https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sun, 03 May 2026 06:20:29 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880411 Thu, 11 Apr 2019 10:24:46 +0000 ShootingStar 2880411@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our school cut off is 9/1. DS has a November birthday and at first I was really not thrilled about the cut off because where I grew up it was 12/31. For a while I researched how to get him to start early because I was super bored the entire time in elementary school and I hated that he was going to do pre-k twice. </p> <p>Ultimately I gave up on that idea. DS is a different kid than I was. He also can be kind of hyper and really struggled with circle time in preschool. Turns out he likely has sleep apnea which is making him over tired. </p> <p>I’m glad now he’s had that extra year of pre-k and being in a play based program. I think he’s a whole lot more likely to be successful than if I’d put him in a private kinder program last fall. I’m also happy with my school’s kindergarten. The teachers seem great and program still incorporates a lot of play and movement for the kids. </p> <p>DD has a birthday 2 weeks before the cutoff and at this point I have no plans to redshirt her. She has a much different personality than DS and I’m hoping she’ll be fine. Her teachers even joke that they could just leave the toddler room and DD would run the place just fine, lol. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880395 Thu, 11 Apr 2019 08:59:34 +0000 graceandjoy 2880395@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs Green Grass: We have orientation next month and I also recently found the # to the "curriculum person" so I def plan to talk to her! On paper so far I FEEL like it's very academic, but from talking to some parents, they say it's fairly balanced, but I know everyone's barometer is different... </p> <p>@MamaCate: Ahh I see. I was not thinking about WHEN school starts. Your school district sounds amazing! I don't know a ton about ours but I don't think it's as progressive as yours! If our district is like yours I could've saved a lot of anxiety and time weighing this whole thing out for my kids! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880342 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 21:57:51 +0000 MamaCate 2880342@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think this is a really good conversation. I wanted to add that the idea of a 9/1 cutoff meaning that all kids are already 5 doesn’t exactly work across all states.</p> <p>I grew up in the Midwest with a 9/1 cutoff and now live in the southwest with a 9/1 cutoff. But my first grader started school this year on 8/9. Many nearby school districts started the week before but some start in late July. </p> <p>I also think it is important to get the specifics about your kindergarten and your child. We are in a project based/play focused school that I find to be developmentally appropriate. No homework. State testing doesn’t start until the 3rd grade here which helps and our principal regularly cites research about the limited utility of homework. </p> <p>My second child turns 4 in July and is a boy and we are definitely sending him on time. He is smart, has good peer skills and emotional regulation skills and it really feels like a no brainer for us. But that doesn’t mean that what works for us would work for someone else or that another kindergarten setting may be more difficult for him. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880302 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 18:28:49 +0000 Andrea 2880302@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs Green Grass: agree! I should have said that in my response, too. DD had to start at 4.5, but our kinder is very play based, no homework. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880301 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 18:24:24 +0000 Mrs Green Grass 2880301@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I’ll just chime in and say I love almost everything about my son’s Kinder. They are doing art and play and technology and choice time. No homework... They even quit the reading program that tracked how many books because it become competitive so now they just have a whole school total...</p> <p>Do your research and talk to the school about what you hope to see. </p> <p>(I work for a school district but different than my son and and at high school. It’s been scary and fascinating!) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880237 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 13:43:25 +0000 LindsayInNY 2880237@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Foodnerd81: Sorta? He’ll be the youngest instead of the oldest. I’m assuming she thinks he’s ready. I was that way - I started K at 4.5. I think every kid is different. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880235 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 13:32:55 +0000 Foodnerd81 2880235@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@LindsayInNY: So your friend is starting her kid a year early, basically? If she has to pay for childcare for that year anyway (whether daycare/ pre K or private K) why not wait? Genuinely curious since most people I know want to hold their kid if anything, not start early. BUT I also think there is a gray area around the cut off where some kids who just miss it would be ready, while other kids who are just before it just really aren't ready. I am thinking of my daughter (red shirted because she was ready) and a girl in her class who is a month and a half younger than her, so just a few weeks after the cut off, who seems like she would be doing absolutely fine in Kinder. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880222 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 12:53:20 +0000 Alba4 2880222@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I live and teach just outside of a NYC. My town’s cutoff is 12/1. The district I teach in is 12/31. People tend to redshirt boys more than girls in the district I teach in. </p> <p>My oldest is in K right now (with a late Aug birthday). It’s very academic. He is reading and writing. The day is long and there is too much sitting and not enough time spent outdoors. I’d consider redshirting if my boys were a Nov. or Dec. bday and if I was rich and could afford an additional year of daycare. