{"id":21933,"date":"2020-02-18T12:28:08","date_gmt":"2020-02-18T11:28:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oudersenonderwijs.nl\/exception-compulsory-education-for-four-year-olds\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T14:56:48","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T12:56:48","slug":"exception-compulsory-education-for-four-year-olds","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/oudersenonderwijs.nl\/en\/exception-compulsory-education-for-four-year-olds\/","title":{"rendered":"Exception compulsory education for four-year-olds"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Is your four-year-old under the duty of care or can you sometimes still keep your toddler at home?<\/p>","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":16407,"parent":20713,"menu_order":9,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"templates\/kennisbank-detail.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[307,293],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21933","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-start-at-primary-school","category-starten-op-basisschool"],"acf":{"inhoud":[{"acf_fc_layout":"inhoud_blok","afbeelding_of_video":"geen","afbeelding":false,"video":null,"intro":"From four years old your child can start primary school. The duty of care does not apply yet. Under some conditions you can keep your child at home. Some schools offer toddlers a tailored education program. What are the rules? What should parents keep in mind?","inhoud":"

Keeping four-year-olds at home<\/h3>\n

When your child turns four, they can officially start primary school<\/a>. At this age your child is not yet under the duty of care. This means you can keep your child at home in agreement with the school without consequences for the duty of care.<\/p>\n

This way your child can first get used to the new school environment<\/a> and the school routine. As a parent, you can choose to let your four-year-old go to school for a few days or half days first. This helps make the change smoother.<\/p>\n

Keeping five-year-olds at home<\/h3>\n

Different rules apply for five-year-olds. As soon as your child turns five, the duty of care starts. This means your child must fully take part in the school’s education program.<\/p>\n

There are some exceptions though. You can keep your child at home up to five hours per week without asking for permission. This can help if your child is tired or has trouble with the school routine.<\/p>\n

If you want your child to miss more than five hours a week, you must get permission from the school principal.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"knop","knop":{"title":"compulsory education and qualification duty","url":"https:\/\/oudersenonderwijs.nl\/en\/compulsory-education-and-qualification-duty\/","target":""},"kleur":"primary"},{"acf_fc_layout":"extra_inhoud_blok","inhoud":"

Incomplete education program for four-year-olds<\/h3>\n

Some primary schools choose to offer an incomplete education program. There can be many reasons for this, such as not enough teachers or too many classes. This means your four-year-old child can go to school fewer hours per week.<\/p>\n

The school may schedule half days or fewer days per week. Keep talking with the school to understand how the program will look and what this means for your child.<\/p>\n

Note:<\/strong> Your child has the right to 7,520 hours of education during the whole primary school period. The school must offer these hours from when your child starts primary school at age four or five. This must also be written in the school guide.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"knop","knop":{"title":"Teaching time & school time","url":"https:\/\/oudersenonderwijs.nl\/en\/teaching-time-school-time\/","target":""},"kleur":"primary"},{"acf_fc_layout":"faq","selecteer_faq":"Kleuterfase"},{"acf_fc_layout":"call_to_action","selecteer_call_to_action":"gerelateerde_onderwerpen_lijst","berichten_met_prioriteit":false,"download_pdf":false,"veelgestelde_vragen_verwijzing":{"titel":"","knop_tekst":"","url":""}}],"banner_subtitel":"","samenvatting":"Is your four-year-old under the duty of care or can you sometimes still keep your toddler at home?","zoekwoorden":"","call_to_action":"contact","call_to_action_2":"geen","meta_samenvatting":"Ouders & Onderwijs is there for all parents with school-age children. Parents can come to us for advice and answers to their questions.","banner_afbeelding":false},"yoast_head":"\nCompulsory education at 4 years: are there exceptions?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Is your four-year-old subject to compulsory education or can you sometimes keep your child at home? Learn the rules about compulsory education age 4 and 5.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/oudersenonderwijs.nl\/en\/exception-compulsory-education-for-four-year-olds\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Compulsory education at 4 years: are there exceptions?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Is your four-year-old subject to compulsory education or can you sometimes keep your child at home? 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