At what age does month of birth stop being considered?

[AndiMac]

I have 2 kids at opposite ends of the school year. One is a winter baby, with lots of summer babies in her Y1 class with her. The other is an August baby and starting next year. I'd say both are about equal in ability, but obviously this develops with age. So I know that their teachers take into consideration the child's age (ie when in the school year they have their birthday) in reception and year 1, but I don't know when it is felt everyone is old enough to be on an equal playing field.

Does anyone have any insight into this?

I don't think I recall any of the teachers I have worked with making allowances for the month of their birth? Probably because it doesn't have much of a bearing on anything after Foundation stage.

My eldest child (now 20) has an end of August birthday. The only time it caused a problem was when his friends had all turned 18 and he was still 17! My youngest child (12) is a June birthday and is far more grown up mentally,physically and educationally than the majority of his peers.

Doesn't make a difference after Y1 or so. Know that the 11 plus used to be weighted by age but that was in the olden days when dcs didn't start school until the term they were 5 years old and they now all have the same amount of schooling so this shouldn't be a factor.
SATs at KS1 and 2 are not weighted at all and neither are private school entrance exams!

Erm, we have just this month visited an independent school with a view to entry into yr5. The head said the entrance exam results are adjusted for DOB.

DS1 (year 4) is a summer-born and his younger sister is an Autumn born in Yr1.

Parental expectations are significant in this I think. I've always adjusted my expectations of DS1 because he's a June birthday. So for example when he got needing support with reading etc. early on in Yr 1 I wasn't too worried (especially as he only started school after Easter). And as a result I probably didn't apply too much extra pressure in order to get him to 'catch up'. But with DD, I feel the opposite, worried because she now 'needs support' at the same point of the year in Yr 1 that DS1 did. My expectation for her was that she should be at least average and maybe better than average due to her Autumn Birthday. Consequently I'm anxious about her and having to make sure I don't 'pile on the pressure' at home.

I'm wondering now why DD could be attaining less at her age compared to her brother at the same age (he was flourishing by her age at the end of Yr1). You could attribute some of this to the fact that DS had already received a whole year of Year 1 teaching by the age she is now and she hasn't yet?

The Autumn borns have to wait longer in terms of age for the more structured year 1 setting. Maybe that affects their development and progress just as much as a start in yr 1 at just 5 does for the summer borns? Or maybe I'm wrong and all teaching is differentiated according to child-requirements whatever age or year group.

It's probably best not to worry or compare (I know that and yet....)

Different children, different rates of development.

DS1 (August) and DD1 (January)could walk at 11months, DS2(June) didn't walk till 14 or 15 months.

DS1 started school at 4 and a half,was always a little above average and got 2 good 'A' levels and 'U' on the third.

DD1 started school part-time at 3 and a half,was always well above average, has been considered G&T since Year 4 and is expected great things in her GCSE's this summer.

DS2 could read (pretty much self taught) at age 3,starting on level 4 books in Foundation, and is now well above average and predicted to achieve well at GCSE. His biggest problem is his awful,really difficult to read, handwriting.

I have never worried about their ages, because they are individuals. I have also never felt the need to have them tutored or anything extra.
I also recognise I have been very,very lucky that my children have all been high ability. As a teaching assistant, I know how very wide the variation in children's abilities and maturity can be, but as others have pointed out, quite often the oldest in the class is not the most able.

Months are still quoted (wrongly) on DD1s reading and spelling age results from the SENCO

She was 13

Some data here for the non-believers www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2011/nov/01/birth-month-affects-results-well-being

As a teacher, I would find it very difficult in any year group, to guess when a child's birthday falls by looking at their written work, particularly Year 2 upwards. Sure, there are maturity differences at first, but as someone says, some summer born children are way ahead of the autumn children from the start.

The effect of schooling is stronger than the effect of age. There are a few studies involving twins, where one has been (for example) ill and started school a year later than their twin. Although the same age, the academic differences were huge.

I have an Autumn born DD in Year 2, and a Summer born DD in Reception. I refuse to worry about the younger one. I know she will get there academically, and in fact is doing things around the same age her sister could - just in a different school year iyswim. I don't really think birth month should be rolled out as an excuse by the time teenagers are hitting GCSEs. Maybe there is a slight national difference in results between birth months, but this should not and does not mean that an individual should expect to do better/ worse than their friends.

When I taught KS3 I would look down the DoB list just in case it could add anything to my understanding of the pupils.