Early Access/ Grade Skipping -- Yea or Nay?

[Cake and Pi]

I've seen a lot of references to research supporting early access and/or grade skipping.  Our gifted and talented resource teacher has only good things to say about it.  But are there any solid reasons NOT accept early access for a HG kid???

 

If your child was granted early access and/or was grade skipped in early elementary, are you happy with that decision?  Are they?  Anything you wish you would have known?  Any less obvious things a parent ought to take into consideration before accepting early access placement?  

[rebbyribs]

I skipped 2nd grade back in the 80s. My combination of slow physical development and grade-skipping was a little weird at times. For example, we learned all about puberty in 5th grade health class, but I didn't get my period until 10th grade. That was a long time to wonder what in the world was wrong with my body. (I was very anxious about that but too shy and uncomfortable to say anything to my parents.) I was also slow to lose teeth, so I didn't have enough permanent teeth to start braces until high school, and I got them off the week before heading off to college. Oh - another weird one was that I was 20 years old when I interviewed for graduate school and not yet old enough to go to bars legally. It turned out to be a bit of a problem when the current grad students were showing us around town and I suddenly realized that my I.D. was not going to get me into the bar with the group.

 

Overall though, my experience with skipping a grade in early elementary was positive, so much so that I never even considered red-shirting my child whose birthday meant that she would start K at age 4.  

[SKL]

If "early access" means starting KG a year earlier than usual, then that applies to both of my kids, neither of whom is highly gifted.  Academically it is still easy for my brighter kid (whose IQ has not been tested, but I'd guess is moderately gifted).  Socially - my kids are pretty "normal" although the brighter one is a bit quirky / nerdy.  They are a good fit for the grade they are in.  Not perfect, but the grade lower would not be better.  :)

 

In 1st grade, there were a few challenging times when my kids acted their age, which seemed young for a class where about a third of the kids were redshirted.  The average age was a year older than my kid.  Maturity seems to play a role in organization and responsibility, but it means the difference between 4.0 and 3.8-3.9, so not really a big deal.

[TerriM]

I think maturity, birthday, and height would play a big role.  If a child is going to be close to the oldest in their class, it's not as big a deal as taking the youngest child and putting them a class ahead.  Similarly with height, if a child comes from a family with tall parents and seems to be on the top of the curve, putting a grade ahead is less likely to feel weird to them as taking a short kid and putting them ahead.

 

Overall, though, maturity seems to be the big question.  Some really smart kids may not be mature enough to go a year ahead, and some are.    It's unfortunate that school requires multiple skills that don't seem to line up for some kids.  Super smart but not mature does not make a good combination unfortunately.

 

I'd have skipped a grade with one of ours who is very mature, social, and gifted, but not another one who was lagging in maturity and social skills and was on the  younger side of his class.   That said, if the latter had been the oldest in his class, I'd have wanted to skip him up, so it turned out to be a good match--youngest in his class.  With my third, I'm glad she is also one of the youngest in her class because it gives her room to stretch her abilities.  If she were the oldest, I suspect she'd be bored.  As it is, she is appropriately challenged with room to excel.

[luuknam]

With my third, I'm glad she is also one of the youngest in her class because it gives her room to stretch her abilities.  If she were the oldest, I suspect she'd be bored.  As it is, she is appropriately challenged with room to excel.

 

 

HG kids aren't going to be appropriately challenged in class, even if they're the youngest, unless maybe they're in a gifted program in a school district full of above-average kids. 

Edited April 15, 2017 by luuknam

[Cake and Pi]

Early access for us would mean 1st grade instead of K this fall at 5yo.  

 

I'm more worried there may be long term reasons for which it might be better to keep him in his age-grade.  College entrance perhaps?  Something else???  I'm probably overthinking this, but I really don't want to miss anything important.

 

He's reasonably mature for a boy of his age, though very intense, of average height, and we have a family history of average/early physical maturation.  His birthday is a few weeks before Christmas, so he'd normally be one of the older kids in the class.

 

He was just tested by the PS and is newly identified HG.  I honestly don't know what to do with these results or how to interpret them.  He scored waaaay higher than I was expecting.  I'm not even sure how accurate the results are since he hit the ceiling on 1/2 of the subtests excluding verbal, while verbal came in 45 points lower than nonverbal, yet the achievement testing they did has his reading several grade levels above math, which seems counterintuitive (to my uninformed brain, at least) if his verbal skills are a relative weakness.  

