Q. My child misses the cut-off date for kindergarten entrance by five weeks. What can be the disadvantages for this little boy who will be a year younger than the other students?

A. There are plenty of disadvantages for early entrance into kindergarten, but under some circumstances there are advantages. Age and maturity play an important part in children's adjustment to school and although your son would only be a few months younger than some children in his class, he would be much younger than others. He could be physically smaller and intellectually and socially behind others — all of which can make him feel like he can't keep up or pay attention to the extent that other children can. He could actually feel "dumb" and inadequate and lose confidence in himself. If there were mixed ages and other younger children (the same age as he) in his kindergarten group, he would group himself with them and assume that younger children just don't know as much. With no such company, he might struggle and accept an image of himself as never being able to make the grade in class work, sports, or social life. In addition, boys tend to mature later than girls, adding to his potential feelings of inadequacy.

Here are the exceptions. If you've had your son evaluated by a psychologist and the psychologist finds him to be in the intellectually gifted range, and if he's reasonably socially and emotionally mature and has attended preschool, early entrance into kindergarten can be safely recommended. Research on gifted children has found that children who entered kindergarten early are more successful than those held back. With time, these children continue to be more successful despite their young age. They seem to catch up with their intellectual peers both socially and emotionally and sometimes need even further acceleration.

Notice the readiness tips for kindergarten:

Reading Readiness

* Knows letters of the alphabet

* Knows some nursery rhymes

* Prints and recognizes own first name

* Can tell a story from pictures

Listening

* Pays attention

* Follows simple directions

* Retells a simple story in sequence

Simple Relational Concepts

* Understands big, little; long, short; more, less; in, out; top, bottom; front, back; hot, cold; over, under

Colors and Shapes

* Recognizes primary colors

* Knows triangles, circles, squares, rectangles

Numbers

* Counts to ten

* Counts objects

Motor Skills

* Walks a straight line

* Hops, jumps and marches

* Throws a ball

* Pastes pictures in paper

* Completes simple puzzles (five pieces)

* Handles scissors

* Cuts and draws simple shapes

* Controls pencil and crayons

Social-Emotional Development

* Knows first and last name, parents' names, home address and telephone number

* Expresses self verbally

* Can be away from parents for three hours

* Looks forward to going to school

* Knows body parts

* Can take care of toilet needs independently

* Dresses self

* Gets along with children

* Shares with others

* Works independently

* Maintains self-control

* Recognizes authority

If your son seems to meet all the readiness criteria, have him evaluated by a psychologist in early spring to make the decision about early entrance into kindergarten for next year.

For free newsletters about raising preschoolers or keys to parenting your gifted child, send a large self-addressed, stamped envelope to P.O. Box 32, Watertown, WI, 53094, or read “Raising Preschoolers” at www.sylviarimm.com.

Dr. Sylvia B. Rimm is the director of the Family Achievement Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio, a clinical professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and the author of many books on parenting. More information on raising kids is available at www.sylviarimm.com. Please send questions to: Sylvia B. Rimm on Raising Kids, P.O. Box 32, Watertown, WI 53094 or srimm@sylviarimm.com. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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