Advice on Early Admission to Kindergarten

I have been a pre-school teacher and have done kindergarten screening. If the kindergarten teachers tell you to wait, TRUST THEM. She may be ready cognitively, but maybe the kindergarten teaches may feel she needs more social development, etc. NOT making a judgment call here, just telling you what one of the possibilities may be.

I've seen smart kids get put into a class that they weren't ready for emotionally or socially. As a former teacher, there were numerous times I wished the parents had listened rather than make their own judgment call without understanding all of the factors. It makes things easier on EVERYONE, including the child!

Wait! You have nothing to lose.

2 things to consider.
1) I would rather have the smartest, oldest kid in the class than the middle-of-the pack youngest. Doing well in preschool is NO indication of how children do later on. They did a study comparing children at different levels. They found that when children who went through pre-k and head-start programs, there was absolutely no difference in their performance by the 5th grade.
2) Her social skills at this point are relatively the same as those of children less than a year older. However, when she gets to 5th-7th grade, she will notice a difference as all the other girls notice boys, get their periods, do pre-teen things and she isn't interested yet.

You can always have her skip a grade if she's THAT advanced, but if you put her in and she doesn't do well and you have to hold her back, it will be a major blow to her self-esteem. I would listen to the kindergartener teachers who will be teaching her.

I have never heard anyone who regretted waiting to send their child to school, including myself. My girls were both like that where they could have gone earlier. My oldest will graduate next year, and really it's kind of good to have her at 19 when she graduates rather than 18. The oldest/youngest thing wasn't an issue with her and I really don't think kids react to that as much as we think. Plus it's hard enough for them to decide about college and such at 18...another year is sometimes REALLY helpful on the other end.

Good luck!

I would wait. My niece's birthday is August 31 and she started kindergarten right around her 5th birthday. They thought she was ready at the time, but her parents and teacher ended up deciding it was best for her to repeat 4th grade because she was struggling just enough. She is now a senior in high school and she's done well ... with no negative impact from repeating 4th grade. In hindsight, her parents wish they had waited another year to enroll her in kindergarten. I'm glad my daughters have Spring birthdays so I don't have to make that decision!

My son was in the exact same boat as your child. He missed the cutoff date by 18 days. But, he was reading, writing well, doing addition, subtraction, and even telling time at age 4. In our district the child has to be tested to get early admission and they really frown upon it. Most parents in my area are big into "red shirting". My son passed the school test with flying colors and got in. Kindergarten at that time was just half a day and he was bored to tears. He is now in 3rd grade and has been in a gifted/talented program for 2 years. He is STILL bored. I looked at a ton of studies before I admitted him early and with boys if they are bored they are more likely to drop out of school and do things like drugs. Holding a child back guarantees boredom. I want my child CHALLENGED not to make straight A's. Grades mean very little in real life! Oh, My son is on the honor roll every 9 weeks, A's and B's.

My daughter has a 8/22 birthday and I went ahead and signed her up for early enrollment. The school tests all their kids in the first few weeks to see where they are at in reading ability and she tested at 678 (only have to be 600 for kindergarten)so educationally she was ready. We had trouble the first few weeks at drop off not wanting me to leave but once I was gone she was fine. She absolutely loves school and is already reading some books on her own now as well as writing short paragraphs. Go with your gut instinct. Since she has been in a school setting for 2 years I don't think she will have any problems.

We gave our son an extra year. He had been to preschool and pre-K, and would have probably been OK to go last year. However, I was concerned because he had maturity issues too. I am SO GLAD we waited. While he would have been OK last year, this year he has blossomed! He has taken to reading like a pro, and gets to read to the class regularly. His being older has helped him learn leadership skills. He is the tallest in his class by almost a foot, but he doesn't care a bit.

I teach pre-K and I know how hard it is to know whether to send them or not. I decided that I would rather my son be achieving goals above the norm than to feel bad that he can't quite do as well. Plus, being behind doesn't really manifest itself until second or third grade.

I always tell the parents in my class that if there is any doubt at all, give them another year.

