Kid is turning 6 in May, Prep pa lang sa coming SY. Ok lang ba?

[KVsWahmmy]

My daughter started school when she was 4 (Nursery). Her birthday is in May. This past schoolyear (that just ended) she was in Junior Kinder, and this coming school year, she'll be in Senior Kinder (Prep ang tawag dati). By the time she's 7 next year,pa-Grade 1 na sya. Prior to K-12, this would have been perfectly fine.

Pero now, with K-12, I noticed na some of the kids na ka-age ng daughter ko or some even younger (I just see in my FB newsfeed or in forums) are moving on na to Grade 1. Either they are skipping or not going through the Senior Kinder/Prep stage anymore or nung naipasok sila sa Preschool sa Kinder agad sila nilagay.

Sa school kasi ng daughter ko nung pumasok sya since wala sya prior schooling, their rule is Nursery muna talaga. They also do not accelerate kids sa preschool (from Junior Kinder straight to Grade 1). I'm actually ok with both policies, dahil hindi nahirapan ang anak kong mag-adjust sa regular schooling when she started, wala din separation anxiety, and she even thrived kasi lagi syang nasa honors both in Nursery and Junior Kinder. She has lots of friends, and I see how she had grown and improved in terms of academics and study habits. Naisip ko lang bigla na, hindi ba parang 'behind' sya dahil may mga ka-age sya (in other schools) na Grade 1 na?

Madami naman din sya na ka-edad nya in her level, so perhaps this question apply to them too.

[prettydefined]

Hi sis. My son started his Nursery 4 yrs old na. Then Kinder 2 agad after sis. tapos ngayon7 yrs old sya grade 1 na sya. Kaka 7 nya lang sis nung December. San school ng daughter mo sis?  Try mo din sis pag exam sya if kaya na or pwede na sya Grade 1 this June. 

[KVsWahmmy]

hi sis prettydefined! my daughter's school doesn't do accelerations from JK to Grade 1 eh. I'm good with that actually, no plans to transfer naman para lang makapag-grade 1 na sya. I understand the school's reasoning naman. Medyo nalilito lang ako sa K-12 na ito. Hehe.

I wonder if there are other mommies out there who are in the same situation ang kids, and would they prefer na skip na lang ang Prep para Grade 1 na?

[kiaramae_0403]

Hi sis KVs - depende sa daughter mo yun kung ready na sya for grade 1, yung senior kinder kasi preparation for grade 1. although yung ibang subject almost same sa junior kinder, pero more on writing na and discipline, nung junior kinder yung anak ko yung teacher niya yung nagliligpit ng gamit like every Friday lang inuuwi yung books, yung teacher ang naglalagay sa bag. pero nung senior tinuturuan na silang maging independent. Kung sa akin okay lang kahit late ng 1 year yung daughter mo mas mahirap kasi kung mabigla sya sa grade 1. Iba na ang pressure sa grade 1 mas madaming subject tas more on reading and writing na sila.

[babyboo.0326]

sis KVsWahmmy, i think ok lang naman yan. sa society kasi natin may mga "right age, right timeline" kasi na nakasanayan na. i was just talking about this nga with my eldest. na sabi ko satin kasi, "by age 21 you should have graduated college and got a job. before you reach 30 you should have married already and have kids.. etc".

my youngest son is 7 years old. he started late in school, while his kuya started early. they're both really different when it comes to that. so ang ginawa ko is hinayaan ko lang ang pace ng bata. kasi for me i can't and i don't want to force naman ang bata into something they're not ready for yet. may sari-sariling development stages sila and hindi naman because ganito ang age or ganyan e may dapat na stage na ng school. so yung 7 year-old ko, first time niyang mag-school kaso since traditional ang school, hindi siya pinadaan sa nursery. at ramdam ko naman ang pagkabigla niya sa studying. so pinag-iisipan ko pa if enroll ko siya ng summer class para makapag-grade 1 sa pasukan or kahit na ma-delay nalang siya, basta tama sa pacing niya ang pag-aaral. ayoko dumating ang time na ma-burn out na siya kakaaral, which almost happened to me dati naman. i hope this helps a bit 

[cocoysmom]

i understand your concern sis, kasi pinagisipan ko din yan...hehe...

