"gap year" BEFORE high school

[nrself]

I'm wondering if I were to extend schooling for my ds an extra year before beginning "high school" what effect that would have on my child's college future?  Anyone done this?  Would this even be on his transcript/records?  Right now he is just in 7th so we've got time, but he is dyslexic and behind where he should be.  Any other suggestions for getting him where he needs to be before we get to his permanent highschool record?

 

Thanks!

Nicole

[Santi]

Colleges don't see anything before 9th grade. Just check with your state homeschooling laws to see if there's anything special you need to do. We just did an 8th grade end of year test twice. I don't see what effect it would have besides helping him get ready before the part colleges actually will see on a transcript.

[G5052]

I have a friend who did this with each of her boys.  They were all dyslexic with attention issues, and she basically delayed starting high school for a year with each of them.

 

It really paid off in the long run even though they weren't happy about graduating at 19. They really needed another year before high school.

 

And I wouldn't call it a "gap" year.  Most gap years involve minimal schooling if any and work or volunteer jobs, and I wouldn't do that with a kid in K-12 unless there were health issues involved.

[nrself]

You're right, G.  I was just searching for a post title.  

 

 

When I think of all the time we have to be "grownup," I don't see any reason to rush it.  But, of course, I haven't asked the kid what he thinks.  ;)

 

 

[BlsdMama]

Search for the term redshirt. :)

[nrself]

Thanks, Kelly.  I've already found some great discussion with that search.

 

[Gwen in VA]

We gave my younger son two 8th grade years. We all survived, and we are VERY glad that we did the extra year.

[Mandylubug]

I'm giving my girls a gap year before 3rd grade :p They are late blooming readers, immature all around for their levels and if they were born 2 months later, would have been cut off from going to public school when they did. We are doing an extended 2nd grade..like years 2a and 2b ha ha When my girls are asked what grade they are in. They say they are homeschooled but in 2nd AND 3rd grade. Whatever :p

 

 

[Lori D.]

There are a number of families who have done a repeat year in middle school -- often a "second year of 8th grade" -- in order to give their student time to mature and catch up. Here are a few past threads on that topic.

 

Wanting to hold my soon-to-be 8th grader back a year

13yo twin DDs repeating 8th grade

Holding a child back a grade (re: an 8th grader; how do you know)

Holding a child back/repeating a grade (esp. in middle/high school)

Not ready for 9th grade

Rethinking math and adding another year of school

Graduating at 19??

Any regrets with repeating a grade or holding a child back? (esp. if doing it in middle school)

 

 

This topic is a tough one, and only you and your family can make the call. :grouphug:  Hopefully, these threads will bring up the thoughts that your family needs to consider and that will help you decide. If you do decide to delay/repeat, one thing I've seen that can really help a student not focus so much on "repeating a grade" is to do something completely different -- new curriculum type/publisher or all-new co-op.

 

 

re: future college

And as previous posters have said, repeating a grade -- even in high school -- is not a problem for colleges, as typically colleges only want to see the last 4 years of high school work on the transcript, and are looking for a progression in difficulty. There are a number of families on this board who do a "5th year of high school" to give their students extra time to mature, and count just the last 4 years on the transcript.

 

One thing that *would* be important for college: if you don't already have official testing and diagnoses for the LDs, do that now, and have a documented "paper trail" of special need so that your DS will qualify for FREE helps at college. Without the paper trail, the student has to pay for special tutoring, AND may qualify for special testing considerations (i.e., a private room, use of a computer, extended time, a test-taker to hand-write, etc.) that would help a student with LDs have a better opportunity to test more accurately.

 

 

The only area where repeating/delaying might be a bit of a pain is if you've already had to declare a grade with your state or area of homeschool oversight. You would need to check to see if there is any paperwork you need to file to change the grade status.

 

 

In case it is of any help, here's our personal experience:

While we did our holding back early (kindergarten), we NEVER regretted the decision. He turned 19yo about 6 weeks before high school graduation. It gave our physically-small/emotionally-young DS time to mature so that by high school he had confidence, rather than always feeling like he was desperately trying to catch up. And our younger DS with mild LDs (stealth dyslexia) in the writing, spelling and math areas, was 18.5yo at graduation. We saw a LOT of maturing and developing in his weak areas starting at about age 17, so I was really glad he was a bit older when he headed to college, as it gave him more time to get a handle on his learning.

 

I should add that where we live, the school system aggressively *encourages* delaying entry into kinder/1st so that students are a little older and more mature. And, a huge number of homeschoolers in my area have DC with learning issues and "red shirt" to give their students more time to mature. So age at graduation is NOT a factor to anyone in my area. It would have been a lot more stressful to live where there was a huge push and expectation that "all high school students must be 17yo or 18yo at graduation."

 

BEST of luck as you think it through! Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

 

PS -- for anyone who is interested (lol)  :tongue_smilie:

Just to expand on what previous poster explained: "Gap year" refers specifically to taking a year OFF from school (i.e., a "gap" in the sequence of education), and almost always refers to the trend of doing this for the year between high school graduation and college entrance. Think "sabbatical", as this type of gap year is carefully planned out in advance, with the young adult doing something specific such as volunteer work, travel, an internship, working, etc. to gain maturity and life experience that they can then bring to their college experience.

[RootAnn]

I think the term is "transition year" when it is between 8th & 9th. 

[EKS]

If you're going to be doing schoolwork during that year, I'd recommend keeping records as though it were high school.  That way, four years down the road if  it becomes apparent that the student is ready to graduate with age mates, you have the records to do so. 

 

 

[Capt_Uhura]

Timely  topic as I'm considering holding my son back a year. He has been ill for 2yrs and I'm not sure he's ready for public school high school. Friends tell me he's ready for PS high school but he is not where I want him to be wrt a more classical education. We essentially lost two years of HSing. He was advanced so he isn't behind his same age peers I don't think. I don't know what the right decision is.

 

Sybil