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    Joined: Feb 2011
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    Well, WE did it by using an online virtual charter school, so she could work mostly self-paced.

    The other solution is a split grade classroom, where your child can work (mostly) self-paced and move smoothly up through to the top level in the UPPER grade, develop peer relationships within that peer cohort, and transition with THEM to the next grade up...

    I've seen that done, and it's what we'd have tried ourselves if DD had been in a brick and mortar setting.



    Schrödinger's cat walks into a bar. And doesn't.
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    Minx Offline OP
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    Hmm...he's in a split class 1/2 right now. I shall have to inquire as to whether there is a 3/4 class available; thank you much for that tip! We're planning to learn 4th grade over the summer in any event; it's all I can do to keep up with him! :-)

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    Minx Offline OP
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    Addressing the slow processing speed question:

    I do not know why that is with reference to his work unless it is that he is working out things in his head first. It may also be a touch of perfectionism. I have asked the psychologist for more information on that but she just went on vacation so it may be a while.

    As to what his teacher says...from his report card:

    First trimester:
    "...His writing is currently on grade level and I can see great improvements through conferencing with [TW] on personal stories written in class. He often works quickly through the material, I would like for him to work on slowing down so that his handwriting might improve and so that he does not make simple mistakes from his rushing."

    That's not all she wrote but it answers the pertinent "how fast is he working?" His handwriting is awful but...so is mine; the brain is just working way faster than his hands can process.

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    Minx Offline OP
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    Sadly, the school has decided that DS8 is not ready for a grade skip due to:

    1) his penmanship

    2) his answering the principal for the group when he was leading the group at play

    3) and the fact that he still counts on his fingers and hasn't memorized his multiplication tables yet...though they have not asked him to do so.

    They photocopied the tests to which he was subjected and it made me realize how much they were against accelerating him.

    For example:

    His teacher asked him to write an essay about water conservation and he did. It was clear and thoughtful with proper grammar including an introduction and conclusion. It was difficult to read due to his penmanship, which was atrocious and much worse than last year. It was still legible. His teacher stated that there was no conclusion and I rightfully pointed out his conclusion statement. She then said his ideas were disordered; they were clearly in order as he had used terms such as "First", "Second", etc. and he segued gracefully between paragraphs.

    At this school currently, third-grade students are tested for the GATE program in fourth grade. The principal took advantage of this meeting to let me know that the GATE program is being discontinued altogether so they can focus on Common Core. "Common Core focuses on depth, not breadth" were her precise words.

    Overall, it was a disheartening meeting; not because I was forced to accept that my special snowflake ;-) isn't really special but because I realized that his school is not interested in educating him because "he's smart; he'll do fine." They intend to have him join the writer's workshop for 2nd/3rd grade as differentiation for language. It's better than nothing, I suppose and thank the stars the school year's almost over.

    On the other hand, my work is transferring me to Reno and we are looking into the School-Within-A-School program in the elementary schools. They've found him eligible; we are just waiting on the commitment letter. :-)

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    Wow. Sorry to hear the outcome, but not surprised. My grade-skipped DD's current school has mentioned her handwriting more than once (she entered that school post-skip and there was nothing they could do about it). I remember getting grief about penmanship as a kid. I suspect you're right; they don't want to skip your son and are finding reasons not to do so. In a circumstance like this, you can't win. Unless, that is, you move to Reno. smile

    I've heard from one or two Reno-area parents that the schools there are aware of the Davidson Academy and are trying hard to keep very bright kids in the local school system. Can you keep us posted?

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    Originally Posted by Minx
    The principal took advantage of this meeting to let me know that the GATE program is being discontinued altogether so they can focus on Common Core. "Common Core focuses on depth, not breadth" were her precise words.


    This is the third time this week I've heard of a G&T program being cut back in the name of the Common Core...

    Best of luck in Reno!

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    Thank you and yes! I will be glad to post our experiences with the SWAS. I can tell you that so far, the administration has been GREAT! They have been very responsive.

    For anyone in the area or considering the area, the guy to talk to is Tim Robinson; you can reach him through the Washoe school district GATE site.

    http://washoecountyschools.org/dist...y-school-programs/school-within-a-school

    The GATE team meets once a week on Tuesdays to discuss students who are recommended or applying to the program. If a parent is requesting evaluation, it will take some time to set up the evaluation so they are looking at the following year. If you already have test results, that speeds the process considerably. In our case, we already had the WISC-IV and the WIAT-II so they took his scores and used them to determine eligibility so that he can go right into the program.

    We're not trying to accelerate him through the school grades; I don't care if he wants to be with age-mates. I just want for him to be with friends who think the way he does and for him to be in a learning environment that isn't trying to stifle him so in the name of social development. That alone will make school a much more interesting and pleasant environment.

    It's actually a bit funny. After having DS8 in her class for an entire school year, his teacher still doesn't know how to motivate him to complete his reading questions. He's gaming the system by reading until he runs out of time and telling her he will do the question journal tomorrow.

    When tomorrow comes, he "needs to read the chapter again to remember what happened." When she told me that in the meeting, I just started laughing; probably not the best response. Then I told her that he's motivated by learning and reading; if you want the questions completed, you have to tell him that they must be finished before he is allowed to continue reading.

    After the meeting, I spoke to DS8 and told him that he must do his question journal and that if it's not completed, reading privileges are suspended. We haven't had that problem since but here's the thing: I never knew it WAS a problem. She could have emailed me at any time and I could have fixed it but I can't fix what I don't know...grrr...

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    Minx Offline OP
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    Originally Posted by Loy58
    Originally Posted by Minx
    The principal took advantage of this meeting to let me know that the GATE program is being discontinued altogether so they can focus on Common Core. "Common Core focuses on depth, not breadth" were her precise words.


    This is the third time this week I've heard of a G&T program being cut back in the name of the Common Core...

    Best of luck in Reno!

    Yes, it is a handy way to divert funds that were being used for GATE programs. No one can argue with a mandate. >:(

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    Originally Posted by HowlerKarma
    It's a step function, her development.
    HowlerKarma: Did this freak you out? Did it make it hard to plan? I don't just mean for the coming year or whatever, but your entire picture of what trajectory she was on?

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    Yes, it freaked me out. Both then and now. It's basically living with a child who has NO books describing that kind of development, and it also doesn't provide you with much of a handle on what level of "push" is appropriate-- or when.

    Ultimately, it has meant being infinitely flexible in terms of our current estimate of what "trajectory" even means.

    One day at a time, serenity prayer territory, I'm afraid.

    There IS no big picture accessible to us-- and it has meant coming to terms with that.

    Ergo, we evaluate fit anytime things seem "off" in any way-- and we ride the train until the track runs out, or seems about to-- and then we try to figure out what happens next. It's also the reason we have become such incredible neurotic freaks about documenting everything-- that's our metaphorical life raft if the ship sinks under us all without warning. We've had that happen once before (it's the reason I showed up here, basically, when she was about nine, and started posting in desperation when she was about ten or eleven).

    DD has developed the metacognitive skills now (since she was about 12 and we discussed this kind of development-- and various NT, non-NT developmental trajectories) that she is able to help us to anticipate when these jumps are occurring, which is useful. Well, to a point. What to do about them, and evaluating "what level are we on now" is still a challenge.

    Jonothan Livingston Seagull. smile That's my kid. This is the facet of my DD, more than all of the others, that makes me desperately wish that I had my father alive to ask questions of.



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