My son's birthday is in June, not to mention bright and mature, so I was hesitant to choose the Connecting year for him. What I was looking for was an extra year to build confidence and solidify his skills, so when he went on to a bigger classroom with less teacher support he would be able to independently and assuredly complete all the tasks presented to him. I ended up choosing this path after careful consultation with his 4s teachers, my husband, and endless amounts of research and reading on the topic. My decision to give him an extra year has been more than I could have expected. His confidence has grown and he has learned so much more than I could have imagined in a year. The small class size and supportive teacher dynamic allowed him to develop social and academic skills in addition to fostering his independence in ways that will affect his learning for many years to come, and for this I am very thankful.