I keep talking myself in circles, need some perspective on my Kindy/1rst grader!

[sierramv1]

My DS is 5, going to be 6 at the end of August, and I'm trying to decide whether to push ahead for first grade work or do a Kindy/1rst grade year. Does this mess them up as they progress being half way through one grade, or do they catch up? Where would you put us?

 

This year he did the:

 

Get Ready for the Code (A,B,C) moving onto ETC1

 

RightStart A (half way through)

 

HWOT (preK)

 

Lollipop Logic (books 1-3 - he loved these)

 

All About Reading (pre-level 1)

 

He can read through the first couple of series in the Bob books and can sound out CVC words, although he doesn't have all of his lowercase letters down pat.....

 

What I am contemplating for next year:

ETC

HWOT Kindy

AAS 1

AAR 1

OPGTR

RightStart A, then B

LoF - apples

 

It seems like he will move through it quickly because he is already sounding out words, but I don't want to forge ahead without making sure he has a good foundation. On the other hand, I don't want to beat all the fun out of it for him. I've been going back and forth for weeks over what to do with him. I've also thought about doing AAR 1, OPGTR, and HWOT over the summer, then it would be more of a 1rst grade spread.

 

He is pretty easy going, and likes his school work, so he would be up for anything I could decide on:tongue_smilie:

 

Any advice would be awesome!

 

 

 

Happy work-at-home, homeschooling mom to 3:

 

DS, 9, DS, 5, DD, 3

[Wheres Toto]

I wouldn't worry about what grade you call him unless you are in a state that requires testing at certain levels. Most people here will use the grade they would be in based on age if they went to public school. Then you just do whatever level work they can handle.

 

There's no reason to make them do kindergarten work for a whole year if they can move ahead and there's no reason to try and rush a higher grade if there not ready. You can try some things out and if you find he needs more review, back up a little while.

 

My son has a late August birthday and the schools didn't want him for kindergarten until he was 6. So by law he could be finishing up first grade, by the schools recommendation he would just be finishing up kindergarten. In actuality he's working on a 1st grade level in handwriting, grammar and spelling, 2nd grade level in reading comprehension and phonics and 3rd grade level in math.

[jar7709]

We use different curriculum than you do, but it sounds like your child is about where my daughter is, and she turns 6 in mid-september. Around here, her age is just shy of the PS cut-off, so according to them she would be entering K this fall. I think I'm just going to keep on keepin' on with "the next thing" at her pace, and call her K to be consistent with the local kids, but she'll just be a little ahead of many of her peers.

[Five More Minutes]

I wouldn't worry about what grade you call him unless you are in a state that requires testing at certain levels. Most people here will use the grade they would be in based on age if they went to public school. Then you just do whatever level work they can handle.

 

There's no reason to make them do kindergarten work for a whole year if they can move ahead and there's no reason to try and rush a higher grade if there not ready. You can try some things out and if you find he needs more review, back up a little while.

:iagree:I have a 5yo who, were she going to PS, would be in K5 next year. When I'm asked what grade she is in, I just say Kindergarten. At home, though, she just works on the next thing. Because of this, it looks like we'll be starting her K5 year at about Gr. 3 level in reading, Gr. 2 in spelling, Gr. 1 in math, and K in handwriting -- and that's just fine.

 

At this age, I try to pay attention to how much time she's spending on seatwork, to make sure she's getting in the amount of free play that she needs.

[Walking-Iris]

My 4 year old will be 5 next month so he'll be a young Kindy. For the OP I think what you have planned will be fine. When my oldest was 6 we just worked on language arts and math and everything else (history, science etc.) were just read alouds and informal explorations or experiments for the fun of it. My oldest has a winter b-day so he was still doing some Kindy type work when he was a young 6.

 

I don't think grades matter as much as their ability. My kids are at, above and below "grade" level in different subjects or topics.

 

Things like ETC, OPGTR, and HWT---I just go on to the next book or lesson when they've mastered the previous. I may give a bit of a break to have time for things like science and history stuff.

 

From pre-k to 1st I focus on getting the reading, writing, and math foundations laid. There's plenty of chances in 2nd and 3rd grade to cover things in more depth with more rigor or structure.

[boscopup]

Pick "grade level" based on where you want him to be for outside activities (church, sports, etc.).

 

Pick curriculum based on where he is in each subject. If you've already been working in a particular curriculum, just keep going in that until you're ready for the next level. it really doesn't matter whether he's "K" or "1st". Do what HE is ready for.

