"Eddie Bernard" <spambox@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
wrote in message
news:Xns93F15D848262Cofficialpostofeddieb@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Over the hills and far away in alt.tv.malcolm-in-themiddle, Santa Claws
> came to play...
>
> [...]
>
> > Going with the Utah model: Reese got his learners permit mid season,
> > the 'Hal Coaches' episode was very shortly afterwards (within two or
> > three episodes), so he would definitely still have been 15 then, with
> > his 16th birthday some time three to six months after that.
> > Unfortunately off-screen, so we never know for sure. But that could
> > just about be in the summer... which would make him borderline on the
> > right age for his high school class, and still maybe about 15 months
> > older than Malcolm.
> >
> > Okay, I think that works. Sorted.
Utah is heavily associated with Mormonism - upwards of 80-90% of the Utah
population is either Mormon or some other religion. Unless the
Wilkersons
are part of that other 10-20%, I'm sure they wouldn't be living in Utah.
;)
> But if he's 15 by the start of season three, then surely he's a year
> behind for high school ? I don't know how the cutoff works for American
> schools, but in the UK if you turn four in the summer, you start school
in
> the September. If the USA works in a similar way, then if Reese's 15th
> birthday is in the summer, then he's a year behind ? In the first year
of
> high school, everyone is at least 14 and most will have their 15th
> birthday during the year.
I'm sure Reese has turned 16 for Season 4 (though they don't come right
out
and say it). Given the "Reese Drives" aired in January 2002, he would
either have just turned 15 or 15.5 by then. If he did turn 15 in the
summer
of 2001 (thus born in summer 1986), he might have been a year behind in
school, something that isn't too impossible given Reese's academic
performances.
American schools set the age deadline - a little past September (or
October) - for school entry just to make sure that if you hover around the
deadline, you don't out-age your classmates. (I guess this is some kind
of
bully-control or something.0 However I knew of kids with October
birthdays
that seemed so much younger than everyone else - and they seemed to have a
harder time fitting in because of it.
In American schools, here is the rundown:
If you turn age 5 past the cutoff date, you are eligible for Kindergarten.
If you turn 12 past the cutoff date, you fall into 6th grade (US middle
school 6-8)
If you turn 13 past the cutoff date, you fall into 6th grade (US junior
high
school 7-9)
If you turn 15 past the cutoff date, you fall into 9th grade (US high
school
9-12)
If you turn 16 past the cutoff date, you fall into 10th grade (US high
school 10-12)
I know that is a little confusing - in the US we have several systems for
arranging schools and grade levels. Education seems to be our longest
running "scientific" experiment. ;)
Again, a fuzzy little undefined gray area of MITM they don't want to
overexplain for fear of getting hanged either way.
> We can be a little more sure with Malcolm's age. Season 4 he starts high
> school, so he must be 14 there and getting very close to 15. That
explains
> why he's not driving yet, you're right.
His birthday episode is highlighted in "Forwards Backwards" which aired
here on December 1, 2002 (a month into Season 4). This is what I assumed
was his 15th.
(sort of helps to remember that "Malcolm's": birthday is on December 1,
while Frankie's is on December 5. ;)
> If Malcolm is 14 just shortly into season 4 (so 13 at the beginning),
then
> Dewey must be 10 as per "Flashback." But if we assume that...
> episode 4.1: still during the summer holidays; Malcolm 13, Dewey 10.
I still put my money on 15 and 11.
> episode 4.2: school term begins... effectively there could be a couple
of
> months between these two episodes. Perhaps during these couple of
months,
> both Malcolm and Dewey have their birthdays - Dewey's being just
slightly
> ahead of Malcolm's. Malcolm 14, Dewey 11. Both of them are the youngest
in
> their year and just make the cutoff. This runs just slightly contrary to
> Flashback in that Malcolm isn't a full four years older, but if we
assume
> the difference between Dewey and Malcolm's birthday is less than a
month,
> it's effectively right.
Episode 4.1, "Zoo", is assumed to take place when the summer is about
over.
If you notice in the open, Lois comes into Malcolm's room and says he has
spent "all summer in there". So I guess that means that most if not all
the
summer had passed by the start of Season 4.
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