So ... we had our meeting to discuss ds5's MAP results at his public school.
On the Math I section, he scored in the 98th percentile. On the Math II section, he scored in the 76th percentile. Long story short, they're not going to do *anything* for him beyond extra worksheets in his K class.
I have several issues with this meeting.
First of all, ds's computation skills were off the charts. The principal suggested several times that we do worksheets and workbooks with him at home and that's why he did so well on this part. I was stunned, to say the least. We don't *do* workbooks at our house. Benjamin's just not interested (I know there are many GT kids who are, but ds is not one of them). She thinks we're hothousing him! If there is anything farther from a hothousing parent, it's me. And that's what they think we are. Unbelievable.
My other issue with the MAP test is that it doesn't cover a child's *ability* to learn, but only tests knowledge they already have. Ds is advanced in math, but not by that much; we have never really pushed it. We do all sorts of mathy things as they come up -- he understands fraction and percentages and multiplication etc, if you ask him verbally. But we've never made it a point to teach things overtly that aren't intuitive, like the written division signs or how a fraction looks written down. Or, for example, odds and evens -- because really, who does that with a 5yo unless they are following a curriculum, or the child asks about it?
So in my view, there are topics covered in the MAP that he could pick up in about 10 minutes, but they just come out as "wrong" on the test -- no "wrong but he already understands the concept, just asked a different way." Which is fine -- I know it is just a test used to gauge progress over time. But geez -- to look at the kid's private IQ and achievement scores and not do *anything*??
I guess I'm just a little confused about what they plan to actually *teach* him in K for the rest of the year. I have to discuss with ex-h and possibly compose a letter to that effect: If he's going to be in K for the rest of the year with no pull-outs, then what exactly do you plan to teach him?
So here's the end of my vent, and the beginning of my questions. We're entirely sure that K is not meeting his academic needs -- nor will first grade, especially if he starts and finishes in first grade next year. Socially he's right on par and does fine in a variety of situations; I've no doubt he'd take right to first grade. His Iowa Acceleration score turns out around 54 when I do it on my own -- in the "good candidate for skip" range. I know the school could possibly answer some questions differently than I do, but not more than two or three. Most of the questions are very fact-based. And lately the kid's been wistfully saying, "I wish I could be in second grade." To my knowledge, no one's discussed a possible skip around him because we don't want to get his hopes up!
What do I do? Now that the school has flatly refused to do anything for him with the data they have, where does that leave us? Do we request that they do the Iowa Scale with him (they do use it at the school, the principal happened to mention) and just request a full skip, since they're not willing to do even single-subject acceleration? Do we just start looking at other schooling options, since they clearly have little to no experience with PG kids?
Ugh. I feel like the parent making excuses for my kid's underachievement -- because I am! I really don't feel like this was a good assessment of ds's abilities. Please, give me your btdt experiences! Or am I really the "bright kid but not ridiculously so" parent, which the school thinks I am?
