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    #127923 04/20/12 08:58 PM
    Joined: May 2011
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    Well we are school shopping again but this time for my 5 year old dd. She is reading again, she stopped when we moved and said she couldn't read. She is adding and subtracting without pictures also. Sound familiar, I was asking some of these questions last year for my dd6. We are considering 3 schools, 2 are more home school, but this dd learns better around other kids. The third is the public school down the street.

    I walked over to the public school today and talked to a lady at the front desk. She was really excited that they are going to start Khan Academy for math, not my favorite program but not horrid. She didnt tell me that all their kids were advanced which after last year was a good thing. We have a meeting with the principle Monday morning.

    The second school I found is on the Davidson institute website and it is the River Springs Charter School. They are closer than our current home school charter school which is nice. They have a walk through on Wednesday that we are going to attend.

    The third school is a K12 charter school that has been willing to work with us educationally but not giving my daughter any social outlets. They are letting my dd6 go up a grade in math but they absolutely will not test before 2nd grade. But they will let them move as fast as they want, but get mad when she does more than one lesson a day. Phonics never takes the full hour and since they get mad we do it and stop but it is too easy for her.

    I know a few things I should ask but is there anything else I need to ask the first two schools?

    Will your teachers differentiate if a student already knows something?

    What is your policy on testing if a teacher can not keep a child learning at the level he or she is at because they already know the material? (This question is mostly for dd6)

    What curriculum do you use?

    How many kids are in your classes?

    What social options do you provide? (river springs)

    Should I ask anything else? I am not sure. I know here in California almost all gifted programs start at 2nd grade, they also are mostly arts and crafts and a few special field trips. Nothing exciting or new.

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    Sounds like your questions are elcellent.

    I would caution you not to ask about policy...instead ask..what have you done in the past when.....

    That gives the advantage to knowing if there have been situations like that before and is less 'theoretical.' Policies don't mean xxxx unless they are followed.

    Concrete examples are much more helpful than philosophies or mission statements.


    Good luck!


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    Ok thanks. I didnt do this right last year and dd6 was not happy for months. So now I am hoping to get it right and not repeat the mistake. I am hoping the charter school is a good fit but dont want to rule things out else where till I get all information.

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    For social options a few classes with other kids, field trips, or play dates would be nice. We had friends in our old nieghborhood but moved in Feb. and now they complain because they have no friends, though we go to the park every other day and the library 2 times a week atleast. I try to get them around other kids often. But there are not constantly the same kids at these places so no friends.

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    The school seems like they know what they are talking about. I dont know. They say they use the Susan Winebrenner method to differentiate but they never advance by grade or subject. They say they only expand the knowledge of the children.

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    My DD's current school I believe uses that grouping method.

    It also sounded like they knew what they were talking about, and I think for most kids they're on the mark. The problem with the cluster grouping is if your child is well past the level of the "highest" cluster in the class. Your child must be in that group because "there is no such thing as a group of one" as I have been told. Which is logical. But that means your little outlier has to stay at the pace of maybe the more advanced or MG kids in the class, and as you know there are large differences in kids as you go up the standard deviations.

    Your little DD who does not like to repeat or sit still sounds alot like my DD. The sitting still part comes with maturity but the hating repetition doesn't go away...perhaps they learn to tolerate it better but they still get bored, frustrated, depressed or other.

    Making friends takes a long time so you'll have to just keep saying that to the kids. If there is a summer camp they can take there are the same kids for the whole duration and if they seem to have bonded with someone when they are released at the end of the day maybe you can try and make a playdate in a public place with their mom/dad/whoever takes care of them during the day.

    Trying to get kids playdates when you're new is sort of like dating!!! YOu just have to keep meeting people and trying

    LOL

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    Thank you. I am going to let my 5 year old attend she easily fits anywhere with anyone and likes to just work her own way but has never had problems in school. My other dd who is 6 we are still looking. I dont know. She can sit for me and even asks for school while we homeschool, but hates going to school where they repeat stuff. I dont know if we can go through that again. On the plus side I have found someone to test her now I just have to come up with the $600.


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