No 8th grade graduation???!!!

[antmaril]

My son graduated from public high school last Saturday. It was his first "graduation". No graduation from pre-school, kindergarten or middle school. Honestly, that's how I think it should be.

 

[minniecarousel]

Around here, there is a "Promotion" activity. They use the HS football field the night before the HS graduation. It's a NO caps & Gown activity. There is also a big 8th Grade Dance the Friday or Saturday night before the end of school where the parents decorate the gym.

 

[disneyjunkie]

My son has his 8th grade graduation next Thursday. He attends a public school. I know a few Catholic schools are having 8th grade graduation tomorrow.

Graduations for kindergarten, 5th grade, 8th grade, and 12th grade are normal around here. I think it's odd that other areas don't have graduations until the 12th grades I guess it's just a matter of what you are used to.

 

[TheOtherVillainess]

I know when I was in 8th grade, we didn't have a graduation either. So what's the big deal?

TOV

 

[tar heel]

No 8th grade graduations here. Fine with me b/c I really don't think they're necessary. I think having caps and gowns for 8th grade would be exceedingly silly.

My 5th grader had an awards assembly that included everyone getting a promotion certificate and an-all day party.

My oldest son did 8th grade at a private school and they did have a ceremony, but I can't remember what they called it.

Back in the dark ages in a very rural area, I had an 8th grade graduation. Girls wore white dresses and had a corsage. Boys wore coats and ties -- I guess they had a flower, too. A big deal was made, probably at least partly b/c about 1/3 of those kids never made it to another graduation.

 

[sue1013]

Our public school has an 8th grade graduation. I don't think its silly at all. The school district is only K-8. After that they are sent to another town for HS. But many from our town don't go to that school alot go to either parochial or private HS. The graduation is nice since we are a small district that everyone knows each other and its the last time many will be going to school together.

 

[jx3smom]

My son just had his 8th grade recognition night. A nice little event for the kids but not a graduation. They were presented to the HS principal as the Intermediate school class of 2005 and now the HS class of 2009. Some of the public schools in our area do have 8th grade graduations, though.

The HS graduation was last night and as the paper stated it was a typical Ocean City graduation on the the football field next to the boardwalk and beach with a breeze, the seagulls and the ferris wheel in the background.

 

[tiff211]

I had a graduation ceremony in 8th grade. I thought it was the norm. No cap and gown but I wore a nice dress and we got diplomas. I think going to high school is a big deal. It's a whole different world. I would like to mark the occasion for DD. I like the pizza party idea with family and close friends. Maybe a "gulp" sleepover especially since she goes away for the summer to her Dad's.

 

[pixiedust23]

Our public school has an 8th grade graduation. I don't think its silly at all.

I agree I think its a great way to validate the kids for their hard work. Also middle school and high school are very differnt and I think the graduation is a good way of marking it. I forget to mention, although we had an 8th grade graduation we also had an 8th grade dance (no limos permitted and dates discouraged) and an 8th grade sleep away trip. None of which I think were silly. It was a great time.

I guess this comes to districts who also only have a senior prom. This was not the case for us. We had a separate jr and sr prom.

 

[Keli]

I'd throw a little party for her, let her have a few friends over for pizza and maybe let the girls spend the night. So many things will change for your dd next year, she's going to grow up herself, meet new people, and have all kinds of new experiences. A party is just the thing to celebrate.

 

[wdwgirl03]

I went to a public middle school. We had a graduation ceremony. Though now they call it "promotion."

 

[Mimi Q]

My DD's middle school doesn't have a graduation ceremony.

 

[Soccer Princess]

I graduated high school in 2003 and I had an 8th grade graduation. We wore semi-formal dresses and then had a dance afterwards. It was kind of a big deal.

 

[LindsayDunn228]

I only graduated twice... once from high school, and once from college.

Ditto here.

You'll get over it. Not having an 8th grade graduation is not that big of a thing.

 

[pearlieq]

Meh. Have a party, celebrate the occasion. The actualy "graduation" was just a big money drain (cap & gown, pictures, etc.) Personally I think these "graduations" are getting out of control. Here you can have preschool, kindergarten, 5th grade, 8th grade, and HS!!! I think it kind of cheapens the HS and college experiences.

 

[Aimeedyan]

I've never even heard of graduations for anything but K and 12th grade until the Disboards.

 

[kidzmom3]

my kids do not have graduations either. Not for pre-school, or kindergarten, or elementary, or middle. But yes, they do get one for highschool. We also only have the one prom, the senior highschool prom. At least one person of the couple must be graduating, (not just a senior, they hold it after school is out for seniors).

 

[Snowysmom]

Our public middle school has an 8th grade graduation. They don't wear caps and gowns, just dressy clothes. When I was in junior high, we had a graduation and got dressed up for the occassion.

 

[monarchsfan16]

I went to a very small public elementary/middle school and we had an 8th grade graduation. We didn't wear caps and gowns, but we walked in (hesitation step) to pomp and circumstance. Guys wore nice shirts, dress pants, and ties. Girls wore nice dresses (somewhere between sundress and what we wear to a semiformal dance) and most also wore heels. We also had an 8th grade dinner dance (not prom) and awards ceremony. We had parties after too. And to be honest, with the exception of size, my high school graduation party will be the same as 8th grade. Barbecue, pool's open, and it's going to be rainy and cold But this party will be a bit bigger. 8th grade graduation here is a big deal. Class sizes fluctuate between 60 and 85 each year (mine had 80) and we move on to different, much bigger high schools in the surrounding towns and city. However, the city where I just graduated from also had 8th grade graduations. Not quite as fancy, but they had them

 

[HoneyPooh]

I don't think our K-8 school having an 8th grade graduation is silly in the least. Our K-8 is the farthest sending district for our High School (I think the High School has about 7 sending districts). A high percentage of the kids will not go to the High School they will go to private schools (the High School isn't great). The kids have been together for 9 years so it's a nice thing for them to have. Our school has no Kinder or 5th grade promotion ceremony so 8th grade is it until High School.