[SKL]

Personally I don't worry about college etc.  I went to college at 16 and it was a much better fit than high school had been.  :)

 

In your shoes, based on what you've said, I'd put him in 1st grade.  If he's that advanced, I think KG would be torture.

[Gratia271]

I've seen a lot of references to research supporting early access and/or grade skipping.  Our gifted and talented resource teacher has only good things to say about it.  But are there any solid reasons NOT accept early access for a HG kid???

 

If your child was granted early access and/or was grade skipped in early elementary, are you happy with that decision?  Are they?  Anything you wish you would have known?  Any less obvious things a parent ought to take into consideration before accepting early access placement?  

 

Oldest DD was placed in private kindergarten at age 4 (grade skipped, I guess) and it was a disaster because she was way beyond the other kids, ended up being used to teach them how to read and was bullied.  Now she was not small for her age, but she was smaller than the other kids.  So, we decided to home school and use some coop opportunities that might fit her academically.  What we discovered there was that going up 3-4 years in content only put her in awkward situations with "typical" kids, and the level of work was not challenging.

 

What we discovered was that advancing years in these outside opportunities, however significant, just yielded a "higher" level of work but the same mile-wide, inch-deep material that HG kids simply don't benefit from. I might add the social component can become a real issue for these kiddos who are perfectly mature for their age but are not going to be as "mature" as the older kids they are in class with (I guess that depends on how much higher they go.)

 

My brother's boys have benefited from G/T opportunities within their grade level, where they go much deeper in their course work.  I work with his boys and have seen their work. The "regular" assignments are embarrassing, but the pull out class work is quite good in terms of depth and complexity. 

 

So, maybe with your HG child, a combination of maybe going up a grade if possible AND working in G/T environment or with G/T pull-out opportunities within that level might work.

 

 

 

[pinewarbler]

Our primary school decided to accelerate our 2nd child (PG). It was overturned by someone high up the food chain at the school board as part of an 'equity' program based on our country's Charter of Rights. In some ways I was relieved because they insisted they could only accelerate 1 year ever... and we knew he'd need 3 years by grade 8. It forced us to find other options for him (we pull him out of school 3 days a month and the rest of the month he does accelerated math and science at home).

 

A PG / HG kid needs acceleration, but there are items you can consider to decide if now is the time. Eg. Do they have a sibling 1 year older (who'd they be in class with), are very tiny physically, have social issues that you cannot sort out, can they make friends easily, can they speak up for themselves, have disgraphia etc. All of these items are considered in the IOWA acceleration scale, which you may be able to find questions from online.

 

My son registered himself at age 4 for PreK. He walked in, talked to the 2 adults running the registration, gave them all pertinent info and never looked to me for help. They were stunned. I was not. Unfortunately no one thought to put him in SK. My husband and I were burned out from trying to get the 1st kid accelerated, so it was 2 years before his acceleration was offered.

 

The first 4 years of school were hell for him... bored out of his mind and angry with the wild classrooms when all he wanted to do was learn at his level. As a result, our main issue was dealing with the anxiety that resulted from the extreme misfit. Right now, he has teachers who tell me he doesn't have to bother coming to school... he won't miss anything. A very weird thing to hear come out of a teacher's mouth...

 

I'd say the younger you can accelerate, the better, but it is never too late. Worry about high school/college issues later. Honestly, one of our main worries if he'd been accelerated 2 or 3 years would have been having the money for university in time. We knew we'd just attack the others as they came along.

 

 

 

Oh! And my oldest (not accelerated) is in early high school now, and is in the top 1% of her grade. She always works ahead and is now very angry that she has to sit through advanced math and english classes because they are too easy, too slow, too shallow and not taught by a gifted teacher. I can see now that she could go to university 2 years early without many issues. But life didn't turn out that way.

 

Edited April 15, 2017 by pinewarbler

[Earthmerlin]

HG kids aren't going to be appropriately challenged in class, even if they're the youngest, unless maybe they're in a gifted program in a school district full of above-average kids.

