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    #137109 09/03/12 10:12 PM
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    Mtmama Offline OP
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    I need some advice about how to approach my daughter's first grade teacher about reading. My dd just started first grade a few days ago. She is a very strong reader, reading at about level 28/30 or M/N. We had a terrible year in kg where her teacher excused my dd from the kg homework but she still had to do the whole class lessons on letters and got nothing at all at her level despite multiple conferences with the teacher. This year we switched schools as a result.
    Her teacher this year is already much better, and mentioned to us already that she will have to make a plan for dd for readin. But we don't know what that plan is. The school does differentiate and the kids will be swapping classrooms for reading and math. Our dd is also advanced in math but not so much so that I think she will be much above the top group of kids. She could still benefit probably from just regular differentiated math. There is no GT program until 3rd grade in our state and even then I don't thinkit adds much. So no real opportunity for enrichment.
    What should we be pushing for for reading. (the school is very socioeconomic ally mixed with kids from all across the spectrum and is a Title 1 school). I would really like her to have reading instruction a her level. She is complaining that the lessons "are the same as in kindergarten" and says she wants to be homeschooled because she could learn more. Homeschool is not an option for us. She is very well behaved in school and doing great socially. But she says she hates school, which is not something I have ever heard from her before because she is very social.
    Should we push for her to go to second grade for reading? I am not sure even the advanced second grade group would be a her level but she does not like being with kids substantially older than she is. So third grade reading is not an option. Plus her writing, while advanced for first, lags behind her reading. Or would it be better for us to just see what her teacher has in mind? What should we be looking for? She is our first child so we are new to this. We are trying not to be too pushy but also don't want a repeat of kg and we want her to actually learn something in school. How should we approach the teacher without coming across as crazy parents. Any advice from someone who has btdt would be much appreciated!

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    amob
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    Second grade teacher here. In my experience kids tend to stay at M/N for a very long time in some cases. Even if kids read fluently, they do not always get all the nuances, jokes, foreshadowing, etc. The books are complex and it's all about comprehension, vocabulary, understanding characters, plot, etc. I would not push to get your child in second grade for reading yet. She can apply a lot of what she will learn in first grade to her higher level books. For example, if the lesson is "Look for the small word within the big word to help you figure it out (i.e "in" in "printer") she will still use that strategy to figure out difficult words in her books. I'd say, give the teacher a chance and keep in mind that the first month of school is a lot of review.

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    I would have a meeting with her teacher and guidance counselor. If the school has a reading specialist, ask him/her to attend as well. Ask for suggestions first, and if none of them suit you, perhaps you should bring up the possibility of second grade reading. There are, however, a few things to find out about your school system first. First of all, how do they handle reading in the classroom? Many first grade classes do independent reading groups based on ability, and it would not be much extra effort for the teacher to let her form her own group so she can proceed at her own pace. The other thing to consider is what may happen in the future. DS did second grade math while in first grade, and I assumed they would put him in third grade math when he got to second grade. Unfortunately, there was a scheduling issue that made this impossible, so he ended up doing second grade math all over again. He was miserable, convinced that his teacher thought he was "too stupid" to do anything harder, and I ended up supplementing at home. So whatever solution you settle on, make sure it is something that can be continued in future grades.
    Sorry I can't offer more advice, I am still in the process of fighting this battle as well. Hope I helped!

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    Oh, one more thing. Whatever the school says they will do, try go get it in writing and follow up to make sure they are actually doing it. I have seen teachers smile and nod, and agree to whatever was asked for, only to completely ignore that agreement in the classroom. There are some fantastic teachers out there and I like to think most will not do that, but there are some who will. Just something to be aware of.


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