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Joined: Sep 2013
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Sorry in advance for the rant, but we just got home from our public school kindy registration and I want to rip my hair out of my head. Honestly, I'm not sure it could have gone worse - for two reasons, the K teacher and my bull-headed child.
So we get there, and before they take him away for a screening, I literally say to DS, "make sure you answer the teacher's questions, and do the best you can." (because I know my son, and he can be a huge butt about answering things when he doesn't want to.) So they go off. They return a little while later and K teacher says that he is clearly very bright (because he knows his letters and 1-10) but wasn't able to retell the story she told him, and basically didn't read any of the words he put in front of him. (mind you, we gave them DS's PG eval, which K teacher didn't even look at). Plus he was really excited and didn't really sit still. I take DS aside and ask him what happened. He says "I just didn't want to answer her questions, I thought it would take too long; it was boring." I ask him to tell me the story, and he tells me the whole thing, something about buying new shoes because the old ones weren't good anymore, simple stuff. I call the teacher back and apologize...tell her that DS was being a pain and didn't want to answer but he knew everything and tell her about the story, to which she basically says, "well, I'm not going to argue with you about it!", with a major attitude. So I am standing there speechless. And furious. I mean, what kind of reaction is that? And of course, she is the only K teacher. One thing is for sure, I will in no uncertain terms put my child into her classroom. Her reaction was absurd - she had decided that she knew what was best for my child based on the 3 mins she had with him (which were clearly not his best 3 mins, unfortunately) , and we are crazy overbearing parents. No flexibility, no communication, no willingness to believe what we were saying. I wanted to scream. Also, of all the days to be ornery, of course DS would pick this one. SMH.
DH still wants to talk to the principal/guidance counselor about the possibility of 1st grade, but I'm not sure I even want to do that now. It will be way too easy academically, and the whole atmosphere of having to sit for a million hours a day is really not DS's style - he is an energetic, fidgety kid. I guess I'm just really disappointed because I hoped for a better outcome. Or at least, not a total train wreck. Sigh....back to the drawing board.
M
Last edited by Marnie; 03/31/15 10:54 AM.
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Oh do I feel your pain. I suppose in hindsight, it will be good to have had this sneak peek into attitudes that are often more carefully hidden. Perhaps the teacher had a lot of parents asking for extra things today? (I'm trying to be kind.)
Hang in there!!
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Joined: May 2013
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Oh do I feel your pain. I suppose in hindsight, it will be good to have had this sneak peek into attitudes that are often more carefully hidden. Ditto. I was going to say that it's frustrating, but this may have been the best thing that could happen because now you know to not waste your time with her. It would be even more heartbreaking if you found this out after he had been there a week or two or seven. We have had a couple teachers who put on fake, cheery smiles, claiming that they would differentiate and do X, Y, and Z and then they ended up being jerks after we had trusted them, so this way it is better. Hang in there.
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That's a blessing in disguise, I think. Do you really want to subject your child to a bitter educator who has no interest whatsoever in accurately assessing his needs or ability? They've effectively made your decision for you. Dust off your shoes and never look back.
What is to give light must endure burning.
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What aquinas said.
Anyone who's been around little kids for more than an day or so knows that they do things (or not) for their own reasons, and that assessments are unreliable for precisely the reasons your son demonstrated (little kids often don't still, and they say stuff like I didn't want to). So the teacher should know better than to make a decision based on such a quick meeting with him. Ignoring a report that presumably took a professional quite a while to put together is also a bad sign.
TBH, even attempting to "screen" such a young child based on a brief interaction with a grownup who's a complete stranger is, IMO, kind of silly.
And what, exactly, are they screening for, anyway?
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Thanks guys, already your reactions are making me feel better...I'm thinking maybe we dodged a bullet with this one.
Val, I believe the point is to assess for "kindergarten readiness"...whatever that means.
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FYI, K screening is a tool for federally-mandated child-find, for children at risk of developmental delays or disabilities. The teacher successfully fulfilled the purpose of screening, by identifying that he had no significant developmental difficulties other than orneriness. And on the other: I agree. Better to know up front than to find yourself months into a bad situation, after whatever damage may have been done to your son's enthusiasm for learning/school.
...pronounced like the long vowel and first letter of the alphabet...
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It sounds like the test given a our school after 10 days. To be fair the teacher was busy and didn't have time for a discussion. I suspect though she would consider co operating an important part of readiness. It seems silly to expect kids to do well with complete strangers. Good psychologists take time with the parent and child first.
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Val, I believe the point is to assess for "kindergarten readiness"...whatever that means. T/F: Child is 5. T/F: Child is alive. Which helps administrators, as they rhyme.
What is to give light must endure burning.
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