How about from a grandmother!
We had our granddaughter living with us a few years ago and she was in the same situation.
Our school system did admit her on a condidional basis with a number of other children who were in a similar situation.
She did very well.
I think there were a few children in the group who did have to repeat kg the next year.
I think it is certainly worth it to give it a try.
Also two of my children essentially skipped KG, so go by your gut instinct tempered with some common sense.
You know her better than anybody.
Having said that, I will say that for my youngest daughter, who did 2 grades in one year and turned 17 a couple of weeks after high school graduation, I think there were some issues being the youngest.
Starting college at 17 was hard and she never finished her degree.
So there are a lot of things to watch out for and consider
as the years pass.

I see you have a lot My daughter missed the cut off date by 9 days. She never went to preschool, I was not able to afford it but I worked with her at home, and I was very nervous about sending her to school. She went to a charter school and it has been one of the best choices I could have made. The only down side is that the other children were so much "older" then my daughter. They say things that they hear adults say and I have tried to keep my daughter as innocent as possible. From k to first grade she has done more then I could have ever expected. She is ready for the second grade and her teachers are always talking about how smart she is and how well she does in school. I would say follow your heart and you can always try it for a while and if you do not feel it is working out right then you can always pull her out and send her back to her previous school. Good luck with whatever you decide.

Hi J.:
I am a Kindergarten Assistant and in my opinion it is better to wait! We have a couple kids in the class that should NOT be there; in fact one finally was taken out because the child was just way too immature. The other child should have been taken out because of being so disruptive and constantly talking and playing around. This child does not want to be there and just wants to have fun instead of learn. It is very frustrating to the teachers to have to spend so much time on disciplining children while trying to teach the children that want/should be there. You should listen to the teachers because they, if experienced, definitely can tell if a child is ready or not.
Good luck!

My daughter has an October birthday. We are having the school do the early entrance testing so we can have all of the information before making the decision. Right now, my gut feeling is to wait. Every child is different. Try to collect as much information as you can. It doesn't hurt to ask for the evaluation, it just gives one more piece of the puzzle. Ask the preschool teacher for specifics about why she thinks your daughter should go to kindergarten. Another thing to consider is athletics. Is your daughter interested in sports? If so, it might be better to wait. The age difference might make it more difficult to compete with grade level peers.
My son has a Feb. birthday and has been grade accelerated twice. He skipped kindergarten and completed second and third grade in one year. He is the youngest in his class. It doesn't bother him and this is actually the first year he has real friends. He was not interested in sports, (He was the daisy picker on his soccer team!) so it made more sense to put his academics first.
Ever kid is different, even within the same family. You mentioned that you felt she would at least be an average student. It is often recommended that students to be accelerated be able to be near the top of the class that they are being placed in. If you feel she will just be average, it is probably be better to give her that extra year.
Most children who are admitted for early entrance have to have scores that would qualify them as gifted. (Check with your local school district, each one has a different policy on early entrance.) Here's a great resource that you may want to look at. It's one of the best places for gathering information about giftedness. http://www.hoagiesgifted.org

I would wait. I was one of the youngest in my class, and I do think the maturity level makes a difference later on. You only get to be a kid once - why rush it?

I have a Kindergarten now. His preschool teacher said he would do great and not have a problem in kindergarten. He was ready academically, reads way above kindergarten level and other subjects will too. He makes friends very easily and plays well. Emotionally he becomes very stressed out and has a very hard time in the class room with all the kids when learning time is around. They move at a very very fast pace and he has literally struggled all year longHe is actually in the middle of his class with a March birthday.

Her maturity is very important , I would wait until the next year. Many parents push to get thier children in school early and then the poor little things end up a year behind by being held back. It is very embarrassing for the children and can effect thier school learning greatly.

