I think everyone would be a lot less fool if they just accepted that most upper middle class people in the region start sons with summer birthdays the following year whether or not they are an athlete. So functionally the cohort of kids in seventh grade at private schools is June 2009 through May 2010 and if you have a son with a spring birthday there is going to be a disadvantage just based on the calendar.
This is a very true statement. if your son is going to attend private school and on the bubble - meaning a summer 2009 birthday - and you could've gone either way, most parents almost reflexively will start their kids the following year. Blame sports, blame private schools or blame Malcolm Gladwell (if you don't know Google Outliers and Canadian hockey), but this is a pretty much a no-brainer for most parents of young boys who are on the age/grade bubble. this isn't just a DMV 2028 lacrosse phenomenon. This is a much different dynamic than the parents who have their kids redo 7th/8th grade, or play their kids down because that is his "recruiting class" and they plan on reclassing or doing a gap year or something.