That's true. My daughter was an early entrance K'er & was 'challenged' in K--mostly trying to figure out school rules & playground politics. She lucked out & had a seasoned teacher who had high expectations for her. 1st grade, however, was a bust as she learned nearly nothing--due to an ineffective teacher. That year I had to do more teaching at home to make up for school deficiencies. This year, 2nd grade, I see more learning taking place but she balks at repetitive homework & doesn't seem to be truly challenged. Her teacher, though, is kind & understanding. Academcially, I'll need to reach out to the G/T specialist to see if school can stretch her a bit more (we opted out of the G/T magnet program for a variety of reasons).

 

While she's at the top of the class academically, I'd say her younger age shows up periodically in stamina or slight distractibitly. That may be due to her sensitive nature though. Speaking of which, it's her sensitivity that makes her notice she's by far the youngest. For example, peers losing teeth 1st was a concern & so is being more petite than other girls. I suppose all of those childhood markers will affect her as she grows. At times I wonder if I traded in her self-confidence for intellectual stimulation. She's sensitive by nature though so I'm not sure if early entrance created these issues or just magnified them. I'd take into consideration the sensitivies of your children though.

Edited April 15, 2017 by Earthmerlin

[Guest]

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Edited April 17, 2017 by Heigh Ho

[Dmmetler]

DD was entered early to K (although it would have been on-time in some states). It wasn't enough, and one reason we decided to homeschool was because the administrator had suggested a further skip (a double one), and I just couldn't see her as a 5 yr old 3rd grader given the writing expected in 3rd grade.

 

What I found was:

 

For contests, etc, it put her at a disadvantage because she was competing with kids who were a year, or often even 2 years, older (red shirting is common, with some private schools having cutoffs months before the school district, and then parents re-shirting based on being too close to that earlier cutoff), but equally advanced/accelerated in that subject.

 

Outside activities tended to be based by age or skill.

 

Homeschool classes tended to be based by age, to the point that we stopped even trying to do them if they were at all academic, except for small stuff arranged for a few kids by a parent.

 

She is now a concurrently enrolled (fully admitted) community college student while also being a young for grade homeschooled 7th grader. For her, right now, combining her need for outside teachers and peers and higher content, the CC seems to be a good middle school choice. They are very accepting and supportive of her there, she has friends (all of whom are also non-traditional students), and she's learning. If there were a good school/program for PG kids available, we'd do that, but since there isn't, she's pretty happy where she is.

 

My feeling is that for most kids for whom a single grade skip is considered, it's likely to not be enough. But in the short term, and for purpose of setting up a precedent that this kid needs more, it's better than nothing and should be considered.

Edited April 15, 2017 by dmmetler

[slackermom]

My city has limited seats for a 2 year PreK pilot program. Dc got into that by lottery, starting at 3 years and 6 weeks. It was a 2 year classroom, with kids aged 3-5. It was a nice fit for the first year, but dc got super bored shortly after the second year started, when they were no longer the youngest.

We transferred schools twice over the next few years, trying to find something more their speed, and pushed gently for a skip at dc's request, but were told no. We eventually decided in grade 4 that dc had gotten everything they could get from elementary school. It would have taken 2 grade skips to get to a better level, but that would have put an anxious 9 year old in middle school, if any school would even go for that. So, it was time for homeschooling.

[Arcadia]

Early access for us would mean 1st grade instead of K this fall at 5yo.

 

I'm more worried there may be long term reasons for which it might be better to keep him in his age-grade. College entrance perhaps? Something else??? I'm probably overthinking this, but I really don't want to miss anything important.

...

I'm not even sure how accurate the results are since he hit the ceiling on 1/2 of the subtests excluding verbal, while verbal came in 45 points lower than nonverbal, yet the achievement testing they did has his reading several grade levels above math, which seems counterintuitive (to my uninformed brain, at least) if his verbal skills are a relative weakness.

You can undo the grade skip later by homeschooling a year. It is only grade skip into 1st grade. My answer would be very different for grade skip into middle school, skipping 5th.

 

We did a grade skip for DS11 who miss cut off by 3 days. That work out very well because he is an average size for a 6th grader, is only subject accelerated in math while at grade level for everything else. Also he has no wish to go faster academically. If he goes back to brick and mortar anytime, he just need to after school math and enrich science.