 

My rising K'er will be 6 in November, so he is after the Sept. 1 cutoff and thus is "K" this coming school year. We started K level work last year. In some subjects, we'll continue K level work. In some subjects, we'll do 1st grade work. My rising 3rd grader is all over the map with his subjects. I couldn't even begin to assign him a "grade level" based on his curriculum. He doesn't fit into one neat little grade level box. That's why he's homeschooled in the first place. ;) I can help him build up his weak areas and let him sore ahead in his strong areas. We don't even start/finish all of our subjects at the same time. We start new books throughout the year.

 

Your lineup looks fine, though I'd probably drop AAS if you're doing AAR.

 

For the grade level, just figure out where you want him for outside group activities, and stick him in that grade level per the state. At home, you do whatever you want. He can be labeled 1st grade while doing K level work or vice versa. If you have to test or do a portfolio for your state, I'd probably go with the lower grade level though. Or if you think he might do better graduating a year later, do the lower grade level (you can always change your mind later and skip a grade on paper or graduate a year early or whatever... lots of options). Remember that this is not b&m school. You have a lot more freedom! :D

[PeterPan]

My ds is in a similar position, and I can tell you I'm planning to call him K5 the fall he turns 6. I don't care if he's doing calculus then, lol, that's what I'll call him. With what your ds has done he's a *bright* preschooler. If you call him 1st this fall, and like you said you realize it's *pushing*. There's no need. Yes you need to sort out the grade level thing, because it's a social and long-term problem. He's going to be placed for sports, camps, etc. etc. often by grade. If you get to where he's 17 and realize he has maxed things out and is ready to graduate, you can do that. However if you get to 12/13 and you're on that line of junior high, starting high school, and you realize you really need one more year at the lower level, you're really in a pickle. It can be solved with a "transition" year, but it's an avoidable problem. This topic comes up OVER AND OVER. There's just nothing good to be gained by bumping him up. You can *call* him rising K5 but you *teach* him at K5 1/2, which is what he is.

 

Remember, there are GIRLS turning 6 in Sept, Oct., Nov of the school year. That's the standard he's hitting against. It's sort of this double-whammy, being the youngest AND having the disadvantage of gender for fine motor skills, etc. My ds has outlandishly good fine motor skills (because of his apraxia, it's sort of a brain glitch and the brain has put a lot of energy into fine motor from when the speech wasn't working), and even so I'm holding him back. I want him to be a strong version of himself, not a weak version compared to others. The ONLY exception I would see to that is if I found his PEERS to be that grade level bumped ahead. (camp, sunday school placement, that sort of thing) But you just don't know with kids. That's the difference between social and academic. And of course you can put whatever you want on a form to make it work. ;)

 

So teach him where he is but call him as fits his age (rising K5, just my suggestion). And as for fine motor requirements, because of the gender differences, I would use the lower amounts. So not K5.5 and not 1st but just K5. My dd has always been ahead academically, and that's how we've reconciled it. Just because someone is smart doesn't mean their fingers matured faster, kwim? :)

Edited June 12, 2012 by OhElizabeth

[Amy Jo]

My ds is in a similar position, and I can tell you I'm planning to call him K5 the fall he turns 6. I don't care if he's doing calculus then, lol, that's what I'll call him. With what your ds has done he's a *bright* preschooler. If you call him 1st this fall, and like you said you realize it's *pushing*. There's no need. Yes you need to sort out the grade level thing, because it's a social and long-term problem. He's going to be placed for sports, camps, etc. etc. often by grade. If you get to where he's 17 and realize he has maxed things out and is ready to graduate, you can do that. However if you get to 12/13 and you're on that line of junior high, starting high school, and you realize you really need one more year at the lower level, you're really in a pickle. It can be solved with a "transition" year, but it's an avoidable problem. This topic comes up OVER AND OVER. There's just nothing good to be gained by bumping him up. You can *call* him rising K5 but you *teach* him at K5 1/2, which is what he is.

 

Remember, there are GIRLS turning 6 in Sept, Oct., Nov of the school year. That's the standard he's hitting against. It's sort of this double-whammy, being the youngest AND having the disadvantage of gender for fine motor skills, etc. My ds has outlandishly good fine motor skills (because of his apraxia, it's sort of a brain glitch and the brain has put a lot of energy into fine motor from when the speech wasn't working), and even so I'm holding him back. I want him to be a strong version of himself, not a weak version compared to others. The ONLY exception I would see to that is if I found his PEERS to be that grade level bumped ahead. (camp, sunday school placement, that sort of thing) But you just don't know with kids. That's the difference between social and academic. And of course you can put whatever you want on a form to make it work. ;)

 

So teach him where he is but call him as fits his age (rising K5, just my suggestion). And as for fine motor requirements, because of the gender differences, I would use the lower amounts. So not K5.5 and not 1st but just K5. My dd has always been ahead academically, and that's how we've reconciled it. Just because someone is smart doesn't mean their fingers matured faster, kwim? :)

 

:iagree: My eldest has a late summer b-day, and I've been kicking myself for calling him the older grade. I'd like that extra year now.

