On the other hand, we've found a public school on the other side of the state line which is a low-income area (for example, in our district 6% of the kids qualify for free on subsidized lunches, in this district 60% of the kids do). But, it is a small district so it has created a consortium with 3 other small, low-income districts to create a gifted immersion classroom. They go crazy working with these kids, hiring specialists whenever necessary -- teaching calculus if warranted, etc. It is only for PG kids and you need 150+ on the Stanford Binet.
My question is: which is better, assuming you qualify for both.
Pursue! This sounds better for the kid who qualifies for it. The other sounds better for the kid who is more in the 130-135 range. Ideal for any kid is the be 'in the middle of the pack' (If placed with older children then I'd aim for the top 20% because being younger does create challenges of it's own.) so that they can develop good work ethic.
But - go and observe both schools. The only way to have even a small hint if something will be good for your child is to spend some seat time observing the teachers interacting with their students. Students interacting with each other, and with the learning materials. If example, if the immersion class is using materials that are aimed for a lower grade level than the current school, then it's a problem. It's great to have peers, but what's needed is peers plus academic challenge.
Love and More Love,
Grinity
