Schools who will consider for K-2 year early? North Jersey (Livingston: private schools, colleges)

[dguild]

Our daughter was born right before the cutoff in December. What private schools (preferably close to Livingston) who will consider admitting kids a few months early? We've seen a few with even earlier cutoffs but that's it.

[mumra]

Try our lady of the lake in Verona

[Mightyqueen801]

Usually parochial schools have later cutoff dates.

[Priscilla151]

Why? Most of the time being the youngest is never good (I graduated high school at 16). Sooner or later it catches up with you. The age difference didn't catch up with me till I started college because I stayed in the same school system where there were others in the same situation.

[dguild]

Thanks for the tips. Anybody have an opinion of Aquinas in Livingston?

[Lilycharm]

This is only my opinion, but even if your child is a super-genius, let them be a super-genius within their own grade level. Like the poster said above, academically she may be ready for school, but think about how pushing her ahead will impact her beyond the early elementary years. It has the potential to have more negative impact on her self-esteem and peer relationships, as she moves into her teen years.

Before the economy took a hit, the parochial schools we checked out wouldn't even look at a child with a birthday close to the cut-off date, let alone one with a birthday after the cut-off. Perhaps now that enrollment is suffering, they will take kids with later and later birthdays, but is that really in the best interest of the child or just to keep their bottom line in the black?

Of course, you know your child better than an anonymouse poster like me, but take some time to weigh the positives and negatives throughout her life, not just in Kindergarten.

Good luck to you and your daughter whatever you decide!

[lkb0714]

I teach at a high school for the "gifted". I can tell you first hand that it is of not benefit to be the youngest in your grade and frequently has harmful effects. I have had brilliant students who did not get selected for opportunities because they were noticeably less mature than their classmates. And in high school a single year can make a world of difference in maturity.

Academically, having that extra year can make a large difference in grades earned, especially during that crucial junior year when colleges look so closely at grades.