ah you guys are great....you've jostled me into processing this...thank you...
here are my meanderings...
I remember the high cluster in 5th grade being very intense in writing and research. Mite loves to research; so, I don't think that aspect will be a problem, but, of course, the organization and writing will need lots of support, accomodations and modifications. He's not going to be in the high cluster, though; so, it might not be so intense. Rite actually wrote over 200 pages on history research that they comglomerated at the end of the year and made into a book. It was an EXCELLENT class, but the teacher is different; so, I don't know if Mite would miss out on it even if he were in the gifted cluster.
Yes Trinity TOUCH TYPING!!!8^) The vultures do not want to teach him keyboarding, but that's not stopping either of us. The AT person keeps claiming Mite's not "developmentally ready". When I've asked for scientific information to support her claim she states that SHE is an EXPERT capable of deciding that for MITE. She feels children can't learn keyboarding until 5th to 6th grade.
um. NOT!!!
We have even arranged to have him tutored in keyboarding when he's in his choir program this summer. They offer tutoring services if the choir activities interfere with schooling and they decided it did in keyboarding because it interfered with practice time. So, they are going to take that on this summer. Gosh! I would love to prove the AT person wrong both for Mite's sake and just because I like to say "nannananabooboo"!! 8^P
That leads me to music. He's very, very, very advanced both in theory and in voice. His music teacher is thrilled to have him moving up to 5th because she feels he's even further than that. She told us at the last PT conference that in her 30+ years of teaching music at this school she counts Mite as one of her 4 TOP students. Given that she teaches 450 students a year at least the past 5 years and probably 100-200 per year prior to that, that's really saying something.
He will miss the introduction to the recorder, but I can easil work with him on that.
Anyhow, I've digressed, but it was fun:^)
I'll get Aleks, tonight. That should help me with math. I am most scared of math. He GETS the concepts and is already, since starting to work with him at home, doing some algebraic concepts, but needs a calculator or a addition/multiplication chart to do those tasks. HE has NO ROTE MEMORY at all in this and it makes me NUTS> It shouldn't because I am just like that. I can get up to 6x6 and the rest I have to stop and think about. I never mastered them in school. I'm worried though that it will be hard for him to deal socially with that and I am even processing the point of homeschooling in math.
We are pretty good at being intense in studying. While I am sure it's going to be a LOT more, I think Mite will enjoy our one-on-one and Rite has volunteered to tutor him also.
deb, I actually think things might get easier to move around in middle school and high school. When it becomes more of a class-by-class thing, it is easier to accelerate at least in this school district.
However, things heat up in 5th, 6th tends to be a "blow off year", 7th becomes a bit intense again. Here 6th grade is the transition year into jr. high and the focus seems to be to get all the kids from the various schools onto the same page.
how to handle gym....he has so many difficulties in gym. I wonder if there is a way he can move to the 4th grade for that. I'm still waiting on the DAPE results.
sooooooooooooo...ok....help me keep processing. you are giving me GReAT things to think about.