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880199 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 11:49:56 +0000 LindsayInNY 2880199@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Mine is December 1. Some neighboring towns are December 31. My second is a mid-December birthday. One friend is starting her kid in private K since he misses the cutoff by a week and then moving him to public school for first grade since it won’t matter then. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880192 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 11:30:40 +0000 MrsADS 2880192@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our area's cut off is 9/1. My son's bday is less than a week before, end of August. I'm about 95% sure we will red shirt him. And he's a smart kid, certainly not behind. He will be four this August and I simply cannot imagine him ready for K in less than a year and a half. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off/page/2#post-2880184 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 10:39:48 +0000 Foodnerd81 2880184@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@katsupgirl: the problem I see with the 12/31 cut off is kids have to start K at under 5 years old. In the towns around me, kids are expected to be filling reading by around January, which leaves kids who just barely turned five expected to be reading, which we all know isn’t appropriate for all kids. At least with a 9/1 cut off everyone is already 5. </p> <p>The big problem I see is the kindergarten standards aren’t appropriate for the age of the kids in it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880183 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 10:37:18 +0000 Andrea 2880183@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our cut off is 12/31, but a fair amount of people redshirt so you still have a 12+ month gap. DD has a 12/30 bday so she’s the youngest, and it does kinda stink that several of her classmates were redshirted so they are over a year older than her. So far she’s fine and even ahead of the older kids, but I do worry about further down the line. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880174 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 09:58:22 +0000 katsupgirl 2880174@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@lamariniere: I like that the Max age diff is 12 months. </p> <p>@graceandjoy: I didn’t realize until HB that the cutoffs varied so widely in the US. It’s crazy and stressful. If the country went to one system I would hope it was the dec. 31st one. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880149 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 08:24:40 +0000 graceandjoy 2880149@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@katsupgirl: Yeah, I think it would have been simple to just follow the cut-off but I think red-shirting is so prominent now in the US esp because people feel like the curriculum is not suitable for the age group (which I don't disagree with). It's just so messy now and makes me frustrated! </p> <p>@lamariniere: If kids in the US start later, I don't think people would be red-shirting as much! </p> <p>@cam: I like that system! That while they may have to start earlier/on time, they get TWO years of K before going into elementary which I think would help all kids be on the same page by then. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880124 Wed, 10 Apr 2019 01:45:01 +0000 lamariniere 2880124@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@katsupgirl: that’s how ours works too. December 31 cutoff, and all kids born in the same year go to school at the same time. The difference in our system is that kids are at least 5.75 when they start, and most kids have had 2-3 years of preschool. My DS’s birthday is 2 days before the cutoff and he went on time and is doing fine despite usually being the youngest. I have a nephew who is just a few weeks younger than my son, but he’s a year behind in school since he had to start the following year. At least this way, there’s only 12 months difference between oldest and youngest. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880110 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 21:47:49 +0000 jape14 2880110@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our state cutoff is 8/31 but it’s pretty strict in our very large school district. If you want to send ahead, you have to pay OOP for testing, your child has to test in something like the top 2% for their age, you have to submit an application including recommendations and a portfolio of work, and even then it’s still at the discretion of the district and I’ve heard the individual school/principal. DS misses the cutoff by 4 days and it’s not worth the hassle to try to send him ahead, so we will be sending him to a private half-day transitional K program first. We already have a nanny and half-day preschool so it’s not overly complicated - an extra year of that expense (but we’d still need the nanny for our younger child and after school anyway), but also an extra year to save for college and an extra year for him to be a kid. I’m slightly worried he’ll be bored being one of the oldest kids, but our elementary school has good enrichment programs and subject acceleration should he need it down the road. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880108 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 21:35:47 +0000 raspberries 2880108@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ours is Sept 1 - my oldest was born at the end of July, and we are most likely not going to redshirt him (largely because our kindergarten is half-day.) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880092 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 19:20:28 +0000 cam 2880092@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm in Canada and in my city it's Dec 31. We have 2 years of public kinder here so most kids start when they're 4. DS1 has a Nov birthday so he started at 3 which I didn't love and wished the cutoff was Sept so everyone would be 4 when they start. Redshirting is not a thing here and not allowed. You can keep them home or in daycare but when they go the next year they are placed in the next class so it seems like more of a disadvantage than an advantage. