Mature Academically, but Still a Little Kid

Our little girl is now in 2nd grade, a 6 year old with those who are mostly 7 turning 8.  It's crazy to think that there are many kids older than she who are just beginning 1st grade, while here she is in 2nd.  Where did the time go?  We worry that the time will come too soon where she won't want to be a little girl anymore.  Gone will be the times of my little ponies and princesses and the only thing important will be teen pop sensations, preteen books, makeup and fashion.  But how long can we hold off?  

One thing about our daughter, unlike our sons who have skipped grades, is that she is a social butterfly.  She just loves everyone and they all love her.  She still has friends from the short time she was in Kindergarten, and then she has so many friends in her new grade level.  She is never at a loss for play dates.  In fact, it is often that we have mom's knocking at our van window or calling to set up play dates with Jewelia.

While there are so many girls about 8 years old in her class who have began to change their interests, it is nice to see a few who are still young at heart.  On a recent play date, we were indeed happy as we saw that the little girl walking home with us to play had Dora the Explorer shoes on, and even happier when she wanted to push little baby doll strollers around outside.  I'm glad that some kids can still be kids.  

It seems like most kids are growing up way too fast.  I suppose it's easy when you have older brothers or sisters as an influence, but even then some kids who are an only child can move on to more adult interests a little sooner than they used to.  

As our kids have skipped grades and it sometimes feels like they've been pushed ahead to be older, we still think it is important that they can still be a kid.  It is interesting to see them reading, writing, and figuring out math problems way beyond their same aged peers, but then when it comes down to the simpleness of playing games and having fun, it doesn't matter so much.  

It will be interesting to see what happens as they get older.  Will they be forced to grow up too fast, or will they be lucky and find some friends who enjoy their time just being a kid? 

An 11 Year Old in Junior High

Here's my oldest son.  He thinks he's pretty cool here. 

 I'd say he was around 4 years old at the time. 

Well, it's been a long road, and now he is 11, and starting Junior High School for the first time. 

Will he be so cool now that he is a tiny little 11 year old amongst Junior High School kids who are mostly ages 12 and a half to 15 years old? 

It wasn't such a big deal to skip 5th grade and go into 6th grade at an elementary school with kids mostly younger than he, but now he has moved up and all the kids are older. 

Older and bigger. 

Much much bigger.

During the first week of school sometime I walked a short distance from the junior high school just in time to see him getting out of school to walk home.

Yeah, I suppose I was spying a bit, but I stood behind a tree from a pretty far distance away and tried to act casual.  Ha!

Anyway, out comes all these kids, these HUGE kids, these old looking, mature looking kids, and then I see my boy.  Yep, he's that one about 2 feet shorter than the rest, the skinny one.  And I'm not comparing him to the other boys.  It's the girls who are towering above him.  The boys are probably much taller.

Oh, he looked so out of place.  But so what.  So.  How is this year really going to go?  Will he like it?  Is he glad to be here instead of Elementary School?  Is he sorry he skipped?  Will he fit in?

So far, he is doing quite well academically.  Well, he always has. 

Socially?

Well, remember this is the boy who has Asperger's syndrome, and although his elementary school psychologist said there were many "red flags" for not wanting him to skip grades, we still pushed to make it happen, and he did well in 6th grade.  The kids were nicer. 

I've asked him about friends at Junior High. 

He tells me everyday he eats lunch with a certain boy who they don't even share any classes with, so I suppose the boy must want to hang out with him and not just out of coincidence. 

He even tried out for the Junior High Jazz Band and made it!  That's my boy!  Just a little 11 year old who still managed to win a spot in an audition only jazz band where the other kids are mostly 8th and 9th graders.  Kudos to him!

It is a little stressful to me seeing that I don't have much control over the boy anymore.  It's a little nerve racking knowing that he is on his own in a way at such a young age.  It seems like he's had to grow up so fast, and yet as I think about it, he's always been so grown up all these years.  Even there at age 4, I remember the way he talked to me just wasn't normal compared to other kids.  It's hard to explain. 

I still want to allow him the time and not miss out on things because of his early Junior High enrollment.  I'm pretty sure a lot of the kids end all dressing up and trick or treating for Halloween by Junior High time, but I don't think that's fair for him to lose a year.  Although he's not going to dress up for school (I doubt that would be too cool in Junior High School), he still has plans to dress up at home and go trick or treating.  It's only fair, and he should get to enjoy all the trick or treating years he can! 

Only time will tell how these next few years go.  Will he ever get that growth spurt to catch up with the others?  Will he gain some meat on his bones?  Will the other kids be able to see past his tiny size and young age?  Will he be considered an equal?  A peer? 

Top Honors for Academics

We were invited to an awards assembly at the end of the school year to see 2 of our kids receive awards. They picked 2 students out of every class who had the best marks in citizenship and academics. 2 out of our 3 school aged kids were picked, although we were surprised because our first son had all Honors in citizenship for the year as well as straight A's for all 4 quarters.

So, things seem to be just fine academically for our 3 kids who have all skipped a grade. How awesome that they can still be excelling even after being placed a year ahead. I always wonder if they will even out and just be average since they skipped a year, but they don't. They continue to excel. Good for them!

Socially they are all doing OK. While our oldest doesn't have really close friendships, and our second seems to think "everyone" is his friend although I don't think they all return the thought, they are happy enough. Our #3, the little girl, the youngest of them all to skip grades is probably the best socially. She is just so outgoing and has made so many friends. It doesn't matter that some of them are almost 2 years older.

All is well. It is summer and we only wait to see what happens for our kids as the next year starts.

Our 11 year old will enter Junior High,
our 8 year old will enter 4th grade,
and our little 6 year old will start 2nd grade.

Let's hope for a great new school year!

6th Grade Graduation, Is an 11 Year Old Ready for Junior High?

Well, our oldest just graduated from 6th grade.

They had all the 6th graders go through this balloon tunnel in 2's to the stage, and it was really crazy at how huge all the kids were compared to our son. I mean, yes, we saw a big difference at the beginning of the school year, but now at the end even more so. These other kids were giantic! They towered above him. Some of them looked like kids in high school already.

And then here is our #1, an 11 year old about to enter 7th grade. It was even weird seeing the "Future Class of 2017" banners that were posted around the auditorium. That's right, he will have just turned 17 when he graduates. I remember I was almost 19 when I graduated.

So, how has the year been? Our son went from 4th grade to 6th grade, and a lot of people have told us how detrimental that is on a kid socially, but we actually think it has been wonderful for him. He has done wonderfully well in academics receiving a perfect report card of straight A's and all Honors in citizenship for the entire 6th grade year. Great academically, but socially, he has been so happy this year! Unlike last year, there hasn't been a single time he has come home upset or commenting on how lonely he is or how the other kids won't play with him. These older kids, his new peers, seem to have accepted him just fine and they include him. No, he may not have developed any close best friend type friendships, but he felt as if he could talk or hang out with any groups in the 6th grade.

I don't know how it will be as he enters junior high this next fall. I hope that he hits a growth spurt soon, but he will do alright. As of now, just a year after skipping him 5th grade, I do not regret it. If anything, I think it's one of the best things we've ever done for our son. Every kid is different though. Who knows what will come for him when he gets to high school and driving and dating come into effect.