Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy How to help my 6 yo... (newbie post with serious "vent warning")

Thanks all:

We have made the decision to flip him to an online charter school which in part utilizes the Calvert curriculum.

HA! Update:

So much for the promise to be more flexible.

I received the curriculum box and went through it with a fine toothed comb, I determined that 90% of it was already covered 2 years ago (math) or is way under his current reading level. I got really excited when I saw the social studies readings in one book...until I realized that the parent is supposed to read them to the kid.

So. I told my teacher/advisor that we were going to have to switch things up a bit and please forward a placement test or two so that we know which books to request.

I got the following email today:
"I just talked your situation over with our head teacher and she and I feel that because of his age, it is best to stick with the standard first grade curriculum. We will of course be supplementing with other material which is more challenging."

HEllo? That was the reason we pulled him from school #1!!

I am going to talk to his assigned counselor and several others at the school and explain in some detail why this will not quite work. This should prove interesting.

[Since when is supplementing the standard busywork with more busywork considered an appropriate GIEP for someone who is 6 years old? They tried this tactic with me at his other school here. I also fail to understand how a child who is essentially being HOMESCHOOLED needs to follow a non customized curriculum.]

FTT -
I hope you keep posting, because I so what to hear how this turns out. It seems to me that your word alone should be enough that they can trust that if you say he can do it, then he can do it.

Does the teacher ever meet with your son F2F? If not, I would send her a camcorder of your son reading the history text and discussing it. That should help.

Can you just give him the last test in the book and send it in for their perusal?

"Gifted is as gifted does" say Trinity - i.e. if he can do the work of an age + 2 (or 3 or 4) person, then that's what he should be allowed to do.

Amazon and other sites sell used book pretty cheaply sometimes. If you can't find an older hild using this system to borrow the books from to show them what he can do, then maybe $10 on a above level text book will be a good investment.

Keep fighting - you're so close!
Trinity

Update:

So much for flexibility.

I just got off the phone with the assistant principal.

Apparently if I want textbooks that are more advanced, I am going to have to make him go through the entire prepackaged first year curriculum. (like heck I will!) After that, she is willing to consider acceleration, but not more than one grade level, or providing suitable materials.

As of this moment, I am pushing for his rights under Chapter 16...becuse as far as I can see it, these are my options:

(1) homeschool him 100%. I am not in great health and the continuous demand to come up with lesson plans, etc. even while taking care of a 2 year old is a more than a bit hard on me. (I have been improvising for a few weeks now--I should know.)

(2) find a private school that will work (hard enough) and try to get financial aid (not likely this late in the year).

(3) Force the issue of obtaining a GIEP now with the cyberschool in the hope that I can corner them into providing more suitable course materials rather than mere "enrichment" in addition to the early readers and rubber ball counting and eventually (next year) take that GIEP to another school.

This whole situation is so surreal! Problem: I have a stack of textbooks next to my chair and I cannot use the majority of them. This package is worth hundreds of dollars and was purchased for us by the state. The company who supplied the materials in the first place encourages parents to use placement tests and mix & match as needed. NO ONE will tell me how or where to return the package. NO ONE is willing to provide books that we CAN use.

My God! Do these people have to be so rigid?!?

If the boy is doing 3rd grade math, why in the heck should I make him go through an entire courseload of busywork (excruciating for him--I pulled him from the public school because it was creating behavior problems at home).

Becuse this is a cyberschool, we are talking about keystrokes! Mere keystrokes and he could be taking challenging and fun courses.

I have been told by the asst. principal (messages to the principal and guidance coun. are out already) that completing the entire courseload (including arts & crafts and fluff activities) was the only thing she would accept as proof of his ability. She was not willing to do any other kind of assessment. If she does not bend on that, I am getting a lawyer. I will not torture my son for 6 months for anyone's amusement.

In the meantime, I am going to start referring to the cyberschool, PALO, by name because it seems to me others should be aware of their inadequacies (in spite of the promises they make prior to enrollment).

I am so angry right now, I am literally this color -->

Wow FFT -
Have you called your congressperson? (Or at least threatend to?)

I like the hire a lawyer idea. If that's too expensive, can you hire a neighbor child to do the busy work for your child? ((Only joking if you need me to be.))

This whole thing is so weird!!

Is there a higher up person at the cyber charter you can talk to ?

Ouch!

Trinity

Trinity:

It is truly a bizarre situation because as far as I can tell, it is just about the books. I honestly don't care if they accelerate him--just want him challenged with the material. I am perfectly happy if he stays in first grade if the resources are adequate. He is, after all, pretty much a homeschool kid right now.

And the conversation was weird...like she was digging in her heels and didn't want to hear anything else from me.

