Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Learning Environments Ideas Needed for Enrichment

Help! I have a first grader who has a GAI of 147 and has achievement scores in middle school/highschool for everything but math. Her public elementary school can't challenge her for reading, science, etc... because she is already way beyond them. But for math, we were pleased that she was only two years ahead of herself...doing 3rd grade math at the beginning of the 2008/9 school year in 1st. As a result of her test scores, the principal allowed her to be pulled out of 1st and into a GATE 3rd Grade class in the mornings for Math. She LOVED it, and got top scores. Anyway, we just had a placement meeting on Friday to figure out what to do with her in 2009/10, and the concensus was to skip 2nd grade, and go directly to 3rd because they do have some social studdies materials that she isn't familiar with.... Anyway, the administrators seemed to assume that she'd just repeat 3rd grade math. Her math teacher says socially she isn't ready for a 4th grade class (for even a portion of the day) because she does have behavioral/emotional issues and the 4th grade classes here have 32 students vs. just 20 for K-3. She recommends having her 3rd grade teacher next year "enrich" her, which I know won't be sufficient. She'll still have to hear the lecture on what she already knows. They truly may be right that she isn't ready to go to the bigger classroom with more kids and the different issues the older ones are dealing with. We have no gifted schools in the area. The school doesn't have the resourses to have someone give her individual 4th grade math instruction while she's in 3rd. I am tempted to tell the school that I'll volunteer to come in every day to teach her 4th grade math when the other kids are learning what she had last year. Other than that though, does anyone have any ideas what I can do within her school?

Might the school allow her to move to a classroom PC or lab during math for the purpose of participating in an online math program - which of course you would pay for. On any day the teacher is covering a topic that she needs reinforced, she could stay with the class but otherwise... Is 4th grade in the same bldg? Can she be subject matter advanced and join 4th for math. I know that is completely unheard of... we hit a wall here because the kids move bldgs every few years and they didn't want to transport her from one bldg to another. But some districts have (although I'd be suprised if you couldn't count them on toes and fingers).

You can offer to come in... but you might first want to ask what the school's policy is for dual enrollment (thanks to DYS for the term there). Because basically you are asking to partially homeschool without using the word. Because of our younger children we are going to lobby hard for something similiar in the fall... I have my hands in the air on the reading as nothing short of multiple grade skippings will help. And while we might need to make another one... well this is about you not me (fight narcissism now ;-)

After the skip, the principal says he will subject accelerate her just for math, but her 3rd grade math teacher & 1st grade regular teachers really don't think she's ready to be in the 4th grade classroom because the dynamics are different. She also needs frequent re-direction, and actually sat on the teacher's lap this last year (which she loved because she is little and a snuggler!) for her accelerated math because it kept her on task better. She does love the computer, so maybe an on-line course could be a solution. Do you or does anyone else know of any good ones?

And for the reading, we're at the point where we don't even care where they put her. She's already so far ahead of all the kids through 5th and multiple grade skips won't make a bit of difference...so as long as they let her read novels that she enjoys, we're fine with anything. Also, one thing her first grade teacher let her do on the days when, for whatever reason, she didn't get accelerated up to 3rd and was in first grade for reading/math lesson, was to read independently (we sent a selection of science & history text books for her) or do arts/crafts which she loves, instead of what her class was doing. She loved the flexibility that offered to her. Maybe that could be an option for you.....

Thanks Lauren!