School enrollment or rather another year of kindergarten – the parents of the so-called “can children” are faced with the agony of this choice every year. This is because children are only required to attend school if they have celebrated their sixth birthday by a certain date. In most federal states, this is June 30. In addition, almost 66,000 younger ABC children started school in Germany last year. That means one in 13 school starters could have stayed in kindergarten for one more year.
Early starters and late bloomers
While many six-year-old tomboys yak away without a dot or comma, shy peers still prefer to hide behind their moms when strangers join them. Some preschoolers are already reading, while others prefer to romp around in the garden all day instead of sticking their noses in books. As different as the little ones are, it is difficult for some parents to decide whether to send their offspring to school or allow them to rest for another year. The Techniker Krankenkasse (TK) advises doubting parents to consider not only their child’s physical and intellectual development, but also how independent and self-confident he or she already is.
To enroll in school or not
“To enroll in school or not is not a question that parents should take lightly,” emphasizes Inga Margraf, a psychologist at TK. “Children who are overwhelmed because they start school too early suffer just as much as children who are bored in class a year later because they are ahead of the others.” On the one hand, it’s true that children with early enrollment can gain a year.
On the other hand, studies show that children who start school early are almost twice as likely to stay in school until tenth grade as those who start school regularly. And failure in the first few years of school can be very stressful for a child’s soul. “Children who are already assertive and have a certain inner stability when they start school have an easier time throughout their school years,” says Margraf. School readiness is not just about recognizing letters or counting from one to 20 – it’s also about social skills.
“Holding your own in a class of up to 30 children is not easy. A child who is insecure and doesn’t know how to behave in a group has a hard time in school,” says the TK expert. School readiness, for example, depends on whether a child can talk without fear in a large group and listen without interrupting others. And whether he or she can do things on request that he or she actually finds boring.
In addition, school beginners should already be able to feel responsible. For example, for a pet – even if with the help of mom and dad. It’s also important for little ABC kids to be able to handle criticism and resolve conflicts without using their fists.
