school query
 

Hi all. I'm moving to rural Alberta in the next 2-3 months. I have an 11yo who has just started year 7 in a UK Grammar school. He is grade 6 age for Canada and will probably need to go back to elementary school, but apparently he can be assessed for grade 7 (junior high school) as well.

I am in two minds; (1) if he goes back to grade 6 he is unlikely to be challenged with the work but will be with his age-matched peers and could concentrate on settling in. (2) Alternatively we could try for high school where he will be more educationally stimulated but will be the newbie and the youngest in the school.

I am thinking of doing option 1. Has anyone had a similar scenario and what option did you choose? If any teachers are reading this, your opinions would also be appreciated.

Additionally there are the choices of a K12 Catholic school with very good ratings and a high school with ratings. I like the idea of "leaving behind the elementary school mentality" but is this an issue with K12 schools?

Thank you

Re: school query
 

When is his birthday in relation to the school intake years. In Ontario it runs with the calendar year, our youngest son has a January birthday, he is advanced one year, not too much of an issue as if he had been born a few days earlier he would have hit that year anyway. Our oldest went in with his peers ( end of July birthday so he would have been 18 months younger than some of his classmates). I would be inclined to go with Option 1, let him settle in without being overly challenged academically, provided he isn't the type to cause trouble if bored.

Re: school query
 

I don't know about Alberta, but here Grade 6 is Middle School or Junior High, not Elementary.

Re: school query
 

Hi, we arrived 6 weeks ago youngest, 11 went into grade 6 which is 1st year of Junior high or middle school. Our oldest, January birthday and very mature for his age, (14 1/2) 'academically' was enrolled into year 10. He started school this week and by the end of his first day found the age difference (up to 2 years) difficult. A call to the school on Friday morning and he was moved to year 9, where he should have gone for his age. After the huge transition of moving we felt it best he got time to settle into the canadian way of school . He came home from school on Friday buzzing :) happy child = happy parents :thumbsup:

Re: school query
 

Option 1. At that age it is better to trade off academic achievement for emotional and social well being. This is particularly the case when the person is going to have to adapt to a different culture.

Re: school query
 

Year 7 in England doesn't equate to Grade 7 in Canada in any case. Year 7 may be Grade 6 for all we know.

As for him entering elementary school, this is trivial in the big scheme of things. I know that Grade 7 is the last year of elementary school in some school districts in Canada, yet it's already the middle year of middle school in others, and it is the first year of junior high school in others. There is no absolute.

The age of his peers will likely matter more in this case, as others have discovered. Put him into grade 6 and he'll discover academic strengths in some areas, academic challenges in others, and that schooling in rural Alberta is a completely different experience than English grammar school. While he's learning to navigate this new school system, I agree that it would be best to put him in with his peers, especially at that age.

Re: school query
 

Ya reckon?! :D::D:D

Re: school query
 

:p

Re: school query
 

Not sure what part of Alberta you're headed but where I am in Alberta Grade 6 is Middle School, not Elementary. High School here commences at Grade 9.

Re: school query
 

Thanks for all the responses so far. I didn't realize the variations in grades across Canada. The elementary school is definitely K-6 (Wainwright) and the high school is 7-12 with 7-9 being designated "Junior High" or "Middle school" but all in the same building.
You have reassured me that putting him back to elementary isn't an unreasonable step.

Re: school query
 

This age cut off thing in classes can be terrible for kids....we are lucky, as our son was born on Jan 5th, and has so far always been the eldest in the class. He has a friend who was born three weeks earlier and she has always been challenged but in the next grade up!

Re: school query
 

His birthday is March 29th. I think Alberta runs by the calendar year as well, not the school year.

Re: school query
 

Do you have any qualms about moving him from a highly competitive grammar school to the relatively relaxed Alberta school system? It is a very different ethos, not better or worse, and it will probably be quite different from results-driven selective British schooling.

BTW, welcome to BE!

Re: school query
 

We went for option 1, and there were a few teething problems and utter boredom in a couple of subjects (English and Maths) for many months. However, socially it was completely the right decision, and moving and settling and making new friends, and learning other new subjects was all completely fine.

