I skipped third grade and I don't recommend it. It was not a problem academically but physically, socially and emotionally I was behind in high school and college. I honestly didn't feel like I was caught up with my peers until my early 20s. I had a March birthday, so some of my classmates were 18 months older.

Anonymous wrote:I skipped 4th grade but took an extra year of high school, as an exchange student in the UK, so I wasn't heading to college at 17. Getting in an extra year of enrichment as an older teen worked well for me - I went to an Ivy, studied world history and English lit, and loved it.

If your problem is challenge in DCPS, skipping a grade will only solve it for so long. No DC middle school honors course in this city, other than 8th grade algebra (and 7th grade algebra at Deal). BASIS offers much tougher math than DCPS, but sounds really strange and limiting.

Why don't you actually visit the school and take a tour before you go lobbing accusations that BASIS is really strange and limiting?? Our DC is thriving at BASIS and is not limited at all.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you for all this feedback. The person who said that skipping and staying at the same school really made it hit home for me. That really made the most sense to me. And my daughter WOULD be on the youngest side because she is already in the youngest in her class because of her summer birthday. So needless to say, we are switching gears and will not be pursuing this further. When she comes home like she does most days and says she only has 5 math problems to do, we will supplement with some academic work at home. We will be choosing a more academically challenging middle school for her, for sure. Thank you so much to this forum to helping us put this issue to rest.

There are so many tough decisions in parenting. Even if you aren't asking to skip a grade, it makes sense to talk to your principal and school counselor (if they know your child) about the fact that your child doesn't love being at school. Maybe together you can come up with ways to engage her. Even without a G&T track, there is a lot that can and should be done to help your child at least not dread going to school.

Have you spoken to parents in 3rd and 4th grade at your school about their experiences? They might have suggestions on which teachers might be a good fit for your child. They may know about afterschool clubs or activities that aren't available in 2nd grade. At our school, there are quite a few very young kids in chess and math clubs.

Look ahead to next year. Although principals don't like to advertise it, they can place your child with the teacher you want. Don't just ask for Teacher A. Position your request around your child's learning style and temperament that (coincidentally ) align with what you've heard about Teacher A's teaching style. It makes the principal's life easier when there's a rationale that's not based solely on the reputation of the teacher. (There's probably a line of pushy parents demanding to get in.)

Hope the school can do more for your child. She deserves it.

Anonymous wrote:Doesn't Latin also provide advanced math in middle school?

Not really, unless you count 8th grade algebra (what a joke). They're supposed to be starting 7th grade algebra. Kids who can barely add are tossed into the same math classes as really advanced kids. Fabulous.

OP here. Thank you for all this feedback. The person who said that skipping and staying at the same school really made it hit home for me. That really made the most sense to me. And my daughter WOULD be on the youngest side because she is already in the youngest in her class because of her summer birthday. So needless to say, we are switching gears and will not be pursuing this further. When she comes home like she does most days and says she only has 5 math problems to do, we will supplement with some academic work at home. We will be choosing a more academically challenging middle school for her, for sure. Thank you so much to this forum to helping us put this issue to rest.

Doesn't Latin also provide advanced math in middle school?

I skipped 4th grade but took an extra year of high school, as an exchange student in the UK, so I wasn't heading to college at 17. Getting in an extra year of enrichment as an older teen worked well for me - I went to an Ivy, studied world history and English lit, and loved it.

If your problem is challenge in DCPS, skipping a grade will only solve it for so long. No DC middle school honors course in this city, other than 8th grade algebra (and 7th grade algebra at Deal). BASIS offers much tougher math than DCPS, but sounds really strange and limiting.

I skipped the third grade some 30 years ago . . . no social problems whatsover (though I was always the youngest in my grade, usually by a good measure - so I remember it being a little odd/kind of a bummer that I couldn't drive for a couple of years while friends could . . . but they just drove me around!). Graduated top of my high school class/varsity sports every year in high school. So there is another data point.

For those of you who have experience with skipping grades and have said that it creates social problems, I am curious to learn more. My daughter has a late September birthday, which of course in DC means that she can be the youngest in the class or, alternatively if we hold her back, the oldest in the class. I could lottery next year for PS3 or wait another year. Just curious for your perspective on that.

My DCPS kindergartner is solidly average, so no experience there. But my sister and I both skipped grades--she kindergarten, I 2nd grade--and I think we would both say it's not a great solution. Socially, it can be very hard. I don't think my sister ever really recovered, even though she is very gifted. (I don't think I am, though.)

Anonymous wrote:There seems to be a lot of confusion on this thread (and forum) regarding differentiated instruction, guided reading, small groups, etc. Differentiated instruction for an above level reader does not mean just giving the student "harder work and less teacher time." It means, in some instances, meeting with the teacher in a small group or alone to work with a more complex text than the rest of the class. It means having a different writing assignment or centers work. This is what it looks like in most schools, but I realize that of course all teachers don't do what is appropriate for the needs of the students. I like to think most do!

Oh come on, you need instructors running pulling out groups for any real differentiation to occur in the upper grades. DCPS doesn't pay for the adults needed to provide the challenge and instruction the brightest kids need, at least in large classes. The teachers simply can't do what is appropriate to meet the needs of high-end learners when the focus is on ensuring that the low-end kids test proficient on the DC-CAS. Skipping a grade can work in the short or medium-term for a particularly mature ES kid, but it won't solve your problem for MS in this city, other than perhaps at BASIS (if you don't mind a cram school).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child is a rising 3rd grader, and I would like to have her considered for skipping a grade. Not looking for feedback about this choice, just looking for logistical information on how to start this process. Does the school principal need to sign off on it? I know they do NOT encourage this process, so I certainly don't see anything about it on the DCPS website. Is there a test?

Would she be at the 99th percentile rank academically for 4th grade (you are talking about skipping third grade, correct?) So knows all the times tables, multi-digit multiplication, division? No problem keeping up with physically writing more than her peers in the current grade? Is her birthday closer or farther from the cut-off, so will she be the youngest by a couple of months or several months?

Doesn't matter if she is in the 99th percentile as a fifth grader if the reason OP wants to skip 3rd grade is b/c her DD is "bored" and has behavior issues. It's hard to get DCPS to let a kid skip a grade even if they are in the 99th% and behaves like an angel (knows how to deal with being bored).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child is a rising 3rd grader, and I would like to have her considered for skipping a grade. Not looking for feedback about this choice, just looking for logistical information on how to start this process. Does the school principal need to sign off on it? I know they do NOT encourage this process, so I certainly don't see anything about it on the DCPS website. Is there a test?

Would she be at the 99th percentile rank academically for 4th grade (you are talking about skipping third grade, correct?) So knows all the times tables, multi-digit multiplication, division? No problem keeping up with physically writing more than her peers in the current grade? Is her birthday closer or farther from the cut-off, so will she be the youngest by a couple of months or several months?