Welcome! This is a great group and when you need to vent, feel free to join us.

I've got some friends who definitely think I'm too intense and that I should just let everything be and all will be fine. In terms of whether K can work for some, I think it can depending on the circumstances, the school and, most importantly, the teacher. Here's why:

While you guys have heard me struggle here with the school and DS5, he's been happy with school. He has liked his teachers (both the old one and the new one) and he has friends. He's not a complainer and will simply do what he's told, even if the work is too easy. What was interesting to me at his P-T conference was to hear the teacher say that he would finish his work quickly and then gave her a look that says "Alright, what's next?" She knew and I knew the work was way too easy for him. To her credit and b/c I got the reading specialist involved, the school took a harder look at him and realized that he needed a different learning environment. So, he went off to kindergarten class number 2 this week. And though it's been just a couple of days, I can see how this is a much better fit, and it's still a kindergarten classroom.

Here's the difference:

1. The school paired 2-3 high-level readers under this one teacher so he's not alone and it's then worth their effort to teach the higher learners b/c it's not just one child. While there are children in the classroom who don't yet know how to read, the teacher is able to gear some portion of the day to helping DS better comprehend the books he is reading and to learn to write about the books.

2. In math, the teacher has told me that moving DS into her class has given her an excuse to be able to teach up to some of the other kids while giving him the work he needs. Clearly, this is a teacher who understands that a higher learner can elevate a bunch of kids rather than teaching down and waiting for everyone else to catch up.

3. Our school has 5 K classes. It's clear to me that different teachers instruct at different levels. There's the teacher who's all play. There's the teacher who believes that we push these kids too far too fast for what they are developmentally ready for. And there's the teacher we have now who has a lot of experience and background with gifted kids.

So, some of the question when you look at the K programs is the background of the teacher and how she approaches different levels of kids. Also, how will your DS react if/when some of the work is too easy? As we all know, some kids can't handle the boredom and act out. And finally, it's really hard to get school administrators to really listen and believe you about your child's abilities. When I think back to spring of last year through until now, I wonder if there were a way that all of my advocating and the room-switch could have been avoided. Maybe if the principal hadn't shooed me off when I asked about how they handle kids who are already reading? Maybe if the 15-minute meet-and-greet with incoming kindergartners actually had a small reading component to see if the child could, say, read the instructions on a piece of paper?

This is my 2nd child who needed some kind of acceleration in grade K and it was a mess with both of them at the beginning. By the time my older one hit 1st grade, everything really smoothed out, though, with acceleration available for the kids. I do also live in a county that tends toward over-acceleration rather than under.