Where I am, the kids with August (and , I think, September) birthdays often start Kindergarten at about the same time they turn 5. My little girl has an August birthday and I am planning to send her to Kindergarten right away, unless her pre-school teachers don't recommend it. You can always take her out again if it isn't going well. I would ask the kindergarten teachers for more info. How do you measure maturity? I don't have any experience with being the oldest or youngest, personally, but my niece started Kindergarten before she turned 5 (September birthday) and she cried for the first week, but ever since she has been doing really great. She's an acedamically and socially strong 4th grader now. I also know a little girl who sarted a month before her 5th birthday- a very very bright child, too- but they decided it wasn't a good idea because she had some real problems following directions, even with having had pre-school. My close friend started school just before she turned 6 and all through school people asked her if she had been held back a year. She was 18 the whole senior year of high school. She wrote her own absence notes and was able to excuse herself from school as she pleased, but she was always very scholarly. I would just evaluate your child individually and ask for input from her various teachers. Good luck. I'm sure she'll do great either way.

My feeling is that it's better to be one of the older ones than to be younger than everyone else. My friend's daughter went early, and while she did fine in school, she always had to work a lot at it to keep up with her peers. I'm more concerned with public school in general, though, as the peer pressure, bullying, and teaching to the tests rather than providing a true education that nurtures a child's creativity and natural ways of learning are starting earlier and earlier. My daughter is almost 5, and we are homeschooling. If you haven't considered this option, check for homeschooling co-ops in your area. Children in a homeschooling situation who participate in a co-op have the opportunity to socialize with children of all ages rather than just kids their exact age. Montessori schools are also a great option, as the kids are in a mixed age group spanning 3 years, so it isn't necessary for every kid to be at the exact same level, and the kids have the freedom to follow what interests them and to be taught in small groups and one-on-one with the teacher. They are not stuck all day sitting at desks, but sit at tables with 2 to 4 kids and on the floor using rugs to designate their work spaces. I was a Montessori teacher, and I think it is an excellent option as long as there aren't too many kids in a classroom and their space isn't crowded. There is a strong tendency to hurry young children in academics and all sorts of other activities in our society. It's too competetive and stressful. And our literacy rate in this country is pitiful, as is our high school drop out rate, so it's painfully obvious that by and large, our public schools (which are indeed government institutions) are failing. It is more important than ever for parents to be champions for their children!

Hi, J.! As a mother of three children -- who of which are in elementary and middle schools -- I say hold her back. The academic expectations are MUCH higher than they used to be. My son has a birthday on May 18. He did excellent in pre-school, his kindergarten testing was a breeze, and socially, he was more than ready. So we decided to send him. Everything was great until about second grade. That's when everything got sticky. He's in fifth grade now, and has been struggeling since second grade. I would most certainly listen to the kindergarten teachers, because you don't want to end up holding her back when she's in third, fourth or fifth grade! Learn from my mistake... keep her home another year! I can't imagine that you would regret it!! Good luck!

I don't know if this will help or not, but I was the youngest in my class. I started high school at 13 and graduated when I was 17. It didn't bother me at all. I never really thought about it I guess. Only you know if she's ready or not. You know her best.
Good luck!

J., you have gotten a lot of responses and briefly glancing through them, it looks like my experience is similar to quite a few others. I have to recommend waiting another year. Our son started k-garten in Indianapolis at 5 (with a June birthday) and he is the youngest boy in his class. Some kids have already turned 7 which is a big difference. We've decided to have him repeat k-garten - rather do it now than and help him enjoy school for years to come. I only wish we had known the ages of the incoming kids before we had started him! Good luck with your decision.

Hi J., I didn't have a chance to read all your responses, but this one comes directly from my own personal experience. My birthday is Sept. 25, 5 days before cut-off. I did great in preschool, and they recommended that I go ahead and start school, I was 4 when school started, turned 5 a month later. I was fine for years, actually being in gifted classes... until I was in 9th grade. In my school system, 8th and 9th grade were in a jr. high building, with 10-12 in the sr. high building. However, 9th graders could play varsity sports. I ran CC and Track at the varsity level. So, here I was, the summer before 9th grade a mere 13 yrs. old, hanging out and going to cc camp with 18 y/o seniors! Let me tell you, there is a HUGE difference between a 13 and 18 y/o! It became hard because I was a member of a team, but obviously, not allowed to do many, many of the things they were! I know it was really h*** o* me for a long time, just wanting to have something in common with friends and teammates. I was always one of those kids who was mature beyond their years, and ready to be an adult when I was like 12, but that doesn't mean much when friends look to you like a kid! In hindsight, both myself and my folks agree it probably would of been best if we had waited for me to start. I think its very hard to hold back a bright, energetic little girl who wants nothing more than to go to school, however, it's hard to see what will happen in high school, and even the first year of college. I hope my experience can help a little - good luck, I wish you all the best!

