Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy How do I talk to the teachers? Want a good plan.

Wow Elizabethmom!

You've come a long way in a short time! Here's a try at a possible re-write:



I took out all of your fears and worries. They are real, and you should talk about them here, but they aren't for sharing with school folks. You have to put on a little bit of acting for them. We, on the other hand want to hear all about your family and their experiences.

I think on of the main differences between 'back then' and 'now' is that we are thinking of a gradeskip as the begining of a flexable road that includes gap years, decelerations, subject accelerations, distance learning and summer camps. If you daughter does join Davidson, she will have oddles and oddles of 'flexable path' kids to compare herself to, instead of being 'on her own.'

The drawbacks to skips are real, but we have a lot more ways of dealing with them. I think of my Grandmother's skips as more like 'official fake birth certificates' - here's you new age, make the most of it, we're done thinking about you! Great if it works, too bad if it doesn't.

I also agree that1/2 K with a gaureenteed skip to 2nd might be a nice fit. I would consider that she is 'partial homeschooling' K in the AM at school, and 1st at home with you. Of course, if she is reading 'War and Peace' already, and really lonely with agemates, and has great fine motor, and can sit all day - then 1st can work well also, particularly for girls who often are more 'sit ready' than boys.

I like the idea of keeping her around you for an extra year, but socially, early skips are great.

Woot!

Grinity

OK, DD9 and I talked this morning and she's up for anything. She is totally ready to move on.
Here is my newest draft, based on everyone's suggestions:

4/29/2009

Mrs. G,

I just wanted to let you know about my meeting with Mrs. R today and what DH and I are thinking about next year.

It was a nice meeting, Mrs. R took a lot of time to talk with me. She has great passion for her students! Understandably, her request regarding creating a separate plan for DD9, or subject acceleration, or anything else "out of the box" was that we wait and see after a few weeks of school, instead of planning now. I understand this, but have grave reservations. You see, if DD9 is not being challenged then we start to see sadness, restlessness, and underachievement. When challenged, for example in the gifted online class, I noticed instant tears of frustration. When asked what was wrong, she replied that she isn�t used to having to work at anything.

I have gotten some help recently from people who know the profoundly gifted well, and a grade skip might be the easiest option for everyone. Her IQ is in the profoundly gifted range, in the 99.9th percentile (so is her sister's), I had no idea until recently, as you know, how unusual our kids are.

As for this year, as much as she enjoys her classmates and teachers, she has been asking constantly for more work, for me to ask for meetings to obtain more challenging work, etc. The only real way to know where she is academically is to give her �end of year� tests for 4th grade. Can this be taken care of this year so that she can start next year off with a placement that allows her academic needs to be met? That will give her the additional benefit of making school more rewarding for her right now. I think that, at the very least, she will need subject acceleration for language arts, science, and social studies, I expect that Mrs. M wouldn�t mind having her. Another viable option would be a grade skip, where she would be in 4th grade Hebrew in the morning and 5th grade general studies in the afternoons.

I expect that a conversation is in order, but I know how busy you are right now. Please let me know when you have absorbed all of this and have time to talk.


Thanks,
"Elizabethmom"

I don't know anything about the Iowa Acceleration scales, I will search this board for past posts about it.

i like that letter. great examples. i wouldnt hand then the 'at least' alternative, because you are probably going to need subject accels on top of that skip sooner or later. yes its ok to settle for that but the old negotiation tactic of asking for twice what you want still hold....lol. dont worry about the iowa scale....with her scores she is a good or excellent candidate. interesting reading but not worth getting distracted by. love and more love grinity

Sounds much stronger while still warm and fuzzy.

I'd expand this part a bit more. I understand what you're saying but the principal may not fully get it and think damned if I do challenge her/damned if I don't.


Maybe this:

That is an improvement, Inky, thanks.

Just an update:
I sent the letter, the principal called me right away. She said in the phone conversation that, of course, we will talk and see what can be done. She sounded very upbeat about making changes. She would like to see the Cogat (which DD did not do that well on last year!) which just came back but I haven't seen it yet and any tests that I have. We happen to be taking the WIAT or WJ a few days before the meeting for a possible DYS try, so if it is good I'll have more to show than the IQ test and grades/AR scores, etc.
For DD5 we are on the fence again, I think we'll try K and see what happens, although she just started reading at about a second grade level, so K might not last long. But, her friends are there so she wants to try.
I will give an update on DD9 after our meeting in a few weeks, thanks again, all.

Sounds promising!
If it comes down to Cogat vs. WISC, be prepared to address why WISC trumps Cogat.
Here's a good article, especially the "Types of Tests" section.
http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/tests_tell_us.htm
Bottomline:

Oh, wow, that is helpful, I just looked at the article, thanks.

I talked to my daughter's future principal at Middle School yesterday. He told me why I could not get what I wanted. I mentioned her NWEA scores (which are important here). He did not believe me since hers are the highest ever made.

He looked them up and then just gave me everything I wanted. It was very interesting.