 

My DS12 was unofficially offered 2 grade skips in 2nd grade but that would be done a year at a time. My boy has no interest in grade skip and that has worked out well too. He has realized there are many much more talented kids in AoPS forums his age or younger as well as his age peers when taking the AMCs and AIME. He wants to be without the pressure of high school GPA for a while longer. He also wants to go very wide and thinking of three majors. He is hoping to get into Stanford which is commuter distance to us. Whatever it is, he has 4 years more to think about college which is his version of the gift of time.

 

For achievement tests, depending on what was used, it can be much easier to hit the ceiling for reading than for math because some math content might not have been learned. For example my younger boy can read a typical high school text at K but can't tell time nor names of 3D shapes but can solve simultaneous equations and explain exponents.

Edited April 15, 2017 by Arcadia

[Crimson Wife]

My two oldest are fall birthday kids and state law at the time had a December 2nd cutoff for K. They both started K at not-quite-5. The girl was ready to move on to 1st grade at not-quite-6 but the boy needed a 2nd year of K. Not because of academics but because of fine motor skills/penmanship and attention span.

 

When my oldest hit puberty, she hit a wall and needed to repeat 6th grade. A combo of executive functioning skills and needing to start over with algebra 1 with Lial's when it turned out she wasn't actually retaining anything from Singapore Discovering Math. However, she then wound up skipping 8ith and going directly to dual enrollment at the community college at not-quite-14.

 

In hindsight, I could just say that her second 6th grade year was actually 7th but calling it a grade adjustment took the pressure off and that was what we needed at the time.

[rebbyribs]

Early access for us would mean 1st grade instead of K this fall at 5yo.  

 

I'm more worried there may be long term reasons for which it might be better to keep him in his age-grade.  College entrance perhaps?  Something else???  I'm probably overthinking this, but I really don't want to miss anything important.

 

He's reasonably mature for a boy of his age, though very intense, of average height, and we have a family history of average/early physical maturation.  His birthday is a few weeks before Christmas, so he'd normally be one of the older kids in the class.

 

He was just tested by the PS and is newly identified HG.  I honestly don't know what to do with these results or how to interpret them.  He scored waaaay higher than I was expecting.  I'm not even sure how accurate the results are since he hit the ceiling on 1/2 of the subtests excluding verbal, while verbal came in 45 points lower than nonverbal, yet the achievement testing they did has his reading several grade levels above math, which seems counterintuitive (to my uninformed brain, at least) if his verbal skills are a relative weakness.  

As far as college entrance, I didn't have any problems.  I went to one of the top universities in the country and had several good options to choose from.  Probably the hardest thing for me in college was that I had no idea how to study because I'd never needed to do it before.  I hadn't gone to a particularly good high school though, and most of my peers in college had been able to take BC Calculus and AP Chemistry or Physics in high school.  My high school didn't offer these classes.

 

I think the grade skipping gave me a challenging year of catching up, but school didn't stay challenging after that.  My school was able to put me an additional grade ahead for math during elementary and middle school, but then in middle school I had taken Algebra in 7th grade and there was no other math class I could take in 8th grade.  We had a Gifted and Talented pullout in elementary school, but it was pretty much just logic puzzles. 

 

I had a rough time making friends in school, but I don't know how much to attribute that to grade-skipping. It was way easier at CTY and at college, but part of that seemed to be living in close proximity and not having to make arrangements with parents for rides.

[4KookieKids]

 

I think the grade skipping gave me a challenging year of catching up, but school didn't stay challenging after that.  My school was able to put me an additional grade ahead for math during elementary and middle school, but then in middle school I had taken Algebra in 7th grade and there was no other math class I could take in 8th grade.  We had a Gifted and Talented pullout in elementary school, but it was pretty much just logic puzzles. 

 

I've known a number of people (like my younger brother) who experienced this. A major problem with grade skipping is that jumping to tougher material (which can help if you're advanced, regardless of giftedness) is not the same as making material more challenging and deep (which is what a really gifted child would need). I look at my 7 yo right now and, sure, I could (assuming a school let me) put him in 4th grade, where the work is right about at his level. The problem is, he'll still (in all likelihood) move through the standard 4th grade material more quickly than the 4th graders will and end up being bored or ready for 5th grade material in less time than they will. This is exactly the problem my brother had, despite having exceptionally understanding and accommodating teachers: he ended up taking pre-calc in 6th grade (the school was super flexible on letting him take classes at the neighboring high school), took calculus at the hs in 7th grade, but then there was nothing else for him to take. The high schoolers who moved beyond calc just drove to the local CC for higher courses, but you can't really do that in 8th grade, you know?

