Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy How do/did you advocate for grade acceleration?

I am seriously considering a grade skip for my HG/EG son for next school year (he's in 1st grade now and I am looking to skip him 2nd onto 3rd); although he already goes out twice a week for 3rd grade reading, and was already granted special permission to attend GATE classes, he still complains of being bored during class times. He's gotten up to the board several times to "teach" his classmates how to add 2 digit numbers (he already knows multiplication and adding 3-4 digits in his head), and he passed the reading comprehension intended for high school students regarding plastic surgery when he was back in Kindergarten. As I've heard that 2nd grade will mostly be a recap of things they learned in 1st grade, I feel that perhaps a 3rd grade environment will provide more challenge for him.

However, the principal seems to be a bit held back on the idea of grade skipping this early in elementary school, and would rather we increased the number of times he goes to GATE rather than skipping him.

We will be setting up a meeting sometime this week, and I would like to be prepared with points on how to best come to a decision/agreement on how grade skipping might be a good choice for my son. I already bought the Iowa Acceleration Scale manual, and will be toting that along to the meeting (how does that work exactly? do I add up the "points" or do they?).

I'm curious on how others here have advocated for grade acceleration for their kids, and what the effects have been.

Thanks much for the input!

I think it's best to tote up the numbers yourself and read the explainations and ask questions here on anything you aren't sure of. Then share it with the Principal before the meeting, saying "Golly, I thought you might find this fasinating." You might tote along "Nation Decieved" to the meeting.

You basic argument is that you know everyone wants what is best "overall" for the child, and that includes "learning how to learn." Then you show work he has done (in school or at home) that compares to the "end of 2nd grade standards" in each subject. Even if handwriting isn't up to par, (common issue, comes with time, or not) I still believe that putting a child in a classroom where he has no hope of learning something new, is a problem. Unless they are suggesting that he spend 60% of his time in the GATE program, then that wouldn't ge expected to compensate for the "no new material" problem. Third grade is still young enough to make friends without the gradeskip being much of an issue, and there is less damage to undo.

It reminds me of the Golden Rule - would any of them want to go back and take a class that they already knew almost all the material?

Best Wishes,
Trinity
BTW - I did all that, was refused, switched to a private school, and then got the skip a month after school started, into 6th. Son is happier than he's ever been.

Hi--

I just went through this with my daughter's school, with great results. I feel so lucky! I think what may have helped was that her current teacher is the one who initially approached the principal. Their immediate response (to full-grade acceleration in the fall--skipping 3rd grade) was no no no, we NEVER do that, etc..., with a note that they would "be glad to meet with us should we like to discuss her placement.."

So, we set up the meeting, got the Iowa Acceleration Scale, copies of all her test scores, asked the 3rd grade teacher who is currently teaching DD reading to join in the meeting and went in preparing for a battle. The meeting went really well, with the asst. principal playing "devil's advocate" (her words) with regard to social issues, but mostly everyone just actually listened to us. They were actually kind of immediately influenced by her test scores (IQ, achievement, and above-level) and suggested right at that meeting to move her to 3rd in math as well as reading.

They agreed to read through the Iowa Scale and set up another meeting 3 weeks later. Two days after the first meeting, the principal called and told me that she would like to use the Iowa scale, would be observing dd in the classroom (both 2nd and 3rd) and said that she though dd was a good candidate for acceleration.

Well, we just had the second meeting and they agreed to the full-grade acceleration, and actually moved her up full-time for the remainder of this school year as a transition. The principal told me that initially she was deadset against it, but that she was impressed by the amount of research and information we provided. She said it is obvious that the acceleration is "what needs to be done."

I did not fill out the Iowa Acceleration form ahead of time (I did it on a separate sheet at home for my own information), and kind of let them think they were in charge. I was actually prepared to go with subject acceleration, but we thought for the sake of the meeting, we should stick with requesting full-grade, so that even if they didn't give it to us, we could back down to the subject acceleration.

