fraser

It's a joke every day Henry asks when he'll be starting school. He goes to kindy and when he comes home we ask him what he's done he says mixing paint and dressing up.

At easter we went to an easter bonnet parade, we were cringing as they made 4 & 5 yr olds sing peter rabbit and they talk to the kids like they're two.

He should be reading by now he learnt more at his creche in the UK and the kindy teachers have even said that he needs to go to school as he's so inquisitive, no shit sherlock.

It's his birthday Wednesday and everyday we're getting. "but I'll be five, why can't I go ?"

Wendy

It's stupid isn't it. Even the headmaster at my little girl's school appologised that they were a year behind the UK.

I honestly don't have an answer for you.

The Crow

I agree Fraser - it's the same for Amelia. When I started her at kinder, one of the teachers asked if she'd be starting school this January and I said yes. She said 'she won't quite be 5, she'll be very young'. I said she'd have started next month in the UK and she's ready.
Amelia's also very inquisitive - always asking me how to spell things and loves practising writing etc. Another year at kinder (as much as she does fun things there) would render her brain dead and bored rigid
R

But back to your question - I don't know why this is.

fraser

How's Adam? Did he come in late?

mr mover

let kids be kids ,if you feel you have a budding einstein, do a bit of home schooling other wise let them do what they are comfortale with,,, before you know it they are teenagers , and don,t want to know you ......... mm

The Crow

Hmm!! He managed to get in a 'scuffle' at McD's and had his t-shirt ripped off He took exception to some American guy calling him a c*** for pushing in the drive-in queue on foot And he didn't even get his burger....
Apart from that he had a good night - though looks a bit pale this morning

The Crow

Yes - I'm not overly worried about her 3 kindy sessions - she has fun there and I 'work' with her at home. She's never been pushed, she just loves eductional stuff - apparently I was the same - a girly swot at 4

fraser

Bloody hell and I thought it was just me, must be catching

nickyjohnt

Our daughter has just brought her homework to show me, two & three times tables. She finds this amusing as she was doing long multiplication,division and fractions at her school before we left. But that is something we have to get used to, We don't expect things to change just for us, just as long as Georgia is happy at school thats all that counts.

John

Wendy

My daughter, who is 6 should be in year one here. But the headmaster suggested putting her into the mixed year 2/3 class. The intention being that because she was top of her class in the UK he thought she would find it very boring in year one. But next year when the classes move up a year she'll be mixing with kids both her own age and in the next year group. Also she won't have to make all new friends if she finds the year 3 work too much for her.

The same was suggested for my son in the high school, but he wanted to go into the class with kids his own age straight away, so that's what we let him do.

Can't suggest anything for Fraser though, because Henry hadn't actually started school in the UK it probably won't be as easy to get the schools to accomodate him. Although it could be worth a try.

fraser

We tried and he'll have to start school in Febuary, which I believe is pre-school and they don't actually learn much

Wendy

That's a bummer

Hutch

Josh isn't five yet and has started at school. We had a meeting with the head in which we discussed how young he'd be compared to his class-mates, but he was born on the 29th of August, so being the youngest in school is something he's used to. He did a full year in the UK (we left about 10 days before the end of term) and it was pretty evident to them that sending him to pre-school would be torture for the poor sod. So he started about a week after we arrived and he hasn't looked back. Has made friends, loves the school and enjoys the work. He brings homes books to read that are of a similar standard to the ones he had at primary in the UK and is enjoying maths and the like.

There is an option for him to repeat kindy so that the ages are more matched and given that he'll have only done half of the year we have no problem with that. I find the work/play blend at Josh's school a hell of a lot better than the way his old place had 'em cramming from day one like their GCSEs were round the corner. As to why they start them later - I don't know - but in this area parents that hold their kids back till they're six are the exception rather than the rule - five years old is the average and I reckon that's pretty much spot-on.

232Bar

Because the clocks don't change in QLD to get them there earlier

nightnurse2

My 5 year old started in pre primary last April, when we arrived. He was the only kid in his class who could read. At first I thought he would start going backward but his teacher was great. She gave him different books and work to do.
Saying that, he will go through the school system with these children and so it won't matter. He has been put in a class with years 1 and 2 this year and so is at the same level as some of them.
Personally I haven't got a problem with kids starting school later - they have all the time in the world to learn to read and write and I think it's nice that they can be 'kids' longer over here.
Tracey