Do premature babies do as well in school as full term?

My friend had a premature baby and he had a learning disability at school and she blames it on the prematurity. My baby was also premature so I wanted to know if anybody has went through this and had any problems with learning issues. My baby was born at 32 weeks.

both of my little brothers were premature. one was born at around 27weeks. he’s only 6 now but he is actually one of the faster learners i’ve seen. (i work with children). my other brother was born at around 33weeks (i think) and he learns just as fast.

premature birth won’t affect your child’s ability to learn. your child may have some "birth defects" (kinda harsh way to word it. sorry) caused by the premature birth and they may make it harder for your child to learn. but being born early itself does not.

15 Responses to “Do premature babies do as well in school as full term?”

  1. PatRob Says:

    I think it’s very possible for a premature baby to do just as well as a full term birth baby. No reason why they shouldn’t.
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  2. MT Says:

    One of my daughter’s classmates was born at 30 weeks. She has tested as gifted and started private school a year early. Her mother is also very, very bright.
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  3. BrightSexyBaby23 Says:

    From what I understand it takes premies a little bit of time to catch up, but unless they were born so early as to have serious damage (which yours probably wasn’t cause they say 30 weeks and after are generally teeny but healthy) then there should be no lasting deficits. I will note that people who have been told "it’s because you’re a premie" over and over tend to not try as hard to achieve even as adults and will say "oh well it’s cause i was a premie"… I don’t think that’s an excuse when you’re 30… So the answer is yes and no. Premies who were born with serious problems generally don’t do as well, but premies who were otherwise healthy may do poorly at the beginning but catch up pretty quickly.
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  4. mr.snopy9 Says:

    well as one a premature teen i did well in my classes now as a junior in high school i have all AP classes AP stands for advanced placement, well my mom said i did have learning disability, but she wasted her time and money for therapy to help me on my speech and motor skills, it will seem hard at first but worth it
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  5. αмαи∂α Says:

    My daughter was born 6 weeks early, and has ADD. She is only 2 so not in full time school yet, but we are planning to put her in all-day daycare and school. We think that it would be best for her to learn with people that do not have learning disabilities and my doctor agrees.
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  6. lulu Says:

    I don’t know.
    It depends with the baby.

    This is a good thought though. I’m sure scientists have investigated that topic already.
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  7. Haley Says:

    I read that it doesn’t affect them long term. Just when their first born they might hit milestones a little later then they should. Ask the doctor at your next apt. but in meantime don’t worry I’m sure it doesn’t.
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  8. Becki Says:

    i don’t think so i mean theres possibilities but it doesn’t mean that every premature baby will haave a learning disability. i know some one who gave bith at 30 wks and there baby is younger then my son and as far as development hes almost as big as my son and smart as ever you would never know he was a premature baby
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  9. Baby Doll Says:

    all the premes i know are smarter than noremal kids
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  10. Welcome Lillian 10/8/09 Says:

    What I’ve heard is most premies catch up by age 2-3 unless they had serious medical issues as well, so they should do just fine in school.
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  11. TTC in February =] Says:

    both of my little brothers were premature. one was born at around 27weeks. he’s only 6 now but he is actually one of the faster learners i’ve seen. (i work with children). my other brother was born at around 33weeks (i think) and he learns just as fast.

    premature birth won’t affect your child’s ability to learn. your child may have some "birth defects" (kinda harsh way to word it. sorry) caused by the premature birth and they may make it harder for your child to learn. but being born early itself does not.
    References :

  12. Amanda Says:

    my son was born premature not in school yet though he is only 8 months old but he is smart for his age he is already trying to walk I dont think it is true that premies do worse than full term
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  13. Katylin is my little angel Says:

    I was premature and I graduated with honors. I am also a teacher. Your baby will probally be fine learning
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  14. Anah leigh Grace's Mommy Says:

    i was born early.
    six weeks.

    and im a a+ student.
    so it should not effect anything.

    something else could have effected her baby.
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  15. mommy to one Says:

    My brother was born at 26 weeks and is now in the 7th grade and he is very, very smart! He does very well in school and seemed to always be ahead of things when he was a baby (meaning he knew his colors, numbers, letters really early on). So to answer your question, I say yes!
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