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SeaStar
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| Posted: Jan 30 2007 at 7:37pm | IP Logged
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My ds has a November birthday, and if he were going to go to regular kindergarten, he would not start school until he was almost six, since the cut off date is Sept. 1.
We have been doing FIAR and Little Saints this year; he loves both. The Little Saints is time consuming as far as the prep (though not difficult), but he loves the learning games and art projects we do with it, so it's well worth the time. He's a hands-on kind of boy. We also do a ton of picture book reading every day and tons of outside time.
My question: should I start in the fall with kindergarten? He will almost be five. I was looking at the CHC kindergarten program and thinking it might work well for us with some tweaking. But then I've heard that with boys it's better not to start too soon. He knows all his letters and sounds, can count to a hundred (with a little help) and can write simple words.
I'm not sure what to do- if I am going to start a K program in the fall, I'd like the summer to get prepared.
Any thoughts?
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Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
SQUILT Music Appreciation
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MommyD
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| Posted: Jan 30 2007 at 7:41pm | IP Logged
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My daughter will be 5 in late October and I'm going to go ahead and start K with her. I figure if she isn't getting it, we can always slow down or stop (but I'm sure she'll be fine).
MommyD
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ALmom
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| Posted: Jan 30 2007 at 8:31pm | IP Logged
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I have a 7 yo and we occassionally did CHC stuff starting last year. We are still hit and miss with the CHC stuff - but he is about done with K and I just ordered 1st. I think it is a matter of preference, but personally I wouldn't be in that much of a hurry to start.
It used to be that K was exactly like what you describe doing now. I'd do lots of large motor activity with him (ie fun and games like tossing a ball, skipping, walking along the curb) and fine motor skills like fingerpainting, sidewalk chalk, glueing, stringing beads, etc. and reading aloud. Then let everything else come naturally. There isn't any need to rush things. Continue reading aloud and doing projects - why set him down with bookwork until you have to - just my opinion. It doesn't matter whether or not you use a phonics program. Why would you want to do endless MCP pages identifying and writing numbers - you get the same thing with lots less agony setting the table for the number in the household (1 to 1 correspondence) and if you ask questions about - gee x and y are missing today or today we're having X family over for dinner, how many plates should we set? - then you get addition and subtraction too. You can get some real thought processes going just playing board games with 2 dice. I would be willing to bet that you could show him how to write his numbers or letters if he asked - and it could happen naturally while playing with sidewalk chalk.
If he is really picking this stuff up so well with what you are doing, why change it? When and if you really need a lesson plan, I'd wait until you are ready for CHC 1 or 2 (thats where the more interesting character card materials, chore charts, liturgical year activities, etc. are and nothing says you must start with the K book unless you just really need something for reporting or something to keep some busy while working with someone else!
I know this is just my 2 cents worth so take it or leave it. Next year I have to report to the state for my 7 yo - we'll actually do CHC with him then and I can use whichever of the levels I want and call him whatever grade I want  .
Janet
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Bridget
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| Posted: Jan 30 2007 at 8:51pm | IP Logged
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I have two later fall boys. One is still a toddler but I started the other one while he was still 4. He did fine. I think the hardest thing in school with boys is the amount of sitting still time. You can easily adjust for that at home.
Start when you want to and go as fast or slow as he needs to.
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Bridget, happily married to Kevin, mom to 8 on earth and a small army in heaven
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mellyrose
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| Posted: Jan 30 2007 at 10:16pm | IP Logged
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I have a November birthday boy. When we were considering how to school our boys, we had always thought to start him in K when he was 5 (so a few months b4 turning 6) so he & his brother would only be a year apart. (Nate has a May birthday.)
When we decided to homeschool, I thought about starting him at 4 . . . but then decided there was no rush ;) We did lots of crafts and field trip like stuff, but I didn't push any sort of curriculum until this year. I'm still very casual with our learning style -- and it works well for our family.
Do what feels right for him and your family.
Melanie
Mom to boy6, boy4 and girl on the way!
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Martha
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I used to never consider K until age 6, and that was in the days of private schooling for us with the first 2. My kids were not any the worse for it at all.
Now, it's not about age. My 4 yr old want to do what the bigger siblings are doing. Normally, I would never buy a workbook for math, shapes, letters... They learned it, but in everyday life, kwim? However, when they beg to learn, what am I going to say? "NO! You can't learn to read or do math yet!" Not likely.
At age 4 they get to have a handwriting book and MCP K. We will do these very loosely and without a schedule. Some have finished within 6 months and we move up. Some don't finish until a little after they turn 5. I will buy phonics materials, but I don't push them at all. I'll give a little nudge every once in awhile to see how close they are to being ready. This is the same as the math and handwriting. Some have been reading fluently by age 5, some didn't become fluent until a after age 6.
Regardless of where any of my dc have fallen in that spectrum, so far all of them have been well above public school standards by 2nd grade.
The key at these early ages is to be very relaxed. The more stressed I have been, the less retention and enthusiasm I have seen in my dc.
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Martha
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lamamaloca
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| Posted: Jan 31 2007 at 9:15am | IP Logged
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My son will turn 5 on July 31st, so just a couple of weeks before school usually starts here in KS. If I were sending him to a school, I might be concerned that he would be too young, especially as he is a bit weak in fine motor skills. Since I'm homeschooling, however, I know that if something is too much from him, I can just back off and try again later. So, I don't think that "don't start too early" matters nearly as much for a homeschooled child.
