Hi all,

Has anyone accelerated his/her child into a different school (ie. from elementary to intermediate (or middle) school or middle school to high school etc.). If so, how is that negotiated by the district?

My son just finished 4th grade (skipped K). The schools are chunked k-3, 4-5, 6-8, 9-12; He has said many times that he does not want more work, but would like to feel challenged. So far, each year the bldg principals have said they will select a teacher who would be able to provide more challenging work etc... Between all of the test prep that goes these days plus regular curriculum, I think it is unrealistic (and unfair) to expect a teacher to plan a separate curriculum just for our son. It hasn't worked so far.


We feel he is ready to be accelerated (so does he) again, but I guess my question is, since he will be in 5th grade next yr (it is only a 4th and 5th grade school) the only place to send him would be either the middle school or high school. Is this our only option? What else could the district provide? If it is the only option, then how is that negotiated? Would the district be expected to figure out a way to make that work? Would they provide transportation to and from the middle school or high school?

We have a mtg. w/my son's principal next week, I would love to be able to go in w/some information and/or suggestions.

Thank you!!

You may have read this elsewhere on the forums, however it is good information, applicable to your situation, so it bears repeating...

1) Research and print what your state laws may say about gifted education services and/or acceleration. Davidson offers a great starting point, How gifted-friendly is your state?

2) Check your district policies on gifted education services and/or acceleration, and print this as well.

3) Look into the Iowa Acceleration Scale (IAS), which helps evaluate readiness for a whole-grade acceleration (full grade skip). More info at the website of the Acceleration Institute, including Selected Books on Math Acceleration.

4) Have you seen the advocacy Guidebook on the Davidson Database?
More advocacy tips:
- In this recent thread, several posts discuss reasons to not use the word "bored" when advocating.
- While in general there is good and bad in everything, a focus on negativity and disappointment may be seen as smacking the oobleck with a spoon and creating an unyielding solid... it works against advocacy.
- Focus on the positive, on the ideas set forth in the law and in school policies, and how the school can implement these to help meet your child's needs for intellectual peers and an appropriate level of academic challenge and pacing.
- Tips on preparing for a meeting.
- In addition to many helpful threads on the forums, the Davidson Database contains many articles by experts.

If I understand correctly, you are asking about SSA into 6th+ grade, while remaining in 5th as the home grade, not whole-grade acceleration into 6th?

This situation has not come up with my own children, but many years ago, two of my siblings were in this situation. It so happened, though, that the district had a cluster of buildings, including elem and middle, adjacent to the high school, separated only by an athletic field, so transportation was not an issue. Each of my sibs simply walked unaccompanied across the field to the other school. Which, now that I think about it, would probably not be acceptable in today's liability/school safety climate.

I hope others will be able to help with their more current experiences.

@indigo:
Thank you for all of the info!! I should have mentioned that we're in NY, so no mandate to provide for gifted children. As for our district--no policies on gifted children; only an accelerated program that begins in the 8th grade. In the meantime, I will check out the links.

@aeh:
Yes, I probably should have mentioned that too -- not a whole grade acceleration. Right now we're just looking for math and science. Thanks for the feedback we have a similar set-up-- the ms is just a field away from the school he is in now. But like you said, I don't think he would (or should) walk there by himself.

We don't really do science here at that level but is 5th grade science likely to be more challenging that 4th grade or just a different topic?

We don't have this problem right now but we may next year.

DD10 enters 6th grade in August but will be in the 8th grade rapid paced Maths class. As the middle school stops after 8th she may have to be bused by the district to the high school for honors Geometry once she hits 7th grade. I am not thrilled about the prospect...

@puffin: Not much science is taught in 4th or 5th grade and whatever it is, no matter what the topic, is way too elementary.

@madeinuk:

Not thrilled b/c of the logistics of it? The age difference, etc? She will be w/her friends/regular classes the rest of the time, right?

Did the district agree to bus her to the hs?

I'm not sure how I feel about the idea of our son going to a different school for math and/or science, but I don't see another way of getting his needs met academically.

@bbq797

Rural SD == regional high school so 20 mins min between schools X 2 means other subjects like Music potentially get eliminated for her.

The age thing doesn't bother me as some of the kids will be from her 8th grade class I would expect so she would be used to them.

Do the MS and HS have the same start and end times? One solution is to schedule 1st or last period at the HS on which end is most advantageous. This cuts the transportation time during school in half and minimizes the impact on the MS schedule. But even for a HS 1 mile from the MS, we've had similar time/schedule problems, leading to loss of the MS exploratory arts program.

Madeinuk, is doing an online math correspondence class in her usual school (in the library, or in her usual class math time) an option?

Well, physically traveling to a school with higher grade levels is not possible in our district. There are just too many liability and logistic issues. However, there are other options. For example, the district can hire part time teachers to travel to the school to teach once a week while the student work independently the other four days. There could be a resource teacher at the home school just to address occasional computer or work space issues. There is also the online option. However, be aware of state laws and district rules/policies. For example, while lots of mathy kids in my state use AOPS courses, they cannot be used to satisfy credit requirements at the secondary level (grades 6-12) due to strict laws governing online providers in addition to the "certification" hurdle.

AoPS has acreditation from a Western Schools group I forget which now and it is one of its appeals to us. I am surprised to hear that your school is unaware of this.

