I know what you mean, though, you'd rather start off running next year
It can take weeks or months to settle in.
DD just sat her second PATs and got stanine 9 both times. We need to keep going for the PATs two years ahead (or really even 3) but we are basically out of time. Her teacher is going to make a recommendation for DD to get straight into above-level testing in the new year.
However by the time that happens it'll be March probably, and DD will have read about a hundred more books, lol. Popular wisdom seems to be that reading levels drop in the holidays, but DD's rise, after she's read a bunch of decent books and had a break from the lame school readers.
But in these last few weeks, no one's interested! It's all athletics days and school pool, watching movies and practicing carols …
