Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy Kindergarten Saga: continued

I have my follow-up meeting with ds's principal on Monday. Here's the link to the outcome of the last meeting:

*** Link no longer working ***

In short, we asked for B to be moved into first-grade math and that the Iowa Acceleration Scale process be started. He's in a differentiated reading group already.

I'm interested to hear what she has to say. All of your advice on the last thread was fabulous, and I'm rereading it so it's fresh in my mind. Any further thoughts?

And what do we do if she just says they still won't do anything differently? Do I just let it go for now and actually start looking into other schools? I was hoping that he'd be able to stay at this school through second grade (for a number of reasons). Would it be horrible to just afterschool him until we could get him into a more appropriate school placement if they won't do anything at this school?

Thanks in advance!

Mia

No option is horrible for every family. You've got to look at how he dealing with what must be a difficult situation. If afterschooling can become a tradition in your lives, that is a good thing. It would be nice if we could teach our children to self-enrich, and I'm sure some kids would get the hang of it.

DS11 is missing his friends a bit, and wishing that he had been more willing to self-enrich and afterschool, but he just wasn't there back then.

Good luck with the meeting. You don't have to agree to anything right then, although the pressure will be on. Remember to keep your doubts for this forum, and act focused and confident. It is the responsibility of the school to find a way to teach at his readiness level. It really is!

You can offer to sign a release that you will be responsible for any emotional fallout from the skip - that helps some schools feel less chilly on their posteriors.

Good Luck,
Grinity

Mia,

I think you have to weigh what works for your family overall.

If keeping him at this school is the least-worst option for your family because of where it's located, how much it costs, social opportunities, etc., and you can supplement the academics with afterschooling, then I say hooray for you!

I don't think you have to do anything you don't think is in your family's best interests. Period.

Also remember that if you make a choice and later find that the decision doesn't work for you, you can always try something else. No choice is set in stone! This is not a philosophical debate; it's reality. It's life. You can change course whenever you feel like you need to. And that's okay!

BTW, I wouldn't give up on getting some accomodations just yet. I know the conversation you had before wasn't the sort to make you optimistic, but stay strong! Don't resign yourself to the worst case scenario just yet, okay? <hopeful, reassuring smile and pat on the shoulder>

K-