8th grader who is 15?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. Most 8th graders will turn 14 at some point during the year, and many will be almost 15 at the end of the school year. So it's not that big a difference. 14.5 is probably the norm.

My child turns 13 during 8th grade so that’s a two year age difference. It’s a big difference.

Your child was 12 in 8th grade? That is not the norm at all! Most are 13 and turn 14 that year. My 14.5 year old just finished 8th and my 12 year old is now going into 7th. And we sent them on time. Your math seems off!

Your math is off, my child was 13 the entire 8th grade year.

All the birthdays my child attended in 8th grade were for kids turning 14. Nobody was 12, turning 13.

My child started kinder at 5 and was 5 the entire time, that made DC 13 the entire 8th grade year. I suppose your child was below average as was classmates.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. Most 8th graders will turn 14 at some point during the year, and many will be almost 15 at the end of the school year. So it's not that big a difference. 14.5 is probably the norm.

It’s not a big deal at all. Anti-redshirters are just bad at math.

12-14 = age range with no redshirting (12 months max age difference, most not that much)

12-14 = age range with summer redshirting (15 months max age difference, most not that much)

12-15 = age range with spring redshirting (18 months max, most not that much — very uncommon)

Just to recap the numbers for the people who suck at math

It’s not a big deal.

12-14 is a two year difference.

12-15 is a three year difference.

That is huge.

Wrong. At no point in time is there a three year difference.

It’s an 18 month MAX difference in age between the oldest spring redshirted kid and the very youngest September birthdays. The vast majority of kids are much closer in age than that.

Plus, spring redshirting is not common.

Aprilon is common. Sometimes march.

Not at all here here - DC close-in. Not a single spring birthday in either kid’s class. Earliest is late July.

Where are you?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:This year was interesting - there were two kids that turned 7 in my daughter's kindergarten class before winter break. Both of them were redshirted in 2020 and then did private JK in 2021 because mommy wanted them to be in school in person, then instead of starting them in 1st like they should have, put them in public school K. Not very smart ladies.

I did exactly this with mine but years ago - private K and then public K, late July birthday. He's first year at MIT now. Best decision ever and I'd highly recommended for anyone who can afford an extra year of private school.

Sounds completely unnecessary if he has a good preschool and was properly prepared.

He was not prepared for school. He had a wonderful play based preschool and during the first week in private K, he did cartwheels all day long on class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. Most 8th graders will turn 14 at some point during the year, and many will be almost 15 at the end of the school year. So it's not that big a difference. 14.5 is probably the norm.

My child turns 13 during 8th grade so that’s a two year age difference. It’s a big difference.

Mine also turned 13 in 8th grade but that’s because she started a year early. It’s not the norm.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My 8th grader was 13 all year and won’t turn 14 until late September. Luckily he is tall and very athletic or he’d probably struggle socially. I hate that people do this.

September is the cut off. Your child made the cut off by a small margin; that's why your kid's age seems like a big deal. The on-time October kids just missed the cut off by a small margin, so they had to wait to start school even though they were just about to turn 5. So they all turn 6 at the beginning of K and 14 a month into 8th grade and were 14 all year, just as they were supposed to. The cut off has to be somewhere, so there will always be a youngest and oldest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. Most 8th graders will turn 14 at some point during the year, and many will be almost 15 at the end of the school year. So it's not that big a difference. 14.5 is probably the norm.

My child turns 13 during 8th grade so that’s a two year age difference. It’s a big difference.

Your child was 12 in 8th grade? That is not the norm at all! Most are 13 and turn 14 that year. My 14.5 year old just finished 8th and my 12 year old is now going into 7th. And we sent them on time. Your math seems off!

Your math is off, my child was 13 the entire 8th grade year.

All the birthdays my child attended in 8th grade were for kids turning 14. Nobody was 12, turning 13.

My child started kinder at 5 and was 5 the entire time, that made DC 13 the entire 8th grade year. I suppose your child was below average as was classmates.

You realize you are just saying that your child is superior by virtue of having a summer birthday and being among the youngest on time kids? You have to be 5 by the cut off and some kids just miss it by a day or a week or a month. Unless you are a child whose 5th birthday is after the start of school, but before the cut off, you will turn 6 during K or in the summer after, just like yours.

My personal opinion is that the cut off should be the first day of school. I don't think those kids born between the first day of school and the cut off should be starting K at age 4.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. Most 8th graders will turn 14 at some point during the year, and many will be almost 15 at the end of the school year. So it's not that big a difference. 14.5 is probably the norm.

My child turns 13 during 8th grade so that’s a two year age difference. It’s a big difference.

Your child was 12 in 8th grade? That is not the norm at all! Most are 13 and turn 14 that year. My 14.5 year old just finished 8th and my 12 year old is now going into 7th. And we sent them on time. Your math seems off!

Your math is off, my child was 13 the entire 8th grade year.

All the birthdays my child attended in 8th grade were for kids turning 14. Nobody was 12, turning 13.

My child will be 12 turning 13 in 8th.

What month? If this is true, then your kid started kindergarten when they were 4. So they had to turn 5 fairly early in the year (depending on your state’s cutoff), or they wouldn’t have been allowed to go. So you’re being disingenuous at best. Your kid was 13 most of the year in 8th grade.

