Thursday, January 29, 2009

Here's an idea, let the parents decide!

Rep. Laura Black (D) of Sandy is sponsoring a bill (HB 242) that would change the date of the cutoff for Kindergarten from September to be in July. In a Salt Lake Tribune article (see here) about the bill, Rep. Black is quoted as saying, "It doesn't sound like very much when you're an adult, but two months in the life of a child can be huge in terms of what their development is."

I've got a better idea, let the parents of the child decide if their child is ready for Kindergarten. My wife and I have done this for everyone of our children. Our oldest child, whose birthday is in June, could have started Kindergarten the year he turned five. My wife and I decided he was not ready for Kindergarten that year and waited a year before enrolling him in Kindergarten. Do parents really need the government to tell them that their child is or isn't ready for Kindergarten?

3 comments:

Jason The said...

Unlike the times this same argument was used to prop up vouchers, I can agree with you when it's applied to this issue.

Each child is different. Some may benefit from starting early, while others would face a greater challenge being thrown into the mix too early. Give parents an option to choose.

Scott Hinrichs said...

Great idea. Some of my kids could have benefited from starting earlier, while other could not have. Each child is different. Let the parents decide.

It also becomes clear early on when students have been started too early. Teachers are pretty capable of figuring that out within the first couple of weeks. Then parents can be counseled with to determine what to do about it.

Natalie Gordon said...

I totally agree. This legislation is well intended, but unnecessary. Also, I agree with Reach Upward's comment -- the teachers and the parents should counsel together for what is best.