And I suspect it will be you parents that will need to make the biggest adjustment viewing the relaxed school atmosphere in Alberta versus a UK grammar school. ;)

Best wishes with your move. :)

Re: school query
 

[QUOTE=Shard;10891400]Do you have any qualms about moving him from a highly competitive grammar school to the relatively relaxed Alberta school system? It is a very different ethos, not better or worse, and it will probably be quite different from results-driven selective British schooling.


to be honest I am a little apprehensive but there is a lot of time. There seems to be more emphasis on having well rounded students in Canada rather than exam results, but the nation is doing well so they must be on to something!

Re: school query
 

Yes that is right. As Ann said it's often the parents where the adjustment is most required, the kids get on with it and will thrive if they desire to.

Re: school query
 

No it doesn't.

Re: school query
 

I suspect that that is specific to Cochrane.

When we were in Calgary, grade 10 was the first year of high school. Now our kids are schooled in Blackie/High River, high school commences at grade 9.

Re: school query
 

Some high schools in Red Deer start grade 9, some grade 10.

We went for option 1, she's bright enough to be honor roll and full IB but not driven enough to stay full IB, She is repeating grade 12, as she got bogged down with the whole grad thing and stopped working. She did however do very well in IB Japanese:confused:

Re: school query
 

good grief! looks like I should have done more research on schools in Alberta. I should have known Wikipedia would be a trickle of knowledge instead of the fountain I was seeking.

Re: school query
 

Wait till you ask a question about cheese ! :rofl:

Re: school query
 

You need to be more specific to obtain the correct answers.

Where do you intend to live?

Re: school query
 

Seems reasonably specific?

Re: school query
 

Calgary has a mixed system

Old schools are K-6 on the whole, but the trend for newer schools is to make K-4 and then 5-9 as middle and 10-12. It will vary by where you live and by school board.

If you really want pushing then you could always try for GATE programme or one of the charter schools (if you can get in). Or if your kid was at grammer, get them an IPP. Whatever I would keep them in the age appropriate year group

Re: school query
 

Not really keen on city practice and that's where most of those options are. I will see how the kids develop out "in the sticks" and reassess if I'm not happy. Thanks for the info though.

Re: school query
 

Where are you now Docrcc? Will you child have a great big difference from a big school environment to a more rural school community? Are there great big differences in the size of school where you are now to where you will be going?

Re: school query
 

Quite possibly; like everything here, it is all very specific to an exact area. There seems no consistency.

Re: school query
 

Again, I'd check with the particular school board in question for your area as they all seem to vary. Where we are, the cut off is end of February so those with March birthdays are the eldest in class.

Re: school query
 

Still in the UK in an all boys school with 1200 pupils. The differences will be huge!

Re: school query
 

Hi, I'm new here but similar situation (Grammar school kid), so I thought I'd mention that we were told to try and get our child in to the "IB" programme (International Baccalaureat). Apparently some state schools do do it. It is supposedly more suited for the grammar school kids (and a bit more internationally portable) and the first streams start at Grade 9.
We're talking Ontario though so might be a bit different.

Re: school query
 

Probably good advice, especially if you think you might end up back in the UK/Europe.

Welcome to BE!

Re: school query
 

By the way have you had the chance to visit Wainwright yet?

Re: school query
 

Scary isn't it?!! We had quite a big change really as our 12 year old moved from a very small area where he had known everyone from KG in a small Cathilic Primary to quite a big school going to Grade 12. I think he has made the transition better than I have, on the whole!

We talked constantly though, the year before the move, about possible feelings and how scary it might be, and how great it would be for us as a family, and him in particular, if this all worked out well. I think it added to his expectations and smoothed the way somewhat. Very best of luck:fingerscrossed:

Re: school query
 

Is that the name of the school or the name of the town/city?

As the OP seems reluctant to answer the queries posed, I will leave it for the OP to determine what the correct answers are.

Re: school query
 

I assumed it was Wainwright AB, even more rural than AC-land...:D

But fair point, I don't know.

Re: school query
 

If your child is wanting to do the IB programme grades 9 and 10 will be honors classes and 11 and 12 IB it is possible to do partial IB too. My child stopped bothering with school mainly due her waste of space drop out friends:thumbdown: So she went from full honors to 2 IB subjects. silly girl:unsure:

Re: school query
 

Yes, it is Wainwright Alberta and I have visited before accepting job.

Re: school query
 

Thankd for advice. I will look into that.