Soooo, since many people have asked me this question and continue to do so, I’m finally answering it in a post for everyone to see. This way, I won’t have to keep answering it for each separate person. :P
If you’re looking for an exciting explanation though, honestly, you’re really not going to get one.
Short and not entirely accurate answer? I skipped two grades.
Truthful, and longer answer?
Observe:
I attended small Christian schools my entire life. I went to one school for 2nd through 8th grade, and a different one for high school. And when I say small, I mean it; my graduating class was 11 people, including me. So that’s some perspective for you (;
But anyway, at the school I went to for elementary and middle school, we used to use these booklets called PACEs. The way it worked was that there were 7 subjects, and each year we had to complete 10 (or was it 12…) booklets for each subject in order to go to the next grade. They were designed for students to be able to work at their own pace, as the name of them suggests.
SO. When I was younger, I loved learning (and still do). I thought the PACEs were a lot of fun, so in 2nd grade, I just… kept going. Once I finished the work for 2nd grade, I went on and did the work for 3rd grade as well. All in one year.
Then the next year, I went to 4th.
Some people say I “skipped” 3rd grade, but that’s not really true. I did the required amount of work, but I just did it in half the time.
I did 4th grade normally, but then, in 5th and 6th, I did the same thing. It was fun. But then my mom and teacher basically told me, “Okay, slow down now. You’re going to graduate at 16 now, and that’s far enough.”
So then I went to 7th the next year, and continued on in school normally. From that point on, I was just always 2 years younger in school than everyone else.
Here:
7 years old- 2nd and 3rd grade
8 years old- 4th grade
9 years old- 5th and 6th grade
10 years old- 7th
11 years old- 8th
12 years old- 9th
etc.
(starting high school at 12 is a whole other story altogether)
I graduated at 16 in June of 2010 and started college in Fall 2010. My birthday is March 8th, so I turned 18 earlier this year, and my sophomore year started August 2011 and finished May 2012.
So yup…. there you go. Currently 18 and soon to start my junior year at my university! :D I’ll graduate when I’m 20. Woohooo.
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(Stuff you don’t really have to read)
I guess you could say that I’m used to being younger…. but it makes for some interesting scenarios. xD Plus, I don’t go around telling people my age…. so when they find out, 97% of the time they’re like “Wow! Really?” and I have to tell them the whole explanation that you just read up there. ^
It can get a bit tiring after awhile .___.
And I always tell my professors on the first day so they know. It can still be weird, though.
For example, in my freshmen year, in my Sociology class, my professor wanted to show the class an R-rated movie. And because of the content of the movie, I knew that the R-rated stuff would be… yeah. Didn’t really want to see those parts. But she started it in the middle of class, so I didn’t want to get up and talk to her and be like, “Look, can I walk out?” That would’ve made every head in the room swivel in my direction and would’ve been like a giant neon billboard that screamed SHE’S ONLY 16.
So for that half hour I sat there with my hand on my cheek while I watched the movie, ready at a moment’s notice to cover my eyes. LOL. xD It sounds silly, but it’s what I did. I wasn’t taking any chances, okay?
I went home, did some research on the movie, and printed proof about what the content of the movie was that I wasn’t allowed to see. The next day, I showed up and talked to her before class started. I pulled out the paper and said, “I did some research on the movie because it’s rated R, and it has some scenes in it that I don’t think I can see, because—”
She was like, “Oh I completely forgot! You’re only 16! Oh yeah, it’s fine, don’t worry about it. No, no, you don’t have to see it. Go home early, and you don’t’ have to come to the next class because we’ll finish the movie then. I won’t count you as absent, it’s okay.”
Yeah, she was awesome about it. (:
But those kinds of situations can come up every now and then, and I always feel awkward about it…. even though my professors are really understanding :3 So I guess you can say that my life is never boring. HA.
It’s also kind of funny because sometimes people have NO clue that I’m younger. There was this girl named Jessica in my Color Foundations class (a.k.a. Death) 3 semesters ago, and she was like 21 or 22. And we became friends and stuff, and talked every day, and like 2 weeks before school ended she found out my age and was SHOCKED. She thought I was her age bahaha xD I have no idea why. It was funny, though. It’s so odd because people in college say they think I’m older, and people who have known me forever say I look younger. I’m a living conundrum.
Hope this satisfies your curiosity! If you have any other questions, hop on over to my ask :D Thanks for reading! <3