[MomatHWTK]

Pick "grade level" based on where you want him to be for outside activities (church, sports, etc.).

 

Pick curriculum based on where he is in each subject. If you've already been working in a particular curriculum, just keep going in that until you're ready for the next level. it really doesn't matter whether he's "K" or "1st". Do what HE is ready for.

 

:iagree:

[Ellie]

It doesn't matter.

 

When you have to indicate an official grade level for some reason, you just say "first."

 

And you just teach your ds whatever he can handle. It doesn't matter whether it's "first grade" or "kindergarten" or anything else. Just do it.:)

[Tanikit]

The only thing in your line-up that I might look at again is AAS - spelling usually runs a bit behind the phonics so if you are doing cvc words and contemplating AAR1 then I'd drop AAS for now.

 

For the rest I'd just do the next thing. My DD turns 5 in September and will be a young Ker - she reads on about a 4th grade level, does math at a 1st grade level, handwriting at a K level and has done no spelling as of yet so we just do whatever comes next.

[theYoungerMrsWarde]

Builder Boy turns 6 in November, so we legally have to file for 1st grade (we're in CA.) He's all over the place skill-wise, but his age means he's a 1st grader.

[Marie131]

The only thing in your line-up that I might look at again is AAS - spelling usually runs a bit behind the phonics so if you are doing cvc words and contemplating AAR1 then I'd drop AAS for now.

 

 

I was going to say something about this too. I picked up AAR1 for my rising Ker and AAS1 for my rising 2nd grader. I think using both together for one child would be redundent. You could use AAS1 and add in the readers from the AAR program. AAS mentions right in their lessons which stories go w/ which lessons, but if you don't want to slow down the reading process, just ditch AAS all together for now and stick with AAR alone.

 

I also wanted to mention that my rising Ker will be turning 5 in October, so he's a later birthday. According to the school system, this will be his K year so that is what we're calling it but we are progressing him at his speed according to his level whatever it might be.

[Pamela H in Texas]

Well, this is nothing new, same as everyone else. Just call him whatever grade you want him in socially. Honestly, when I think of a boy with a summer bday, I think "red-shirt him." So I'd call him Kindergarten and just have him do whatever level he needs whether Kindergarten or 2nd grade or whatever. Then just keep doing whatever he needs whether he progresses ½ year or 4 years in a school year. *IF* you feel the need, in 7th or 8th grade, alter his grade level however you need to make his high school years look the way it seems best for him.

 

The above is what I wish I had done with my older children and what I am doing with my younger children.

[sierramv1]

This is great! Thank you!

 

For our school district in (MA), he would be considered in first grade (the cut off is August 30th, and he has a August 19th bday), but school is not compulsory until age 6, so I am thinking I would have waited to start him in Kindy until when was 6. This is what you refer to as "red-shirting", as a previous poster mentioned.

 

I think I will call him Kindy for one more year:thumbup: in the long run, I think this will be better for him.

 

Thanks everyone!

[LillyMama]

I know you already decided, I just wanted to add my late two cents...

 

I have two kids that I've done opposite things with. My son turned 6 last July and we red-shirted him to K in September, first grade started in May. For his football team, he played as a K'er last fall and will be an older first grader at 7 this fall. My daughter won't turn 6 until November, so she would be in K in the public school this fall. But she's doing all our first grade work with her brother. But we do keep her in the younger class in Sunday School so she won't be in the same class as her brother.

 

All that to say- we just move along to the next thing. My kids are in different grade levels for reading and math. We do first grade history, science, spelling and writing together, as it's just easier.

 

And I agree with AAS, don't start it yet.

[sewingmama]

We school Jan-Dec. My DD just turned 6 last week. Officially she is in K but for the next 6 months she will be doing mostly 1st grade work. We just keep trucking along with whatever she is at and move onto the next level once she is done no matter the time of year.

 

Looking at your resources - those are the Levels we used in K - so I would call your son K and give him the gift of time :D

[PeterPan]

Builder Boy turns 6 in November, so we legally have to file for 1st grade (we're in CA.) He's all over the place skill-wise, but his age means he's a 1st grader.

 

Someone a while back had a link to a map showing the cut-off dates around the country and the trend toward earlier cut-offs. CA is much later than much of the country.

