Grades, ages and cut-offs
U.S. students are grouped by grade level, which usually maps to age — though cut-off dates for starting school vary by state, and some families delay entry (“redshirting”). The ages below are typical, not rules, and a given class can span more than one age.
Grade by typical age
Class names and groupings
High-school grades have familiar nicknames — freshman, sophomore, junior, senior for grades 9 through 12 — which also carry into college. How grades are grouped into schools varies: some districts use K–6 elementary and 7–8 junior high, others K–5 and 6–8 middle school.
International equivalents
School systems and year-numbering differ around the world — England's “Year 1,” for instance, doesn't match U.S. “Grade 1,” and many countries start compulsory school at a different age. For how a specific country's system maps to U.S. grades, see that country's guide in our country education guides (190+ countries).
Academic redshirting
Some families delay a child's school entry by a year — usually holding back a summer-birthday child from kindergarten — so they start a bit older. The evidence on whether this helps is mixed, and it's a personal decision based on the individual child, not a rule.
Related resources
See The U.S. Education System, the country guides, and Kindergarten Readiness.
Frequently asked questions
- What age starts kindergarten? Usually 5, but state cut-off dates vary and some families delay entry, so kindergartners range from about 5 to 6.
- How do U.S. grades compare to other countries? Year-numbering differs by country and rarely lines up exactly. Check the specific country's guide for how its system maps to U.S. grades.
- What is academic redshirting? Delaying a child's school entry by a year, usually in kindergarten, so they start a bit older. It's a personal decision with mixed evidence.
- What are freshman, sophomore, junior and senior? The nicknames for grades 9, 10, 11 and 12 in high school, which also carry over to the four years of college.
- How are grades grouped into schools? It varies. Common patterns are K–5 elementary with 6–8 middle school, or K–6 elementary with 7–8 junior high, then 9–12 high school.