[Dmmetler]

I've known a number of people (like my younger brother) who experienced this. A major problem with grade skipping is that jumping to tougher material (which can help if you're advanced, regardless of giftedness) is not the same as making material more challenging and deep (which is what a really gifted child would need). I look at my 7 yo right now and, sure, I could (assuming a school let me) put him in 4th grade, where the work is right about at his level. The problem is, he'll still (in all likelihood) move through the standard 4th grade material more quickly than the 4th graders will and end up being bored or ready for 5th grade material in less time than they will. This is exactly the problem my brother had, despite having exceptionally understanding and accommodating teachers: he ended up taking pre-calc in 6th grade (the school was super flexible on letting him take classes at the neighboring high school), took calculus at the hs in 7th grade, but then there was nothing else for him to take. The high schoolers who moved beyond calc just drove to the local CC for higher courses, but you can't really do that in 8th grade, you know?

My DD's K teacher (in discussing the proposed skip to 3rd with me) stated that she was pretty confident she could put DD in any class in that school building, and she would catch up and start being bored in a matter of months, but anything past 1st would be a disaster because "no 5 yr old should have to sit still that long".

 

As far as running out of classes goes, that depends widely on what is available. My DD isn't eligible for DE, but was able to just plain apply to the local CC (and state U) based on ACT scores and "ability to benefit" and start taking classes. She went with the CC because she liked the smaller campus and I liked that it was much closer to home (and our state U is a big southern football party school). Another friend of hers started taking classes at a small private college. Both girls were 11 when they applied and were accepted. It happens. The big problem is transportation-DD's friend takes the first class in the morning wherever possible and one of her parents then drives her to middle school afterwards. There are several parents who wait with me at the CC who are doing the same thing for their public schooled high school students (and the CC has a special "campus access card" that is just for people providing regular transportation to students, which lets us use the library, game room, computer labs, and add money for the cafeteria and coffee shop at student rates). If DD were to go to PS, I'd likely still end up doing the same thing.

[4KookieKids]

I should've been more clear, that the problem in my brothers situation was precisely transportation. Both parents worked and he was young. I expect he could've gotten accepted, but it was half an hour away and there were no ride s available to him.

[SoCal_Bear]

Since I homeschool, I have chosen to keep my son in his grade because he is emotionally sensitive and small for his age. He is right at the cutoff for his grade, so we have even opted to keep him older in the grade rather than the youngest. With homeschooling, I don't really feel that access to challenging materials and rigorous and interesting classes are an issue. When he is older, gaining access to college level coursework either online at in person (CC or university) will not be an issue in our area. We choose go wide and deep rather than grade skip. It gives us time to explore and meander. It is important to us to preserve his childhood and let him be a kid even though his ability is beyond his physical age. After all, as my husband says, what's on the other side of graduation but work. I would imagine this would be an entirely different issue if we were not homeschooling and had to work within the confines of traditional schooling. Everyone's situation has to be evaluated given whatever resources are available to that family.

[Cake and Pi]

...

 

My feeling is that for most kids for whom a single grade skip is considered, it's likely to not be enough. But in the short term, and for purpose of setting up a precedent that this kid needs more, it's better than nothing and should be considered.

 

Yes, I'm pretty sure he'd need more than one grade skipped, but our district does only one-year skips at a time.  There's also the GT magnet, which results in another year of content acceleration while being kept at the same official grade level.  Since the increase in requirements, they've offered early access to only about 0.1-0.2% of the district's students.  The rareness of early access in our area would probably get him attention and special treatment, no matter where I might enroll him.  It really has the potential to open doors.  Though I would like to homeschool him and DS#1 long term, there is a possibility that I may need to return to work soon because of financial pressures.  I hope to be prepared for both situations, while still doing what's best for DS#3.

 

 

You can undo the grade skip later by homeschooling a year. It is only grade skip into 1st grade. My answer would be very different for grade skip into middle school, skipping 5th.