We've pretty much decided that we're going to take a very relaxed approach this next year, with more of a focus on reading good literature than anything else. I'm not sure how well this will work with your hands on boy, though. I don't think it could hurt to get the CHC lesson plans and just go at your son's pace.
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tracym
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| Posted: Jan 31 2007 at 9:29am | IP Logged
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I think it depends on the child also. My dd has a Jan. birthday but I started her early and she is doing fine with 2nd grade stuff now. My ds just turned 5 and while I intended to start K with him this year and we've done some stuff-I think now we have decided he won't officially be in it till next year as he would if he went to school. He's not reading or writing yet and that is fine so I don't want or need to hurry him along.
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Anne McD
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| Posted: Jan 31 2007 at 10:17am | IP Logged
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When I decided to hs my oldest (5yrs), he has just started preschool. He was 4yrs old, and I got the CHC lesson plans for him, thinking he'd be fine. I tried to keep up the pace, and within a couple of days we were at each other's throats.  After that, I pretty much "unschooled", reading aloud, counting things, art projects, just keeping it very simple. When he was officially "Kindergarten Age", 5 in Sept, I started workin with him with more goals in mind, but still not tons of structure (that comes next month  ). One piece of advice my mother gave me (a retired early elementary teacher) was to not even think of trying to teach him how to write until he picked up a pen or marker and started making letters on his own. Without the motor skills and determination, it just won't happen. Sure enough, he started doing it on his own, so we started working on it together. Two fantastic resources I found on Elizabeth's site were Handwriting without tears and "Teach Your Child To Read In 100 Easy Lessons." Both have been great for us, and I highly reccomend them!
I hope this wasn't too disjointed-- I'm a little dizzy and need to get to the chiropractor (I think I've got fluid in my ears again!!)
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Anne
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and baby on the way! 10/14
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Lorri
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| Posted: Jan 31 2007 at 11:15am | IP Logged
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Just another thought to complicate matters...Many activities divide children by grade - sports, CCD, Scouts, etc. It may be easier on your ds to be closer to the ages of his peers in these situations, rather than being one of the younger ones. Emotionally and physically, him being younger may make a difference. Then again, just because you start K earlier at home doesn't mean that you can't keep him at the same grade level as other children when doing outside activities.
My ds' birthday was the cutoff date where we lived the year he could have started K. I could see that he would benefit from another year before formally starting K. For him, keeping our pre-K light and fun was very helpful when I started requiring more from him the next year. He was 5 years and 10 months when we started K.
My dd's birthday was 3 days before the cut-off where we lived when she could have started K. In every way she was not ready for formal schooling, or for being in Kindy CCD or a Daisy Girl Scout. Again, giving her that extra year helped her gain some maturity. Sure, she's one of, if the not THE oldest in her CCD class and Daisy troop. But she has a self confidence that makes her more of leader.
I really agree with what Martha said. It's less about age, more about maturity and physical readiness. At 4-5-6 years old, children don't need a lot of formal schooling. You can really let them show you when they want to start. Whatever you do, try to keep your expectations pretty low. Keep the "at this age he should be ..." out of your head. Be prepared to speed up or slow down as need be to accomodate his strengths and weaknesses. Even if you start K this Fall and determine he's not ready, it's perfectly OK to put away the curriculum and spend one more year "just" reading good books together. That's the beauty of homeschooling, customizing your studies to your child's needs.
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SeaStar
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| Posted: Jan 31 2007 at 12:09pm | IP Logged
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Thanks for all the great responses. I'm trying to figure it all out, especially since I'm in a state that requires testing yearly. In that respect, I guess it would be better to start K when he's officially "starting age". On the other hand, like several people mentioned, it's hard to hold back a kid who is wanting to learn. When he picks up a pencil and begs me to tell him the letters to spell out Bob, Scoop and Muck so he can write their names, I'm not going to say no. Maybe I will get the plans and just see how it goes. I can always stop if it's too much.
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Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
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ALmom
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| Posted: Jan 31 2007 at 12:25pm | IP Logged
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Melinda:
I don't know about your state, but in ours, we list him in whatever grade - but can use any grade level books. So I definitely do not report my child in school until I am required (even if I do stuff with them) and then when I must report, I list them as in the grade corresponding to the grade they would be in in ps. I still use whatever I want. So if you were in our state you could certainly do what you want and informally use a curriculum for K this year and officially list him as K while using 1st grade when you actually start reporting or if you haven't taken off with K use K. Just another thing to consider and a way to keep the stress low and preserve your flexibility.
Janet
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graciefaith
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| Posted: Jan 31 2007 at 9:35pm | IP Logged
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Dd1 turned 5yo in Sept. and i started her in K work. We're taking it slow. Now dd2 will be 5 end of this December and right now, she does not care for much learning, unless it's in a form of a game. She's not interested in learning to write or anything. She listens to our FIAR book but doesnt stick around for the lesson. We're going to pretty much school all year round so i think she will just start after her bday. I might try and start handwriting in the summer but we'll see how she is feeling.
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lapazfarm
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| Posted: Jan 31 2007 at 9:53pm | IP Logged
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My dd has a late August birthday. I started her in K after she had just barely turned 5. I am seeing that some things are clicking and some things are not, so we will most likely continue considering her in K next year. Not that it really matters to anyone what grade she is in as we don't do testing or anything like that-she doesn't legally have to be registered until age 7 here.
Your son sounds more like my other kids-very sharp! He would likely do well starting early, then as you said, slowing down if need be.
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: Kindergarten- when to start?