So, I would say to try to let them think they know best, but don't back down. We did a lot of, "yes, we have thought of that and are concerned too, but...." If the first meeting doesn't go well, you can always get more demanding, but I think it was best to keep it friendly. I kind of approached them like, well, you as experts in education can see that she needs more...

Anyway, I know we were very lucky and it's not always that easy, but I am just relaying our experience.

Good luck!

Cransaer that is wonderful news.

Thanks for sharing it. I like how you asked for "more" than you wanted/expected. I think that really helps. I also like that you filled out the scores "on scrap paper" and let them lead you through the process. I hope that quietly more and more schools are listening to the IAS.

Trinity

We successfully advocated for early entrance to first grade (skippng kindergarten).

We donated the Iowa Acceleration Scale Manual to the school, along with both volumes of A Nation Deceived. Also gave them numerous articles about meeting the emotional needs of gifted needs and the advantages to grade acceleration. But it was our private testing and the resulting scores that I think made them finally say that first grade would work for our son. That, and the fact that we just wouldn't back off! After all my research and our private testing, my husband and I were sure that our son needed to be in first grade. We were right. And so glad we skipped him.

The IAS is used as a collaborative tool, with the school staff, to put all the stuff you should consider in a grade skip into an objective, measurable perspective. I did it at home, filling in the parts I wasn't sure about with a range of numbers as possible. Then I came to the conclusion that his score on the IAS would be in the "good candidate" range at a minimum. That gave me more conviction to continue advocating. In the end, we didn't even use it at the school meetings.

I think above level testing is very helpful in demonstrating the need for a grade skip. I do believe that was more of an impact on the school staff than the IQ testing, since our son was already able to do some end of first grade stuff, on a test designed for high achieving first graders, before he had even started school!

Good luck. Hope our experience helps a little.

The Iowa Acceleration Scale hurts Mite. He doesn't do well on the achievement section of it and he falls short a few points. How do we deal with that?

The IAS still seems to limit the child to the disability rather than the ability.

Willa:
My impression, from reading through the manual, is that the IAS should be used as a catalyst for discussing the needs of the child and possible options. Not just totalling up the numbers and getting and a score, although that is the primary purpose. In Mite's case, I think (my interpretation) the authors intent for using the IAS would be to look at all the strengths, identify how his lower skill areas impact the achievement testing, consider how an IEP and appropriate accomodations would INCREASE that achievement and THEN decide about the grade skip.

But haven't they already decided to do the grade skip for Mite? If so, the score on the IAS should be irrelevant - since they already decided he is a good candidate for the acceleration.
The IAS is just intended to be used as a guide for making that decision - not a written in stone assessment. But, again, that's my humble interpretation of the IAS!

Hi Willa Gayle,
I think a big part of the equation is "will Mite be getting accomidation" or won't he. If he will, I would try and use test scores that reflec his abilities under the conditions of accomidation. You can call or email Susan A and ask for some insight. Also, when you say he fall short, where exactly is that, in the qualifying round, or in the final score?

The IAS reflects what has happened in the past, which I believe is a guide to the future, but not a limit. How did Mite do on the above level tests? I think that for a 2E kid, "one size fits all" isn't the way to go. as my buddy says: "Each child deserves to be though about well."

Best Wishes,
Trinity

Debbie - My sending a discussion follow-up email technique hasn't gotten results on this particular issue:^)At our April meeting the IEP team sounded agreeable, but at the last meeting that was specifically about acceleration, the principal said he wanted to do more research on it. blech.

TRIN - At that meeting we were told they scored an IAS on him and he missed by a few points, but they felt his disabilities were causing that. I'm not sure what they did and have asked for the data they collected so I can understand it.

I have the IAS somewhere here and I can't find it. blech!!

If he skips they have confirmed that he will have accomodations in accordance with the IEP.

Where can I find a sample "gifted" IEP? GIEP?