Pros/Cons to moving child up a grade for a sport

[kdownie]

My dd really wants to do Girls on the Run in the fall. It is intended for 3rd grade and up. While she is in first now, and would be in second (going by birth date) in the fall, she will be doing third grade work in most subjects by then.

 

Are there any ramifications to going ahead and saying she is a third grader instead of second grader?

 

I don't pay much attention to grades usually. This program is the only thing I can think of now in which what grade she is in matters.

 

Am I missing anything big? Does the state keep track of it (we're in Georgia) ?

[Ellie]

The people who organize the event imagine that the girls will fall within a certain age range, which would be how old a girl would be if she were in third grade, based on her date of birth and the cut-off date in your state. Academics has nothing to do with it.

 

IMHO, if your dd would not yet be "in" third grade, then you shouldn't enter her this year.

[Aurelia]

Mostly it would make it harder for her to keep up with the older girls because they would be taller and more physically mature. I don't know that the state would keep track of it.

[EmilyGF]

People usually do the opposite. Learning patience is good, too. Does she really want to be moved up a grade in spelling bee, math club, and track in high school?

 

Emily

[kdownie]

Good points. Thanks everyone!

 

Learning patience would be really good for her :-)

[Χά�ων]

Depends. When D wanted to do basketball I could not find a 2nd grade camp. There was a k-1 and 3-5 but nothing for 2nd. I listed him as 3rd grade since he was large for his age. Had he been small I would have listed him as 1st. It was a one time activity and had he played that winter would not have resulted in him being placed as a 3rd grader on a team because teams were organized through a differnt organization.

[Dmmetler]

My DD was grade skipped in K, and with one exception (a Christian schools league soccer team), when I've registered her, she's placed with the kids the grade below for sports. Even if they use grade, they really mean age.

[linders]

Most of the sports here are based on age rather than grade, even when the advertise "grade".

[Samiam]

I don't think it's as of big deal as you are making it :). It's a elementary, extracurricular program that has nothing to do with the state of GA, and it is run by volunteers. No one is going to ask what grade level of work she is "actually" doing. She may be the smallest girl there, or maybe not, depending on her build. That may be a self-confidence crusher, if she is and can't keep up. But really, at this age, for something that is intended to be a fun, activity, it's fine to enroll her.

[kdownie]

Samiam, she wouldn't be the smallest, as I already one older-but-smaller child in the group. Dd is tall for her age and most people are very surprised to find out how young she is. From the time she was 3.5, she's been asked what grade she was in school. She's very articulate also and seems older than a first grader. However, she isn't particularly athletic (so far as the sports she's tried) so that could be a discouraging point, possibly, for her.

[beaners]

Girls On The Run looks like it is for ages 8 to 13. So she will meet that but not the grade requirement?

 

I'd say let her do it if she meets the age guideline. I doubt it would be tracked by anything. Some areas also have running clubs specifically for younger children. I don't know where you are, but the elementary-age children my mother nannies outside of Atlanta have a running program they attend.

GotR is about a lot more than just running -- there's a lot of work on peer interactions, goal-setting, self-esteem building and other stuff, that, while not inappropriate for a younger girl, may be somewhat lost on her, even if she's academically above her age. I'd wait a year. And, I wouldn't worry about her athleticism -- it is a lot like a c25k program for the younger set.

 

If she just wants to run, I'd look for a running club for her age.

[beaners]

I don't think it matters so much at this time, but I do want to caution you later on. We moved Army girl up as she was bored to tears with the available gymnastics and x-c before middle school. She's one of those obnoxious athletes who are instantly wonderful at whatever sport she picks up. So, she makes good friends with all the girls and excels, doing well nationally in x-c. But, then it was time for high school, only she really wasn't as advanced in academics as she had been, due to our family falling apart with Ed's death. We "held her back" to the grade she really was age-wise and she was not happy "repeating" 8th grade. And then junior year hit and all her friends graduated, only she didn't. Senior year was miserable. I have to say, it really was the only oopsie that we did in hsing. When the ms called, wanting me to bump youngest up a grade for high school sports this year, I declined. They only get 8 semesters of eligibility at the high school level and if they do it 8-11th, then they're stuck. Another caveat, dd is running into nagging injuries from too much training too early. She was the youngest on the x-c team and really should not have been running as many miles a day as she was. She's now been out of running for the Army for 8 weeks, due to old injuries flaring up. Our Girls on the Run don't run the distance that I'm warning about, but just beware.

 

Some of this varies based on your location. I ran high school cross country and track in New York from 8th grade through my senior year. I could have started in 7th grade and competed every year until graduation if I had been moved up. I was competing on the varsity team and at the state level each of my years, plus more stuff I won't brag about right now(lol), so it wasn't something that could have flown under the radar. You couldn't compete for extra years if you needed to repeat a year, but I think that was handled by requiring athletes to be passing their classes instead of limiting the semesters available for competition.

 

Mileage at a young age is a concern, and especially for girls at a competitive level before puberty. There were a few "scandals" involving young runners pushed too hard when I was in high school. (A decade ago?!) It's not a concern for most young girls running, but it is DEFINITELY something to keep an eye out for.

 

PS-I'm closer in age to your oldest, but when I was in high school Colorado was just churning out some incredible super-fast runners. I bet your daughter is awesome. (But you already know that. :) )