I guess the ALP itself isn't as exciting for me as what the school will do for your kiddo. It's really quite early in the year to expect that the school will do anything, so at this point I would just start making lists of things that you want. I agree with polarbear that the letter home re: calculus indicates that there are lots of parents who want more for their kiddos. Whether that means there are other kids like your own, and if so, if there will be awesome cluster groups of kids with similar abilities, you will have to wait and see.
Are you getting the sense at this point that your DD needs more than what's going on? Again, in the first few weeks of kindy, I'm guessing there's a much bigger focus on how things work in the classroom with all the other kids, how to get from one place to another, etc.
I also recommend starting out very cooperatively, trying to create a partnership with the teacher. It doesn't help to get started on the wrong foot. When you bring things up, sometimes it helps a lot to frame things as requests for advice from the teacher ("I'm not sure what to make of this - my DD just picked up this chapter book intended for 3rd graders and read it in a couple hours. Should I be doing anything at home? Should I send books like that with her to school?")
Another thing that I liked to do was volunteer to help in the classroom. Then you get to see what's being taught and what the other kids are like. Sometimes your offer of volunteering can free up time for more one-on-one time with your kiddo, for purposes of differentiation. If you have that opportunity, I'd recommend it.
ETA: I also agree that the squeaky wheel gets the grease, but being squeaky and likeable at the same time works best!
Last edited by st pauli girl; 09/14/12 11:58 AM.
