Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion End of year reflections - How did yours go?

As we are approaching the end of the school year, I thought it would be nice to have a thread in which people recap how their year went. What they changed this year. What surprised them. What worked. What did not work.

I can empathise with you on this. The truly vertigo inducing aspect of my DD's LOG is how quickly she joins the dots - any dots.

I have started to look back a my old 'A' level pure and applied Maths books which I haven't looked at in almost 35 years because I know that my DD9 will soon (2 years or so) ready for it at this rate. Things that seemed clear then are cloudy now and I will need time to dust off and blow the cobwebs out.

Sometimes I feel like Grommet in the finale of the Wrong Trousers leaning out in front of the train engine laying out track nineteen to the dozen as it speeds towards the last section of it.

I think it has been pretty much a waste of a year for DD. She maybe learned some new spelling words? And she has picked up some really bad habits, like fighting us on homework or lying about it. She hates the work that the teacher makes her do. We jumped thru the hoops needed for her to go to the gifted magnet in the fall for 4th grade so there will be a lot of (hopefully) good changes.

DS (first grade) had a very rocky first half of the year. He was "happy", at least in terms of demeanor, because he had his very best friend in his class with him. But he regressed very badly in terms of his writing and other skills because the teacher had no expectations and did not work with him. She had no interest in giving him work at the right level and actively fought us. It didn't matter how nice or reasonable we tried to be, she viewed me as a tiger mom and was going to do her best to make sure DS was not pushed in any way at all. That meant that he decided he was "done" and wasn't even going to bother with first grade work, much less harder work. What I have learned is that sometimes advocating is simply not going to work. If there is a teacher with an "attitude" they are not going to do what is right no matter what approach you might take. Rather than keep banging your head on a wall, figure out if there is an "out" sooner rather than later.

I pulled him out of school and transferred him to a different district school, and the new teacher was appalled by his journals from the other school. She said that it would need to be dealt with immediately. The very next day he brought home writing that looked "normal" and it has gotten even better with time. He went from scribbles to writing on the lines with periods and spaces in just a couple days. Amazing! She did thorough testing on him and gave him work the right level, some of it 4 grade levels ahead. DS had to fill out a worksheet stating what kinds of things he is proud of, and he is clearly proud of his improvement in writing, and how advanced he is with math and the "hard books" he reads now. So what "worked" was moving DS, and asking our allies in administration for help who made sure he had a good IEP manager and teacher. But a lot of it was luck. We didn't know if we would be walking from a bad situation into a worse one. Luckily DS is laid back and the school change didn't bother him at all. I'm sure his old teacher thought I was a horrible mother for switching schools mid-year, but I know my DS and knew he would be fine.

Should be interesting to see what the next year brings.... I am still waiting to hear about open enrollment and waiting lists.

This is really interesting.

For us, it's been one of the better years. DS13 has gained a lot of free time since he moved to a GT private school. I think he learned less during school, but he is happier. Outside of school, though, he has a lot more time to do projects and self study so overall I would say his academics really advanced this year. Online courses kind of became a routine for him, and there is indeed a large selection at all levels. His social interactions also improved a lot because he now has time to go to community groups and develop projects there. He participated in various academic competitions/talent searches, etc., and did very well. His extracurriculars (music, chess, etc) all improved more than usual this year, I think it's because he feels happier in general which helps everything, really.

DD9 is usually very easy going, and she doesn't mind doing the repetitive work at school even though her level is way above that. She has not had an IQ test. But last year in 2nd grade her math was tested to be at least 5th grade level and she was reading at 7th grade level. (We don't know about this year, haven't seen any report yet.) This year though, is the first year when she started complaining about being bored at school and not learning anything ("why can't they just let me read a book?") She loves school, though, because she has a large number of friends and the teacher is funny. This year's teacher is actually quite understanding and does do in-classroom differentiation, it's simply that the differentiation doesn't go to DD's level. Outside of school things are really good. I started working with her on middle school math this year, and helped her identify projects that she can do (writing a book, etc). Her extracurricular activities (which she doesn't do at school but uses community resources) have been going really well and she is getting a lot of recognition and rare opportunities.

I feel that things have been going well this year more than before partly because we gave up false hope in the school system, and devoted energy on looking for alterntive resources. It's also partly because the kids did incredibly well when they got the right opportunities. Next year, though, I think, will be challenging for DD, because she will feel even more strongly about school being a waste of time (she has already asked me to talk to the school about letting her opt out of some classes, but I'm not optimistic--the school district is very rigid). for DS, the challenge is to settle into high school and truly understand that he will need to do a good job on everything even if some tasks are boring--most of the things that one does in life are pretty routine and not exciting but one needs to do them well nonetheless (he understands it, I believe, but next year will be the real test).

