Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion "Good problem to have" comments

Gee, I'll hazard a guess that the board members aren't real big fans of her either. Here, the board members and district level administrators have the real power.

I might tiptoe around her and ask the principal if there are any plans to replace this person(Edited to add: I mean the GT person who retired, not the PTA mom, although now that I think about it.........). It's always good to be friendly with someone on the board.

Anyone who actually rolls their eyes right in front of you?!?!?!

That's so telling. If it weren't so rude I would find it very amusing!
I think you would be spinning your wheels with this person.

((shrug))

Obviously! Apparently, neither was intelligence; does she not think those kinds of comments are eventually going to come back and bite her in the butt?

In response to a comment that indicated the news of GT-ness was a blessing and NOT a problem my husband said something along the lines of: We are indeed very grateful for the blessings we have been granted. But we are also faced with challenges much as anyone else is. We are just looking to do the best we can as parents for our child's unique needs. Now what can we do to solve the problem at hand?

I was duly impressed. And it moved the conversation back to solving the problem that was the reason for the conversation.

I really like your DH's response! Sometimes our discussions get polarized and this finds the middle ground that recognizes both the joys and the challenges of GTness.

Here here to your DH's response! Very nice.

As a parent of a now 4.5 year old, we have encountered this "good problem to have" comment several times already. But having only the worries about future challenges in school, I didn't really think much about a response. These ideas will come in handy soon, I think. Thanks all.

(And re: eye-rolling PTA foolishness - wasn't it Austin's DW who asked eye-rollers if they had a medical problem? I'm looking forward to trying that sometime.)

I couldn't imagine it otherwise, but I know I'd be fighting for the right fit for my kids whatever their IQ. The best teachers that match their sensibilities, best curricula to match their learning styles, additional services if they were delayed (so why not additional services when they are advanced--or at least acceleration?). I wouldn't presume to tell someone else their issues are not as important as mine, because they are as important as mine to THEM. However, gifted kids (esp. highly gifted) are the disadvantaged group because people have such a bias against highly able kids (they equate it with a privileged, elitist population, less deserving of funds, attention, concern).

Ohh, I like your new avatar.

Nice job, Doodlebug and DH.

Let me know when they imply that they shouldn't have to do anything special for your child becuase there is/there are a child/children that are smarter. I'll let you know what to say to that one.

At this point it seems as though it's never personal although it feels that way. Our kids do need special services but that's a real slippery slope for the schools. There is only so much funding, they administrators have to decide how to divvy it up and then have to CYA in case they are questioned about it later.

I think it's wise for us as parents to present the compelling case for allocating resources for kids who are already ahead. KWIM?

Sorry, Neato, but I just got back to this thread. We've actually had that response. Back when we were first advocating for the early entrance to first grade they gave me that line about "we have other advanced in our school....." and how they weren't offering them anything special either. At that time I pointed out that at the moment I was only concerned with *my* child but perhaps after we dealt with *this* issue for him then the school administration could deal with the larger problem at hand - that of *many* bright children being left behind!

Thanks for the avatar compliment. It's my "bloom where you are planted" theme!