Hi everyone,
I love reading this forum, it is so interesting to hear everyone's stories and read all the helpful responses. I get a ton of info off of this board (discovered it several months ago) but I was hoping that someone could give me some specific guidance on my son.
Some background: my eldest son is 10, with a Sept 17th birthday. It has always been very, very clear that he is an intelligent boy, though I didn't always realize it with him being my first. He taught himself to read at 3- could read Magic Schoolbus type books at 4, has been interested in politics since he was 4 (could talk about the differences between Democrats and Republicans). He didn't talk clearly until about 3, but once he started he spoke like an adult. He is very easy going, follows the 'rules' to a T and is a very socially competent boy who has a wide range of interests.
He has three younger siblings quite close together in age so I have to admit I don't get to focus all my attention on him. But we have a lot of talks about any and all subjects and I keep him supplied with more books than you can imagine : )
We used to live in VA where there are gifted schools after 3rd grade. You have to test into the school and there are a number of indicators including parent questionnaires, teachers suggestions, grades, Otis Lennon (99th percentile across the board), etc. etc.
Unfortunately after he qualified for the school, we had to move to Illinois due to my husband's job. For the last 2 years he has been bored at school, however he is not one to complain. Rather, every now and then he'll mention that he is bored and his eyes will well up with tears. He is quite happy reading a textbook by himself in his room. He also is an avid sports fan who has memorized way too many Football facts : )
This year I had him take the NUMATS and he did really well. English: 23, Math: 21, Reading: 22, Science: 25. We also decided to move to another school district that has 'the best' junior high school around. We figured it was cheaper than the 20,000/year 'gifted' school which is not affordable at all. This middle school has 3 tiers in every subject and prides itself on having very smart students (very competitive and wealthy people around).
I was thinking of getting him an IQ test, however, I wasn't sure if it was worth the money (about $600). What would be the purpose? I guess my goal is this: I want him to be challenged and mentally stimulated. I want him to be able to learn everything he wants. He especially LOVES science. I've never put him in anything- no enrichment classes (only Mathnasium when he was in 1st grade which he loved more than anything) and I wasn't aware of things like Davidson or EPGY until recently. I looked into the classes at Northwestern, and for about $500 a pop, they looked pretty 'easy'.
Please advise me on how to advocate at school. What should I have with me? Should I just let them do their MAP testing or are there ceilings on this? I want to have everything I need just in case and my husband and I think maybe the EXPLORE results and his straight A record will be enough? Basically, what will cause the school to sit up and take notice?
I did print out some ACT practice tests on the Science section and graded them and he only had 1 or 2 wrong on each sample. I didn't register him for the ACTs though- I didn't know if that was necessary.
I also want to point out that his social skills are very strong, he is extremely mature. He regularly hangs out with 7th-8th graders with no problem. He is a skinny little thing though so physically he looks small and he does love sports.
Are his EXPLORE scores high enough to warrant a grade skip? I read a lot about high school classes not being a good fit for gifted children. He does have classic Nutty Professor syndrome when it comes to being organized, etc. Strangely enough, the junior high has a class that is dedicated to Executive Function but the principal told me that was only for the kids who are behind in grades.
FWIW- the middle school only has 160 students in grades 6, 7, 8 and they do have gifted classes for every subject.
Would love to hear what you would do (if you had the patience to read this far!)
Thanks!