my son went through the whole jr nursery, sr nursery, kinder, prep stage... now grade 1 sya and he already turned 8 this month. there are only 2 of them in the class na 8 na, most turned 7 or will turn 8 next month or june. pero no regrets sis, kasi ayokong madaliin sya. although some schools we considered offered na grade 1 na "kaya na po nya yan", we felt hindi pa time.

my nephew (one month apart lang sila) grade 2 na, syempre tuwang-tuwa in-laws ko, feeling nila mas matalino nephew ko, but i don't let it get to me. makikita mo naman difference. my nephew he's not loving school at all. from kinder kasi ginawa na grade one so nawala na yung "play" factor ng learning. when we get together weekends, my nephew dreads mondays while my son looks forward to it. weird daw ng anak ko. hehe...but i know why. hindi kasi naging hinog sa pilit eh. his prep year made the transistion from kinder to grade 1 easier. even sa grade 1 during the earlier months, they still incorporate play and art, so masaya sya when he comes home from school and he's not bored or burned out. ultimately, it depends on your child, kung tingin mo mature enough, then ok grade 1, but if not, wag madaliin. it's best that the child views learning as a wonderful experience, rather than torture.  

[thebratinella]

^Same kami ng anak mo, sis. I turned 8 a month before I started Grade 1. I was held back a year because I had to adjust to my new school that time. I was transferred to a Chinese school kasi. I was in Kinder 2 at 7 years old but after that, okay na. My friends would just ask me why older ako ng few months or a year sa kanila and I would tell them tapos we'd all forget about it. And then I had 3 other classmates na same age ko rin kaya deadma na ibang students about the "age difference".

Sis KVsWahmmy, that's fine. As long as your daughter's having fun in school and she's doing well in her subjects, nothing to worry about.  Mahirap din madaliin ang kids when they should be enjoying school. Depends din kasi sa bata yung decision to accelerate or not. I remember the principal wanted to accelerate my youngest brother to Grade 1 before. Skip na sana siya ng prep. My parents said no because they think my brother wasn't ready yet. He was the baby in the family and sobrang playful niya. Yung isang brother namin (middle child) got accelerated. Pumayag parents ko kasi he's the serious, studious-type and gusto naman ng kapatid ko mag-aral. Bata siya ng 1 year compared to his Nursing school classmates. He worked for 3 years and then decided to study Medicine so tama lang din yung decision that my parents did for both of them.

Plus your daughter studies in DLA. They put emphasis on the academics di ba? Tama lang yung age niya at baka maoverwhelm naman.

[KVsWahmmy]

Thanks mga sis!

She'll be 7 na by the time she's grade 1(next year), so kumbaga sa usual way of things (natin noon ha. before K-12), sakto lang. But tama kayo, that one more year in preschool will actually benefit her pa. Kumbaga one more year to have a little bit more fun before things get 'serious'. More time to develop her potential pa.

Yup sis thebratinella, DLA, and medyo madugo na nga daw academics chuchu pagtungtong ng higher grades. So I guess sakto lang din na let her take the usual route to grade school para maprepare sya mabuti.

Naalala ko bigla, ako pala ay accelerated from Kinder to Grade 1 (di ako nag-Prep), iniisip ko tuloy if it was good or 'bad' for me. Hehe. Wala na ko naaalala sa nakaraan. Ang naaalala ko lang ay lumaki akong mahiyain, di masyadong participative in class. Pero baka personality ko lang talaga yun. Ewan ko lang din.

[cocoysmom]

^same sila ng son ko sis, 7 yrs old pagpasok ng grade 1. i noticed yung pag-mature nya middle ng school year, like hindi na nagpapahatid hanggang classroom, gusto na kumain mag-isa, etc. kumpara nung nag-prep sya (6 yrs old) na talagang i needed to stay until his teacher comes. imagine if i listened to those schools who said na kaya na grade one, baka nahirapan sya mag-adjust ng husto. dagdag gastos lang talaga saka sabi ng iba, sayang yung time...pero ayokong isipin na ganun. kasi hindi naman waste yung development nya this past year and may naging improvement din sa personality nya. iba-iba lang talaga ang kids i guess... i myself had only one year of preschool, no nursery, from kinder to grade one agad, ok naman, i adapted well to my classmates, but sabi nga ng parents ko, "pinanganak daw ako matanda na agad?" hahaha...