...

 

For achievement tests, depending on what was used, it can be much easier to hit the ceiling for reading than for math because some math content might not have been learned. For example my younger boy can read a typical high school text at K but can't tell time nor names of 3D shapes but can solve simultaneous equations and explain exponents.

 

Both good points.  And I think you're likely right on about the math achievement test; he fits that pattern.  The reading I still don't get though.  I just wouldn't expect a kid with +1 SD verbal ability to get +4 SD on a reading achievement test.

[MamaSprout]

We ran into a wall with our district even with a neurologist advocating for grade skip(s), so we homeschooled. I teach co-op classes where dd is the youngest by 12 months + and most are more like 2-3 years older. It works well, but I can see how it would have been trouble to try to put my high energy, creative kiddo in any classroom, grade skipped or not. ETA- we socially grade skipped dd by one grade, but her on-paper grade is her age grade. This actually works pretty well. She just comes across as a really bright kid in x grade. Her academics are just where she's working with no reference to grade.

Edited April 16, 2017 by elladarcy

[luuknam]

Wrt the reading, I think that might have to do with being so young - at 5yo, if you can read fluently, you can score quite a bit ahead in that, and you don't have to be brilliant to be fluent in reading at 5yo. 

 

 

[regentrude]

Parents need to be aware that early school entry or grade skipping do not solve a gifted child's problems with school.

The child will simply end up in a classroom with older kids, possibly with some gap in knowledge (if grade skip), but once the child has caught up on the material that was skipped, the pace of instruction will again be too slow for a gifted student, and all problems will begin again. It is often the  only thing the school will be willing to do with the child, but it alleviates the issues only for a few weeks and does not address the fundamental mismatch in learning ability.

 

[EKS]

My son (HG+) homeschooled K-4, skipped 5th, did 6th at a small private school (with an additional 2 year acceleration in math), skipped 7th, and did 8th at the same private school (with an additional 1 year acceleration in math).

 

What we found was that the executive demand increased without a concomitant increase in cognitive demand.  After 8th grade, we went back to homeschooling for two years (7th and 8th grade by age).  He is now in 9th grade (with a two year acceleration into an honors math section) at the public high school because he wanted to try "being a normal kid."  Academically it has been mostly a waste of time, but socially it has been good in that he has found a few like-minded friends.

 

There are no easy answers for HG kids.  

[Gratia271]

 

There are no easy answers for HG kids.  

 

So true.

 

[pinewarbler]

I agree HG kids are a pain :lol:  Every decision you make for them seems like a temporary fix. You need to stay flexible and open to changing their academic situation, which is exhausting. Honestly, I just want ONE THING struck off the to-do list that STAYS struck off.

[slackermom]

I agree HG kids are a pain :lol: Every decision you make for them seems like a temporary fix. You need to stay flexible and open to changing their academic situation, which is exhausting. Honestly, I just want ONE THING struck off the to-do list that STAYS struck off.

That's one reason I still hang out here, even with dc back in public school. I can plan, but cannot predict, how things will be in a month.

[JenneinCA]

I agree HG kids are a pain :lol: Every decision you make for them seems like a temporary fix. You need to stay flexible and open to changing their academic situation, which is exhausting. Honestly, I just want ONE THING struck off the to-do list that STAYS struck off.

This is why I don't buy any curriculum more than two weeks in advance. I can't guess if it will still be appropriate. It makes it more expensive because I buy it on sale, but that is better than it being the wrong thing. Again.

[pinewarbler]

I am lucky to have access to one of the best library systems in N.A. so I really try not to buy anything unless it is awesome and otherwise unavailable, and looks like it'll have staying power.

 

The math circle allowed me to afford some more material this year, but there were math books and science materials the kids could have really used, but I couldn't justify the cost that year. And because of the kids they are, I'll never know for certain if they missed out. 

[vonfirmath]

I should've been more clear, that the problem in my brothers situation was precisely transportation. Both parents worked and he was young. I expect he could've gotten accepted, but it was half an hour away and there were no ride s available to him.

 

Transportation is one reason I was unable to take classes in high school at Blinn or Texas A&M, even though I lived in College Station.