[sierramv1]

While we are sorta on topic, what are your thoughts on "red-shirting", does it benefit kids in this society that pushes them to learn earlier and earlier? Are we putting them at a disadvantage in later years, or when they are 17-18 does it really matter that we held them one more year?

[boscopup]

While we are sorta on topic, what are your thoughts on "red-shirting", does it benefit kids in this society that pushes them to learn earlier and earlier? Are we putting them at a disadvantage in later years, or when they are 17-18 does it really matter that we held them one more year?

 

I think it benefits the kid being red-shirted, as they are older and more mature when hitting everything.

 

It does NOT benefit the kids that are not red-shirted. My DS1 was not red-shirted for K and had a summer birthday. Academically, he was fine, and socially he would have been fine, but many of the boys in his class WERE red-shirted, so they were all a year older than him. That caused social issues for my son.

 

But homeschooling wise, it doesn't matter. My son's not in school anymore, so he's not affected by what other people do with their kids. ;) And my middle son would have been red-shirted if he had been born before the cutoff date (thankfully, he's November, and our cutoff is Sept. 1). He will probably need that extra year of maturity before going off to college, whereas DS1 likely will not (and DS3 with a May birthday probably won't either - he's 3 going on 16 as it is :lol:).

 

No, I don't think it will harm your son, and in fact it could help him get better scores and better grades, making him more competitive. ;)

[Walking-Iris]

I don't think red-shirting matters in the homeschooling community. Because our kids are not competing against a class of "peers" but only working to improve their own skills. I don't think it does a homeschool child any good to "hold them back" or to "push them forward."

 

It just seems meaningless to me to think in those terms. One of the reasons I homeschool. If an individual child would benefit from an extra year or half year to mature, that's merely taking that child's personal needs into consideration. Same if a young child were able to do higher level work. It's just based on an individual need.

 

But as far as what the public school kids are doing, not doing...it's neither here nor there in the context of an individual homeschooling family. Or at least it shouldn't matter imo.

 

Even if you have to report, test, etc. there are ways of doing that and still do the work and projects that are appropriate for your kiddo---even if that looks behind or ahead.

 

Saying your homeschool kiddo is 1st grade doesn't necessarily mean that they need to be limited to 1st grade work, and if they can do higher levels of work, it doesn't necessarily translate into "red-shirting" them up a grade.

[ForeverFamily]

I wouldn't worry about what grade you call him unless you are in a state that requires testing at certain levels. Most people here will use the grade they would be in based on age if they went to public school. Then you just do whatever level work they can handle.

 

There's no reason to make them do kindergarten work for a whole year if they can move ahead and there's no reason to try and rush a higher grade if there not ready. You can try some things out and if you find he needs more review, back up a little while.

 

My son has a late August birthday and the schools didn't want him for kindergarten until he was 6. So by law he could be finishing up first grade, by the schools recommendation he would just be finishing up kindergarten. In actuality he's working on a 1st grade level in handwriting, grammar and spelling, 2nd grade level in reading comprehension and phonics and 3rd grade level in math.

 

:iagree:

I was going in the same circle this time last year. I couldn't decide whether to call this year (2011-2012) her K or 1st year. We had actually used a K boxed curric. the year before so it only made sense to call it her 1st grade year. However, I got really tired of trying to explain to everyone that "technically" she would be in K but instead she is working on 1st grade level stuff. I know I didn't have to explain it to everyone, but for some reason I always did :tongue_smilie:. After some words of wisdom I read on these boards I began to realize that it really doesn't matter what "grade" you call them, what really matters is that you work at their skill level. I was also thinking down the road, would I want her to graduate a year early?:confused: I wasn't sure. Someone wise on here brought up the point that later on, if need be, they would rather push their child ahead a grade level then have to hold them back. So after going in circles for months in the end I decided to say that my child is in the grade level that our state would place them in and just work on whatever curric. is at her skill level , whether that is below, right on, or ahead. As silly as it sounds that decision lifted a huge weight off of my shoulder. When anyone asks what grade my Dd is in they get the answer they expect and there are no further explanations from me. Despite her only being in K she is more advanced in most things so I just work on her level. Hope that helped.

[Kathleen in LV]

I don't think red-shirting matters in the homeschooling community. Because our kids are not competing against a class of "peers" but only working to improve their own skills. I don't think it does a homeschool child any good to "hold them back" or to "push them forward." . . . .

 

Saying your homeschool kiddo is 1st grade doesn't necessarily mean that they need to be limited to 1st grade work, and if they can do higher levels of work, it doesn't necessarily translate into "red-shirting" them up a grade.