[DV]

My daughter's birthday is also in May. She attended nursery (4 yo) and kinder (5 yo) in a preschool near where we live, and moved on to Grade 1 (6 yo) at a big school. When she took the entrance assessment, pwede na raw sa Grade 1. We went ahead kasi per DepEd's recommendation, ang Grade 1, 6 yo dapat. I think she's the youngest in her class. Most of her classmates kasi doon sa big school nagsipag-kinder and prep, they just followed the level progression so most of them were already 7 (one even turned 8 before the end of the school year).

Aside from the confirmation from the school that she could already attend Grade 1, I saw my child was up for the challenge naman. I observed na yung mga 7s, parang mas madali na sa kanila yung school work, mas mature na mentally (as in parang 'bata' na kumilos (vs being more babyish), magsalita, yung iba parang may bad attitudes na (may konting guile na vs smaller children na completely innocent pa).

So I guess, it's up to you if you want your child to be more challenged, sign her up for Grade 1. If you think she needs more time to mature and want her to have an easier time, wait another year.

[kiz_me1109]

Thank you Mommy for creating this thread. I was about to create one because I have this dilemna with my son too. He was born August 2009. He went to Nursery when he was 3 1/2years old. And then nag Kinder siya when he was 4 1/2 years old. Last year, we were supposed to enroll him in Don Bosco but we were told that he should be 5 years old by June. He was only 4 1/2 years old that time. Sa Dosco kasi Preschool and then grade school na ang meron sila. So we decided to look for a school na Preschool lang talaga. And nakapasok siya sa Kinder.

Now, we inquired sa Betty's Vermillion and we were told na dapat Grade 1 na siya this School Year. ALthough marunong na siya magsulat and magbasa, hindi pa siya mabilis magbasa unlike sa ibang nag Preschool na. I felt sad kasi I'm torn dun sa kung susundan ko ba yung K-12 or kung ano lang ang kaya ng anak ko. Ayaw ko naman kasi na mabigla siya.

So, my husband and I talked and I told him na ipag summer class ko nalang yung anak namin. No pressure for now basta tutok muna siya sa reading and writing and then come May, we will try na ipag take siya ng admission test for grade 1. But that time, malalaman ko naman kung ready na siya or hindi. If he's not yet ready, no pressure at all.

At least, pagdating niya ng Grade 1, mas ready na siya.

FYI. May mga Summer Enrichment Programs ang schools na pwede mo i enroll yung anak mo Mommy. They focus on reading and writing lang. It's a great help narin in case we will really decide na mag Preschool muna ang mga anak natin.

Iniisip ko nalang na wala naman sa age yan. Ang importante e matuto sila magbasa, magsulat and may magandang values.

[ieiky]

Ok lang 'yun sis. Sabi nga, let kids be kids.

As a mom, ayoko din mabigla ang anak ko. nag nursey-kinder1-kinder 2 then Grade 1 ang susundin namin. Now he'll be K2 na sa pasukan. Hindi pa din siya mabilis magbasa at magsulat. Feeling ko super baby na baby pa siya para mag Grade.

[kiz_me1109]

^ How old na yung baby mo sis?

[hunny_ally]

my daughter was turning 6 (July) when she entered grade 1. most of her classmates ganun din naman. in fact, others turned 6yo much later. she didn't have any problems with the lessons.

[kiz_me1109]

^ Ah. Yung son ko kasi turning 6 this August din. Pero Kinder 2 pa lang siya. Pero sabi ng teachers niya dapt daw i Grade 1 na siya.

Ipapa Enrichment Program ko siya this April. Concentrate lang sa reading and writing and then come May e ipag exam ko na siya If he's ready for Grade 1.

[hunny_ally]

^the way it was explained to me by their principal when I was scouting for a school for my daughter, the k-12 is merely an adjustment of grade levels / label changes. yes, merong minor changes but they wont of course be teaching lessons fit for a grade 1 of the old system to 5-6year olds. lessons pa din mainly for kindergarten. I was concerned pa nga kasi my daughter then was only an emerging reader. but the teacher assured me that a lot of them were in the same boat. ang effect kasi ng k-12 sa batch ng daughter ko is instead of going straight to kinder 3 (equivalent to kindergarten / senior prep in other schools), they graduated preschool and went to grade 1.

so nothing to worry. just prepare your son this summer.