Our daughter's birthday is 10/29 and we didn't know we could have enrolled her in Kindergarten early. I taught her preschool at home and she was reading extremely well by the time she did start kindergarten. We wanted to put her into first grade and skip kindergarten, but the principal told me the law required her to attend kindergarten. She was extremely bored with the work in Kindergarten and her teacher really didn't do much to keep her challenged. We went through testing to have her grade-skipped, but the school refused to even accelerate her in one subject(reading) even though she really needed to be. We decided to homeschool her and skip her to 2nd grade this year and she is doing GREAT! My advice is to definitely put her in K.

I would suggest waiting. There is no sense in sending her early with the chance she may struggle due to maturity in the years to come. One year of maturity is huge when it comes to focusing on and absorbing school work. Let her be little one more year.....

Hello J...I just wanted to tell you I went thru this a few years back.let me tell you if I would of known then what I know now I would of done things completely different.My daughter is one of the youngest if not the youngest in her grade. She did two years of preschool and she started kindergarten right before she turned 5.At first she did really well but this year(2nd grade) we have had more trouble and I worry it has really hurt her. She still is less mature then the other children and cries often.She is also having trouble keeping up with the cirriculum.If i could do it over again I definately would wait,and let her be older.Good luck~K.

I was the youngest kid in my class by almost a month (my birthday is 9/29). I didn't have any problems adjusting. Even in high school when it came to driving it wasn't an issue. I graduated when I was 17 and didn't turn 18 till I was in college for almost 2 months, that was a little tricky because I had to have my mom ok a lot of things since I was "of legal age" but other than that the age difference never became an issue. I think my parents based a lot of my privileges on what the kids in my class were able to do (some- definitely not all). Your daughter should be fine. If you think she's ready then I say go for it. If she gets in there and is overwhelmed you can always pull her out till the next year.

My son turned 5 in mid-July -- just a few weeks before the cut-off date. He was in pre-k since he turned 3 and was in a MDO (moms day out - basically preschool) for a year before that. He had been in the Early Childhood program for 'developmental delays' and speech therapy since 3.5 (so he went to the preschool for special needs at the local elementary school). My husband and I were wanting to delay kindergarten a year to give him time to mature. His teachers, the school counselor and the kindergarten teachers talked us out of it. We sent him.

It wasn't perfect but it wasn't horrible, either. His first 2 months of kindergarten were kinda rough. But then something inside him flicked on and he's been thriving ever since. Actually, I think it's been good for him to have kids slightly older than him in the classroom for modeling behavior. He's several grade levels ahead of his classmates in reading, math, science and pretty much everything. He fits right in maturity-wise. He just got accepted to the school's gifted & talented program for next year (it starts in 2nd grade).

One thing that has been rough, especially in kindergarten, is the year-plus age difference. I was astonished to see how many parents held their kids back just because of a summer birthday and that "summer" often included April and May! That means that while my son was still 5, he had kids turning 7 in his classroom. His teacher didn't like that at all... a year is a huge difference in maturity at that age. As she told me "if I wanted to teach 7 year olds, I'd teach 1st grade!". The kindergarten teachers I know love teaching 5 year olds and totally expect them to behave like 5 year olds.

Anyways... my advice is to follow the rules and send them. The cut off date is there for a reason. Some kid has to be the youngest and some kid has to be the oldest.

