https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Wed, 22 Apr 2026 19:33:29 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/split-classes#post-2925119 Mon, 04 Oct 2021 13:37:40 +0000 Petitduck 2925119@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Splits are fairly common. A lot of times there is curriculum overlap, like for Maths, French, Language Arts, Gym, Health, so they are just touching on the commonalities and adding additional layers if required for the older grade. </p> <p>Science and Social Studies will be different for the different grades and that’s when they would do separate work. </p> <p>I feel like they can be a good thing for kids! They already mix JK/SK a lot here so it feels like it isn’t a big change. </p> <p>I think they do it so there aren’t too many kids in a class. My kids’ school has two split classes for each grade for immersion and one class for English only and a school I worked at last year had two or three split grade 7/8 classes. So your son might go into another split class next year and kids always get shuffled around every year anyway so it’s kind of luck if the draw whether they wind up with friends or not, unfortunately. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/split-classes#post-2925113 Sun, 03 Oct 2021 19:50:14 +0000 erinbaderin 2925113@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@pachamama: Really? I feel like they’re fairly common, although I’ve never seen it the way my son is in it, because there are only five grade 2s and 15 grade 3s - I thought it would have been more balanced. There’s also a split 1/2 class with four grade 1s. I think what happened is that they had their classes set and then in August people got a second chance to change their minds about in-person or virtual, some people did, and it threw everything off. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/split-classes#post-2925112 Sun, 03 Oct 2021 19:37:06 +0000 pachamama 2925112@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Why split? Is it a tiny district? I've never heard of this. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/split-classes#post-2924874 Thu, 09 Sep 2021 16:12:13 +0000 Mrs. Pajamas 2924874@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@erinbaderin: my daughter (1st grader) is in a new school this year that has all split classes through 5th grade. So it's K/1, 2/3, 4/5, then 6,7,8 are separate. I was a little ambivalent but the other 1st grade parents I've talked to say it's fantastic and the kids do really well. The kindergarteners have a different schedule so the 1st graders get more classroom time which helps and then otherwise they learn the same things with some advanced groups available for students for reading/math. So far so good at ours school, but it's also the norm for everyone. I'm surprised to read that not every student/class level is split. That is odd! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/split-classes#post-2924872 Wed, 08 Sep 2021 19:37:28 +0000 erinbaderin 2924872@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Thank you, every one!</p> <p>@hitchhiker: this is kind of the impression we were given, that they put our son in the class because they felt like he could keep up. </p> <p>@Corduroy: that does make me feel better, that once they’ve been through it they’re not worried about it!</p> <p>@Clementine12: He was born in January so he’s among the oldest in the class, although he’s little. I agree that I would prefer to be the younger year than the older. </p> <p>@Jess1483: thank you! That’s a great point that there’s already a pretty big range in aptitude already. I do feel like he did really well in grade 1, it was his first year in French immersion and he picked up a lot of language. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/split-classes#post-2924871 Wed, 08 Sep 2021 17:25:12 +0000 Jess1483 2924871@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>DS1 was in a split 1/2 class a few years ago. As an advanced (and older) 1st grader, it was great. As we approached 2nd grade, I was a bit worried, as his closest friends were moving to third grade and he’d be so much younger than the new 1st graders. We never actually got to experience it, though, because they did away with split classes with COVID (the kids used to swap classes for math, so that it was taught by grade level, while reading was done in one classroom). </p> <p>As a teacher, it doesn’t feel all that challenging to me (in young grades). In my 2nd grade classes, I had kids who didn’t know all their letters, and others who were reading on a fourth grade level. So adding another grade level wouldn’t change the span all that much. </p> <p>I would say some of how I feel would change based on the school’s curriculum, but in general, I’m a fan of mixed-age classes. There is much benefit to be had by both younger and older kids. But we did have social concerns (and to some extent, academic concerns) for DS1. He really loved it, though! And it was fantastic for him academically in year 1.</p> <p>ETA: our split classes were designed so you stayed with the same teacher both years. So it was a purposeful cycle more than a way to fill classrooms. The teachers who taught in split classes chose to do so as well, which could make a difference. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/split-classes#post-2924870 Wed, 08 Sep 2021 15:54:31 +0000 Clementine12 2924870@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@erinbaderin: I was in a split 2/3 class for a time and I believe it helped me get ahead academically, and I had friends in both grades. If you have to do a split class I think being in the younger year is preferable to being in the older year.</p> <p>Take that with a grain of salt - that was 25 years ago I think, and I can certainly see the problems with classes being set up that way now.</p> <p>Where is your son as far as age? I was one of the oldest in my grade, so I would think it might be harder if he was young for his grade. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/split-classes#post-2924869 Wed, 08 Sep 2021 13:37:04 +0000 Corduroy 2924869@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My kids' school has split classes at every grade level. There's a 1/5 chance each year the kids will be in the split. I understand the anxiety because I have hoped my kids don't get assigned to that class. However, as far as I can tell the kids handle it very well and it works out similarly to other individualized education (reading groups, etc) you would find in a single grade room. Like most things in life the parents that have been through it aren't nearly as concerned about it as the parents that haven't been through it. I take comfort in that.</p> <p>I was also in a 1/2/3 split as a 2nd grader and a 2/3 split as a 3rd grader. I should be able to draw from that experience but I don't remember anything about the split so it must not have been to bad. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/split-classes#post-2924868 Wed, 08 Sep 2021 11:01:34 +0000 hitchhiker 2924868@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>This is not recent info, but I was in a 4/5 split when I was in 4th grade. I think (but don't know for sure) that they combined academically advanced 4th graders with 5th graders who needed a little boost. I was a tiny kid, and also was quite shy, but I thought it was great - learned a little extra 5th grade stuff, and made a few new older friends. I wouldn't worry. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/split-classes#post-2924865 Wed, 08 Sep 2021 08:36:02 +0000 erinbaderin 2924865@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Got my 7 year old's teacher assignment yesterday and found out that not only is he not with any of his friends, he's in a split 2/3 class (he's going into grade 2), and I'm freaking out a little bit. Does anybody have any experience with split grades? How do they work? I'm having a hard time figuring out how both grades are going to be equally balanced. I'm also worried about him socially, because he's already pretty small for his age and now he's going to be in a group of bigger kids. Plus apparently his split class is in a "divided classroom" (from what I understand, one giant classroom that sometimes uses white boards to split it into two classrooms) with another grade 3 class, so I'm worried that all his friends will end up a grade above him and next year he won't know anybody.</p> <p>Basically I'm a mess and trying not to let him see because he seems pretty cool with it. If anybody has any information they could use to talk me down, I'd appreciate it. </p>