I asked her at one point if she would make a third grader start with the first grade curriculum.
Answer: no, of course not.
Me: Then why make my son start there, since he is capable of so much more already and WANTS to do more.
Answer: but he IS in first grade.
Me: If that is a problem, let's accelerate him. Answer: NO. Not until he completes the first grade curriculum.
Me: Why?
Answer: Because that is what we do.
Me: Why can't we be more flexible and adapt just a bit? We are just talking about the books, you know. Calvert actually encourages parents to mix and match a bit and they even use their own placement tests to determine what books to order.
Answer: Because that is not what we do.
ME: Why is that not "what we do"? Isn't there another answer that is possible here?
answer: You can't expect us to take your word for it, can you?
Me: No, of course not--let's assess his current skill level, give him a test or two. I would be happy to take him out there to the unit so someone else can administer any placement or skill test you would like...
Answer: No. Not until he completes the first grade curriculum.
Me: What if I just have him demonstrate by taking the tests that he has been there and has seen the waterfall? Would that work for you?
Answer: No. That is not what we do.
Me: Then it would appear I need to speak with a few other people, because that is not even a compromise and what you are suggesting is absolutely insufficient and unacceptable.

It was like talking to a robot from a 50s B movie and it was all I could do just to keep my cool.

It was as if through the whole conversation, she was drawing a line in the sand and telling me that she was unwilling to help. When I suggested that I should just request a GIEP and get it over with, she said, "well, you know those can take a long time too..." (in a sinister tone to suggest she intends to take even longer than necessary) and besides, we would NEVER consider accelerating a child more than one grade level and told me that if I didn't like any part of this, I could go forth and homeschool my child.

This is the same thing we were going through with his previous school except in this case it is...more blatantly rigid and I would suggest lazy.

I really can't afford much in the way of a lawyer, unfortunately. My husband is only a neuroscience post doc and that hardly pays much. On top of having a mortgage to nurse, I have health problems and another kid too (who will probably be leading me through a similar merry dance in about 3-4 years).

I may just contact a congressman (and a newsguy or two that I know) if I don't start getting movement.

They haven't really even seen any work from him yet. There has been no assessment. There has been no effort at all on their part.

But when I add up the cost to the state.

use of a laptop computer and a brand new inkjet scanner/printer...
staff/teachers...
textbooks that have not been used...
they are paying my internet bill
free tech support...

All of this starts to really reek to me.

Anyway...sorry about the ranting (Ha--can ya tell I'm still P.O.'d??)

It isn't just me, is it?...this is...nuttso, right? Calvert (the company from which they ordered the books) has a standing policy of encouraging parents to mix and match to suit the kid. They are willing to accept the return of the books for exchange.

I have a call out to the principal and one to the counselor (to request the GIEP).

I will let you know what happens on Monday, if anything.

Hi Anne,

I got your email and you mentioned that you're going through the AppliedGiftedEd website. The website should answer most of the questions you have about PA's Gifted Ed regulations and how they apply to a gifted kid's situation.

I can answer some of your questions briefly, but I've got a large project due soon and need to put some time in on that ... again, the website addresses most of the general issues you raise.


The short answer is this:

Your school district gets, basically, three months before they have to do *anything* with a gifted kid who is in the process of being identified gifted.

That's just the bureaucracy. You can *ask* for expedited identification, but the district is under no obligation to move faster than the timeline which is sixty school days.

It doesn't matter if Bob and Jan Davidson fly in with the combined testing staffs of Johns Hopkins and Carnegie Mellon to vouch for the kid to your director of pupil services - the district gets to do its own testing using its own people.

The GIEP process will sort itself out once you get the Gifted Written Report taken care of. You *should* write up a parent's exhibit/input form for the Gifted Written Report. You can use your Davidson Application data, not the form itself, but use the information on your application to supplement the testing results. You are part of the Gifted Multidisciplinary Evaluation Team and, as such, have input.

Once you get the GWR you will sit down with the school and create the Gifted IEP. That's where you can adjust the curriculum to fit the child. The district is free, once the child is identified gifted, to modify as needed to create an appropriate plan.

The key things to keep in mind in Pennsylvania Public Education is that the district is not under any obligation to provide a gifted child (or any child for that matter) a 'Best Possible Education' but rather one of 'Meaningful Benefit' that's based on a 'Reasonable Calculation'.

If you can get a 'Best Possible' then great, but understand that is a function of the district and or teacher going above-and-beyond.

The big picture advocacy issues of why that's a shame are addressed by the Davidsons and other gifted ed advocacy groups - I don't have the luxury of theory. I've got a couple of kids going through the system.

As you roll into your Gifted Written Report, my advice would be to get through the 'Why?' stage as quickly as you can. Asking 'Why' is only going to drive you crazy. Get to the 'Who, What, When, Where, and How' stuff as soon as you can. If you can get those questions answered, you've got a Gifted IEP.

As for the placement decision - my advice, and I don't know the personalities involved, is to simply continue asking how their proposed plan meets your child's educational needs.

Eventually, if what they propose doesn't, they will/should get around to recommending something that you can approve.

Lastly, you may want to consider other cybercharters. There's a list at PDE. Do a google search on PDE and EDNA - EDNA is the Educators Directory of Names and Addresses - iirc, all the cybercharters are listed there.

Hope this helps and keep reading through the appliedgifteded site. I'm in the process of updating it.

Todd

I seem to be getting action from another teacher at the school. She sees that I am being reasonable (I hope) and is even giving me some very interesting suggestions about circumventing red tape...even gave me her home phone #!

More later.

Cool!