I would say have her tested at the school she would attend. My sister's middle boy missed out by a few days and threfore she kept him out and he did 2 years preschool and was the top of his class when he graduated. Doing extremely well at Uc now.
Be aware some schools may not want to test. Push for it. Things they will look for is having her draw a picture of herself. She will be give points on what she then draws. Points for 5 fingers on her hands. eyebrows and eye lashes, finger tips, nose holes. Things like that. Buttons on her dress or top. Shoe laces. The list is long. My oldest drew body parts male and female and drew himself peeing. He also drew clothes over the whole body. I was told he is very aware. I was embarassed.
I just read some of the other responses. There is a law that not only whatever age you child strats school they must do kindergarten. I know this is true in Ohio because I volunteer with the kindergaten and first grade classes have for years. One little girls parents held her back because of her age and when they enrolled her they thought she could skip kindergarten. She went half day in both classes and I was told she probably would never get caught up to her correct level. I felt sorry for her and helped her as much as I could. She told me her parents never read to her and she like it when I did. Another thing she never went to head start or preschool. We offer both at our school and it really makes a difference.

I started my daughter in Kdg. when she was 4. She had NOT been to preschool, so the transition to being away from me was difficult. I held her back only because I held my son back for social reasons and I didn't want them in the same grade. The teachers wanted her to move on and she's so bright, she should have. She's 13 now and will sometimes get mad at me for holding her back in Kdg. but when I ask if she'd like to share classes with her brother (their both gifted), she says no. I did the right thing for them, but I know that for my daughter, it would have been no problem to continue on. Do what you think is best for your child.
Good luck :)

J.,
We have gone though the similar situation with my daughter who is an October baby. I wish I could have put in in Kind this year. She is sooo bored right now that I'm going to send her to a private school just for the full day Kind.
Do you have the option on enrolling her in a third year of pre-school? Our preschool offers for days and with a literary lab to keep kids who are around the cut off motivated and learning. I would look at what other options are out there. IF you honestly feel she would do great and be able to keep up go for putting her in Kindergarten.

I started school early (started kindergarten in August and turned 5 in November) and I don't remember having any problems. By the time we got to senior year, we had people all the way from 17 (me) to 19, so the spread was pretty big. On the other hand, my mom has told me she wishes she had waited. We haven't talked about why, but I guess she saw more to be concerned over as a mom than I did as a girl of 17. I don't know if this will help, but I thought you might like to hear perspective from someone who was there and her mother.

I would never advise an early admission. My youngest daughter is one of the youngest in her class and it is very hard. Not only the maturity level but just the social aspect. A couple of her friends have their temporary driver permits and she won't even turn 15 till next month. There are many, many days I wish I had kept her home one more year.
My oldest is one of the oldest in her class and the difference is huge.

From may family experiences - wait. She will be fine now - the issue will come in middle school and high school. She will be at least a year younger than most. Girls are always trying to act older than they are already, and now whe will be the youngest and need to act that much older. She will drive much later and be able to get a job much later. It could also hurt her if she is into sports.

Then you are looking at her going off to college and a very young age - not even quite 18.

I have read all your responses, you got alot of good ones.Just want to say we started our son 2 weeks after turning 5, with the advice of his pre-school teachers, and pulled him out 9 weeks later. And he was in a private Christian school that he had one on one with his teacher. He had all the ability, just not the motivation or maturity. Best thing we ever did. He is doing awesome this year, is one of the most liked kids in his class,( per his teacher), gets great marks, is reading, ect. And on a selfish note, I got to have one more year with him. I truly believe he would have struggled through the years, had we kept him in the first time. And we didnt sent him to preschool last year after we pulled him out of K, we kept him home with us, and we live in the middle of nowhere, no neighbors, and he has truly blossomed. I have a few retired teachers as customers, every one of them said keeping him was the best thing I could have done. I wish you all the best with your decision, you know your daughter best, just wanted to share our story. ( I know boys and girls are different). Please let us know what you decide
God Bless, A.

