It is estimated that about five percent of children in public schools have some type of learning disability. When identified early, learning disabilities can be treated sooner and children with them can be instructed in individualized methods that will maximize their learning potential. The kindergarten screening tests, although not designed to determine placement, are being used with increasing frequency by parents and school officials for this purpose. Parents who might otherwise have started their child in a kindergarten program are now holding them back in anticipation of the child reaching greater maturity and better being able to handle the kindergarten curriculum the following year. The pattern of holding children back, especially those children who are born during the summer months, has made the parenting decision of whether or not to start a child in kindergarten a most difficult one.
Experts agree that there are no absolute indicators of kindergarten readiness.
Standardized testing in children aged 4-6 is often unreliable, due in part to the fact that normal development in children of this age group is highly variable. When deciding whether or not to start a child in kindergarten it is important for the parent to consider that maturity is not synonymous with intelligence and that immaturity at five years of age is not a valid predictor of whether a child will succeed in later school years. The American Academy of Pediatrics has developed a list of indicators that are useful in assessing your child s readiness to begin school. The child accepts adult supervision and help and easily makes changes when asked to do so. When deciding whether or not a child is ready to enter kindergarten it is imperative to consider not only his or her chronological age and academic achievement, but also the child s physical, social, and emotional development.