It's been a tough but good year. DS entered first grade and we determined that he needed to be in a different school.

After some angst and talking with several good friends who happen to be teachers, we moved DS mid year. It was a bit bumpy in places, but he's so much happier and engaged at school.

I'm grateful that we went ahead and decided on an IQ test at the end of last year. To anyone, he would have looked like a dreamy kid who didn't want to work very hard. We saw that he was was under challenged and bored. Now that he's in a more suitable environment, his mojo has returned full force:)

We made the decision to keep him a bit busier this summer with camps and swim team. He is definitely a kid who needs a balance between structure and free time.

Big change this year. DS started high school. Interesting how, in grade school, kids are limited to their grade, and even the gifted replacement LA and math are by grade. In high school, there is more flexibility of placement, by grade and level, mainly in the social studies and various arts, but even in honors science and math DS found himself with sophomores and juniors. He felt a little intimidated at first, but had some buddies in there as well, and the teachers had fun with him, letting him run with ideas, and I hear it kept the classes interesting.

He had a new experience with a "flipped" math class, where you watch the teacher-produced lecture at home online, then do work in class. He liked it, because he got to spend class time DOING math, and could ask all the questions he wanted, work collaboratively, and delve into it more.

He participated in school sports for the first time, again, mixed ages, great group of boys. He is motivated in music now, because you get to play with better players only if you advance, and you have to work and show commitment to advance. Funny how that works! Now he practices, and even consented to private lessons instead of sectional play, and he has improved dramatically (except that now we need to find him a "move-up" instrument $$). He continues to participate in theater, great friends boys, girls, all ages.

Still dealing with executive function issues, but in general he has blossomed. In high school they are encouraged to question, explore, and grow. Why can't middle school, or grade school, be like that? There is at least as big a difference between a 14 and 18yr olds as between 7 and 11yr olds.

Forgot about the other great thing in high school: no testing! Sophomores take one, juniors take the ACT, that's IT Every single day is about learning. Oh, when the upperclassmen are taking their tests, the school offers opportunities to the other students to job shadow, volunteer, rehearse, and more.

End of year? We are only 3/4 of the way through the school year, just got 3rd quarter grades. School runs 3/4 the way into June. Yes I know our school district is LATE.

DS is a H.S. freshman. So far it's going so-so. Major problem has turned out in his writing. Looking into summer writing program. He can't write FAST enough, spends way to much time trying to figure out what to write he never gets to finish the writing. Grades NOT where they should be. When we get to finals those tests should help, DS is a very good test taker. Worried about class placement for next year right now.

Socially it's been good. DS loves Marching Band and he joined two social clubs this spring.

What worked overall for DS8: taking this year to focus on identifying issues and remediating, and pouring tons of time into working with the school to figure out what was going on. Working with a strict, demanding, determined teacher - DS might have had an easier year in another class but because of her tireless efforts, we were able to really drill down on what was going on. I think (hope) we are now on the same page, and DS seems really happy with the recent changes.

What didn't work: CBT and (surprisingly) the neuropsych evaluation. DS ran rings around the therapist, and the neuropsych wrote reams about his oppositional behavior without catching the issues (like vision) behind it. As a bonus she barred him from the one private school I thought might be a good fit. If we go back for another eval in a few years, it may be worth traveling to a 2/e specialist.

Successes: OT, mostly vestibular with a bit of social skills coaching thrown in. Vision therapy (in process). Cursive. Keyboarding. And what feels like a very strong IEP for next year, with a case manager who clearly adores him. Also, getting off the beaten path for activities. Now that he is old enough for classes like fencing and robotics, he is starting to find his tribe - the kids in those activities are quirky and divergent in a way that we just didn't see in more mainstream sports/enrichment activities. For the summer, he'll be at a non-sporty outdoor camp with lots of swimming, boating, climbing, and time to choose his own activities like archery and nature exploration, so we are hoping that will be a good match.

DD4 has had an easier year. Well, other than hand surgery; she writes a lot better now that she has opposable thumbs. :-) We did change preschools and it was the right move, I think - the old school favored her to the point that we used to say that if DD hit another child, they would probably reprove the other child for irritating her. While she is still a force of nature in the new school, the change in environment slightly slowed her drive towards world domination, and many more of her new friends will be in K with her in the fall. I have already warned the school that she is very much like DS, except stronger-willed and less sensitive. If they give her the same brittle, high-strung K teacher he had, I will not be sympathetic.

AOPS/Alcumus might expedite your refresher course.