Welcome!
I just wanted to say something about how being with older kids can really help a child feel like they fit in better. My DD8 has always been shy. The kind of kid who whispers the answer to the kid next to her so that she doesn't have to raise her hand and be called on. The kid that you can barely hear speak when she is called on. The one that teachers didn't realize was so far ahead in class until they saw her test scores because, even though she was scoring 100% on almost all of her tests, she didn't ever say anything to the teachers about already knowing this stuff. The one who had tons of friends but still was always the quiet one. The one who learned to blend in and not make waves. This even after she has gotten early admittance to K. In fact, when she was first subject accelerated last year, her new teacher was at first concerned that the acceleration wouldn't work out because she was so shy. Skip ahead to this year where she is now completely grade skipped into 4th grade. She is so outgoing and funny and volunteers for everything in class, and everyone -- even all her old teachers -- notices the difference! It's so amazing to see. She is finally among her intellectual peers and she now feels safe to show her abilities and interests. It has really been an amazing transformation and I attribute it squarely to her being in the right school setting finally. So, some might argue how important it is to be among peers, and most always assume this means age peers, but because of a grade skip my daughter is now among true peers and it's been wonderful!
