I live in Mississippi. I'm wondering if my 5 year old Kindergartner can be held back or if they need my permission

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LoveMyBoy asks:

His birthday is in July so he's one of the youngest ones in his class. There are 2 kids in there whose moms are teachers at the same school so I think his kindergarten teacher pushes the class harder. He is mildly attention deficit but we had him evaluated and his IQ is above average to bright. He's a little immature and as I said has trouble paying attention. The 60 year old teacher is unsympathetic to AD. He can read kindergarten level books. He knows all his phonics and letters. He can write numbers to 100. He can add and subtract. He has made almost all 100s on his spelling tests. His lettering is pretty sloppy and some of his work like cutting and pasting photos is sloppy. She wants to hold him back because he doesn't focus well and he didn't score well on the AIMS test (benchmark test). I think he has learned WAY too much to repeat all of this again. So PLEASE help me I'm so upset I've been crying all day. Can they hold him back or do they need the parents permission?

In Topics: Working with my child's teacher(s), State education standards, ADHD & attention issues

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Wayne Yankus

Mar 23, 2009

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What the Expert Says:

You are a good advocate for your son. You know him best. It isn't a question of 'being left back" but one of going ahead. If there is mild ADHD, nothing will be improved until that condition is remedied. Speak to the principal and ask for your federal entitlement to have a child study team evaluation. While it is not diagnostic, the school's obligation is to provide the best education for him. In the meantime, speak to your pediatrician about the ADHD. Smart boys learn in all different ways. This year's class may not have been the best of situations, but with help first grade may be fine. Your pediatrician may be able to recommend a developmental specialist who can best determine with you and your school system what level of success we can anticipate.

Wayne Yankus, MD, FAAP
expert panelist: pediatrics

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Additional Answers (3)

dgraab , Parent writes:

Sorry to hear about your son's situation and how much sadness it has brought you.

It sounds like you've spoken with your son's teacher about your concerns -- have you tried speaking with the principal? The school district may also have some information about its policy with regard to retention. If you don't have their contact information, look up the school in SchoolFinder and click on the district website link (on the school page, it's under the school's address & phone). http://www.education.com/schoolfinder/

I found a few articles on Education.com that you may also find relevant:

Should Your Child Repeat Kindergarten?
http://www.education.com/magazine/article/Your_Child_Ready_for_First_Grade/

Should Struggling Students Repeat a Grade?
http://www.education.com/magazine/article/Should_Struggling_Students/

Additionally, here are two similar questions from other JustAsk members, that received a variety of answers you might review as well:

http://www.education.com/question/son-repeat-kindergarten-grade/

http://www.education.com/question/retaining-child/

All the best to you and your family as you work to resolve this issue. Hope you find the above resources helpful to the process.

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vico writes:

they need your permission. do not let them do that to hem he is very smart .SAY NO NO NO

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TanyaE31 writes:

I'm sorry about what the school is putting you through. My circumstances are a little different where I was trying to hold my son back as well as a teacher. Anyway the school flat out refused and made my son go into Jr. high. He was in the 5th going into the 6th. I went against the board of directors as well. They still flat out refused to hold him back no matter what I could prove to show he should not go forward. The reasons they had for letting him pass is because of a bill that was passed by Bush called the no child left behind law. I would look it up because I believe it is all states that half to abide by that. My son is now in high school and instead of holding him back they make him take the class he failed the year before as well as this year. He is struggling getting D's and F's and basically said that he would stay in high school until he had all credits even if it took 4 - 6 yrs to get it. So if the law that does this for my child it should also be the same for yours. I hope this helps and good luck. Here is the web add. for elementry and middle school of that law.

Resources:

http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/index.html

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