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Delayed Beginnings, Jump Start? The Combined Effects On Early Literacy Of Age At Entry Into Kindergarten With Experiences Prior To Entry, Kathryn A. Wilson

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

As the first compulsory grade in the elementary school program, kindergarten is designed to prepare students for the numbered grades. Students are eligible for entrance into kindergarten if they turn five before a state-determined cut-off date. These dates range from the June before the start of school until the January after. Because some states do not require that children attend kindergarten until 6, 7, or even 8 years old, some parents are delaying their child’s entry into the program on the assumption that their child will benefit from an extra year to grow cognitively, physically, and emotionally. The result is …