Anonymous
01/23/2024 04:36
Subject: Gilman
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Baltimore private schools redshirted many boys as long as 50 years ago. Over many decades I’ve heard zero reports of anyone being negatively impacted. Gilman boys have gone on to being surgeons, executives, judges, all several months older than… peers from other cities?
My DS went to a private school in Baltimore (not Gilman). He started in 6th grade whereas most students started in kindergarten. At least half of his class went to pre-first so they were a year to a year and a half older than he was. Teachers in middle school don't really consider this and were constantly disciplining the younger (appropriately aged) students. It impacted my son a lot. He was frequently told how immature his behavior was. It was normal 7th grade behavior but compared to his peers, he was in trouble a lot. So this practice does impact students.
I also tutor a student who is at another private school in Baltimore. He didn't go to pre-first while many classmates did. He is in remedial reading classes even though he tests on grade level for his grade. Everything is relative to who you are in class with. He feels stupid and inferior because of this.
And then there is the sports aspect of it. Thankfully my son didn't play school sports so it wasn't something he had to deal with but some of his friends did.
Your experience seems to legitimize the concern of Gilman admissions. There is no harm in repeating a grade when switching schools. If I were Op, I would consider it. If I were an applicant, I would not fight admissions recommendations. Perhaps they’ve had experience with this
Anonymous
01/22/2024 21:00
Subject: Gilman
Anonymous wrote:Baltimore private schools redshirted many boys as long as 50 years ago. Over many decades I’ve heard zero reports of anyone being negatively impacted. Gilman boys have gone on to being surgeons, executives, judges, all several months older than… peers from other cities?
My DS went to a private school in Baltimore (not Gilman). He started in 6th grade whereas most students started in kindergarten. At least half of his class went to pre-first so they were a year to a year and a half older than he was. Teachers in middle school don't really consider this and were constantly disciplining the younger (appropriately aged) students. It impacted my son a lot. He was frequently told how immature his behavior was. It was normal 7th grade behavior but compared to his peers, he was in trouble a lot. So this practice does impact students.
I also tutor a student who is at another private school in Baltimore. He didn't go to pre-first while many classmates did. He is in remedial reading classes even though he tests on grade level for his grade. Everything is relative to who you are in class with. He feels stupid and inferior because of this.
And then there is the sports aspect of it. Thankfully my son didn't play school sports so it wasn't something he had to deal with but some of his friends did.
Anonymous
01/22/2024 19:06
Subject: Gilman
Baltimore private schools redshirted many boys as long as 50 years ago. Over many decades I’ve heard zero reports of anyone being negatively impacted. Gilman boys have gone on to being surgeons, executives, judges, all several months older than… peers from other cities?
Anonymous
01/22/2024 15:24
Subject: Gilman
PP- Redshirting is common in kindergarten when boys start there. It’s common in many Baltimore schools for students to go to pre-first.
Anonymous
01/21/2024 20:09
Subject: Re:Gilman
Gilman, like all privates, accepts a largish number of students as transfers into 9th grade. These students complete 8th grade somewhere else, and start 9th grade the following fall at Gilman. They don’t repeat 8th grade when they enter Gilman. They’re not told to take a gap year.
My son went to a small catholic school and was the usual age for his grade, and then transferred into Gilman at 6th grade. That’s another expansion year, but smaller than 9th grade. Transfers into Gilman would be hard to do if everyone there was one year older than the transferring student.
My son went to a small catholic school and was the usual age for his grade, and then transferred into Gilman at 6th grade. That’s another expansion year, but smaller than 9th grade. Transfers into Gilman would be hard to do if everyone there was one year older than the transferring student.
Anonymous
01/21/2024 13:58
Subject: Re:Gilman
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I toured Gilman when my DS was 4. Before ever meeting him or knowing anything about him, the admissions person asked me when his birthday was (mid April) and said he would be considered for pre-k instead of kindergarten. I said that he would be going into kindergarten so I wouldn't be applying for pre-k and they said something about "young boys" his age would be considered for pre-k. Um, no thanks.
Is this real? Sounds fake.
Second poster here, a very similar thing happened to us as well, I can assure you this is true. My son's best friend goes to gilman. He has an April birthday and he is the second youngest in his grade.
My son is at Gilman, and I can confidently say this is not true. Gossip for a friend is not fact.
Do they post all the birthdays of every kid in every grade? If so, it would be really helpful if you could put together a quick spreadsheet to put an end to the speculation!
FWIW, the redshirting is VERY common in Baltimore private schools. It's practically an assumption, and there is institutional infrastructure and expectation to support it. Pre 1st AND pre-k at many schools, loads of private preschools with both as well.
Anonymous
01/21/2024 10:55
Subject: Re:Gilman
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I toured Gilman when my DS was 4. Before ever meeting him or knowing anything about him, the admissions person asked me when his birthday was (mid April) and said he would be considered for pre-k instead of kindergarten. I said that he would be going into kindergarten so I wouldn't be applying for pre-k and they said something about "young boys" his age would be considered for pre-k. Um, no thanks.
Is this real? Sounds fake.