[cocoysmom]

mga sis, i don't know if tama ang thinking ko but i feel that aside from the capability to read and write, important din to take into consideration the "maturity" of your child. kasi most teachers in grade school (unless na may early education training or montessori or small ang class), they expect some "responsibility" na from their students. they won't check anymore if the homework was copied or if the child even understood the instructions.     this is quite true especially if they're handling a big class or traditional setup yung school.

my son was able to read above his age level and at par with his age group sa writing, but maturity-wise, baby pa talaga. so although 2 schools offered "kaya na yan mag-grade one," we opted to go to prep muna before mag-grade one at 7yrs old. in contrast sya sa niece ko, who can read (tagalog) very well and write legibly na for a 6 years old and very mature na din. she even decides what she'd wear kapag aalis kami, so sya i think pwede na grade 1 even at 6 years old.  imho lang, hindi lang dapat kung marunong na magbasa/magsulat yung gauge for the kids, emotional maturity din siguro...

[KVsWahmmy]

Hi sis kiz_me1109! I had a feeling marami-rami ding ito ang magiging dilemma kasi nga because of K-12 naging iba-iba age ng kids in preschool. hehe.

Walang acceleration in my daughter's school sis from JK to Grade 1, so mag-prep talaga sya. And we decided na just go with the natural progression dun sa school nya rather than transfer her to another school para lang maging Grade 1 na sya. I think the positives naman of going through Prep far outweigh any negatives (primarily ang nega is the extra gastos of one year).

As far as readiness is concerned - reading and writing-wise, I think kaya na ng daughter ko. For a 5-year-old turning 6 this May, she reads and comprehends really well na. Writing, she writes legibly na din. Maturity, she's very independent naman and gets along really well with her classmates. Though we had 'episodes' last year, naging perfectionist kasi sya, so when she doesn't get a perfect score (kahit one mistake lang), ayun umiiyak ng bongga. Thankfully, she got over that naman nung last quarter of the year. Sa bahay, nauutusan na din to get stuff, small chores din. Pero wala pang bilihan sa tindahan mag-isa, takot ko lang. So academically siguro ready na, pero maturity-wise, I'd rather she develops more resiliency pa. Kasi sabi nga, grade school is a whole different ballgame.

Sis hunny_ally, good yung iadjust naman pala yung Grade 1 lessons nila to fit 5-6 years old. I wonder if other schools have the same initiative...

[hunny_ally]

personally, i think confusion (and then which will eventually lead to concerns) lies from the fact that most of us parents attended grade 1 when we were 6-7yo even 8yo. but it doesn't mean just because DepEd lowered the age of eligibility, they will be expected to do the same things what we were expected when we were grade 1 at 6-7yo. It will be irresponsible for school officials (and DepEd too) to expect a 5-6yo to act developmentally the same like a 6-7yo. Likewise, to expect them to have the emotionally maturity same as ours when we were in first grade. Along with academic curriculum changes, there will also be changes in other aspects.

My daughter just finished 2nd grade at 7 years old. I finished grade 2 at 9yo (entered at 8yo). Despite my initial concerns with the whole k-12 changes, my daughter was able to cope to the point of her doing really well in school. I had some concerns like her not copying her assignments/notes properly, not knowing/remembering what the teacher said, forgetting things at school (even going on a weekend to get a book she left in school). But you know, she's not the only one. My co-parents share the same concerns. We were joking ang laging line nga of our kids "why don't you just ask the other mommies in viber?" I also raised this concern with her homeroom teacher and she said that's is expected of kids their age.There is a need of constant guidance from the teacher and of course the parents. 

KVsWahmmy, you can check this link for DepEd's mandated curriculum. Comparing this with my daughter's lessons, more or less pareho naman.

[lilsaintsm0m]

It really depends on your kid. You would know if ready na siya. It would be best to skip grade or if not master muna ang senior kinder. Alam ko kasi masteral lang siya ng Junior kinder eh. My son's case he was 3 when he started studying.  He skipped prep and took an exam for grade1. I noticed kasi na he was really bored with his class wala ng challenge. He was already reading during his nursery years. What he really needed was to learn comprehension what they were still teaching was phonetics. he was 5 then. He spent 2 yrs sa preschool for Nursery and K1. He has cousins of the same age na grade 2 next yr and he will be in 3rd grade na.
There was a time na nirequire lahat ng kids to move up to grade 1 dahil yung sa age nga daw. But some are not yet ready hindi pa kaya magread they were forced to attend summer program to prepare them for grade1. Some kids were not yet matured enough pinapapasok na sa big school.
 You would know your child well and know whats best.