Madeinuk, "accreditation" is insufficient if the legislature has passed other laws that require additional hurdles in specific instances, such as governing vendors who provide solely online instruction. I know it seems silly when applied to a top-notch reasonably priced program like AOPS, but at the same time it would be a dangerous precedent to exempt application of the law to favorite vendors. After all, if the vendors want to do business with the schools, they can pay the fees to the state and/or district to undergo the vetting/monitoring process as many have done. Alternatively, the district can provide live instructional staff to supplement online instructional programs.

I am in a huge district (well over 100,000) that employs quite a few attorneys so tends to be on top of relevant legislation. Mostly I am glad because who wants to find out that their child won't graduate because some credits have been invalidated. Our specific middle school probably aren't aware of either AOPS accreditation or relevant laws RE online providers, but fortunately every acceleration must be approved by the central office so I tend to deal with knowledgeable people who can cite relevant statutes.

Sounds like a bunch of huey to me - how does it work for kids transferring in from Western states then?

Yes, I also wonder about consistency, specifically how Quantum2003's school would handle placement of students coming from other states or districts who may have taken courses from online providers who are not "certified" by Quantum2003's locality?

Some may say that local legislation to "certify" online providers (which are already accredited) sounds like it may be a duplication of effort. What is the intent of such legislation? What purpose does the "certification" serve?

Certification is officially to protect students from questionable providers. In actuality, it provides revenue to the states from fees and is heavily lobbied for by local teachers unions as a barrier to entry for competition.

Yes, this would seem to be a duplication of "accreditation" efforts.

Interesting how often there is a public reason "for the children", and an underlying monetary reason.
Cui bono, who stands to benefit?

Well, I am not affiliated with the school district or the State DOE so can't really answer with any level of authority or confidence. However, standards and requirements have never been uniform across the country so that students from different states do not attain the same level of education but some level of "full faith and credit" has always been the norm in the past in other contexts. As such, I would assume that past promotions will mostly be honored while future promotions require meeting our state and local standards. I did have a neighbor who was certified to teach in her former state who met with the principal and ended up retaining one of her children due to the differences in standards/curriculum. The bottom line was that if she hadn't held back her child, she expected to have to retain her at the end of the school year.

As you say you have dealt with them before, I am sure you are aware of this, but being a public sector lawyer myself (not in the US, but these things are the same the world over), let me remind you that they will be expected to be picky about which legislation the are on top on. So it's always a good idea to be on top of things yourself...as you appear to be.

About your question: again, not in the US, but we will be in your situation next year, with DS1 being in fourth grade in elementary school, and fifth grade will be in the middle school next door. SSA in math has sort of worked, a bit, for this last year, but I cannot think of any way to make it work next year, as scheduling between elementary schools and middle schools is just too different, there is no way we'd be permitted to let him just walk there on his own and hang out in fifth grade classes there, and tracking rules being such efficient gatekeepers. We looked at the matter from all sides and have decided it's either coast for another year in fourth, with all the after school enrichment we can do, or a full on grade skip into fifth grade in the gifted program across the city right away. Because he has already been accelerated once (early entrance) and the school was sceptical, and most importantly because he was not ready to leave his current class, we decided against.

He is complaining again, about boredom, the repetition, the pace (we're not off for summer yet)...I now remind him, gently, that it was his choice and why, not in a I told you so way, but in a you have agency and have used it way. Fourth grade may be even worse, or it may be better, as supposedly standards are to be raised to prepare kids for middle school and facilitate tracking choices (they work the kids hard, and those who are left behind will not make the GPA for higher tracks, it's cruel but effective as a sorting mechanism). One of the reasons we feel we can risk it is that we do have a good option with the gifted program starting in fifth, we hear that even PG kids are happy with the program, so it's all a matter of biding our time.

Has your child been accelerated before, ie a full grade skip, making him very young in his grade already? Will you have other acceleration options, such as accelerated classes for kids who test into them, come sixth grade and up? Is he truly so lopsided in his profile that he is challenged already in his current grade in the subjects you haven't sought SSA for? Because if not, you may want to look at the full grade skip again.

What makes the tracking cruel? Do higher tracks tend to consist of "gifted" kids? Do higher tracks consist predominantly of one or more ethnicities, or on the other hand do one or more ethnicities seem to be underrepresented? Are there different socio-economic demographics among the tracks? Do kids with learning disabilities receive scaffolding or supports to aid in their achievement? Can kids move up a track if their achievement and performance improve? Do kids move down a track if their achievement or performance lags? Do parents and students have input into choosing a track, or is this determined by others, through examining the grades? Are there quotas and/or lotteries, or do all students who meet qualifications get to study in the top track? Do families "red shirt" kids to raise the chances that a child may be in an upper track? Does the assigned track indicate a child's further education and/or job prospects? If a family moved would the child automatically be assigned to the same track at the receiving school, or would it depend upon the mix of students at the receiving school?

All these factors may only impact the OP in the near term if/when the OP's area ushers in the similar type of tracking/sorting used in your country, but as we all partake in the global economy, thinking long-term it may be helpful to be aware of the educational experiences of other children who will one day compete for the same jobs.

Yeah, you are absolutely right, especially when interests diverge. That is why it's nice when they can/will cite relevant statutes so you have a starting point instead of doing everything from scratch. As you well know, rarely are applicable laws all congregated in one place and it isn't always obvious how something not obviously related may apply.