Can MCPS allow DC to jump from 1st to 2nd grade in this situation?

[Anonymous]

My 1st grade son will be 8 in April. Going by his birthdate he should be in 2nd grade this year.
However he had speech and motor delays as a preschooler, inattention issues (diagnosed with ADHD) as well, and his preschool teacher advised us to hold him back a year, which we did. We put him into an MCPS elementary school. The principal told us we would never be able to change his grade again - I think she was not happy we requested to hold him back. Then my DH got an assignment abroad and we moved. DC went to a private international school.

Now, however, it looks like we are coming back into the DC area, in the same school he was in before. My DC has matured and developed at a faster pace than I or his therapists would ever have thought possible, and seems to me significantly above the 1st grade level, especially in reading.

Can I request that he be placed into 2nd grade? Given the principal's previous reaction, do you think this will happen? What would you do in the same situation?

Thank you so much for your help.

[Anonymous]

I would ask the school and present the child's records from the international school. I'm not sure what other option you have.

[Anonymous]

If the principal gives you trouble, then go to the community superintendent. Everyone has a boss. Appeal to a higher authority.

[Anonymous]

Any way he can finish 2nd grade at the international school? I think it would be much harder for a public school to force an age-appropriate kid to repeat a grade.

[Anonymous]

The issue is really whether or not he will be ready for third grade in the fall. I'm an MCPS elementary teacher (baby sick day) and while it is rare, kids DO get moved up a grade. Usually though it happens near the beginning of the year. For example, here is a scenario that I may or may not have encountered: a student attended a "junior" kindergarten in a private school, then in the fall is enrolled in K in public. Student is assessed and in October is moved to 1st grade.

Since your DS is coming from a totally different school system, try and get as much info from your school as possible, relating to his test scores, reading level, etc. With an international school, perhaps you can get copies of the books he is reading in a reading group, so that a comparison could be made. Have examples of the work he is currently doing, so it can be compared to what 2nd grade is doing.

As a teacher, I am generally opposed to "skipping" grades, but in this case it seems like it may be appropriate, providing he has the skills that he will need to be successful in his grade. I hate to say it, but this is why a lot of principals are opposed to holding kids back--many just need that time to mature and then they take off and are closer to their age-peers, rather than their grade-peers, which creates your situation.

If you are dealing with the same principal and the previous conversation is referenced (ugh, can only imagine how awkward you feel that's going to be) I would flat out admit that you now understand why s/he had that opinion, but everyone wants to do right by the student and place him at an appropriate level. If his work is indeed on par with current 2nd grade, he could go into 2nd for the rest of the year, and revisit at the end of the year to determine his placement next year.

[Anonymous]

Don't know if this helps you, but in one of my kids' classes, a new (international) student showed up mid-year and was moved up a grade about a month later. I would think that placing your son in the most appropriate grade is in everyone's best interest.