An amendment to the Code of Alabama recently signed into law by Gov. Robert Bentley allows children to enter first grade before turning 6.

Previously, the law said “a child who is 6 years of age on or before Sept. 1 or the date on which school begins in the enrolling school system shall be entitled to admission to the public elementary schools at the opening of such schools for that school year or as soon as practical thereafter.”

As amended, any child who is 6 one or before Dec. 31 may enter first grade in the fall of that year. However, the legislature did not change the timeframe for entering kindergarten.