Strongly considering stretching 6th grade out over two years.

[NanceXToo]

Can you see any negatives to doing that, that I may not be thinking of?

 

My daughter is 10. She started out in public school K when she was still just four years old as the youngest child in her class, as her birthday was on the cutoff date for our district- which was October 1st at the time.

 

The following school year, the district ended up pushing the cutoff date back to September 1st as it turned out.

 

So one day later and my daughter would have been finishing up fourth grade right now rather than fifth, and going into fifth this fall rather than sixth. (We didn't start homeschooling until she was in third grade).

 

While she's done pretty well overall, I did think this year that she may have done a bit better with some of her writing assignments insofar as what she got out of them, how independent she was with them, etc., if she had had that extra year under her belt, but, still, it went well enough and that isn't my main issue.

 

The truth is, I'm looking way ahead to when she graduates from school- whether that ends up being homeschool or going back to public school for high school only time will tell. But when she graduates, if she keeps advancing through the grades now, she'll still be 16 when she starts 12th grade. 17 when she graduates.

 

What if she wants to travel, move out, go away to college, or whatever when she is done with school... I have no idea what she'll want to do, but I keep coming back to that whatever it is she's going to do, maybe I'll feel more secure with it if she's 18, not 17. Maybe she'll do better with it if she has an extra year of age and maturity under her belt.

 

So my husband and I have been toying with the idea of stretching 6th grade out over a two year period. Just basically taking my 6th grade curriculum for this coming fall and instead of doing a lesson in one week, doing it in two, and then supplementing with some other things to round our day out.

 

I can see some pros to doing this, but are there cons, too? (I don't think my daughter will be terribly upset by the idea or anything so that's not a major consideration or anything). I just feel like if I'm going to do something like this, it needs to be now, this year, because I think that as we get into later years she'll be less willing than she'd be now.

 

UPDATE IN POST 52/PAGE 6; EMAILED OAK MEADOW DIRECTLY ABOUT THIS AND GOT A RESPONSE. :)

Edited May 27, 2011 by NanceXToo

[iquilt]

That sounds like a very reasonable plan. She may benefit greatly from extra time before she starts high school work, whether at home or at school. I, personally, have one of this fall birthdays where I qualified for K but then the school changed the cutoff by a month and wanted to make me repeat K. My mom advocated for me and I ended up starting college at 17- I still couldn't get my own financial aid or sign for anything with mom as I was a minor for most of the first semester. I think an extra year can be a great thing!

[ByGrace3]

Can you just take your time through the material, but maybe not half pace, and then move on when you are done? This would allow you to have 2 years of 6th, but still allow her to be challenged with the curriculum. That is the joy of homeschooling. Your 6th grader can be doing 7th+ grade work . . .

[DarlaS]

Can you just take your time through the material, but maybe not half pace, and then move on when you are done? This would allow you to have 2 years of 6th, but still allow her to be challenged with the curriculum. That is the joy of homeschooling. Your 6th grader can be doing 7th+ grade work . . .

 

:iagree:

 

I would be careful not to pace it too slow. It would be a rude awakening when she hit's 7th. You won't have time at that point to stretch it out another year--unless you're okay with her graduating at 19.

 

My dd has a July b-day. Her first semester next fall is going to be some 5th grade level stuff (Hake Grammar and Writing 5, Some IEW materials at a 5th grade level, MM 5, Biology for 5/6 grade). I'm still considering her a 6th grader. It remains to be seen if we add another semester or not.

[meet me in paris]

We did something similar, but did it much earlier. My daughter has a 9/29 birthday and we were in the same spot. Your reasoning is good - I say go with your gut.

 

If you're going to stretch out a 1-year program, I would add at least one really meaty thing to it that will help her in the future. Focus on writing, or Latin, or something challenging that you wouldn't normally have time to do. Then at least you won't feel your extra time was "wasted" when you get to high school and all of a sudden you realize everything you haven't done yet to prepare. :D

[MusicMama]

I graduated high school at 16 and was off the college at seventeen. I did just fine! Gpa was great, and kept my head on my shoulders. However, not everybody is cut out for that.

 

I think that the focus should be on what your dc child's needs are right now. If she will profit from extra review for a whole year, or even just a semester, give it to her. If she is understanding her academic materials just fine, send her on ahead. IMO, I wouldn't hold her back now because you are worried about her maturity level (or your own nerves!) at graduation. If you or your dd aren't ready to head off to college when she graduates at 17, have her do courses at a cc while living at home, or maybe she would have an amazing opportunity to do an internship in your area in her field of interest. I think that moving ahead, if comfortable academically, would give you more options as she grows and matures. Holding her back would limit them. But go with your gut and momma-sense, your know your daughter best!

[NittanyJen]

Here's another approach. There is no "limit" to school subjects out there; we don't run out of things to study.

 

Work at a normal pace. Throw out the notion of grades. It's an artificial device used by schools to track students' progress through school by age and groups. Grade designations are kind of irrelevant to homeschoolers-- I mean, don't we progress in a subject until a student has mastered the material, and then move on?

 

In school, kids get moved along whether they have mastered the material or not, unless they outright fail everything. In homeschool, each subject is handled individually, and a student might be in "grade" 7 in reading, "grade" 9 in math, "grade" 8 in writing, "grade" 9 in the history cycle, etc. So being in "grade" 9 is kind of irrelevant. I mean, if the parents were to want such a child to continue learning until their writing caught up, they could add an additional year to the curriculum very easily-- there are about 500 disciplines in science, and as many in math, so adding one more year of science in math is pretty easy to do :). Adding a specialized focus of study in history to get some depth (say, a semester on WWII, and a semester on the Elizabethan Age) would do no harm either.

