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Parenting
with Gary & Anne Marie: Preschool
The When of Developmental Placement
Contributed by Robyn Vander
Weide
In general, parents first
think about their child's developmental placement prior to his starting kindergarten.
Many schools schedule a developmental evaluation in late winter or early spring
for all students planning to attend kindergarten in the fall of that year.
A thorough developmental
evaluation should take about forty-five minutes. The information gathered during
this time will not only indicate readiness for kindergarten, but it is also
a good predictor of readiness for the continuing years of elementary school.
Although children have developmental growth spurts and plateaus, it is generally
accepted that if your child is developmentally four years old at the time of
testing, he will most likely be developmentally five years old a year from the
testing date.
However, if a child demonstrates
that he is not yet ready for kindergarten, there are several options. Some schools
offer a two-year kindergarten program. Other parents choose a year of preschool
or to keep the child at home one more year. This should not be considered as
an affront to your child's intelligence, but rather a strategy to help your
child maximize his intellectual abilities.
Who Are the Children
in Need of an Extra Year?
Those working with developmental placement take into consideration certain factors
in a child's life when making an assessment. These factors include:
Later
Birthdays
Children born
in the second half of the year (late spring through fall) may benefit by waiting
a year before starting kindergarten. This is especially true of boys. Experience
has shown that you can draw a line between June and July. Most boys born before
July are ready for kindergarten as five-year-olds. Most boys born after June
do better if they enter kindergarten as six-year-olds. For girls with birthdays
in July and August, some are ready, but many are not. And even though a few
states allow it, virtually no one turning five after September 1 should start
school until the following year.
Physical
Challenges
Physical challenges
that affect children's rate of development generally fall into two categories:
premature birth and extended illness. Here are the reasons:
The rates of development
inside the womb and outside the womb differ greatly. Babies inside the womb
develop at a greater accelerated speed than outside. After birth, the rate of
development slows dramatically. If a baby continued to develop after birth at
the same rate as in the womb, the average size of a one-year-old would be one
hundred pounds. Consequently, when a child is born prematurely, development
that would have taken place in the womb is now taking place outside the womb
at a much slower pace. That can and often does have an impact five years later,
when the child is chronologically ready for school.
Because the child was not
full-term at birth, the birth date does not accurately represent the child's
age developmentally. If this child's birthday is close to the cutoff date for
kindergarten, it is generally best to give him an extra year before starting
kindergarten to ensure that all areas of development are strong. When it comes
to testing a child born prematurely, as a general rule of thumb, I subtract
one month from his current age for every week he was premature. For example,
when testing a four-year-old who was three weeks premature, it is not uncommon
to find a developmental lag of three months behind children of his same chronological
age. Here I must emphasize to the reader that this has nothing to do with the
child's intelligence, but with how to best optimize a child's intelligence and
learning experience.
Similarly, children who
have had an extended illness or repeated hospitalizations during the early years
of life usually experience some slowing in development while their bodies deal
with the physical stress of illness and healing. This may explain why some of
their behavior seems younger than their chronological age.
Emotional
Challenges
As was previously
mentioned, children's development takes place in four main areas: physical,
mental, emotional, and social. Unusual stress in one area may slow development
in other areas. This does not mean that stress alters the I.Q. or the ability
to reach potential. Rather, for a period of time the mind changes focus from
normal stimulation and development to preoccupation with the stressful situation.
This is especially true of children experiencing divorce or the death of someone
to whom they were close. This may cause a child's rate of development to slow
down and therefore should be considered when determining developmental readiness
for kindergarten.
Social
Challenges
Making friends
or adjusting to new situations can be very difficult for some children. While
a child may be ready for the academic work of school, he may not be ready for
the social setting found in the classroom. Giving him a year to mature socially
may make the difference between a scholar with a well-rounded personality and
a child who excels academically but has no idea how to make and keep friends.
Slower
Development
Some children
just develop more slowly. It's as if the developmental clock that is ticking
inside them is just running at a slower pace than other children's. Rather than
be frustrated by this, a wise parent will give this child the time needed to
fully mature and won't try to rush things in order to keep pace with others.
If this is your child, give him the gift of time needed. He will reach his full
potential.
Article
by Gary Ezzo / Anne Marie Ezzo
