Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy DS starting annual downhill slide at school

A few updates on my DS's situation...

DS's school tested him for his math level (finally!) and found that he is at a 7th grade level. (How he got to that level when they are still working on 7+0 in school is anyone's guess!) And we already knew that he reads at a middle school level. No wonder he is bored out of his mind! Poor kid...

I found out that there is a charter school in a neighboring community that is very unique. The students (k-12) are homeschooled, but the teachers from the charter school check in and work with the students twice a week, including in-person home visits twice a month. They provide the curricula and score tests, papers, etc. And they do the requisite state testing. They also arrange for a couple of field trips each month, including one each month to the science museum for a chemistry lab. With this school, your child can work at his/her own pace... so DS could be doing writing at 2nd grade, math at 5th grade, science at 7th, etc. They said they once had a 12 year old student taking college courses. This all sounds very appealing to me. Does anyone see any pitfalls? Anything I should check out that I might not have considered?

The charter school sounds much more appealing than the mid-year skip to 3rd grade. While his behavior would likely improve with the skip, it's apparent that he still won't be learning much...

Be sure to investigate how curriculum is actually "bundled."

With our school, for example, placement can be separated for math and, well, everything else. But language arts is the driver for the remainder of the curriculum. For many PG kids, this is far from ideal since their writing skill set is typically the weakest link-- and what that means in practical terms is that with the exception of math, they are still limited to the level of their own weakest skill set.

It's definitely better in that it is still self-paced; it's just not Nirvana.

Other things I'd ask (as veterans both of charter schooling in your state and a distance ed family in the public system)--

• what kind of stability do they predict? When is the "charter" due for renewal? (This is a political hot potato right now in OR... and you don't want to find a terrific solution only to have it evaporate on you in a year.)
• Who selects curriculum? Can you see any of it ahead of time?
• What happens if your child has questions for the teacher in between instructional sessions?
• Are the materials differentiated from standard curriculum? If so, how?
• what are grades based upon? who grades daily work and provides feedback to your child? (ask for DETAILS there-- often this type of schooling is heavily dependent upon multiple choice assessments like quizzes and exams, and little daily work or deeper learning is ever even assessed.)
• are there ever opportunities (other than field trips) for students to experience group instruction? How?
• is your child still officially enrolled in YOUR home district? Officially enrolled in this neighboring district? Where can students enrolled in this charter school go for extracurriculars/specials like music, athletics, etc.? (It may not matter to you-- but best to be informed, right?)
• Required attendance-- how is this verified? By whom?

If I think of more stuff, I'll edit it in or add it in another post.

We're in your state, and we're with one of the two big virtual charter schools. We have been for the last five years. It's better by far than B&M schooling-- but as I said, it's not perfect. Not by a long shot. It's definitely NOT 'homeschooling.' (Seriously-- if you do virtual schooling and you like the option, please make a mental note NOT to use the term "homeschool" for it. There are political reasons to be careful in explaining/discussing virtual education options in our state. )

Feel free to PM or e-mail me if you have specific questions about what the state itself mandates of virtual schoolers, and what I've learned (some of it the hard way) about virtual schools here.

Thank you for the great list of questions, HowlerKarma! I just went through all of them with the person who would be DS's teacher at the charter school.

I also double-checked that DS could be at a different grade level for each subject, if needed. She confirmed this and said that they will put together the curricula/courses individual to his needs/levels.

I also met with DS's current principal today and he is willing to have DS come in for about 1.5 hours each day for music/PE, as well as Spanish Language Development. So that will be great to have that access for DS to see his friends and stay connected with the Spanish he's been learning.

To be honest, this all sounds too good to be true right now. And I'm sure there will be some glitches along the way, but I'm excited about the prospect of at least trying something new for DS. Hopefully it will be a great fit! Cross your fingers for us!

Thanks again everyone for your wonderful support!

Oh, I'm just THRILLED for you! That does sound absolutely terrific.



I know that we have really loved the freedom of virtual schooling. I sometimes joke that virtual schooling is the "worst" of both worlds (meaning homeschool and public school) but the truth is that there are a lot of days when it is actually the BEST of both.

NTmom, SO happy for you! I wish you the best of luck. Your "annual downhill slide at school" comment made me reflect on my own ds10...You know, the classic "class clown" ... I guess I always knew in my heart that he didn't have a great fit at school but what really sealed it, was when I started to substitute teach. I always thought I knew but WOW, it really hit me. I can't believe (well, I guess I can) how much the schools "dumb" down the curriculum. I am seriously surprised our kids don't go crazy Grinity, love the 'jump for the carrot'...Hahahahaha

This got me thinking... We see a downhill swoop as well, usually midyear. DD is eight, in third grade. Her Map scores are always strange in the winter. She'll score 97th percentile or higher on everything in the fall, drop down in the winter (her math this time was 88th percentile) and pop back up in the spring. Last year (2nd grade) in math she went from 97th% in the fall, 80th percentile in the winter, up to 99th in the spring. She did the same thing again this year.

My dad works for NWEA and said, "I wonder why she struggled with math (88th %ile is struggling for her)..." Of course, the test is perfection in his mind. And never mind that she's a human being!

Any thoughts on the reason for this? I'm thinking she's just not into taking that test in the winter...