 

Just an idea-- don't be afraid to move beyond the notion of being in a 'grade.' Let the idea percolate about just going to school until your daughter is simply done, and ready to graduate. Then for college purposes, call the last four years of her education her high school years.

 

Jen

http://hillandalefarmschool.blogspot.com/

[Crimson Wife]

My November birthday DS is doing "transition" next year and will move on to 1st when he is not-quite-7. It's not academics so much as fine motor skills and overall maturity level. He's just not up to the level of writing and length of lessons that I would expect of a 1st grader. I don't see any compelling reason to continue on to 1st at this point and several good ones to wait a year.

[LisaKinVA]

My late August son is doing a transition year this year. He is just not ready for Jr. High (FWIW, the local PS K wouldn't have taken him due to emotional and developmental issues... they also wouldn't have taken my younger son).

 

My oldest has spent two years in Pre-Algebra as it is, we are doing LoF Pre-Algebra 1 & 2 over the summer (with a focus on 2, for the word problems, which is where he struggles), and then moving on to Algebra 1 using combination of Foerster's, LoF, with a side of AoPS if he finds it interesting. We will do a minimum of 18 months in Algebra 1, but I'm perfectly fine if we need to take 2 years.

 

I am planning out our history work right now. We are doing our home-grown version of VP's "transition class." My focus is really on solidifying the timeline. He's working on the chants. He will be learning the cards, and doing a LOT of reading (with narration). But, I'm not doing really anything in the way of worksheets & tests. I just want him reading a LOT.

 

Science, we are moving forward... we are using a high school text (Abeka) for Physical Science, as he has completed earth science and life science through our state's virtual academy these past two years. I chose Abeka because there was good content, but wasn't to "thoughty." Our focus with this course is to work on developing study skills with 3-level outlines, as well as notebook keeping.

 

Grammar/Compositon... we are backing up/holding steady. This is probably his BIGGEST weak area. During the past two years with the VA the emphasis was on quantity of output... working on quality just wasn't there. I am switching to MCT, but I have an Abeka Language C book to use for reinforcement (if needed), a diagramming book, and Punctuation Puzzler and Editor n Chief also for reinforcement. He can pass all sorts of tests with punctuation, etc... but use of it in writing is wanting (badly). I think DS will do better with the one-on-one discussion using the MCT materials. I also have Killgallon for more composition work help. We will be skimming Island... probably doing quite a bit of practice in Town (writing mainly), before heading into Essay Voyage the second half of the year. IMHO, he needs to be writing quality paragraphs and short essays for Jr. High to prepare for longer works in high school. DS also wants to write a novel, so I am printing/binding the NaNoWriMo workbook for middle school for him to work through. That will be the only "creative writing" he does this year... everything else will be working towards excellent essays. He is not doing spelling... and is doing MCT vocabulary.

 

Literature... again I was looking for something less "thoughty." Every assignment last year had more "thought" and "analysis" than DS was ready for. He balked, ignored, or did such a poor job I do not want to repeat that this year. So, we have selected Of People (Abeka) for our main Literature resource. The questions are straightforward, which my son will find "refreshing." However, he's not getting out of all literature analysis. He will be doing 4 Progeny Press Literature studies (one per quarter). I felt that these would help me "stretch" him, without making every literature assignment a battle.

 

He is also taking Latin (through VP Online), Mandarin (Tell Me More/tutor on Fridays).

 

So, in the areas DS needs it, we are backing up... and taking our time. In the areas he doesn't, we are moving forward, but in a way that is more "developmentally appropriate" for where my son is now.

 

I still struggle a bit with the concept, and keep kicking myself that I didn't ignore all the people who told me to put him in K when he was "of age" despite my misgivings. My "mommy/teacher" instincts tell me this is the right way to go (my mother agrees), but there is this part of me that says... but his "friends" blah, blah. This would have been so much easier earlier :sigh:

[crazymom4]

We did this last year/this year...my older daughter had 2 4th grade years...she barely made the cut off as well and as we looked ahead it just wasn't what we wanted for her future.

 

But we didn't do anything at half pace...I don't think she would have gone for that...we just did different things...or added in some grammar/math etc when we needed...she's ahead in some things...but that takes the pressure off me...I'm very happy we did it. It was absolutely the right decisions for that daughter!

[delaney]

:iagree:

 

I would be careful not to pace it too slow. It would be a rude awakening when she hit's 7th. You won't have time at that point to stretch it out another year--unless you're okay with her graduating at 19.

 

My dd has a July b-day. Her first semester next fall is going to be some 5th grade level stuff (Hake Grammar and Writing 5, Some IEW materials at a 5th grade level, MM 5, Biology for 5/6 grade). I'm still considering her a 6th grader. It remains to be seen if we add another semester or not.

This sounds like us. Mine is a young 5th grader and we are moving at her pace. I plan on doing upper grammar work with her with a touch of middle school level with her next year. I think taking 1 1/2 years sounds good but 2 may be way too long.:)

[Ellie]

I wouldn't do it.

 

Graduation from high school is based on completion of a course of study, not age or maturity. If she's young when she graduates, she can stay home a year.

 

She knows what grade she's "in." People at church or friends or grandparents--they know what grade she's "in." Holding her back is the same thing as flunking her in their minds. Don't do it.

[NCJessieRN]

Can you see any negatives to doing that, that I may not be thinking of?

 

My daughter is 10. She started out in public school K when she was still just four years old as the youngest child in her class, as her birthday was on the cutoff date for our district- which was October 1st at the time.

 

The following school year, the district ended up pushing the cutoff date back to September 1st as it turned out.

