Skipping a grade for homeschool? Starting first grade early?

Question

My child will be 5 in August, and technically should be starting Kindergarten this fall. However, I'm looking to homeschool and am also wondering if I would be able to start her at the first grade level. (She was in educational daycare from 2-4 yrs old and is pretty advanced.) Does anyone know how this works?

For example, I am currently working with her on telling time, addition and subtraction, reading, etc. I just feel that if I do all of these things and it doesn't "count" until next year, that by next year she will be ready for 2nd grade things even though it will be time for first grade.

I hope I explained that well. :)

Answer 1

That's the best part of homeschooling, you can go at your own pace in the way that works best for you!  

Public school is not set up for kids who are faster or slower than average.  For a square peg, homeshooling is especially wonderful.  

Good luck :D

Answer 2

i was homeschooled until third grade and we recived curriculum from a nearby school. now most people do it online, but u can probably talk to a local school about skipping her. she might not be socially ready though, if you ever plan to put her into public or even private schools. it might just be best to keep her at that level and later let her take advance courses. dont push her too much, shes just 5 years old.

Answer 3

A year or two of HS and then into school can be a good solution for kids who are 'behind', but for the ones who are ahead it's just going to make them further ahead and harder to place into a school system which is all about trying to make every child average.

Answer 4

Well, it does sound like your 4 almost 5 year old is doing really well.  At the school my children attend, the kindergarten children are learning what you are teaching your daughter.  Since your daughter has already been enrolled in an educational daycare center, you also need to ask yourself if she will miss being in a setting everyday where there are other children her age.  Also you need to ask yourself how much and how far you are willing and able to teach her.  It's always possible to try hsing for a year and see if she thrives, then consider enrolling her when the grade level work gets harder and more intense...

Answer 5

The beautiful thing about homeschooling is that you can go at your child's pace. You can 'count' whatever she is learning regardless of age or grade level. Any number of homeschooling parents on this board have said things like "my son is in 3rd grade for English and about 5th grade in math".

Don't let the labels throw you, just do what is best for your daughter.

Answer 6

One of mine was very advanced - read before she was 4, reading Harry Potter and loving it at 5.  I "skipped" K in the sense that we didn't re do things she already knew. In our case we used Sonlight and so jumped right in at the Core 1 level. It has worked wonderfully well for us. She was fascinated by the topics we studied, and we could work at her pace. Isn't that one of the best things about homeschooling??

Answer 7

With homeschooling there is no rules on where your daughter will be placed.  Sounds like you are doing well with her now.  Just keep it up and don't worry about what grade level she is in.  If you are worried about curriculum do a review of some and find what best fits you and your daughter.  But it really sounds like you are doing great with her now. Are you thinking of putting her in public school at a later time?  Are you worried about credits for returning to public school to place her?

Answer 8

In homeschooling, you can place your child wherever they need to be - it doesn't matter a bit where the schools would place them.  The logistical restrictions that exist in a school have nothing to do with a homeschool.

Take my son, for example - we started homeschooling when he was 6.5, at his request.  He had attended an accelerated private school for P4-K, and was halfway through 2nd grade coursework upon completion of the K program.  When we moved and started homeschooling, I started him out in 2nd grade coursework.  From there, I've let him progress according to his abilities.

Now, having just turned 10, his coursework ranges from 5th-6th to 9th grade, depending on the subject.  He's dyslexic, so his spelling is at grade level.  He reads award-winning (Newbery, etc.) and classic literature like CS Lewis and Tolkien, and writes at about an 8th-9th grade level (stories and research papers).

He takes Latin and Spanish, which are at about a 6th grade level.  His grammar tracks right along with it.

In math, he's in a first-year algebra program, and he's getting ready to start a 7th grade science text.  For history and geography, he's at about a 6th-7th grade level.

I tell him he's finishing up 5th grade, as that's the class that he attends at church.  It's also easier for him to answer "5th grade" when someone asks, rather than responding with "which subject do you mean?"  :-)

In homeschooling, you tell your child they're in whichever grade is appropriate for their other activities (church, Scouts, sports, etc.) and give them work on their individual level.  

Hope that helps!

Edit - I'm not sure which state you live in?  Each state requires varying degrees of paperwork.  I would state that she's in whichever grade her age correlates to, and only give the info they absolutely have to have - only a few states require anything detailed.  Basically, give them enough to satisfy them, keep it simple as far as they're concerned, and do whatever she's ready for.  If you have to do an evaluation, just keep samples of whatever she does during the year.  If she's above grade level, they won't have a problem with it; it's when she's below grade level (unless there's a disability or learning glitch involved) that you would have to submit anything else.

If she's not yet at mandatory schooling age (few states require it at 5, most are 6 or 7), you don't have to report anything.  Do what she's ready for and call it kindergarten, it's perfectly ok to have her doing 2nd or 3rd grade work the following year and tell the district it's 1st grade.  Honestly, my son will likely be doing college work by the time he's 15, but I'll still count it as 10th grade.  I'll just set down different objectives and standards for him than the state would.  Because his dad and I will be awarding his diploma, we're allowed to set his course of study and determine when he's completed it.

I would also suggest getting in touch with some local homeschooling groups to pick the brains of some veteran homeschool moms.  It sounds like you live in a fairly picky state, and they'll know the details of how to work with the district in this situation.

Good questions!