Yes, they technically were four for a few weeks but they were five the majority of the year. My child will e 12 turning 13 for 8th.

Yes, this is the problem with the age cut off being after the first day of school. Add that to redshirted summer kids and you have a K class with kids who are 4, 5, and 6 for a few weeks, with the redshirted kids being more than a year older that they kids who meet the cut off after the first day of school. I think redshirting summer boys is a good idea, but starting 4 year olds in K is not a good idea, even though that is what is technically required right now. Those kids should be redshirted, and then they will actually be 5 turning 6 like the on-time October kids.

[Anonymous]

If I'd redshirted my daughter she would have turned 14 in 8th grade. Would that really be a problem? She wouldn't have turned 15 until 9th grade.

As a non-redshirted kid she'll start 8th as a 12 yo, turning 13 yo soon after.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I'd redshirted my daughter she would have turned 14 in 8th grade. Would that really be a problem? She wouldn't have turned 15 until 9th grade.

As a non-redshirted kid she'll start 8th as a 12 yo, turning 13 yo soon after.

Our cutoff is Sept 1, so my late September, non-redshirt kid will turn 14 a month into 8th grade.
It’s not a big deal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My 1st grader had two 8 year olds in her class in the spring. She's still only 6. It's weird. And those kids were the worst behaved too.

+1
My 6 year old has a summer birthday and is 18 months younger than the oldest in her class. She is one of the smarter ones and smaller ones. She's doing great! I hope the older ones are too!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. Most 8th graders will turn 14 at some point during the year, and many will be almost 15 at the end of the school year. So it's not that big a difference. 14.5 is probably the norm.

My child turns 13 during 8th grade so that’s a two year age difference. It’s a big difference.

Your child was 12 in 8th grade? That is not the norm at all! Most are 13 and turn 14 that year. My 14.5 year old just finished 8th and my 12 year old is now going into 7th. And we sent them on time. Your math seems off!

Your math is off, my child was 13 the entire 8th grade year.

All the birthdays my child attended in 8th grade were for kids turning 14. Nobody was 12, turning 13.

My child will be 12 turning 13 in 8th.

Mine will be, too. She will not turn 13 until December of 8th grade.

[Anonymous]

No. The vast majority of students finish 8th grade at 13 and start 9th grade at 14.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. Most 8th graders will turn 14 at some point during the year, and many will be almost 15 at the end of the school year. So it's not that big a difference. 14.5 is probably the norm.

My child turns 13 during 8th grade so that’s a two year age difference. It’s a big difference.

Your child was 12 in 8th grade? That is not the norm at all! Most are 13 and turn 14 that year. My 14.5 year old just finished 8th and my 12 year old is now going into 7th. And we sent them on time. Your math seems off!

Your math is off, my child was 13 the entire 8th grade year.

All the birthdays my child attended in 8th grade were for kids turning 14. Nobody was 12, turning 13.

My child will be 12 turning 13 in 8th.

Mine will be, too. She will not turn 13 until December of 8th grade.

Are you in NY?

These discussions become meaningless when people from other areas don’t bother explaining the differences in their cut off dates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. Most 8th graders will turn 14 at some point during the year, and many will be almost 15 at the end of the school year. So it's not that big a difference. 14.5 is probably the norm.

My child turns 13 during 8th grade so that’s a two year age difference. It’s a big difference.

Your child was 12 in 8th grade? That is not the norm at all! Most are 13 and turn 14 that year. My 14.5 year old just finished 8th and my 12 year old is now going into 7th. And we sent them on time. Your math seems off!

Your math is off, my child was 13 the entire 8th grade year.

All the birthdays my child attended in 8th grade were for kids turning 14. Nobody was 12, turning 13.

September birthday here, I turned 13 in 8th grade.

Me, too! I grew up in an Aug 31 cutoff zone back in the late 70s, and my parents got me tested so I could start while I was still 4 for 3 whole weeks. If we’d been in a Sept 30 or Dec 31 cutoff zone, it wouldn’t have been an issue.

Our neighbor turned 15 in May before 8th grade, but I just assume that the parents had reasons to hold her back, just like my parents had reasons to start me “early.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure why this is such a big deal. Most 8th graders will turn 14 at some point during the year, and many will be almost 15 at the end of the school year. So it's not that big a difference. 14.5 is probably the norm.

My child turns 13 during 8th grade so that’s a two year age difference. It’s a big difference.

Your child was 12 in 8th grade? That is not the norm at all! Most are 13 and turn 14 that year. My 14.5 year old just finished 8th and my 12 year old is now going into 7th. And we sent them on time. Your math seems off!

Your math is off, my child was 13 the entire 8th grade year.

All the birthdays my child attended in 8th grade were for kids turning 14. Nobody was 12, turning 13.

My child will be 12 turning 13 in 8th.

Mine will be, too. She will not turn 13 until December of 8th grade.

Are you in NY?

These discussions become meaningless when people from other areas don’t bother explaining the differences in their cut off dates.

No, we are in NOVA. DD went to private school for kindergarten and first grade, then began public school in second grade. She just finished sixth grade.

My niece also began kindergarten at age four, in a private school, and she turned five in November of that year. She then went to public school in first grade. She is now a rising senior.