Hi! I have a son whose birthdate is 8/14. We were advised to keep him back another year in pre-school because of his birthdate. The pre-school teacher thought he would do okay but also thought that he was not ready to sit and do desk work for that long. We did keep him back and it was absolutely the right choice for us. He was more than ready for Kindergarten and the extra year gives him more maturity and readiness than some of his younger classmates. I would recommend keeping her back the extra year.

In one word, wait!! As a former first grade teacher (now a stay at home mom) I've seen many children who seemed ready in Pre-K and even did ok in K, but when they got to 1st grade, truly struggled. You don't want your child to be an "average student" and possibly struggle through school. The maturity level of the child contributes to academics, social skills, etc. It's very important. Trust the Kindergarten teachers. They've seen this many many times and know what's ahead.

Congrats on having a child who's ahead of the game! It will serve her throughout her school years to wait! (Plus, she'll get to be the first among her friends to do things like drive, etc. That's way more fun than being the last!!)

My son has a June birthday; the rule in Ohio at the time was that you had to be 5 by September 30th in order to be enrolled in kindergarten. There was another law that said if your child was 6 on September 30th, he HAD to be in school. So think about it; a child turning 5 on September 30th could have been sitting next to a child who turned 7 on October 1st.

At the time (DS is nearly 21 now) many people automatically held kids with summer birthdays back. Everyone asked me if we were going to hold our son back. My automatic answer was, "No, he's ready." He was practically reading, and very independent. We sent him, and he was one of the youngest in his class.

DS was a very bright boy, now young man, and he did okay. But we definitely noticed maturity issues in Jr. High and High School. His friends got interested in girls WAY ahead of him, and he was kind of left out for a few years. Fortunately, his independent streak made that not a problem, but it could have been very difficult. (and remember, social issues tend to be more important for girls) DS was one of the last to lose the baby face and shoot up in height (although he passed them all, lol!) and he definitely was less organized than his classmates all the way through. This really affected his grades, and he has only just in the last couple years figured out how to study.

Many of the skills needed for school have little to do with intelligence. I would strongly advise you against sending your daugher early. If you really think she will be bored with another year before kindergarten, maybe you can enroll her in a private school for kindergarten next year then put her in kindergarten at the public school the next year. (or vice/versa, if you are going to eventually send her to private)

J.,
As a fourth grade teacher I would advise you to wait one more year before putting your daughter in Kindergarten. In my experiences the youngest students in my class are the ones who usually struggle academically. These students get to a point that they are not ready for the higher level thinking skills that are needing when they get older. I hope this was helpful.

My daughters both have late birthdays. One in July and one in August. The cut off here is 9/30, so although they could tell us to wait, they were both still within the cut off. We started both on time. Both were ready. The smaller one is a little crazy, which comes across to some as immaturity, but it's just her personality. We worked closely with her teacher and made it through just fine. We're still working with her teacher and we always will, she's just that way. You know your child best, is she ready? Does she sit and listen, does she work on her own, does she play well with other kids, can she wait her turn, does she need constant supervision and hand holding or is she self sufficient, is she tuff enough, is she big enough? Those are the maturity questions to ask yourself. My niece started early, her birthday is in November, she was fine academically, but had never been around kids, only adults, and was petite to boot. She was the youngest and smallest, but the brightest. She did fine in the lower grades, but in middle school the kids ate her alive. She couldn't handle the peer pressure and she quit working to prove that she wasn't so smart. She started bringing home D's & F's on her report cards from not turning in work that was lying in her desk finished. Maybe it would have happened anyway if she would have waited, who knows? Personally I like to watch how they interact with the other kids, are they leaders, do they always "play the baby," do the older kids love to "take care of them," if that's the case they aren't ready. The kids themselves can spot the differences in maturity. Good luck with your decision and next year, whatever you decide.

Hi J.,
Our son turned 5 in August, 22 days before the cut-off. We automatically figured he would start when he turned 5. We found out that a little girl from the sitter's who is 3 months older than our son wasn't going to start until the next year. For a moment, my husband and I thought about whether we should hold our son back, too. But, we thought he was ready, his sitter thought he was ready and when he had the interview with the teacher - she thought he was ready. Had the teacher said she didn't think he was ready, we would have considered holding him back. He did get upset that first week - he didn't want us to leave him. But he's doing great - the teacher always has wonderful things to say about him and he always gets good marks on his report cards.

