E.g. I qualified for AIME in eigth grade and won gold for the National French Contest (Level 5), and both are awards normally won by upperclassmen. Could I still put them under the awards/honors section of CommonApp, but put 9th grade instead?
9th grade to 12th grade
If you put in items from 8th grade, it will look like you are trying to pad your application, unless it consecutively happened in 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grades.
^ Really? I would think something like qualifying for AIME would be relevant, especially if it fits in the context of one’s narrative/focus, and if it were part of a continuum (e.g., AIME 8th grade-12th grade, USAMO qualifier, etc.).
I agree that padding one’s application should be avoided. But if an award fits in the context of sustained effort and high achievement as part of a larger whole, then it can be relevant to colleges getting a clearer picture of the applicant, which is the ultimate goal.
My daughter has two National Latin Exam gold medals from 7th and 8th grade. She gets HS credit for the classes but I never thought to include the awards on an application.