Kindergarten entry timing
Whether your child starts kindergarten as soon as they are old enough or a year later, which matters most for children with summer birthdays.
Should we delay kindergarten (redshirting)?
In short: Parents choose between 5 main approaches: As early as allowed; On time; Case by case; Delay summer birthdays; Routine delay. Evidence: experts disagree. Credible bodies or researchers disagree — decide whose guidance you'll weigh. Best settled: preschool.
- Evidence
- Experts disagree
- Best settled
- Preschool
- Part of
- Learning & the wider world
Kindergarten entry timing: what are the options?
Parents usually land on one of these 5 approaches.
1. As early as allowed
The child starts at the youngest age the rules allow.
2. On time
The child starts in the year set by their birthday.
3. Case by case
You decide based on how ready this child seems.
4. Delay summer birthdays
You hold a child with a summer birthday back a year.
5. Routine delay
You hold the child back a year as a matter of course.
Kindergarten entry timing: what does the evidence say?
Experts disagree. Credible bodies or researchers disagree — decide whose guidance you'll weigh.
The US academic boost fades by about third grade; a Danish study found a large drop in inattention at age 7
Sources
What else is worth knowing?
Children near the cutoff date may be the youngest or oldest in the class. Delaying entry, sometimes called redshirting, gives an early edge that usually shrinks over time. Local rules decide how much choice you have.
Questions to ask each other
- When would our child be eligible, and how might that feel?
- What would make us wait a year?
- Who would we ask for advice?
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First published 2026-10-03. Last updated 2026-10-05. General information, not medical advice.