Summer babies- delaying admission to primary school Post Reply

[A678]

Hello, is there anyone else who has a summer baby and who is thinking about/ or who has delayed their admission to primary school? I am just starting to think about it, so I am not sure if it is possible in Wandsworth, but I think my little girl would really benefit from starting later if it is possible. It would be great to hear other parents' opinions and experiences, especially if you have a summer baby and are considering delaying their admission to school

[A678]

[daisydaisy]

You may find she is completely ready by September. I have an October baby who will start school in sept 2017 but I feel he will be bursting out of his nursery by then- as he will be almost 5- and wish he could start school earlier.
I think you do have to consider what they will miss, especially in terms of socialising if they start late- if it is even permitted.

[headshrinker]

I know someone who did this this year (in Wandsworth) so it is possible. Particularly worth considering if your child is more sensitive.

[supergirl]

It is possible and we did consider it briefly with our summer baby now well into primary school.
It will create a lot of problems in the future if you do decide to do it. A lot of secondary school will be a write off because your child will not be in the right age group given you have delayed her admission. Dont ask me for the technicalities but that was true when we called a few secondary schools and when we checked with the council. So we decided against delaying.

A good few years into primary school and you could absolutely not tell from her peers that she is a summer baby. She is reading and writing fluently, she knows the school rules, she has lots of friends and is generally a very happy child.
But yes her first 2 terms in Reception were very hard not because of her learning abilities but because of her maturity she needed more time to understand the different routine from nursery, the concentration, etc.

Now there is no problem, she still does get tired but no different than her sister who is an autumn child.

Good luck.

[asdfghjjkl]

Of course it all depends on the individual child - not just their readiness, but other ways they may fall on the developmental scale. Just remember, there is vast developmental variance in those early years, and falling at one end of the scale or another is not indicative of eventual ability. If you have the freedom to choose, I would give it a hard think about what is best for your child.

My oldest two of four started school in the US, where they start later, and push less in the early years. I, personally, find it all way to early here, and believe it causes may children to suffer, learn to dislike school, feel badly about themselves, and lose confidence.

I recently came across this article which mirrors what I have been thinking all along:

http://www.theguardian.com/education/20 ... chael-gove

Only you know what is best for your child and where their temperament and abilities lie. Don't feel pressured by others or the norm when you make your decision. Good luck!

[Happychaos]

I would love to delay our daughter (July birthday, due to start in Sept 2016). She seems 'emotionally young' at nursery (started a few weeks ago) and I really think she would benefit from another year of mornings at nursery and afternoons spent doing free-play. I hope this would allow her to develop confidence and maturity, as well as exposure to more fun afternoons out with her siblings etc, before embarking on 15+ years of all day education!

In general, the U.K. starts children at school earlier than the rest of Europe, and has longer school days. I think this is a shame. What is the rush?

However, at the moment the law has not been changed, so unfortunately I don't think policies will have changed in time to delay our daughter. Have you spoken to any of the primary schools?

[daisydaisy]

Dare I suggest that it is not the children who are not ready to start school in September but their parents who are not ready to send them? ; )

[headshrinker]

Actually, that thing about them having to go straight into Year 1 isn't necessarily true from what I read (have a summer kid, was curious), existing guidelines (2014) say that the local authority decides which year group to put them in and there is some flexibility. Best to check out where your LEA stands on this I guess.

[daisydaisy]

Dear petal
Thank you for your feedback. I do not need to google. I am a teacher so I may be speaking with tongue in cheek but I also speak with almost twenty years of experience.
Daisy

[supergirl]

@Petal: whilst i agree in substance with what you are saying, i also see Daisy's point of view. As a mum of both an Autumn and a Summer born, i can see the differences. But because my summer one is in fact my second child maybe i was a bit more relaxed. But like you i was so worried. But now i can see that there were my own issues because she is thriving.
I do let her though play as much as she wants after school (after homework) and at the week end we let them both run the timetable.
Hopefully it balances each other out.
I can really say that honestly the issues laid with me and i should hace trusted my child and give her a lot more credits.

[AbbevilleMummy]

Hi, I don't have a summer baby but my eldest was at reception last year and has just gone into year 1.

I was very suprised at how much time is spent playing and free-learning in reception. I'm a bit old school and wanted my daughter sat down at a desk learning the whole day but that just doesn't happen in reception. In fact it never happens. They play with their friends, sit on the carpet together for stories, freely mill around the classroom choosing activities they want to do etc etc. it is not too dissimilar to nursery school. Just the day is a little longer.

Year 1 on the other hand is a game changer. No free play. No choice on what to do when. Most of the day they are sat at a desk learning. All the kids in my daughter's class are still in shock 4 weeks in!

Therefore, if you held your child back and the consequence was that they would go straight into year 1, I wouldn't do it for the world! Reception is such a nice and gentle way to ease into school life.

[3hotcrossbunnies]

I have spring/summer babies, my youngest being August born. I am summer born myself. Whilst I would not have held any of my children back a full academic year I fail to see why the law cannot be properly applied - as it stands no child needs to be at school until the term in which that child turns 5. This means there would be a staggered start through the school year with the summer babies starting after the Easter break - this is what I did! The older ones would benefit from a smaller intake for the first term and (hopefully!) would be more settled allowing the teachers to concentrate on those starting later in the year as required. The cynic in me suspects that the whole year group has to be there on day 1 for funding reasons..... I wonder if this argument has been put to Wandsworth Council?
As a summer baby I can honestly say I suffered no set backs/traumas - other than being one of the last to be allowed to the pub and to pass my driving test!! And later, after graduating before I was 21 I found I had time 'in hand' career wise. It does all even out in the end though.
And I try to look at it as my summer babies actually being ahead of their classmates - they have experienced and learnt things 6-9 months sooner as they are that much younger

[supergirl]

And I try to look at it as my summer babies actually being ahead of their classmates - they have experienced and learnt things 6-9 months sooner as they are that much younger

I have never looked at it that way... I like that

[broodje]

I have a summer born.

She is an academic high flyer - major academic scholarships, top of year in many subjects at primary and secondary, the works.

I still regret having sent her to school at 4 - we had the option of delaying because we went private and it's not an issue but I yielded to the pressure and was cognisant of the fact of how hung up the education system is on this whole "right" year group thing.

I view her first two years of school as two years stolen from her childhood - it's not about coping. She should have been playing, should have had a lot less structure to her day, naps during daytime (she needed them!), etc. She absolutely DID NOT need to do phonics, writing and sitting at a desk.

Almost everywhere around the world, primary (or the formal learning part of it) starts later (AND the school day finishes a lot earlier) and children are a lot less neurotic (thumb sucking, comfort blanker well into 4/5+ years of age, etc). The latter I believe has a lot to do with starting formal schooling too early.

Regardless of what the supposedly "right" age to start school is, the parents should have the flexibility to decide. I just don't get the rigidity about this. Can someone explain this? In Israel, Italy, Russia - parents get to choose what the right time is. Some start their kids a year early, some a year late. Nobody cares about this.

Anyway, rant over. I think this whole thing about starting school early is because basically majority of population loves that as it's free childcare essentially. Ditto the rationale for longer school day.