When Twins Start School: Separate or Together?

You’ve always felt confident in your decisions concerning the health and well being of your two little peas in a pod. Until now. With the first day of kindergarten right around the corner, you’re feeling uncertain. Should you separate your twins and send them to different classrooms? Or keep them together under one roof?

Take heart, you’re not alone in facing this dilemma. With good reasons on either side of the education coin, the debate is heating up. Studies show that a majority of parents lean toward keeping their kids side-by-side. According to a recent survey conducted by the National Organization of Mothers of Twins Club (NOMOTC), 43% of educators favor separation. Nancy L. Segal, Ph.D., researcher and best-selling author on twin methodology, offers what is perhaps the best suggestion, “The individual needs of each twin pair need to be considered by both educational and psychological consultants and parents in formulating placement decisions.”

With that in mind, formulating the best placement decision for your twosome requires making a few phones calls and scheduling a couple of meetings. Below are some suggestions of who to approach in order to broaden your perspective, provide new data, and lighten your load.

• Parents of school-aged twins. Who knows better than parents who have followed a certain course of action? Ask what worked for them and their twins, and what didn’t.

• Teachers past and present. Talk with preschool, daycare, church, and playgroup teachers who have worked with your twins. Introduce yourself to the kindergarten teachers where your twins will attend and talk with them as well. Be open to their advice and insights.

• Administrators and counselors at your twins’ school. Ask questions. What are their policies? What is the reasoning behind them?  What do their statistics show? Do they have flexible placement? Is together in kindergarten, but separate in first grade an option?

• Your twins. Ask each one how she feels about staying together or stepping out on her own.  Always consider their feelings in making your final decision. As every parent knows, five-year-olds can be very wise.

• Yourself. Follow your heart. All things considered, you probably know best. Don’t discount your own instincts. Just combine them with the advice you hear from others before following your gut.