Our 4-year-old daughter has been in a Montessori preschool for almost two years. Her teacher agrees with us that she is kindergarten ready. In fact, she has already taught herself to read.
Unfortunately, we may have to enroll her in private school as her birthday is 10 days after the cutoff to get into the public schools. What are the benefits and drawbacks of being the oldest/brightest girl in her class versus the youngest/merely average? – Decision Time
Answer: When parents make the decision to send their children to preschool, they also need to think about how many years the children will attend preschool before starting kindergarten. They should try to find a preschool with a curriculum that gradually builds up to readiness for kindergarten for the older 4’s and younger 5’s in the last year of attendance.
You are making an interesting assumption that being the oldest in a class also means being the brightest. It may or may not. What being the oldest really means is that the child is more likely to be ready for the increasingly academic demands of today’s kindergartens.
On the other hand, being the youngest in a class certainly does not equate with being a merely average student. It could also turn out that the youngest child is among the brightest in a class. Younger children may or may not be ready to handle the social and emotional and behavioral demands of kindergarten.