Pre-K Kinder Dilema ??

I would go and talk to the speech path/counselor/AP, at the school he is zoned for. I know that where I live if you do not "fail" kindergarten meaning getting an overall "N" on the report cards you cannot repeat it and you are forced to go onto 1st. If your public school is like that then you may want to consider it.
My son has a late July birthday so he could go to K next year, but we are going to hold him back and do a bridge program instead. It is a 4 day program where he currently goes 2 days, more advanced than a 4's pre-school and a little more academic than a typical Moms Day Out curriculum. It may be something to consider. It would give your son another year to develop socially, verbally, etc., but wouldn't have to be a formal private kindergarten program. Then you may be ready to go onto public kindergarten the following year. I hope this helps. It may be worth checking into.
I live in Cypress, Texas if you want to know of the bridge programs I am aware of out here then e-mail me at ____@____.com
Registration for a lot of those programs is usually by Feb. so it is good you are trying to figure it out ahead of time.

Due to a November birthday, my son turned 6 right after entering kindergarden. He is quite mature for his age and very intelligent, but he still loved his kindergarden class. The only problem we ran into was that he got bored because his assignments were too easy for him. He is now in first and they put him in an advanced math class so he stays busier and happier. All I'm saying is that he will be fine to wait an extra year if you think it would be best. You know your son better than anyone and it would be much less stressful for him to be the biggest kid in class than to struggle to keep up with the other kids socially/academically and have to repeat. If he does exceptionally well with school, then you can have him tested to skip up a grade in a couple years.
My nephew has a sensory disorder and, like your son, had some speech delay and sensory issues...by they time he started school, a person not knowing him wouldn't be able to tell, but my sis in law still kept him out of kinder until he was 6 and he is loving it now. No anxiety and socially doing great. She did have him in full time preschool until he started the public kindergarden.
Hope this helps a little. You know what will be best, so trust your instincts.

Check to see if there is a Waldorf Method School in your area. It's the kind of education where children learn gentleness, kind words and caring. Most children I've seen going to the schools using this method are very well adjusted, because they are secure and there is a smooth transition from home to school, because the school enviroment as many of the home like qualities.

you will be impressed with the method and find that they don't emphasis reading until later. Also children repeat the kindergarten frequently. I had two of my 4 repeat that grade and it was the best thing I could do for them.

private is best and Waldorf is better!

Hi P., I sort of have the same situation on my hands as well. My son is the same age. He will be 5 in April also. Well he has a speech impairment also and is bigger than other kids his age and has a more agressive behavior than others also. I put him in daycare when he was 1 1/2 yrs old and from the time he began to speak I knew he was not talking the way he should be. The daycare providers kept saying not to worry that he would correct himself but he never did. I switched him into headstart where he is in a more structured learning environment 5 days a week just like school. He has improved in so many areas. Now there were questionaires that the school sent home and saw that he had a speech problem and they helped me find help for him. They did everything as far as find a company that was covered by his insurance, set up the speech evaluation, and followed through to make sure that his therapy began as soon as possible. He had a speech evaluation and a behavioral evaluation as well. The behavioral therapist told me that his agressive behavior was due to his speech problem. That most children that have a speech problem tend to be more agressive and have a bigger behavior problem because they are filled with frustration because they are unable to express themselves clearly. It only frustrates them more when they have to repeat themselves. Now he has been seeing a speech therapist and an occupational therapist since May of this year. The ot and speech both tie in with the speech problem and all come together to help improve the child in all aspects. Since he has been having therapy he has improved soooo much! His speech is so much more clearer and he has a better understanding of a lot of things that he didn't before. Now before he couldn't say the abc's and repeat it w/out you repeating it w/him. NOW he can do it all by himself. Now mind you he still has a problem with certain letters of the alphabet like L,SH, CH, T, TH, and S is really hard for him along with R, but his therapist has hand signs and things that reminds him how to stress the letter and know where the sound of the letter comes from. She is truly wonderful with him. We still have a lot of behavior problems with him but I don't see that going away until he is fully complete with his therapy(and he is only 4, lol). Needless to say my baby is improving dramatically and has no learning disability. As a matter of fact he is pretty bored in hs now and needs to be challenged a little more but the hs has a lesson plan and cannot exceed it.
Sorry so long.... but we are now preparing him to be tested to enter the vanguard program in HISD. My oldest is in it and with the improvement he has made and how the teachers say he just bored I believe his capable and ready for vanguard. I think he will love the idea if being in kinder with other classes to go to and other children to meet. If you met him you wouldn't notice any problems with him other than his speech either. I think public school is the best thing for him. But I understand where you are coming from. Just keep an open mind and stay positive. He feeds off of you. My son loves it when I slow him down so that I or others understand what he is saying and then he understands himself. Praise him for the effort he puts into speaking and don't think of it like it's a disability. He's ready for school whether you choose private or public. Good luck!

We had the same issue trying to choose private over public. We chose public, just b/c our daughter doesn't adjust well to change and we thought it would be easier for her just to start new with all the other kids at the same time. However, if you are looking for a great private k program, and you are in the Woodlands area--check out First Baptist on Grogans Mill. My youngest goes there for preschool and the staff is wonderful. My oldest still goes there on school holidays. Good luck.