[Arcadia]

Transportation is one reason I was unable to take classes in high school at Blinn or Texas A&M, even though I lived in College Station.

I had a chat with a guidance counselor about my 7th grader options for B&M high school. The counselor asked how near the DE options are to our public high school if we choose to let DS12 take all subjects except math and science at the public high school. We spoke about finances so the counselor's opinion was that using the public school and its after school clubs and then paying for DE for two subjects is cheaper than paying for private high school.

 

However we do have a transportation problem as I don't drive and the public transport outside the public high school is as good as none. The nearest DE option to the public high school is a private university which is 3.3 miles down a residential road but it is a rough neighborhood and my kids and I don't ride a bike. So if we choose the public high school for DS12, we would have to pick online DE options. My husband can take annual leave to drive our kids for proctored exams for DE courses.

[Cake and Pi]

Thanks, you guys, for your input.  We've decided to go ahead with the grade skip.  

 

The ECE department granted my request to place him in DS#1's public homeschool charter!  They've never allowed such a placement for an early access kid before, but they were willing to work with us.  So DS#3 will do 1 day/week in a 1st grade lass at a brick and mortar school and be otherwise homeschooled.  I was feeling really ambivalent about full time 1st grade, even at the GT magnet, because I just wasn't convinced they'd be able to meet him where he's at academically.  Now I'm feeling cautiously optimistic; it looks like everything is going to work out just fine.  

[morgan]

I haven't read all the replies, but I grade skipped in elementary school and then completed high school in 2.5 years and I don't resent my parents or the school, however, it seems like most kids that need to grade skip will probably need to accelerate more than one grade to  make any impact. Overall, grade skipping doesn't solve much long term, that is the main reason I homeschool my daughter-even if it is costing me a small fortune :) 

 

I was a late bloomer, and being extremely young made that all the more obvious, especially in the middle school years. I think that is just something to keep in mind. 

 

Entering college early wasn't a problem for me, it was the first time I enjoyed school. In hindsight, I should have gone sooner.

 

On the other hand, I have a sister that is still angry that she skipped a grade and went to college so young.... there are no easy answers.

 

 

[LovesToLearn]

I am so glad things worked out so well for you! I'll share my thoughts anyway for others who may be wondering.

 

In my experience, when homeschooling is not an option, it is more beneficial to do preschool with his age group, and save the grade skip for later. School becomes rigid very fast, and at that point it is terribly frustrating to have to do work that is not academically appropriate, and at the same time be expected to sit longer. In preschool the schedule is less structured, the teachers more willing to work with you, and a kid can usually find SOMETHING to learn. He can read books to the others...

 

He can skip first grade, which is the year that the majority of phonics learning takes place, and also the year with the most boring math.

 

I agree with what others posted - he will be bored at any age, even with two grade skips.  If someone has no other choice, this seems to me to have the least negative effects.

 

Of course, my son was not tested as HG, so this doesn't apply to everyone, but it worked ok for us.

[bluedarling]

You can undo the grade skip later by homeschooling a year. It is only grade skip into 1st grade. My answer would be very different for grade skip into middle school, skipping 5th.

 

 

 

I don't want to hijack the thread, but am very interested what you'd say for my child about skipping 6th.  I'll post a separate thread, so as not to hijack this one.

[Arcadia]

I don't want to hijack the thread, but am very interested what you'd say for my child about skipping 6th. I'll post a separate thread, so as not to hijack this one.

What is your child's potential choice of college and major?

 

I am assuming you are going to be homeschooling whether it is going to be 6th or 7th grade for your 10 year old.

 

DS12 was offered a grade skip into the assigned middle school which has a not so good reputation for social and academics so that played a strong negative into accepting the grade skip. He was also looking at Stanford (commuter) and/or triple majors for college so it makes more sense not to skip so he could have more ground work done for three majors at home before college. He is going to be in 8th grade in August.

 

DS11 isn't thinking about any selective universities and is thinking of aeronautical or mechanical engineering. He would be able to meet the entry requirements for a non-selective university for engineering with his grade skip. Since he feels strongly about being only a grade level behind his brother officially, we let him grade skip.

 

My oldest is now interested in AIME (math) so not grade skipping has ended up being useful since he would have one more year to try to qualify for MOP.

Edited July 11, 2017 by Arcadia