 

So one day later and my daughter would have been finishing up fourth grade right now rather than fifth, and going into fifth this fall rather than sixth. (We didn't start homeschooling until she was in third grade).

 

While she's done pretty well overall, I did think this year that she may have done a bit better with some of her writing assignments insofar as what she got out of them, how independent she was with them, etc., if she had had that extra year under her belt, but, still, it went well enough and that isn't my main issue.

 

The truth is, I'm looking way ahead to when she graduates from school- whether that ends up being homeschool or going back to public school for high school only time will tell. But when she graduates, if she keeps advancing through the grades now, she'll still be 16 when she starts 12th grade. 17 when she graduates.

 

What if she wants to travel, move out, go away to college, or whatever when she is done with school... I have no idea what she'll want to do, but I keep coming back to that whatever it is she's going to do, maybe I'll feel more secure with it if she's 18, not 17. Maybe she'll do better with it if she has an extra year of age and maturity under her belt.

 

So my husband and I have been toying with the idea of stretching 6th grade out over a two year period. Just basically taking my 6th grade curriculum for this coming fall and instead of doing a lesson in one week, doing it in two, and then supplementing with some other things to round our day out.

 

I can see some pros to doing this, but are there cons, too? (I don't think my daughter will be terribly upset by the idea or anything so that's not a major consideration or anything). I just feel like if I'm going to do something like this, it needs to be now, this year, because I think that as we get into later years she'll be less willing than she'd be now.

 

 

We are doing this with my son. Where we lived prior he made the cut off by 4 days but then they changed the date to Sept. 1st as well. He was 4 when he went to private K. We moved to SC where, if in PS, he would be finishing 2nd. We decided we would go with that. So we are really doing 3rd. for 2 years. I also didn't want a 17 year old graduate or him to be the youngest in his "grade". (For co-op and church they use the grade level.)

[Crimson Wife]

She knows what grade she's "in." People at church or friends or grandparents--they know what grade she's "in." Holding her back is the same thing as flunking her in their minds. Don't do it.

 

If she has an October birthday, then it is not at all clear which grade she "ought" to be in. Some fall birthday kids will be in the higher grade, and others in the lower grade. It's quite common for them to start out in the higher grade but do a "transition" year along the way. Most of the local schools here offer formal "transition" classes for fall birthday kids between K & 1, 5 & 6, or 8 & 9.

[kristinannie]

My birthday is Nov 6 and I was 17 when I started college. I was pretty mature so that wasn't the issue. I never had problems with classes. However, it would have been nicer to be one year older in high school or college. I think it is a good idea to give her that extra year, especially if she is struggling at all with her studies. I wish I would have had it. However, have you thought about just taking 4 years to do 6-8? That way, it won't feel like she is repeating a year. You could just add some supplemental stuff in there to keep her excited about learning, but just focus a lot more on writing or any other areas that she needs help in or is extra interested in.

[Ellie]

If she has an October birthday, then it is not at all clear which grade she "ought" to be in. Some fall birthday kids will be in the higher grade, and others in the lower grade. It's quite common for them to start out in the higher grade but do a "transition" year along the way. Most of the local schools here offer formal "transition" classes for fall birthday kids between K & 1, 5 & 6, or 8 & 9.

But she has already spent 5 years on this specific grade-level path. It *will* be obvious to some that she didn't move on to the next grade level when she should have.

 

IMO, once a child starts on a specific track grade-level-wise, he should stay on that track.

 

I understand the whole thing about birthdays and grade levels and some dc being "older" and "younger" depending on which state they live in and the cut-off dates and the while thing. Nevertheless, I remain unmoved in my opinion: once a child starts on a specific track, he should stay on that track.

[melmichigan]

My oldest DD has AS, she started K when she was 4. We thought about this a lot this year, technically because she started PS she would be in sixth grade this year and would start 7th next year as an 11 year old. Academically for the most part she is even more advanced with the exception of her writing, which is more immature (this is our focus next year). We are going to just keep working at whatever level she is at. If come high school she needs more time before college we will just work through another year, with whatever materials that might be.

Edited May 23, 2011 by melmichigan

[In2why]

But she has already spent 5 years on this specific grade-level path. It *will* be obvious to some that she didn't move on to the next grade level when she should have.

 

IMO, once a child starts on a specific track grade-level-wise, he should stay on that track.

 

I understand the whole thing about birthdays and grade levels and some dc being "older" and "younger" depending on which state they live in and the cut-off dates and the while thing. Nevertheless, I remain unmoved in my opinion: once a child starts on a specific track, he should stay on that track.

 

 

I basically agree. But what does your daughter think? This is one situation where I think it is important that she understand and agree, because if not it would be easy for her to feel like a failure or that homeschooling is a failure for her, even when we as adults know that isn't the case.

I am in the same situation. My son's B-day is late August, and he is ADHD. We brought him home in the middle of 1st grade. He is handling 2nd grade work, but I feel he will at some point need a transistion year to keep with the classical path. I am teaching to his level and choosing materials that I feel give him a solid foundation, so I am going to wait until we can have a conversation with him about grade levels, and keep on hold for right now because of the issues I think could develop, by "holding him back" or what all the kids call "failing a year".

[Amanda_Jo]

My vote would be to allow her to work at her own pace and she where she goes. You can call her any "grade" level you are comfortable with.

 

My daughter is much the same as yours only younger. Her birthday is Oct 3rd and in our district the cut off was Oct 15th. (turned out that one year later our district also changed the cutoff to Sept 1st).

We choose to let our daughter work at her own pace, but knowing that I didn't want a 16 year old senior I have always called her grade level to be one less than the district would have allowed.

