s/o is 5-6 too young for 1st grade?

[PeacefulChaos]

Ok, so I made the mistake of reading the article linked in one of the other posts (not that it was a bad article - just that it sent me second guessing) and wanted a little input.

DS5 will be 6 on the 17th. I never did anything K with him - he went to a pre-k program at the public school last year, and did great, and we started homeschooling in July. The only thing that he's doing that is 'K' level would be his beginning handwriting and, of course, learning to read. Everything else he's doing is 1st grade work.

Is that ok? I guess I just don't want to be setting him up for failure or something, idk... I just figured that K is a year where they don't really learn a whole lot anyway, and I started K at age 4 so he's about the same age I was in the same grade (I know, totally different kids, so that's kind of a moot point), and I did fine.

He still stays in the pre-k/K class at church, because developmentally and socially I think that's more of where he's at. And I don't find it necessary to bend the rules of the church just because I have chosen a different route than the common one.

Also, we have to do annual testing in our state starting in grade 1 and I was going to go ahead and do it, otherwise I was worried that all the records with the state would be off?? Like, would they be asking me for information on him being a senior when he's actually starting college?

FTR, he isn't a super 'advanced' kid. He's pretty normal. I don't know that I could see him going to college and doing anything super hard anyway - that sounds a LOT worse than I mean it! :lol: I'm just saying he's a really laid back kid who likes to play a lot - I guess I just can't see that transferring into a young adult who chooses a career that is super taxing. Not that he wouldn't choose a good career, just... Idk, I'm not trying to say anything bad, am I making any sense? :lol: :D

Anyway, any thoughts would be nice. Like I said, I probably shouldn't have even thought about it with the article. But then I thought, wow, I really don't want to mess him up... :)

[Embassy]

I would call him K and do whatever first grade work he is ready to do.

[MissKNG]

.

DS5 will be 6 on the 17th. . :)

 

On the 17th of November? He would be a 1st grader in my state.

 

ETA: I have a late October birthday and started K before turning 5. Having a 5/6 year old 1st grader is normal here.

Edited November 3, 2011 by MissKNG

[jujsky]

If he's ready for 1st grade work, give him first grade work. You can always back off if you plateaus at some point.

[PeacefulChaos]

On the 17th of November? He would be a 1st grader in my state.

 

Yes.

Our cutoff for K is that they have to be 5 by September 30. :)

[MissKNG]

Yes.

Our cutoff for K is that they have to be 5 by September 30. :)

 

Ah, then in your case, I would call him a K.

[Jennifer in MI]

I'd definitely call him K. If he's ready for 1st grade work, move him up in those subjects.

 

We decided to wait for K with one of my children and I'm so glad we did. He is currently in 5th grade. He's doing 7th grade math and science and 4th grade spelling and writing. It's easier having him officially work only one grade level "behind" for those subjects than it would be if he were two grade levels "behind."

 

Also, if you need to later on, you can always move him up. Holding him back would be another story . . .

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

In our state he would be K. Do what ever grade level work he is capable of because you can always speed up or slow down if/ when needed. If you get to college age and he completed 12th grade work in 11th grade you could always do a dual enrollment for college credits while in "high school" There is a local home schooler here who did that. Her son completed 12th grade work last year as a 10th grader so he is a full time college student while in 11th grade if that makes sense.

[Ottakee]

I would call him K for this year, esp. as that is where he is socially but teach him his academics at whatever level he is ready for. There might be a time when he needs to slow down a bit on academics or even speed up.

 

Better though to wait a year to test him than to start now.

 

Also, socially, it can be harder when they reach middle school/highschool and you have a boy who is young for his grade compared to/and interacting with girls who are a year old and more mature. I would rather have my child be the more mature one than the immature one. Also, if he were to play sports in the future, that one year can make a huge difference in size and ability level.

 

Just teach him where he is though.

[AHASRADA]

"Call" him whatever grade he would be in your state, and give the work level that is appropriate for him in each subject. This will likely change over time and among subjects, so don't fret too much at this point.

 

As for standardized testing, also test him according to his "traditional" grade (in your case, K). The scores are based on national averages not only for grade, but also by age. If he plateaus at some point, you wouldn't want him to be at a disadvantage on these tests because you chose to bump him up when he was 5. It is very common to have a wide range of abilities at that age, but things tend to even out a bit as they get older (and as the material becomes more difficult).

 

Don't worry about high school. Distance learning programs, umbrella schools, etc. aren't picky about "grade levels" in HS, and most will grant credit for things like Algebra and foreign language taken in middle school, so at that point, his exact "year" isn't so much of an issue.

 

So, tell anyone who asks he's in "K", teach him the way he needs to be taught and at his level, and enjoy!

[rwjx2khsmj]

I'd call him by his name and give him the work that makes the most sense for his ability and interest.

