Originally Posted by Tiz
One of the older boys came up to me in the cloakroom the other morning and said "did you know that you have a very clever son?" and then went off to his lessons, but it was all in a very nice way and made me think that hopefully he will be accepted and looked after by the older children smile

This seems like about the best you could want for kids who are just getting to know him. As time goes by, I expect they will start to 'forget' his age and just enjoy him as a person, but even if they stick with the 'adopt his a Mascot' style, that's still better than being with age-mates who don't get your jokes. Some PG kids are wonderful and enjoy agemates very much, and free play after school with agemates can be deeply satisfying, but during there is something particular about 'in-school social interactions' where educational readiness level seems especially important, more than age or emotional maturity.

Worry away - and go for it!

Interesting question about 'do you give him an out.'

I would be tempted to say: 'This is where the school thinks you need to be. How does that sound to you?'

and 'Can you guess why this the school thinks this?'

And follow up with - 'some kids don't like to let their parents know if things are hard at school, but you would tell me, right?'
(I reinforce this when we are reading books like Harry Potter by having 'semi-humorous mini-tantrums' whenever the kids try to handle big stuff without asking for any adult help. I take every opportunity to point out that this is a literary device, rather than a guide to living.)

I think that if he's been generally successful at school in the past, it's better not to have the 'opt out.' Afterall - no school placement is perfect. It will be interesting to see if he seems worried about if he can do it.

Love and More Love,
Grinity



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