In most states, including Kansas and Missouri, when is school attendance mandatory for children?

In most states, including Kansas and Missouri, school attendance becomes mandatory at age 6. This regulation aligns with the expectation that children should officially begin their education at that age, often in first grade. Establishing a starting age of 6 for mandatory school attendance supports the idea that children are developmentally ready to engage in structured learning environments typically associated with primary education.

At age 6, children are generally entering first grade, where they begin to acquire foundational skills in literacy, numeracy, and social interaction needed for their educational journey. This age is considered to strike a balance between ensuring that children have reached a certain level of cognitive and emotional development while also allowing for flexibility in earlier educational experiences, such as preschool or kindergarten, which are not universally mandatory.

While other ages are associated with specific education levels, such as kindergarten at age 5, they do not represent the age at which attendance is legally required across the majority of states.