Reasons for delaying start to school?

[Scottydog84]

Hi there,

My daughter was born in July... I've heard that it might be possible to delay her start to reception by a year - that I can delay her start to school until she is 5 and ask for her to go into reception then.

I am just wondering what reasons parents who had done this had for delaying their son / daughter's entry? What benefits to a child is there of delaying entry? What concerns did people have about sending their children to school age 4?

I understand the process to follow if you want to do this, I think.. But looking for info about why I might want to do it in the first place if that makes sense! Thanks in advance!

On average, young in year DC do worse at school than old in year DC, and I believe (but don't have stats to hand) that this can continue, albeit mildly, all the way through to GCSE results.

But that is against a whole population, and you are looking at your own child.

So if your child can't concentrate well, or maybe was prem, or is on the slower side of meeting milestones, then delaying might help.

If in a selective area you might need to watch what will happen for secondary.
Also, sport is done in age range, so she might end up having to do teams not with her peers.

You also might want to think about what happens at the other end too. If they are already 16 when starting GCSEs, or already 18 when starting second year of 6th form/college, does that mean they can just up and off and not finish their education if they become a teenage 'I know everything'?

(You may also have another year's nursery costs if you defer.)

In general there is a lot of evidence that children in the UK start formal education too early, to their detriment, so being over 5 when they start is an advantage. There is also a lot of evidence that being the eldest in the cohort is an advantage. The particular worries people have are either diagnosed delays or are centred around the maturity of their child. Will they cope in the school for a full day (you can attend part time but there is a concern they'll then be receiving less education than their peers which will put them at a disadvantage). Are they sufficiently independent? Can they go to the loo on their own. Can they ask for help. Will they fit in more socially with the year below? If they move into Y1 at just turned 5 will they cope with the more formal aspects of school? (For example sitting still for long periods of time).

If you have any worries about her development. This would be my only reason to hold a child back.

My eldest is an end of August baby. Academically she hasn’t had any problems. It was the more physical things she initially struggled with - pencil grip, hopping, skipping, getting changed (buttons). As she approaches secondary school she has totally caught up and hasn’t been at a disadvantage at all. Plus if you do 11+ exams their score will be adjusted to take into account they are the youngest in the year.

Compare and contrast with my youngest who is start of September and she has struggled far more. She was beyond bored in reception. It’s only now they are in sets that she is starting to really enjoy school. She struggled socially as many of the children in her class are summer born and just played very differently.

If there’s a medical, social or development reason then absolutely do it if you feel it’s right. Don’t just defer because you can as in my experience being the oldest in the year had far more disadvantages than being the youngest.

There is no disadvantage to being eldest!!
Bright kids youngest in the year could also be bored anyway.
The youngest are more tired. It is harder for pe as they will be shorter.
Their concentration span with be shorter. Look at your dc and think are thry more xyz now than a year ago. They all come a huge way in a year.
However i do agree that not all summer born children will need to start at 5. Or the benefits will be not that great. As some children are calm sit loads and do everything they are told. Some do prefer to be friends with the oldest or will be tallest despite being youngest.
My dc has come a long way since 3yo in nursery refusing to sit at all.
But in reality school can be stressful for them. They go 5 days a week even if not 100% and dont get to choose what to do.
One report said there can be a gcse grade difference between wB girls and SB boys.
Obviously not all sept born kids are suddenly geniuses so the oldest may not do very well. But tbh a gcse grade in every subject could be
More than going private or tutoring picking ofsted outstanding.
Also having 'dragged' dc1 to school who hated it i would like to try something different with dc2. (Though ideally i would drop dc1 back despite them being fine academically because of the tiredness/stress and lack of concentration and affect it has on all of us.

Every child is different but my daughter HAS suffered being the oldest in the year. It has been a huge disadvantage for her. She was bored in nursery, bored through reception, and has struggled to find friends she actually wanted to play with. Sure she’s bigger, stronger, more able to concentrate and sit still, but she would have been far more stimulated intellectually being in the year above and had friends who want to play the same games as she does. She’s the one who sits there patiently waiting for the others to catch up. School can only do so much to keep her entertained when they have the whole rest of the class to deal with.

Disadvantages aren’t always about being able to keep up or being behind.

There’s a really helpful Facebook group - ‘flexible school admissions for summer borns’ - if you want to go for it.
I have a August born pre-schooler and will be sending at 5 years to reception. I think just 4yrs old is too young to start school.

A decent school will be used to stretching the eldest in the year - they can read appropriate books whatever level they're at - it's not unusual for September borns to be reading well in reception so they'll be prepared for that It's also much better to be more mature than less mature than your peers. If the former you might get frustrated that you're friends are less advanced than you but you won't have your confidence knocked as you will being the youngest in the year.

Not sure about delaying, but can you skip? I skipped a year of kindergarten bcse my DS was only 4 so all the other kids were way ahead when he started age 5. It was brilliant and he caught up fast, but I did help him with reading. Personally believe kids go to school way too early. If I could go back in time I would have homeschooled my kids until 7.