So right now I have a "1st grader" who's subject books all have a number 2 on the outside. Technically she's a 1st grader, but all her school work is at least a 2nd grade level.

Next year all her materials are 3rd grade level, but she'll be called a 2nd grader. That way at church I have her in with the age level of peers I prefer and should we even send her back to public school I can then keep her with the younger grade or I can skip her up one then.

[Mosaicmind]

We are doing 5th grade over two years for DS/11. He would be going into 6th next year but because he would be "young" and other issues I have decided to keep him in 5th grade work next year too. I will probably add some 6th grade stuff in with his stuff but for the most part he will be doing mostly 5th grade work. I feel this huge weight lifted off my shoulders because we are doing this.

[texasmama]

I don't think there is a "wrong" answer to this really. My thoughts are that I would keep her academically on track with whatever level she is working at and let the chips fall where they may. My personal bias is not to slow down or speed up a child solely based on chronological age/grade level. (Not that that is what you are doing.) If my kids finish up their high school curriculum "early", then there are many options for them, including community college.

 

BTW, my dd in private school will be 17 when she graduates from high school because she has a very late summer birthday. It has not ever been an issue, even though she has always been in private school and never homeschooled. She has been mature enough emotionally and has handled the academic work well. Some kids wouldn't, but she is one who has.

 

In these cases, I usually go with the route of giving the most options at the end of the path, which would lead me to keeping her on track. However, if you feel that a year has always been missing due to her early entry into school, by all means feel free to slow down and enjoy the ride. I don't know if that helps at all but maybe it gives you some things to stir up in your brain as you make your decision.:001_smile:

[NanceXToo]

My vote would be to allow her to work at her own pace and she where she goes. You can call her any "grade" level you are comfortable with.

 

My daughter is much the same as yours only younger. Her birthday is Oct 3rd and in our district the cut off was Oct 15th. (turned out that one year later our district also changed the cutoff to Sept 1st).

We choose to let our daughter work at her own pace, but knowing that I didn't want a 16 year old senior I have always called her grade level to be one less than the district would have allowed.

So right now I have a "1st grader" who's subject books all have a number 2 on the outside. Technically she's a 1st grader, but all her school work is at least a 2nd grade level.

Next year all her materials are 3rd grade level, but she'll be called a 2nd grader. That way at church I have her in with the age level of peers I prefer and should we even send her back to public school I can then keep her with the younger grade or I can skip her up one then.

 

But then what will you do when she's a senior? Call her a 12th grader doing college level work? (I don't mean that in a snarky way at all by the way!!) Do you worry that when she gets to be that much older she's going to consider herself a 16 year old senior anyway and not want to "repeat" or extend 12th grade once she feels like she's "done"? That's kind of what I meant when I said that I felt like if I was going to do it, this would be the time, because once she gets to the teen years, I don't think she'd be as likely to tolerate the idea as well.

 

None of my family would have a problem with my decision, I don't think. They wouldn't see it as her being "left back," I am pretty sure they would all understand. Like I said, if she'd been born one day later she'd be in a lower grade anyway. They know that.

 

She could continue to be in all of the same extra curricular activities she is currently in with the same kids she is currently in them with. In Girl Scouts she'd continue moving on with the group she's in now, and nothing else is grade dependent. So I don't necessarily agree that once you start out in a "grade system" you have to stay on that track or it would cause problems with things like that.

 

As for moving half pace, while I would do the "official" 6th grade curriculum over a two year period (which is heavy on reading and writing), I would also supplement with other things in the meanwhile so it wouldn't be like two ridiculously light years followed by being overwhelmed in 7th grade.

Edited May 23, 2011 by NanceXToo

[texasmama]

Nance, something to keep in mind, also, is that many public schooled kids finish high school prior to the traditional age of 18.

 

I am an adjunct professor at a local university, and I had a student in my class last semester who graduated from high school (public) at the age of 16. She began college work immediately, and she will finish up her masters degree at the age of 20. I'm sure there are some cons to this plan, but she is a good student and a responsible person who just moved at her own pace through the educational system.

[tinkgumby]

I'm going the opposite direction - I didn't start my son in K until he had just turned 6, and now I'm looking ahead to the fact that he'll be starting his senior year as he's turning 18, when he'd most likely rather be going and getting a job and starting college. I'm probably going to end up moving him UP a grade (though I agree with the earlier poster that grades are arbitrary, and the idea is to have them work at whatever level most suited to them in each subject).

 

Also, I started my own senior year at 16 and graduated at 17. I don't regret that at all. I still stayed at home, so it's not like I was kicked out just because I graduated. ;)

 

I would personally hesitate doing anything that would FORCE your daughter to school another year if you don't think it's necessary (as in she's floundering in the material you're covering).

[Omma]

In Connecticut, the cutoff is still January 1st!!!! So while psychologically you feel that she is only one day from the cut-off, it may help to realize that there are other states out there with much later cutoffs. Thus, there are lots of students 'out there' who are graduating at age 17, just like one poster mentioned. I will add that I think Connecticut is in the process of switching their cutoff to October 1st, but that may not be until 2017 (not sure exactly).

 

We did decide to have our dd 'repeat' 1st grade for social reasons. We did it because she kept telling us that she didn't like being the youngest in everything. She is happy now, and yet we are all still somewhat confused and wishy washy as to what grade she is actually in. She is just finishing 3rd grade but all her subjects are 4th grade (except math which is 5th grade). I can remember her asking me if she'd have to 'repeat' any other grades besides 1st, so it was a bit of an issue for her at the time.

