whether you have a gut instinct that it won't work out for her going in, in September, or whether you have a more general anxiety brought about by the fact that so many people talk about how much August babies are disadvantaged.

I was anxious for DD, and will be more so for DS, but actually it has all been MORE than fine. DD is bright, but not the brightest necessarily. She is mature, but emotionally perhaps more naive than her peers (though she has caught up more now she's in year 1).

Looking back, I feel that the social disadvantage of starting late and being the newcomer to the class may have been more detrimental than anything else.

Having said that, my mum only told me recently that I started reception after Easter, being a May baby. I have no real recollection of that whatsoever, yet my memories of reception year are vivid.

Ok, thanks for replies. We are in Bath and N E Somerset btw. I would only consider it if DD could start in reception class at age 5 and not skip reception and go straight into Y1 as she would miss out on the gentle introduction that reception has to offer. I see no advantage in missing reception and still being the youngest in the year.
She is a bright, articulate girl but lacks confidence and is never one for joining in. We haven't socialised much as I have 8 month old triplets and logistically it has been a nightmare.I just feel that she will be better to have 2 years in preschool join as the oldest. The system sucks IMO, there should be a lot more flexibility.

I agree about the system OP. I think we are very behind as a country in this respect

My DS2 is 24 August and I was so worried about him starting school. He was shy and quiet and altho I had worked hard on practical stuff such as dressing himself, Using the toilet alone, etc he had no academic skills at all.
He did go to preschool and have a few friends in his year before he started which helped.
I needn't have worried. At the first parents evening he was described as bubbly, funny and popular and sailing through academically!!! I thought they had the wrong child!
If I had delayed a year (which was n't possible here anyway) he would have been so bored. Being the oldest in the year is not always great either.
I guess kids can surprise you. His age is irrelevant now he is in year 1. My DD is late July too and starts in sept and I am less worried but again working hard on practical stuff.

The child in DSs class with a 29th August Birthday is in no way the least mature of the cohort. That accolade would go to one of the spring born children. Age isn't all at this point in school career.

If you can defer to Jan 2013 and start her in reception having missed only one term its a reasonable compromise. Its been a very good solution for us with a march born DS who benefited from the extra time to work on speech therapy.

Good to hear from all of you who have Aug DC who have coped well, reassuring actually! I'm sure I am bit PFB about her and I think she will probably cope ok. I'd been so hoping to keep my legs crossed those extra few days but it wasn't to be!
I will see how she fares at pre school.
I look at other countries who don't start formal education until children are 6 or so and I think ours are just babies when they go off really. Mind you, when the boys are DDs age I'm sure I'll be the waving them off with lightness in my heart!

My only experience was my DD being a June birthday and abroad she was the youngest in her year due to the 31st June cut off. At 3 years 7 months she started Kindy which although academically she found very easy, she found it very tiring to attend 2 full days per week. She was still napping until she attended the equivalent of reception at 4yrs 7 months. The first 10 weeks of PrePrimary I had to collect her an hour earlier because she would just fatigue (again something more than ok in another country but perhaps not here). It stopped the overwhelmed tiredness I'd get by picking her up at normal time. It was easy also for me to pull her out for odd days just to rest if need be. I do think this is more about how DD is made up rather than the norm. It really did mean that she didn't get as much out of the year as others but at the same time if I'd kept her down she wouldn't have been academically challenged. My third is an April birthday and I will see how he goes. I might consider the January entry if possible or opt for some off days. My current reception child would benefit from a couple of homes days but because he's 5 I don't feel I can do it.

Hope this gives you another point of view.

Poppet

My oldest child was the oldest in her year with a birthday at the start of september, my next child November, next February and my baby is august. The older two have been fine. My third child is only 2 so i don't know i am ( very early i know!) thinking of the possibility of starting my august baby in year1 rather than reception if she seems too young, obviously if at the time she seems fine i will send her at reception age but i am starting to think about the what ifs now to save panic in a few years.

I was an august baby and i was significantly behind for the first year of school and has to have special lessons on using a pencil etc so maybe this has coloured my judgment!

my son was born 21st August, we had a choice of starting him in september 2010 or september 2011. For us there was no decision to make because he had had very delayed language development, so we went for 2011 and there is consensus from everyone that this has transformed his life chances (both by having the extra play year in nursery and by having appropriate peers now he's in reception to practice those nascent social skills).

most kids like mine don't get this choice in England though.

you've probably read the scary statistics, but it's the kids with the double or triple whammies of an August birthday, language problems and /or general immaturity who realy need to defer (I happen to agree that we teach reading and writing too early as well but choosing a good school that doesn't push too fast should solve that problem for you)

it's interesting that deferral can be done on an ed psych's recommendation. can you tell us what countyou are in|?

