Try for school admission when kid is 6 yrs(a eyear earlier))

[sanam_bl]

Hi,

I know that the normal age for kids to start school is 7 years and it is possible to try for school a year earlier i.e when the child is 6 years.
Can you please tell me what is the procedure if I wish to try for my kids school when he is 6 years?

Thanks,
Sanam

[Rosamunda]

It also depends on the availability of school places. Your local school might not have spare places for younger children.

Are you trying for an English-speaking school place or a mainstream Finnish school?

Nowadays many of the esikoulu (?) (reception classes, aged six years) are physically located inside the primary schools so I think there is a general move to get children into a school-like environment when they are six.

My own opinion is that 7 years is too late. Why? Because by the time they start "proper" school the gap is too big between those children who have had a rich, stimulating learning environment at home/daycare and those who haven't. So first-grade classes are no longer the egalitarian utopia that they used to be and the teachers spend the first year trying desperately to make sure no-one is left behind. It was different when kids spent their early years playing in sandpits and climbing trees and not much else.

And, of course, starting at 7 means leaving school at 19-20 years of age which means, for boys anyway, not getting into University or work until they are 21, after their military service.

[sanam_bl]

Thanks for the reply.

We want to enroll him in English school, may be postipu as we live in Espoo.
My main concern is since there is so much of demand and competition for geting into English school, we thought we can try for school a year before(appear for test when kid is 5yrs, if he gets it he would basically skip preschool) n see if the kid gets it else he would attend preschool and then again try for the school. In this we would have opportunity twice to try for English school.

But I dono what is the actual procedure to try for school a year earlier.

Regards,
Sanam

[Rosamunda]

The procedure is the same as when they are 6 or 7. But it doesn't matter how well your child does in the test. He will only be offered a place if there is room after all the 7 year olds have been given a place. My son tried for a place when he was six but there was no room.

[Flossy1978]

In this day and age I don't think those English schools are really any better than a Finnish speaking school, unless the parents intend on leaving Finland. Not one single Finnish friend of mine went to an English school and they all speak great English. There's just so much in the media that is English and young kids are picking it up easily.

My son started school at 6. His birthday is 24.10. So yes, he was young. But he's a bright kid and had no troubles doing the work. They teachers will help children individually with any issues. He had to in fact then skip two grade levels when we moved home to Australia because of his age lol.

[cors187]

In this day and age I don't think those English schools are really any better than a Finnish speaking school, unless the parents intend on leaving Finland. Not one single Finnish friend of mine went to an English school and they all speak great English. There's just so much in the media that is English and young kids are picking it up easily.

My son started school at 6. His birthday is 24.10. So yes, he was young. But he's a bright kid and had no troubles doing the work. They teachers will help children individually with any issues. He had to in fact then skip two grade levels when we moved home to Australia because of his age lol.

Whats the sunnybake country feel like now you have climatized?

[CH]

I don't know how it works for English speaking schools, but otherwise at least in Espoo you need a psychologist's evaluation that the child is mature enough for school, and that you have to pay for yourself. Contact the head master and ask him/her what the procedure is for starting a year early.

[Rosamunda]

All the instructions are in this document: http://www.espoo.fi/download/EnglishLan ... ccd9/43533
The last section deals with early admissions.

Note also that Postipuu will be merging with Komeetta and Espoo International and all three are moving to the Suurpelto (Opinmäki) campus in 2015.

[sanam_bl]

Thanks all and thanks Roosmunda, that was exactly what I was looking for