I think it really depends on the child and their maturity levels and I would definitely take her to be interview by the teacher before making a final decision.
Hope this helps ;-) Good Luck.

P.S. I have a September birthday and just made it in before the cutoff so I was the youngest in class. I don't remember it bothering me too much. Now it's kind of neat to say that I started kindergarten at 4 and graduated at 17!

I taught 8th grade for 30 years and my advice is do NOT send kids early. Sometimes things go very well for years, but then when junior school hits so do the problems. Everyone matures and develops at his or her own pace, but it is emotionally hurtful to be one of youngest in the grade level still wanting to "play" when everyone else is transitioning into more "adult" interests. It leads to teasing, alienation, and feelings of "what is wrong with me."

School is so much more than academic development. I had two sons and neither started K until they were six. Both did very well in school and have advanced college degrees and good jobs. More importantly they always had friends and felt they fit in well.

When kids are in high school it helps for your child to be one of the oldest in the grade. It is not such a rush to get a driver's license or all those other milestones. The pressure is not there because there is no rush to "catch up" academically, emotionally, or socially.

I know it is so tempting to enroll early when you see she may be bored with the preschool curriculum AGAIN! But trust me a little repetition never hurt anyone and you can provide stimulating activities at home to keep her interested for the one year that will make so much difference in the rest of her life.

I have never heard of anyone regretting waiting to send their child to school. I have heard all the regrets in the world of those who were sent early or even borderline on time. The problems won't show up now. She'll do great now. It's not till about middle school when the differences start showing. The most obvious is the physical changes that happen in girls at that time.

I have an early Sept boy that qualified for kindergarten (intellectually), but due to his age, I put him in pre-k at the same school. The trick for you would be to find a school that will still be able to challenge her cognitively while working on social skills. My little guy is one of the few readers in his pre-k class. I'm so glad we waited though. There is a big difference between his maturity level and that of the kindergarteners. I'd much rather him be the smartest and oldest in the class than always be struggling to keep up.
You can do lots of teaching at home too. Especially over the summer.
Hope that helps.
C.

My daughter's birthday is 10/04 and she was ready for Kindergarten early. We took her to be enrolled with the information from the Pre-school and they refused her in public school so she went to a private Kindergarten where she did very well and she tested into first grade the next year. Academically she did well all through school, unfortunately the clics had been formed in her school before she started there and she was shy anyway so she didn't have much of a social life until her senior year when we moved and she started her Sr. year in a new school. My son's birthday is 9/7, he made the cut off and was the youngest child in his class. Social skills wise he was not ready and I wish to this day I had held him back a year. He did all right academically as well, but socially he was just not ready and ended up being the class clown and in trouble a lot at school.
It is a tough decision to make, but holding her back and having her bored with school would be a mistake because her grades will suffer in the long run.

I was one of the youngest in my class. I didn't turn 18 until after senior year. I never experienced any problems with maturity or struggled academically. The only time it ever really bothered me was when all my friends started driving and I couldn't. Honestly though, it was no big deal. I was 17 when I graduated high school (I turned 18 about a month later) and I still love to tell people that! :) Would it be possible to start her in kindergarten and if it doesn't work, move her back to pre-school? Will she be challenged enough in pre-school to keep her interested? Personally, if you think she's ready, I'd try, but that's just me.

My son has a 6/12 birthday and he has always been the youngest in the class. I thought it was great to start him when I did but now that he is in jr. high it has been difficult. He still likes to play with toys and watch cartoons and the other boys in his class have moved on to girls and myspace. We are actually putting him in a new school next year, one with less 'world-ly' boys. My daughter on the other hand, with a 10/21 birthday, ended up skipping second grade and has done just fine, but she also has a lot of girls in her new class that are very much like her. So you need to look not just at your child's ability but the school and classmates as well.