September 2012 is a long way off so I would hold off making a decision for a while. Two-and-a-half year olds are very different from just 4-year-olds and by the time she's 4 she may be desperate to get to school to escape her brothers and their toddlerisms!

My niece's birthday is 28th August and she started Reception in September just a few days after her birthday. Initially she attended mornings only (as did all the younger children and those older ones whose parents felt they needed the slower introduction). A couple of weeks after Christmas and she is full-time and loves it. She is exhausted but so too is my November DD (Y1) and me (aged 33, March birthday)!

As a teacher now is probably the time to say that the three eldest children in my class are the ones who find school hardest and they're in Y4. The August children (including one whose birthday is 28th) are doing brilliantly both academically and socially - it's more to do with the individuals than their date of birth!

Mine skipped Reception and went into Y1. It was fine. I just wanted to have them at home until they were five, and they have summer birthdays. DS was miles ahead of the other children academically when he started, and still is (rubbish socially, though). DD is fantastic socially and perfectly ok academically. I also have an end of August b'day, and it was not a problem.

"it's more to do with the individuals than their date of birth!"

I agree with this but think it's important to understand that an immature September-born child still has a fighting chance whereas it's harder to help a very immature child who also happens to be born in August.

It's when you are immature for your own birth month AND that birth month happens to be at the end of the year that you may struggle in a way that's hard for school to overcome I think.

Ds1, born l20th August has just started reception, which includes 3 full days. He has a triple whammy of disadvantages in that he's the youngest, the smallest by some distance and has gross motor delays due to a illness he had when he was 2. He can't run as well as his peers, can't skip yet, so nothing that sounds major but does impact a little at playtime. I was rather anxious about him starting but he's been there 2 weeks now and he's doing very well. I now realise my anxieties were more about me and those darn protective instincts then they were about the realities of the situation.

I think that'sthecasefor many of us boolifooli and it's nice he's had such a good start.

My case was different. They're all different. We had a choice, and so the teachers and doctors were free to give me forthright advice, which I followed.

Interesting that some of your dc went straight into y1 and did ok, I had assumed that that option wouldn't be so wise. I think any psychologist would assess dd as being ok so deferral would probably be tricky.
Still a while to go yet and I'll see how she does at pre school.

often the August-born girls get a bit "babied" in reception but then it levels.

one tip - if you possibly can, go to a school that has some classes in mixed year-groups - that way she'll get a chance to experience not being the youngest at various points in her primary school career.

I do think it's kids with problems similar to my son's (but who aren't allowed to defer) who suffer the long-term consesquences that lead to those scary statistics (and who thus benefit so much from deferral). Your daughter is lucky to have a mum who is aware of the issue and hopefully teachers who will understand it too. Cross fingers that will be enough.

dd is July born, and is now in yr 3. I wish I could have deferred her - she is immature for her age, did almost everything later than other kids, and has always struggled at school despite having no diagnosed SEN.
Just my experience, all kids are different.

My DS1 was born 28/08/2006 and started reception this school year. Every child is different. He went to nursery since 3 and that was a great help. He's tall for his age and although that's great, people expect him to act older and I keep on having to remind people he's 4 years old and NOT 6. He also needed speech therapy as his speech was delayed and we were so worried. We thought about delaying him, but then we were worried about him missing out on friendships and that might make it even harder for him to integrate.

He went full-time after 3 weeks. He is exhausted, but he loves it. It really is just playing. He sleeps like a log, which is great. he has formed his posse of friends and they run around chasing girls etc etc. The teacher said although he is a bit shy, he is very much part of the class and enjoys learning which is a great relief.

If he wasn't doing so well, I would have no problems taking him out. I just want hi m to be happy. If he was a September baby he (i.e. ME !!!) would be crawling the walls !

I have a late Summer baby in reception and worried lots about this. While she is doing well academically, she is a little less mature. But she really needed to start from a boredom perspective.

I LIKE the system here where the age range is 1 year at most. In countries where you can choose, the age gap can be much greater. I know a child in a class with kids 18+ months older. That's way too much of a gap, academically and physically.