 

Seriously though, my dd7 started homeschool when she was five. She would have been too young for kindergarten in our area but she was interested in trying some things so I let her. Last year she was doing some work that would have been considered kindergarten level, some work that would have been first grade and other work that would have been second grade. This year she's doing mostly second grade work.

 

We moved in January of last year, up until our move I called her a kindergartener. When we moved, I started calling her a first grader. The cut off days for beginning school were different in our old and new areas.

 

I have the luxury of letting my dc work according to their interest and their abilities. Their individual test scores indicate that they are all at or above level when compared to other children of similar age.

[9763653]

Ok, so I made the mistake of reading the article linked in one of the other posts (not that it was a bad article - just that it sent me second guessing) and wanted a little input.

DS5 will be 6 on the 17th. I never did anything K with him - he went to a pre-k program at the public school last year, and did great, and we started homeschooling in July. The only thing that he's doing that is 'K' level would be his beginning handwriting and, of course, learning to read. Everything else he's doing is 1st grade work.

Is that ok? I guess I just don't want to be setting him up for failure or something, idk... I just figured that K is a year where they don't really learn a whole lot anyway, and I started K at age 4 so he's about the same age I was in the same grade (I know, totally different kids, so that's kind of a moot point), and I did fine.

He still stays in the pre-k/K class at church, because developmentally and socially I think that's more of where he's at. And I don't find it necessary to bend the rules of the church just because I have chosen a different route than the common one.

Also, we have to do annual testing in our state starting in grade 1 and I was going to go ahead and do it, otherwise I was worried that all the records with the state would be off?? Like, would they be asking me for information on him being a senior when he's actually starting college?

FTR, he isn't a super 'advanced' kid. He's pretty normal. I don't know that I could see him going to college and doing anything super hard anyway - that sounds a LOT worse than I mean it! :lol: I'm just saying he's a really laid back kid who likes to play a lot - I guess I just can't see that transferring into a young adult who chooses a career that is super taxing. Not that he wouldn't choose a good career, just... Idk, I'm not trying to say anything bad, am I making any sense? :lol: :D

Anyway, any thoughts would be nice. Like I said, I probably shouldn't have even thought about it with the article. But then I thought, wow, I really don't want to mess him up... :)

 

Mind linking the article?

[Lolly]

Just agreeing with everyone else. Call him K. Do not test him as a first grader until next year. Do first grade work now since he is read for it. Come high school, you can skip him up a grade if needed. Testing in high school is different. Most everyone just uses the ACT/SAT instead of a grade leveled test. His scores on them will give a very good indication as to whether he is ready for graduation/college!

[staceyobu]

I call my kids the grade level they are according to our state. Here you need to be five by September 1st to be a k'er. So, any kid who turns five before that date is a k'er in my eyes. DD is doing a lot of second grade stuff, but I call her a first grader. She is doing first grade dance, first grade sunday school, etc. I think if you call them where they are academically, it can get confusing. If your kid is really advanced, and you call them a fourth grader when they are five years old, do you really want them in a peer group of fourth graders?

 

For the record, I was one of the youngest in my graduating class. I cannot imagine having been stuck in high school until I was 19. I might have lost my mind. I was so ready to move out and be on my own. I think I would have wanted to move out at 18 either way. What would I have done if I had needed to go to another year of high school?

 

For the record, I had a great home... I just wanted my independence!

[MomsintheGarden]

We have one like this. She has a late November birthday and was ready for 1st when she was still 5. It was no big deal until she went away to college at 17. She's doing great there. Sending her was the right thing to do, but it was hard to let her go. I didn't think about all that until she got to high school.

 

If you are doing more advanced work with your ds, I recommend keeping him on the appropriate grade with official paperwork until much later. Coach him to say what grade he is officially in, not the number on his math book. That will curb any strange looks he might get from other children on the playground, with grandparents, etc.

[In The Great White North]

I would call him K. It's far easier to skip a grade or graduate early later than to back up.

 

The level of work you give him has nothing to do with the grade you tell the state.

[In2why]

If it were me I would call him a K'r and have him do the work he is ready to do. That way he is a little genius to the Grandparents (smile) and if he needs more maturity as he gets older you won't be in the position of deciding whether to "hold him back" a year. Finally you can decide before going into high school academics whether you want to skip a grade. By calling him a K'r now you have all the options left open. By calling him a 1st grader, those options narrow, and you might or might not regret it later. JMO

[catz]

I would call him K. It's far easier to skip a grade or graduate early later than to back up.

 

The level of work you give him has nothing to do with the grade you tell the state.

 

:iagree: Both my kids work well ahead of grade level but we call them their "age" grade. We'll make a decision about when they'll "graduate" when we get closer to that. It's not at all unsual for a child in an engaged home to be ahead at this age. My child went to PS for K and first. It ranged from kids just learning the alphabet and numbers (and maybe English!) to kids reading chapter books and figuring out fraction operations.