 

I can tell you that my dd's birthday is the end of November, and I did research a couple of years ago and discovered that she wouldn't have had the option of which year she wanted to start school in 4/5ths of the states in this country. That means that she would've still had the option in 1/5 of the states (meaning that the cutoff was later than her late Nov. birthday).

 

As to your situation, I would agree that it is important that your family thinks through some of the issues with either scenario and decide what option you all feel most comfortable with. But you also need to decide if this decision is firm or are you going to later toy with the idea of changing the grade yet again later on, and make sure your dd knows and agrees with this, too!

 

Whether we like it or not, our society as a whole is wrapped up in this whole grade thing, even though we as homeschoolers are not. 6th grade is a lot later to change the grade than 1st grade, and there will be some effects to making this change. Just try to think them through beforehand.

 

Blessings,

 

Brenda

[wapiti]

In this situation, I think it would be difficult to avoid the child viewing this action as holding her back. That has ramifications. I personally would not do it without extremely good reasons regarding why this extra year would have very specific significant benefits to her academically at this time.

 

The truth is, I'm looking way ahead to when she graduates from school- whether that ends up being homeschool or going back to public school for high school only time will tell. But when she graduates, if she keeps advancing through the grades now, she'll still be 16 when she starts 12th grade. 17 when she graduates.

 

What if she wants to travel, move out, go away to college, or whatever when she is done with school... I have no idea what she'll want to do, but I keep coming back to that whatever it is she's going to do, maybe I'll feel more secure with it if she's 18, not 17. Maybe she'll do better with it if she has an extra year of age and maturity under her belt.

 

And what if she's ready? It's kind of difficult to predict what the situation will be in five years. For me, this would be nowhere near enough reason to hold her back at this time. Not even in the ballpark. (Doing 6th grade over two years is, IMO, holding her back.) Of the handful of people I know IRL who were young for grade with fall b-days, including a brother with an Oct b-day who went off to college just before turning 18, as well as one of my long-time babysitters, there were NO issues. The older kids get, the less difference a few months makes. (Until very recently when my mother mentioned it in a conversation about kindergarten, I never even realized my brother was young for grade; now he's 40 :lol:).

[warneral]

I would keep on the same path and then decide when she's in high school whether you want to extend her schooling another year. Travelling - what about a study abroud during high school? What about taking classes in the community college when she graduates and help her actually get credits for what she is learning so that when she goes on to another school she can be further ahead?

[G5052]

My youngest is also close to the cutoff, and I've always chosen to hold her "back" to the public school grade she would be in even though she is doing advanced work in almost every subject and looks older than she is. For 6th she's actually using some 7th and 8th grade materials, but that really doesn't matter. The important thing is that she is working to her potential and we can adjust the grade later if we want to.

 

If you can "deepen" while spreading things out, that would be OK, but I wouldn't back off academically any.

[tinkhs]

Based on your curriculum choice and previous threads I have poured over, OM 6 is a year people have stretched out without many problems. In fact, on the yahoo group I lurk on, this is more common. Go with your gut, mom, don't worry about what other people think.

[LisaKinVA]

To the OP... I did give my son an option. I put out the materials for 7th grade, and the materials for a transition year. We talked about it. We discussed what it meant (essentially not moving into 7th grade for another year). And he opted to do the transition year.

 

He is really looking forward to it. Of course, he is seriously burned out from the past two years in the Virtual Academy, and all of the output that was required (not all that necessary IMHO). There were some issues that we are facing due to the VA that probably played into his decision.

 

At this point, we aren't worried about when he'll graduate. The only requirement I have for my son is that he completes all 6 levels of Omnibus. If he wants to work a bit harder and complete 6 levels in 5 years, that's his choice. If he wants to delay graduation and take a bit more time, that is also his choice. He understands this. And he knows he will have to make a decision in the next 4 years as to how he wishes to proceed.

 

Our "cut off" for determinining his official graduation date will be when he sits for the PSAT. He gets two tries at that test, once as a practice in a declared "10th" grade and the "final" PSAT in "11th" grade. (Using the National Merit Scholarship Competition timing as a guideline).

 

In the meantime, I'm simply doing my best to create a transition year that focuses on the skill-gaps we've identified, but still allowing him to move at his own pace. I have registered him on our intent forms as a 6th grader (to give us that extra year, if needed). I know he will grow and mature a lot between 11 and 15. But right now, everyone in our family thinks he's in a "grade lower" because he seems that much younger than his friends cousins who are completing 6th grade (in NC, AR, MO and here in VA).

[robsiew]

Personally, I would just move at a pace that suits her. Don't worry about what grade she's in... really, it's just a label. You may want to figure out what you're going to call her (5th grader or 6th grader) for outside activities, but as far as her work goes... just let her move at her own pace through her work. That's the beauty of homeschooling. "6th grade" can look different even within a family.

 

Our youngest is a Kindergartener this year, but he turned 5 the day before the official cut-off for PS here. I love that we're homeschooling because he can work do his work at a 1st grade level, yet he's officially a K'er. I'm guessing one of these years we'll hold him back within his community activities if needed for maturity reasons, however I won't adjust his school work to reflect "holding him back" unless it's really needed (ie. he's struggling)

[leeannpal]

But she has already spent 5 years on this specific grade-level path. It *will* be obvious to some that she didn't move on to the next grade level when she should have.

 

IMO, once a child starts on a specific track grade-level-wise, he should stay on that track.

 

I understand the whole thing about birthdays and grade levels and some dc being "older" and "younger" depending on which state they live in and the cut-off dates and the while thing. Nevertheless, I remain unmoved in my opinion: once a child starts on a specific track, he should stay on that track.

 

Even if the child is struggling and it is in his or her best interest to change?

