Starting School at 5 Years

Christie_L

Thanks to everyone for your advice and experiences - it's very appreciated.

My son is a June baby and will be 5 yrs old in June 2012. The reason I'm considering not sending him into formal state education until he's 5 is that I intend to be a SAHM until his sister (currently 11 months old) is old enough to enter the school system when she's 4. Then it's my plan to go back to work full time.

In that I'll be at home looking after his sister anyway I'm wondering if there's any good reason not to keep him home with me until my daughter starts school. He already attends a private day nursery a couple of mornings a week so is already used to routines etc.

I don't want to cause him to miss out on making friends in reception year, but on the other hand would really love to have that extra year with him before he stops being my baby and starts being a schoolboy

Caroline73_2

I would say to send him with everyone else. My eldest is a June baby and we lived in Oxfordshire where they start reception the term they are 5 (so after Easter holidays 2003 it was!)

We then moved to northants in the january, where children start in the September (2002) in the academic year as he would have been 5 in the June.

He only missed out one term in reception but it found it very difficult to fit into a class with no-one he knew. He had been going to nursery and loved it there.

JabT_2

My DS' birthday is the end of July. Like OP he was happy in nursery and we intended him to start school at 5. Unfortunately the nursery started playing silly beggars moving the rooms round, I was not paying a lot of money for him to be in a conservatory day in day out!. Anyway we applied for a school place in March and he started after Easter. No problems with friends etc., children change friends like the wind at that age! The others were obviously ahead in reading etc but he soon caught up.

jellyhead

Does your school just do the one intake in September? Ours does, but when my eldest went there they did 2 intakes so the youngest ones didn't have to start school until January. I preferred the old style where lots of summer children started school together in January.

Here if you delayed sending your son to school until he was 5 he'd go straight into year 1 in september. My 'baby' has just started school and is the youngest in his class. I didn't want to send him so early and if I'd had the chance to delay it for a term I would have done (but only if the other summer children were also delaying school and he'd be starting with them).

I can't imagine him missing out the entire reception year and I'm glad I let him go. I still think he's too young and I wish I could take him out of school after lunch one day and take him to the farm etc. but we've got the teacher training day for this term marked on the calendar and will do something nice together then. We do things at the weekend as a family but I just really miss my special time with just him, doing our favourite mum and toddler type things if that doesn't sound too soppy?

He enjoys the social side of school and with him being so shy and babyish I think it's important for him to learn how to mix with the more confident older children. He'd be happy staying in nursery but then going straight into year 1 of school would be a huge shock to him. Perhaps it wouldn't be a problem for a confident child. My boy isn't learning to read, but there's plenty of time. He wouldn't learn it in nursery either. At least in reception he's getting the gentle start to reading, even if it's going over his head at the moment.

jellyhead

As for school place - it may depend on when you intend to send him. Here you could apply for a place in reception but not send him until january or easter (I think?) and that place would still be held open for him. If you didn't intend to send him until year 1 though they would not keep an empty space in reception for a year, so whether he got into year 1 of that school would depend on if any of the children who started reception the previous had left the school.

It probably varies from LEA to LEA though.

LISSILEIGH

the school my 3 children attend has a nursery, my eldest didnt get the chance because we hadnt moved to the area but my 2nd did and now my third is there.

my middle child is also one of the youngest being a mid july baby, she however has really developed emmensely i believe from going into the nursery first and then going into reception.

she is now still 5 and in yr1 but is doingr eally really well, i just wish that my eldest had had the opportunity as i feel he would be in a much better position now

personally i would send your son to school, i work within education and feel that reception is important to them and they are actually learning in reception just in a more gentle approach

good luck

daska

Christie_L wrote: »

My son is a June baby and will be 5 yrs old in June 2012. The reason I'm considering not sending him into formal state education until he's 5 is that I intend to be a SAHM until his sister (currently 11 months old) is old enough to enter the school system when she's 4. Then it's my plan to go back to work full time.

In that I'll be at home looking after his sister anyway I'm wondering if there's any good reason not to keep him home with me until my daughter starts school. He already attends a private day nursery a couple of mornings a week so is already used to routines etc.

I don't want to cause him to miss out on making friends in reception year, but on the other hand would really love to have that extra year with him before he stops being my baby and starts being a schoolboy

On the other hand, if he starts school you get a period where you can spend plenty of one to one time with his sister which she will surely benefit from. Every silver lining has a cloud!

clairec79

So you are planning to start both the kids at the same time? (albeit in different classes, one in reception and one in year 1). Hows he going to feel at starting school with his 'baby' sister? Sounds like you may be taking some of the 'big brother' excitement away from him if you keep him home just because you are there because of little sis

clare1076

I would send him as soon as possible my son's birthday is end of July so he's one of the youngest in his class, he started at the school nursery at just turned 3 and loved it he then went into Reception and developed really well and became more independent. He's now in year 1 and a lot of his friends have already turned 6 he's only just 5 but he's on the top table in his class and one of the best readers in his class. If I'd have held off i don't think he'd be doing as well as he is. My daughter is 3 in February and i'm hoping she'll start the school nursery after the February half term, she's more than ready i feel and it will do her a lot of good to mix with children her own age.

It's your decision but think hard of the effect it may have on your son. Good Luck!

liney

He will have to break into friendship groups instead of being allowed to naturally mix and be part of a group that forms. If he starts later than the other children he will be the "New boy" and automatically the odd one out.

In the mean time the children he goes to Nursery with will leave, meaning he has to make new friends there who he'll be split up from again when they go to Reception and he goes to year one.

All Mothers have to let go of their children eventually - we do it a little tiny bit at a time, and this is one of those times.