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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote]So can I tell dh and dc definitively that nothing (including not only extra currics but her grades in 7th and 8th) can be used (for or against) dc's chances of getting into college? [/quote]

I suppose you could say that.  But perhaps it would be more constructive to frame it as "doing extracurriculars now helps you grow as a person and learn to manage your time split between many different obligations, so you can excel as you go on in life and in high school."  Although I think it's unhealthy to fixate on this stuff in 7th and 8th grade, if he must, if you plan to apply to selective admissions/private high schools, you can say "this will help with your high school applications, though, which helps with college applications."  Or if you are not going to have to apply for high school, you can say that middle school is a safe time to explore new things that you might screw up and not be great at, but you could learn from.

The reason why no one cares about how many extracurriculars you did prior to 9th grade is that they are concerned with what you are doing currently in your life, not that you used to be a great flute player but stopped playing in high school.  But also there comes a point where it's just not important.  How many people list their SAT scores on a job application?[/quote]

O.k., there will be a limit to how long it will matter to anyone else that you were a fantastic flute player, captain of the football team, student government president...not something your corporate employer will base a hiring/promotion decision on.

However, we are talking about a college app, not a professional career resume.  For an 18 year old high school senior, what they did in 9th grade matters...that's something to keep in mind for all of those who are considering quitting long time pursuits at the middle school level.  If they can continue for just one year longer (through 9th grade), they'll be able to put that accomplishment on their college resume.  Of course, it's quite possible that a college will only care about the most recent extra curricular activities that an applicant has been involved in, I really don't know...but probably 4 years of student council beginning in the 9th grade will look better than 10 years of band ending in the 9th grade, that's true enough.

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