[wapiti]

Even if the child is struggling and it is in his or her best interest to change?

 

Maybe this isn't what your comment was addressing, but in this particular case, it doesn't appear that the child is struggling:

 

While she's done pretty well overall, I did think this year that she may have done a bit better with some of her writing assignments insofar as what she got out of them, how independent she was with them, etc., if she had had that extra year under her belt, but, still, it went well enough and that isn't my main issue.

 

The truth is, I'm looking way ahead to when she graduates from school

[QueenieReighn]

I would just add in AP classes in things she's interested in during HS so that it results in a slow down by doing advanced work. Another option is taking a few college classes at the local cc in the same way as AP classes I just mentioned.

[Mosaicmind]

I wouldn't do it.

 

Graduation from high school is based on completion of a course of study, not age or maturity. If she's young when she graduates, she can stay home a year.

 

She knows what grade she's "in." People at church or friends or grandparents--they know what grade she's "in." Holding her back is the same thing as flunking her in their minds. Don't do it.

 

Colleges won't care unless she is held back in highschool. I know because we did it with one of ours and she is now in college with full ride. No one cared that we held her back in grade school.

[Ellie]

Zactly.

[Matryoshka]

My dd is also 10. She has a December birthday (we have a Sept. 1st cutoff). I've been reporting her a grade ahead - so she'd be going into 6th in the fall if we kept with the current plan.

 

She's not really having any trouble with the level of the work, especially in math. She takes the Stanford every year at her reported grade and tests above average. But in many ways, she's actually young for her age. She gets along much better with the kids her age (going into 5th). I also look ahead to when she graduates (though I also graduated young, and used that opportunity to take a gap year abroad).

 

So I'm seriously considering reporting her as a 5th grader for the second year in a row. But... I am not planning on changing anything in her curriculum, or the pace at which we go through it. She'd just be an "advanced" 5th grader rather than a more average 6th grader. I think she needs the time to mature. I'm still not clear how I'm going to tell the school - I'm thinking I might just call and give them a heads-up so they don't wonder when they get my report. I can't think they can really have a problem with me reporting her as her grade-age. She's still made the exact same progress this year; I'd just be changing the number.

[LisaKinVA]

Honestly, the level at which a child is working is only one factor that is used to determine the ability to "skip" a grade in the public school system... and for homeschoolers really shouldn't factor into the equation at. all.

 

Most children in our district aren't "held back" from Kindy for lack of academic preparations, but due to social, emotional, and developmental (fine motor development, for example) readiness. Can the little boy sit still for an hour? Can the child hold a pencil properly? Can s/he skip? Boys are *much* more likely to be delayed for entry into our Kindy system tham girls for these reasons.

 

I've said this before on other threads, and it bears repeating. A child may be academically ready for K, and seem pretty advanced. However, there may be maturity issues or other developmental issues which lag behind. A parent may be aware of some immaturity, or developmental delays, but because a child can read, and is picking up basic math skills easilly, we brush aside all doubt and plow forward.

 

The fact is, in the homeschooler's world, we can accomodate quite a bit to make up for the lack of maturity or developmental delays. And for may years, these children do very well. But then, something happens around the 5th-7th grades. The child begins to really struggle with the output. It may be a struggle with quantity, it may be a struggle with the more "thoughty" questions required of the logic stage (vs. basic comprehension skills), and it could be both.

 

A child doesn't enter the "logic stage" simply becuase that's the "next level" in the curricula. Or because s/he turns 11 or 12. People mature at different rates... some will be ready for the logic stage early, and some will be on the later side. Even bright, or moderately to highly gifted children can have issues with maturity and developmental issues.

 

Transition isn't about "holding a child back" because they aren't performing academically (although they might not be)...it's about giving individual children the time they need to catch up -- whether that's developmentally, cognitively, emotionally (maturity), and/or academically.

[Wee Pip]

Nance - I've been reading your blog because I recently picked up OM 5 & wanted to see how OM plays out:) OM 5 seems so gentle, although it does have a lot of writing assignments. I'm sort of using OM 5 as my guideline for both my 3rd & 5th gr DDs, but tweaking it so much I'm not sure I can put OM 5 in my sig, lol. Anyhow, I say that because I also have a 10yo dd with an Oct birthday. Our cut-off here is Dec 1st. My poor dd has bounced between 2 grade levels for years now. Next year, she'll be 6th gr at AWANA. At VBS this summer, she'll probably be in the 5th gr group (the older age group has all the boys! So I've found she's happier to be a grade level behind at VBS, where all the girls are). She repeated 2nd grade because she just wasn't reading & there were so many struggles. But now her reading level is well beyond 6th gr level. Last year, I tested her at the 3rd gr level, but this year decided to try the 5th gr test. I don't know. It's hard to place her:) I just explain to her what our cut-off is, that other states have different cut-offs, and then I give her those 2 choices based upon the situation that comes up. I tell her she's lucky because she gets to pick which gr level. She seems to accept this. The great thing about having a 10yo now is that she can work with me on planning her schoolwork. She tells me when something is too easy or if she needs more time/practice on something. I love this! So I guess what I'm saying is: I'm doing what I can to go at her pace, whatever the situation is. I don't know what her future holds, but I want to go with the flow for whatever opportunities arise. As homeschool moms, we see those last 4 years of high school as the Defining Years. We gear our whole thinking around Transcripts & Credit Hours so that our kids can go to college at age 18. But so many times, our kids get an awesome opportunity to skip the last 2 years of high school and go to college. Or, they get an amazing opportunity to gain work experience in their chosen field. I'm coming to the conclusion that it really doesn't matter when graduation happens:tongue_smilie: Even some of the public schools around here are offering kids a program to get high school + an Associates degree through 5 years of study at the high school (with some classes earning college credit). I think the lines between grade levels, high school, & college are blurring. So I wouldn't worry about it all now. I've seen homeschool families toss in an extra year of home study - if you decide later on that you need to do that, you can probably work the transcript to show a later 4 years of high school rather than an earlier one. Likewise, if OM 6 jumps up in workload & it works out better to do it in 2 years rather than 1, I'm sure you can rework things later on if your dd turns 16 and is ready to begin college (or at whatever age). IOW, I don't think you're stuck, either way.