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880077 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 16:45:54 +0000 bhbee 2880077@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ours is 9/1 and my two older are January which is great, they’ve had a whole half year past 5. Our third is 8/8 and I expect to send her at just 5 but we’ll see how she’s doing obviously as she’s not yet 1. But I’m always reading these threads to help think through it!</p> <p>I think being the third kid she might be ready and I really like our kinder teachers. I’ll be interested to see how my son (middle) does with all day kinder though, as he’s way more active and less mature than my oldest. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880064 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 15:47:01 +0000 Jellyfish 2880064@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ours is Oct 1st. I have a DS with a mid-september bday and held him back a year. He attends the transitional K program which is a mix of those who were redshirted and those that just missed the cut-off. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880049 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 15:03:38 +0000 graceandjoy 2880049@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@pachamama: I have a co-worker in the same district where her daughter is currently in K. She has said nothing about anything... But I feel like some people are kind if oblivious to this whole red-shirting thing... I think people know about common core but generally don't think much about this until later on. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880048 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 15:02:14 +0000 bees_knees 2880048@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our district has an interesting policy. The official cutoff is Sept 15, but any March 1 - Sept 14 birthday is eligible for a half day transitional kindergarten; they would then do full day ("regular") K the next year, making them turn 7 during their actual year of kindergarten. </p> <p>I also wish it was the same everywhere. And I wish that K could be more play based and we weren't rushing our kids out of their childhoods. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880047 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 15:01:18 +0000 pachamama 2880047@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@graceandjoy: I've seen my district's curriculum map 😵. But mostly my good friend is a 1st grade teacher so she tells me what's expected. And my 2 best friends just went to K orientation and were like Holy Moly, they have to write sentences?! And use computer programs?! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880043 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 14:54:49 +0000 katsupgirl 2880043@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I’m in NYC and the cutoff is Dec. 31st. So like right now any kid born in 2014 would be starting kindergarten. That makes sense to me. There isn’t any debate about when to send kids. The private schools have different cutoffs though which can get confusing. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880041 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 14:52:56 +0000 graceandjoy 2880041@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs. Toad: Yes, I totally can see how that messes with families that are constantly moving! </p> <p>@Becky: I remember your other thread! I'm definitely going to be calling. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880039 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 14:50:05 +0000 Becky 2880039@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@graceandjoy: Suburban NY here too. I called the district and was able to speak to the kindergarten grade rep. She told me all about what they do in K and how it is more like what first grade was when I was a kid, and recommended redshirting (which we ended up not doing for our 10/31 girl and I regret it). I can’t grasp why the cutoffs are what they are and why we push so much academic work on kids in K when research shows it’s inappropriate. I think it’s difficult because our kids can do the work—they’re reading by the end of K, and adding and subtracting—but that doesn’t mean they should be doing it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880037 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 14:43:58 +0000 Mrs. Toad 2880037@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Honestly, my biggest concern is that it isn't the same everywhere. We're military and moving this year. DS is ready and I would be paying for private kindergarten (same price as daycare) and in his current daycare. I suspect that he will be in an easier daycare/preschool when we move. His early October birthday is a few days behind the September 30 cutoff. </p> <p>Our current location, the cutoff is August 31, but you can petition and test to start kindergarten as long as the child is 5 by October 15. However, the private kindergarten would allow him to start 1st grade the following year. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880036 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 14:39:07 +0000 graceandjoy 2880036@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@pachamama: I'm in a NY suburb too. How can I find out more about what our kindergarten follows? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880035 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 14:37:28 +0000 pachamama 2880035@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Dec 1 which as a teacher I think is terrible. I can't imagine a 4 year old (especially a boy as they develop about a year behind girls) doing what is expected of kindergartens here in suburban NY schools (basically 1st grade, focus on academics, lots of seat time). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/kindergarten-cut-off#post-2880034 Tue, 09 Apr 2019 14:32:40 +0000 Jennibenni 2880034@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our cutoff is 9/1. We will be holding our July babe back until the following year. Kindergarten here is 100% curriculum based, there is no classroom free play or imaginative learning aside from recess. There is no way I feel comfortable putting my newly five year old in a full day academic kindergarten. </p>