What’s it like to be entering boarding school for the first time as a 10th grader. Any tips?
At most schools, there are a number of new 10th graders. If you get involved with things (and you probably won’t have a choice), nobody – including you – will remember you’re “new” by Halloween.
My son entered in 10th grade, no problem. D entered in 9th grade, but her class size doubled the next year, so lots of new 10th graders. I think it’s fairly common in BS for the 10th grade class to be larger than 9th grade; how much larger varies by school.
I would definitely not worry about it, there will be (probably lots of) other students in your shoes. It’s not like being a new 10th grader at a public high school.
The new pool of 10th grade students is pretty large at most schools. The schools do make serious efforts to integrate. You will meet as many 9th grade students repeating as you do 10th grade. My son entered as a new 10th grade student at PEA. We decided against applying for 9th for maturity reasons. He has had no issues whatsoever. Between sports, clubs, living arrangements and classes that often have a mix of grades you will be fine