[Elfinlady]

 

So I'm seriously considering reporting her as a 5th grader for the second year in a row. But... I am not planning on changing anything in her curriculum, or the pace at which we go through it. She'd just be an "advanced" 5th grader rather than a more average 6th grader.

 

This is exactly what I'm planning to do with my DD, going into the fifth grade in fall. She has an August birthday, and was always the youngest in the class, because she barely made the cutoff. I think the extra year will be very good for her.

[Paisley Hedgehog]

nm

[melmichigan]

My oldest DD11 is going into 7th with a Novemeber birthday, she started K at 4yo. If you are just planning to continue along with the curriculum why does the decision have to be made now to hold a child back? If you report the last 4 years of work as high school on the transcript how would a college have any idea if your child did an extra year or not? If they just need the maturity then why not wait and see what happens? :) (I spent a lot of time talking to the neuropsych and the social worker about this for my DD so I am sincere in my questions.)

[mamatohaleybug]

Can you just take your time through the material, but maybe not half pace, and then move on when you are done? This would allow you to have 2 years of 6th, but still allow her to be challenged with the curriculum. That is the joy of homeschooling. Your 6th grader can be doing 7th+ grade work . . .

 

This was my thought as well.

[NanceXToo]

It's kind of hard to explain my thoughts. My daughter is not behind on her curriculum per se so it's not like I have to hold her back academically. (She's doing well with math this year, she's a good reader, a natural speller, does fine with vocab and grammar type assignments independently and so on).

 

On the other hand there are some aspects of her curriculum (especially independent research/writing which she needs a good bit of handholding and prompting with as of now- which is also the case when it comes to organizational skills) that I think she WOULD do better with if she were that year older, wiser and more mature (and those types of assignments will play an even bigger part next year in OM6).

 

I don't want to just call her a ___ grader working at the grade level of the next level up, because once we get to high school, there will be nowhere left to go. Once she's doing 12th grade work, she's doing 12th grade work- even if I'm "calling her" an 11th grader- where does that leave us the following year when I want her to be a 12th grader for real? I'm afraid it'll leave her going "are you kidding me? I already finished 12th grade work, I'm done" and me right where I'm trying to avoid being- with a 16 year old going into 12th grade. So that doesn't really help me.

 

I don't want to do a different curriculum from the one we're doing, because we really like this curriculum. (So I don't want to do OM6 for 6th grade and then figure out an entirely different curriculum for a transition year or whatever).

 

I don't want to have her REPEAT a grade doing the same thing (two years of repeating the same curriculum in its entirety)- I just want to stretch the 6th grade curriculum out so that it covers a two year period rather than a one year period.

 

Of course, I don't want that two year period to crawl along at a snail's pace not being at all challenging- but I don't think that will be the case anyway as I've heard OM6 is meatier than OM5, more writing etc., which she can take more time with- trying to do those writing assignments independently, learning to do the research better at the computer a bit more on her own, and supplementing with other things here and there to round out both years (such as Meet The Masters for art, continued judo classes, beginning guitar lessons, moving on to Story Grammar For Elementary School. Perhaps continuing with SOTW1 over the school year as OM6 deals with Ancient Times anyway- in the past we've only done SOTW1 over the summer here and there for fun because we haven't had time for it on top of our regular curriculum).

 

I don't think the second year of OM6 will be too "babyish" for her- like I said, if she'd been born just one day later, that's where she would have been at that time anyway, and I think that it will be a suitable curriculum for her even then.

 

I do think I can come up with enough to keep her challenged and supplement just enough that it doesn't seem like we're doing hardly anything for two years of sixth and then seventh comes as a rude shock. I'll supplement with other things as I feel I need to.

 

My ultimate hope is that she will be better equipped for the types of assignments she'll be expected to do more and more independently as she moves further into the middle and high school years (and perhaps take more out of/away from those reading and writing assignments coming at them from being a year older), AND that once she graduates, she'll be mentally and emotionally prepared for whatever lies ahead for her future if she's going into that at 18 rather than 17, whatever it may be.

Edited May 24, 2011 by NanceXToo

[Matryoshka]

I don't want to just call her a ___ grader working at the grade level of the next level up, because once we get to high school, there will be nowhere left to go. Once she's doing 12th grade work, she's doing 12th grade work- even if I'm "calling her" an 11th grader- where does that leave us the following year when I want her to be a 12th grader for real? I'm afraid it'll leave her going "are you kidding me? I already finished 12th grade work, I'm done" and me right where I'm trying to avoid being- with a 16 year old going into 12th grade. So that doesn't really help me.

