A New Kindergarten Cut Off
Monday, December 06, 2010
Send them or hold them back? The stressful decision to send or hold-back your fall birthday baby for kindergarten might be over. It's recently been announced that in an effort to narrow the gap in ages and development levels, the state education board wants to move back the cutoff date for kindergartners by three months. Under the new plan, children must be 5 years old to enroll in kindergarten by October 1 instead of the current January 1. The change would result in fewer 4-year-olds in kindergarten classes, allow for more targeted lessons and help close the achievement gap. Connecticut currently has one of the latest cutoffs and this would bring it in line with most states.
The change would be phased in over four years and the decision still needs final approval from lawmakers but is likely to pass.