Second poster here, a very similar thing happened to us as well, I can assure you this is true. My son's best friend goes to gilman. He has an April birthday and he is the second youngest in his grade.
My son is at Gilman, and I can confidently say this is not true. Gossip for a friend is not fact.
Anonymous
01/21/2024 09:32
Subject: Re:Gilman
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I toured Gilman when my DS was 4. Before ever meeting him or knowing anything about him, the admissions person asked me when his birthday was (mid April) and said he would be considered for pre-k instead of kindergarten. I said that he would be going into kindergarten so I wouldn't be applying for pre-k and they said something about "young boys" his age would be considered for pre-k. Um, no thanks.
Is this real? Sounds fake.
Second poster here, a very similar thing happened to us as well, I can assure you this is true. My son's best friend goes to gilman. He has an April birthday and he is the second youngest in his grade.
The redshirting at Gilman sounds extreme compared to other privates in the area.
It is extreme, but it is absolutely real and is their preference and practice. (I know a kid with a May bday who tried to start on time but was ultimately counseled into the younger/redshirt grade.)
Anonymous
01/21/2024 09:29
Subject: Re:Gilman
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I toured Gilman when my DS was 4. Before ever meeting him or knowing anything about him, the admissions person asked me when his birthday was (mid April) and said he would be considered for pre-k instead of kindergarten. I said that he would be going into kindergarten so I wouldn't be applying for pre-k and they said something about "young boys" his age would be considered for pre-k. Um, no thanks.
Is this real? Sounds fake.
Second poster here, a very similar thing happened to us as well, I can assure you this is true. My son's best friend goes to gilman. He has an April birthday and he is the second youngest in his grade.
The redshirting at Gilman sounds extreme compared to other privates in the area.
Anonymous
01/21/2024 02:07
Subject: Re:Gilman
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I toured Gilman when my DS was 4. Before ever meeting him or knowing anything about him, the admissions person asked me when his birthday was (mid April) and said he would be considered for pre-k instead of kindergarten. I said that he would be going into kindergarten so I wouldn't be applying for pre-k and they said something about "young boys" his age would be considered for pre-k. Um, no thanks.
Is this real? Sounds fake.
Second poster here, a very similar thing happened to us as well, I can assure you this is true. My son's best friend goes to gilman. He has an April birthday and he is the second youngest in his grade.
Anonymous
01/20/2024 17:04
Subject: Re:Gilman
Best of luck! #GoHounds!
Anonymous
01/20/2024 10:35
Subject: Gilman
Anonymous wrote:Gilman family here - I don’t see anyone else having answered this question: we were told a few years back that the admission rate was usually around 35%, and that they rarely accepted boys below 85th %ile in testing.
It’s a fantastic school and we couldn’t be happier with the education our son is getting. Having said that, it’s not the only option! Lots of strong schools in the area. Definitely look at all the options, including Park and McD. I’m not sure where you live, but if location is an issue, I see their school-run buses all the time. If you can get to Gilman, you can get to a Park or McDonogh bus stop.
Well, we got our scores back- 9s for 3/4 categories. Scored a 6 in Math, but he is not in geometry so hopefully his transcript speaks for itself in that regard. Now we wait!
Anonymous
11/18/2023 09:33
Subject: Gilman
Anonymous wrote:Gilman family here - I don’t see anyone else having answered this question: we were told a few years back that the admission rate was usually around 35%, and that they rarely accepted boys below 85th %ile in testing.
It’s a fantastic school and we couldn’t be happier with the education our son is getting. Having said that, it’s not the only option! Lots of strong schools in the area. Definitely look at all the options, including Park and McD. I’m not sure where you live, but if location is an issue, I see their school-run buses all the time. If you can get to Gilman, you can get to a Park or McDonogh bus stop.
Thank you, appreciate this information!
Anonymous
11/17/2023 10:20
Subject: Re:Gilman
Anonymous wrote:I toured Gilman when my DS was 4. Before ever meeting him or knowing anything about him, the admissions person asked me when his birthday was (mid April) and said he would be considered for pre-k instead of kindergarten. I said that he would be going into kindergarten so I wouldn't be applying for pre-k and they said something about "young boys" his age would be considered for pre-k. Um, no thanks.
Is this real? Sounds fake.
Anonymous
11/16/2023 23:09
Subject: Gilman
Gilman family here - I don’t see anyone else having answered this question: we were told a few years back that the admission rate was usually around 35%, and that they rarely accepted boys below 85th %ile in testing.
It’s a fantastic school and we couldn’t be happier with the education our son is getting. Having said that, it’s not the only option! Lots of strong schools in the area. Definitely look at all the options, including Park and McD. I’m not sure where you live, but if location is an issue, I see their school-run buses all the time. If you can get to Gilman, you can get to a Park or McDonogh bus stop.
It’s a fantastic school and we couldn’t be happier with the education our son is getting. Having said that, it’s not the only option! Lots of strong schools in the area. Definitely look at all the options, including Park and McD. I’m not sure where you live, but if location is an issue, I see their school-run buses all the time. If you can get to Gilman, you can get to a Park or McDonogh bus stop.