 

I'm actually not worried about that at all. Once they get to high school, it's not really about doing X-grade work anymore. Sure, there are 4 years of English, but it's easy to accelerate even that by making it more like an "honors" class. There are usually 5-6 years of math that can be done at the high school level. If you start 9th grade in Algebra, you just don't do them all. If I keep my dd at 5th grade next year, she'd start 9th grade in Algebra II (having already taken both AlgI and Geometry). There's still easily a math course a year I could give her - AlgII, then Pre-Calculus and Calc AB and then Calc BC, or a year of Statistics. US or World History are not courses with a grade-level attached - they're just high school level classes. Foreign language learning never ends - you can just move into reading literature if you really finish "all' the grammar, or take a conversation class at a cc (I did this when I was in high school when I ran out of language levels). There are also lots more than 4 possible science courses, and they also aren't really tied to a grade level - different schools do them in different years or even in different orders. There are always AP-level classes if you end up wanting to repeat at a higher level. There are so many electives and interesting things one could study - yay, more time to fit them in!

 

So, I'm in no way worried that my dd will run out of classes to take her senior year if she's already completed a lot of "freshman" level classes before she's in 9th.

[wapiti]

I don't want to just call her a ___ grader working at the grade level of the next level up, because once we get to high school, there will be nowhere left to go. Once she's doing 12th grade work, she's doing 12th grade work- even if I'm "calling her" an 11th grader- where does that leave us the following year when I want her to be a 12th grader for real? I'm afraid it'll leave her going "are you kidding me? I already finished 12th grade work, I'm done" and me right where I'm trying to avoid being- with a 16 year old going into 12th grade. So that doesn't really help me.

 

Nance, I think this is an excellent question for both the Accelerated Learning board and the High School board. I'm quite sure someone there will have good advice about what she can do during 12th grade!

[LisaKinVA]

On the other hand there are some aspects of her curriculum (especially independent research/writing which she needs a good bit of handholding and prompting with as of now- which is also the case when it comes to organizational skills) that I think she WOULD do better with if she were that year older, wiser and more mature (and those types of assignments will play an even bigger part next year in OM6).

 

Yes, the extra year will help with this...

 

I don't want to just call her a ___ grader working at the grade level of the next level up, because once we get to high school, there will be nowhere left to go. Once she's doing 12th grade work, she's doing 12th grade work- even if I'm "calling her" an 11th grader- where does that leave us the following year when I want her to be a 12th grader for real? I'm afraid it'll leave her going "are you kidding me? I already finished 12th grade work, I'm done" and me right where I'm trying to avoid being- with a 16 year old going into 12th grade. So that doesn't really help me.

 

I guess this is only an issue if you are dong a "grade" curricula, like you are currently using. I attempted to do this through our Virtual Academy, for many of the same reasons you stated. For reasons only known to the school system, that wasn't an acceptable plan to them (but I do know it can be done... the K12 LA program was *very meaty* We could have gone quite a bit deeper through the material by spreading it out (as well as adding in extra reading during the year).

 

I don't want to do a different curriculum from the one we're doing, because we really like this curriculum. (So I don't want to do OM6 for 6th grade and then figure out an entirely different curriculum for a transition year or whatever).

 

Totally understand that (it is what I am doing right now... total pain.)

 

I don't want to have her REPEAT a grade doing the same thing (two years of repeating the same curriculum in its entirety)- I just want to stretch the 6th grade curriculum out so that it covers a two year period rather than a one year period.

 

I wanted to avoid this too... that was the option the Virtual Academy gave me... repeat the whole thing (UGH)

 

Of course, I don't want that two year period to crawl along at a snail's pace not being at all challenging- but I don't think that will be the case anyway as I've heard OM6 is meatier than OM5, more writing etc., which she can take more time with- trying to do those writing assignments independently, learning to do the research better at the computer a bit more on her own, and supplementing with other things here and there to round out both years (such as Meet The Masters for art, continued judo classes, beginning guitar lessons, moving on to Story Grammar For Elementary School. Perhaps continuing with SOTW1 over the school year as OM6 deals with Ancient Times anyway- in the past we've only done SOTW1 over the summer here and there for fun because we haven't had time for it on top of our regular curriculum).

 

I don't think the second year of OM6 will be too "babyish" for her- like I said, if she'd been born just one day later, that's where she would have been at that time anyway, and I think that it will be a suitable curriculum for her even then.

 

I do think I can come up with enough to keep her challenged and supplement just enough that it doesn't seem like we're doing hardly anything for two years of sixth and then seventh comes as a rude shock. I'll supplement with other things as I feel I need to.

I think you should be able to do it too... best wishes on your endeavor.

[khall]

Go with your gut, mom, don't worry about what other people think.

:iagree:

It sounds like you've really thought it out, have great reasons, and a solid plan.

 

You'll find lots of people that will think you're doing the right thing, and just as many who will insist that you're wrong. You really do just have to go with your gut and do what you think is best.

 

I don't really have anything to add that hasn't already been mentioned, just wanted to let you know that you aren't alone (DD8 is finishing up 3rd now, will do a 3/4 year next year, and grade 4 the year after), and it really does sound like you know what you're doing.

[momto2Cs]

Since you're doing Oak Meadow, and both 6th and 7th grades are so rich, you could just do both of them over 3 years. That would be 24 weeks worth of lessons doner over 36 weeks, allowing for extra exploration of topics, etc.

 

JMHO!

[missmoe]

Nancy,

 

I think your plan is a sound one for the exact reasons you've stated.

 

I have a young senior graduating this year. He was 16 when applying to colleges. It's a hard spot for him to be in. He really wants to go away to college, but at the same time realized he wasn't ready yet. All his peers are going away though.

 

I am having my two youngest repeat 7th-grade this year. They've done fine with what we've done,but I don't see them being mature enough for high school in another year. I just don't see that maturity in their writing and thinking skills.

 

If you half paced your curriculum, you have the opportunty to add in all those extras that you normally wouldn't have the time to do.

 

I'm quite excited about the things we are adding in next year--nature studies, Mapping the World with Art, and BF's History of the Horse.