School starts tomorrow... Wish us luck...

It's interesting to look back on the last year and think about where we were this time last year. At that point I was just getting over the GT denial (and had relapses during the year). At that time he was completely into numbers, reading, space, math, mazes, and of all things human anatomy.

We started school--entering first grade early essentially skipping K--and had a series of challenges. I think that is the biggest advice I'd give anyone that considers skipping K: if your child requires a lot of sleep/gets worn down during then day, then I would suggest not doing it. At the beginning of the year we had to deal with a lot of sleep-induced meltdowns. The days had a cumulative effect and by Thursday/Friday we'd have our hands full at home (although school was fine). By mid-year as DS adjusted though, he did start to act out more at school to the point where we had to meet with the principal and teacher and set up a in school behavior chart. Funny how this behavior *always* happened right after break. We would have probably had a better experience just letting him go to half day K and then unschooling at home.

We got through our IEP process, got the important PA "GT" label, yet saw a lot of DS's thirst for learning evaporate. Homework was a constant struggle even though it was material DS knew very well. By mid-year, DW just gave DS 3rd grade math sheets and some math challenge sheets sent home. While the district did seem to make some accommodations near the end of the year, the summer didn't come soon enough for us.

Summer came, new baby, and new interests. DS (now 6) started to turn back into his old self. He jumped into the Murderous Maths series of books (got through a few, and loves them). He began reading Horrible Histories and seems to like those as well. Ray gave us a substitute book for something out of stock and I'm glad he did. DS appears to dig it. Right now he's also very into playing chess... no Bobby Fischer (yet?) but we go to a chess club at the Y. Each week he counts down the days to "chess night". He's solved Timez Attack so many times that I'm glad we discovered Evolver (pre-algebra computer game). So glad we have this forum.

I personally have learned a lot during this last year. I'm pretty sure that this year is going to be as much of a struggle as last year, but I'm a little more comfortable with where we are because I'm more aware of the issues. While DS tested gifted last year when we had him privately tested, based on what we're seeing I do think that IQ score was an underestimate (please understand how much of a leap this is for me as this is what I'd define as being one of "those parents"). I finally feel comfortable saying that (even though the psych said that and the achievement scores suggested that). If nothing else, if we're having these sorts of issues with a child that would be classified as moderately gifted, I can only imagine the issues higher up on the spectrum!

I've seen this boy interact with peers proudly solving "quiz" problems. I've also seen him clam up on chess night when the chess club leaders comes in to mentor him. It's definitely clear that you can miss out on understanding our DS if you're not patient enough with him. He'll go into great technical depth with me on his position on the chess board but as soon as a few people show up (distractions) and he starts interacting with his mentor, he's a different boy. I'm positive that this is a lot of what happened last year at school.

We're hoping that this year is better... and I'm hoping I can advocate more effectively!

JB

LOL JB, I think that's a typo. Didn't you mean 'a constant struggle BECAUSE it was material DS knew very well?

Joking aside, Good Job of looking back and seeing the big picture.

Love and More Love,
Grinity

BTW, I totally feel for you about your son not being physically ready for First, and that physically Kindy would have been better for him the first 6 months.

I will point out that 'the road not taken' might have been much, much, much, much worse if you had left him in Kindy, AND you are already 'in the shoot' for getting more accomidations as they become obvious that they will be needed.

Do you have something in place for Math in terms of subject acceleration at school this year? If he was doing 3rd grade worksheets last year, I'd guess that he would need 'at least' 4th grade work this coming year. It's not like their learning slows down over the summer....usually it speeds up.

Also, with kids who are in that HG/PG zone, we parents have to look at even 6 months of academic fit as a win. So, congratulations!

Great to hear your report and good luck,
Grinity

Thanks so much for sharing - best of luck with the coming school year.

Thanks for the insight, DS4 is starting K this week so I definitely took some notes.

Good luck tomorrow! I hope all goes well. Thanks so much for your retrospective post. I hope your DS keeps his thirst for learning going after a good summer.

And it's nice to hear that you think Kindy might be good for a kid that needs lots of sleep, like our DS5, who starts kindergarten next week. It's all day, though, so I'm not sure if that cancels out the benefits.

You've got a whole year of advocacy under your belt. I hope it gets easier with time!

Good luck to everyone starting school! We're starting on Weds.

Thanks everyone. This morning went relatively smoothly. Of course the real test will be in a few weeks as the routine sets in. But he did wake up and proclaim "even though I didn't want to get up [out of bed] I did immediately because today is a school day." That's a huge difference between him now and a year ago. (He also had surgery this summer to remove adenoids and tonsils to hopefully address sleep apnea.)

I'll keep everyone posted. And good luck to everyone else starting school too.

JB

Good luck JBDad! And be sure to up the Evolver thread! If he's nice and rested since having his surgery, that must help!

I think you are a very wise person.

Thanks for the update, and I'm hoping for a good year for your DS.

Its fun to follow everyone's progress over the last year!!!

Hmm... I think I need to introduce you to my DW. She might think differently...



JB

Yes good luck! I can't even bare the thought of walking back into a "school" right now - and I'm not even the student. It's precisely because 1st grade has no "free time" and the days were too long already for DS6 last year, especially with the busride included that homeschooling has been a life saver so far.

I really want the best for all your bravies sending your kids back to "try again" and hope for better results!!

Thanks for updating and giving your perspective about the year and what is ahead. I think I joined the forumn shortly after you and it is interesting to see how things are turning out.

LOL, JBDad!

I just think that your observations about the past year are really smart and will probably be very helpful to others. Not just in the sense of providing information, but in the sense of tracing the path of the normal development of a GT family.

It constantly amazes me how similar the things GT families go through are, even as they seem really odd outside of groups like this forum. Can you imagine people outside of this forum hearing a phrase like "GT denial" and making any sense of it? Yet here it is ridiculously common, perhaps even the norm! I think the path you traced here is surprisingly typical and very helpful to have posted. So thanks.

I think you have come a long way, and I think it's a good way. FWIW...