 

I agree with you academically. But the reality is that grade designations are used for outside activities. I "red-shirted" my late August birthday son, even though we are homeschooling. We did K/1st work academically this year, but next year his official designation will be "K" for outside activities. In particular, I didn't want to rush to place him into religious education at our church (we're Catholic), which starts in first grade, because I think there's a level of maturity required before children start receiving the sacraments.

[Mommy22alyns]

I would call him a kindergartener. He's bright, but not a first grader IMO. Meet him where he is, which looks like K to me.

[lamolina]

Would any of you give different opinions on what to do in this exact situation if there was a possibility your child would be going back to a public or private school in 2-3 years?

 

My almost 6 year old is all over the place in abilities and right now we are homeschooling so it doesn't matter what I label him, but he may go back to school and then I will need to know what grade to call him. Plus I think he wonders about what grade he is too!

[Ellie]

While we are sorta on topic, what are your thoughts on "red-shirting", does it benefit kids in this society that pushes them to learn earlier and earlier? Are we putting them at a disadvantage in later years, or when they are 17-18 does it really matter that we held them one more year?

I don't believe in it. And I say this as someone with a July birthday, married to someone with a September birthday.

 

"Graduation from high school" only means that a child has finished a course of study. It has nothing to do with maturity (or at least, it shouldn't, IMHO).

 

And I don't think "this society" pushes children any more than earlier societies, when children were finished with formal education when they were 14 or 15, and were working on farms and supporting their families and joining the military. If anything, we're holding our children back.

 

I think that a child who graduates a year behind children he would ordinarily have been in school with because his parents decided when he was just 5 that he was going to be immature when he was 17 and red-shirted him is a sad story.

[ssavings]

DH was red-shirted (in the '80s) because his parents believed he'd be more competitive in sports and academics with an extra year, but wishes he hadn't been. He got tired of explaining why he was a year older than his classmates (even throughout college). This might be different now, because more and more kids are being red-shirted.

[beaners]

While we are sorta on topic, what are your thoughts on "red-shirting", does it benefit kids in this society that pushes them to learn earlier and earlier? Are we putting them at a disadvantage in later years, or when they are 17-18 does it really matter that we held them one more year?

 

Since you asked, I hate it. I hate that so many parents feel it is necessary. I hate that in some places every parent with a male child is encouraged to hold him back. If kindergarten is "too much" for 50% of the students within the age cutoff, that is a problem with inappropriate material rather than immature students. I also hate that obtaining an education is so cutthroat that parents find it a competition where their child must be near the top of the class just to prevent that child from slipping through the cracks.

 

I wish that parents wouldn't do it for all but the most necessary cases. I completely understand why so many do. I have a sibling who would have been a perfect candidate for redshirting. That sibling was in an elementary "transitional" class. I don't know if that extra year made a big improvement. Things were still hard. I can't say if they would have been "more hard" without that extra year. It wasn't a magic bullet that brought a struggling student to the top of the class, but that was almost 20 years ago.

[gratitude]

The only thing in your line-up that I might look at again is AAS - spelling usually runs a bit behind the phonics so if you are doing cvc words and contemplating AAR1 then I'd drop AAS for now.

:iagree:

 

Level 1 spelling for AAS is better to use once they are reading some; late first grade reading level ~ emerging readers.

 

I am not sure if it will answer your question but after touring some Kindergarten classes and talking to a wise K teacher who had been teaching for 30 years I didn't start my summer Birthday boy until he was 6. So he had just turned 6 when we started Kindergarten. He is now just finishing 2nd grade at age 8, will turn 9 this summer for 3rd next fall, and reads at an 8th/9th grade level. He was about where your son is when he turned 6. So no it didn't hurt him in the least to have an extra year 100% playing.

[Walking-Iris]

:iagree:

 

Level 1 spelling for AAS is better to use once they are reading some; late first grade reading level ~ emerging readers.

 

I am not sure if it will answer your question but after touring some Kindergarten classes and talking to a wise K teacher who had been teaching for 30 years I didn't start my summer Birthday boy until he was 6. So he had just turned 6 when we started Kindergarten. He is now just finishing 2nd grade at age 8, will turn 9 this summer for 3rd next fall, and reads at an 8th/9th grade level. He was about where your son is when he turned 6. So no it didn't hurt him in the least to have an extra year 100% playing.

 

I had a year of 100% playing. I didn't go to Kindergarten because I was in Head Start and a very wise person told my mother that I would be a bit bored with K level work. Instead of putting me in 1st at a young age she just opted to keep me at home and with babysitters doing---absolutely nothing. :D I was a good student throughout my education. It didn't hurt me in the least.