Thank you everyone for your always insightful input and thoughts. I just can't imagine what I'd do without this forum!
DS and I are hanging in there for now. My DH and I decided that we had to follow through on no Wii for the weekend, just so we don't sabotage future efforts. But after thinking about many of your replies, we decided that for each day DS stays on "green", he'll earn EXTRA Wii time. But we won't take away the Wii for moving to yellow or red. We're going to leave the consequences to the school.
And Grinity, I like your idea of taking a few days off, as needed. I think a day spent at the science museum or state capitol might help.
I love the ideas of having the child think of ways that they can remove themselves from potentially explosive situations. I'm going to work with DS to have him brainstorm ideas to present to the teacher. We'll see what her response is...
Zhain, your comment about children knowing how we really feel about others (e.g. DS's teacher) gave me great pause. I have been so very careful to always talk positively about her with DS. I'm hoping that I fooled him, as you suggested, Grinity! I actually think that she is a really good teacher, just not for gifted students. She is incredibly organized, has very good classroom management skills, and keeps a fun atmosphere of learning in the classroom. She just has one huge hole of knowledge around what to do with gifted kids. She is a young teacher, still working on her Master Degree. I'm guessing/hoping that a few years down the line she'll look back and realize the opportunities missed with my DS...
I'm meeting with DS's teacher, the principal, the school district's Talented and Gifted (TAG) coordinator, and the school TAG coordinator on Thursday to plan for next year. So I'm thinking that after that meeting I'm going to get a better idea of where we might end up next year.
And finally, EastnWest, thank you so much for asking how I'm doing! I feel like I'm on a great roller coaster of hope, frustration, anxiety, calm, etc. One night last week, my DS and I both ended up in tears talking about school. He was sharing his frustrations, and I shared how sad I felt that I had not been able to figure out some ways to help him in school. But we talked about how hard I am working to make next year a better fit for him. I am typically a very non-emotional person, so I find it interesting how emotional I get about DS's school experience. I just am so worried about damaging him for life. I realize that is quite melodramatic, but that truly is my deepest fear. Oh, yes, that must be my biggest fear. The tears are flowing again!
Sorry for the long post! Thank you again though for all of your thoughtful feedback. You all truly are the best!
