I am currently a sophomore in high school.
How can I skip a grade so I can graduate a year earlier?

I want to know whether I would just have to skip a grade, or if there
a way to go through a year of schooling on my own during the summer
break.

Additional information:
I attend high school in the state of Missouri
I am 16 years old
I am male

Speak to your guidance counselor.  Your gender should have no bearing on this.

Graduating from high school, early or on time, is not so much a matter
of "skipping" a grade; it's more about completing the required
courses.  At a minimum, you'll be required to complete the minimum
course requirements set forth by the state of Missouri.  You may need
to fulfill additional requirements determined by your particular
school district, but the state-determined minimum requirements for
graduating from a public high school in Missouri are described below.

Minimum State Graduation Requirements
Units  Subject              
3      Communication Arts
2      Mathematics 
2      Science  
2      Social Studies 
1      Fine Arts 
1      Practical Arts
1      Physical Education
10     Electives

22     Total Minimum Number of Units Required

You can find more details at the Missouri Department of Education
website, specifically in the graduation handbook, at 
http://www.dese.mo.gov/divimprove/sia/graduationhandbook.pdf

Note: These are the requirements that apply to you, since you're
currently a sophomore.  If you have younger siblings or friends in 8th
grade or below, a new standard of 24 Units applies to them.
http://www.dese.state.mo.us/news/2005/finalgrad.htm

As I'm sure you know, some courses are prerequisites for others, e.g.
you might be required to take Algebra and Geometry before taking
Trigonometry, or even Government before Economics.  Some
schools/districts require special permission to take courses out of
sequence.  Your school might even require special permission to take
some required courses earlier than your senior year- make sure to ask
your guidance counselor about specific requirements for your school.

IMPORTANT
Think about why you want to graduate early, and the possible
reprecussions of doing so.  Some reasons that come to mind:

Do you want to be more appealling to colleges?  If so, graduating
early might not be your best bet.  Taking a broader range of classes,
excelling at an extra-curricular activity, or exploring a particular
subject more deeply might be much more important in being competitive
for scholarships or elite schools.  Not only that, you may be able to
fulfill some college requirements (e.g. foreign language) while still
in high school- a much cheaper option that may allow you more room for
electives in college.

Do you want to get to work sooner for financial reasons?  You might be
surprised at what your high school offers that might help you get a
better or higher paying job once you graduate.  Many high schools
offer vocational training like auto body repair or accounting that
will make you much more appealling to employers.  Some high schools
have an arrangement with a local community college for this type of
training that allows you to be a high school student (and therefor pay
no tuition), but spend half your day on the community college campus.

Do you just want to get the heck out of there as soon as possible?  A
valid reason, I agree.  However, make sure you have a realistic idea
of what awaits you when you do finally graduate.  Even if you're
planning on taking over the family business and not worried about
being attractive to prospective employers, your high school might
offer some classes that will prepare you for your working life. 
Running the family business or starting your own is a lot easier if
you know basic bookkeeping.

Good luck!
valerie

Here is a bit of advice: if your grades and your SAT scores are good,
you might be able to gain admission to college without graduating from
high school. If this option is offered, I recommend that you turn it
down. The lack of a high school diploma can come back to haunt you
even after you've graduated from college.

I went to college at age sixteen, and never got a high school diploma.
After I obtained my bachelor's degree (with honors), I sought
employment with several government agencies, and the lack of high
school equivalency was a stumbling block that required a lot of
explaining and paperwork. You might think that having a college
diploma would substitute for having a high school diploma, but that
isn't always the case.

When my son finished his Junior year, he decided to take a summer
course at the local community college.  When fall came, he told me,
and I remember it very well: "You can shoot me. You can have the cops
shoot me. But, I am not going to high school any more.  We study the
same feminist stuff in all the classes but they call it a different
name."

I called his sister, the Science Teacher, thinking she might give me
some words of wisdom. She said, "Frankly, if you have to choose
between him going to Washington High School (in Cedar Rapids) or
staying home and watching TV, let him stay home, he might learn
something from the TV."

(Well, hey, this is a school teacher with a Master's Degree in Science
Education and a counselor at Wash had told her not to go to college
because she couldn't do the work. She did not tell me for years, after
she had graduated, because she well knew I was going to visit the
school and get arrested for violent acts against that squirrelly
counselor for telling my kid that when I was trying to motivate her.)

So, I told him, "Okay, but if they toss you out,I am not getting
involved.  You are on your own."

At the end of the next summer, he was ready to transfer to the
University of Iowa as a Junior, just as his old classmates were ready
to graduate from high school.

At one point, an instructor told him he had been selected for National
Student of the Year program, I think they call it, but when they
discovered he was supposed to be in high school, they withdrew his
name.

At the high school awards during that year, it was announced he had
won a scholarship as winner of something similar, maybe something with
Merit in it. All his classmates cracked up, since he wasn't there any
more.

I asked a wise buddy how on earth he got away with it. He told me this
is college liberalism. Your son is Hispanic (his mom is Mexican). When
they discovered he was not supposed to be there, probably one of the
officials told another, "You gotta' toss him out. This violates the
rules." And, the liberals fell apart, being politically correct, so he
went on.

Somewhere along the line, he studied a few minutes and passed the GED,
I think they call it.  Yes, you gotta' get your GED.

He heard that the next year a bunch of students from that same
wonderful high school also bailed, and went to the Community College.

He is now in medical school in Virginia.

Let me say that this is very risky, in my opinion.  Was my buddy right
when he said my son got away with it because of PC and he is Hispanic?
I have no idea. I do know in Iowa the rules are very clear, and he
wasn't supposed to be able to attend college while he was high school
age.

If it isn't hatred for high school as my son had, some areas let you
take college courses for full college credit while you are in high
school. That is the reason for the really good advice to see your
counselor, hope he's better than my daughter's counselor was.

Another tip. Be sure to examine any chosen career before you start it.
 Due to "affirmative action" there are many fields where males, both
white and minority, face an impossible task when looking for work.

I realize this is not PC, since we are supposed to pretend there is no
discrimination. So, don't ask because the chance someone will give you
a correct answer is nil.  But find a company which employs your chosen
career and if possible visit the place. If the facility is filled with
women, and almost no men are there, change your career plans. No
matter how good you are, you won't get hired.

My son worked as a temp at a large corporation in Iowa. He did great,
but everytime he was recommended for hire on a job he had been
performing well at, HR gave the job to a white female with no
experience on that job. He finally had to leave the state to get
full-time work, and now he is in medical school.

Engineering is good. Actuary science is great.  Accounting is a waste
of time for a male. So is lab tech.

I cannot express how helpful you all have been. Thank you very much
for explaining this situation in such great detail!

I had previously thought about asking my high school counselor, and I
thought it was a good idea to give it a try. Looks like you fellows
do, too.

Again, thanks for everything. I'll probably check back. Sorry for replying late.