OH doodlebug, I so wish for part-time HSing but it's not allowed here. I really, honestly think he's OK. He has friends, he comes home happy, he leaves in the AM happy. I was more than a bit concerned by the truck loads of coloring sheets that come home. I was hoping for more K stuff lol rather than coloring sheet after coloring sheet after coloring sheet. I do believe in developmentally appropriate K - memorizing poems, doing skits, making costumes, playdoh etc but there seemed to be little of that. I personally prefer little academics in K b/c they are not going to meet him where he is anyhow so I prefer to do that at home and leave the play to school.
But after his PT conference, I think the coloring sheets are only those and there aren't a bunch more in the classroom. Teacher had made a comment he needs to keep practicing coloring at home but if she looked at his sheets, at the start of the year, they were very neat. As he does more of them (color 6 shapes, color all the triangles, color the rhyming words), he gets sloppier. His current teacher does get him for the most part although she doesn't know the full extent of his math abilities but that's OK. Rather than move forward in math and reading, she will focus on his writing which is already above-level (I suppose that's OK to accelerate over reading/math). My friend's HG+ son is having a tough time b/c his writing is writing, his reading instruction is writing, his math instruction is writing - not allowed to move forward - he hates writing. But my DS enjoys writing so this method of not moving forward in math/reading by working on writing is OK for him.
He didn't fit in well socially his last year of preK but fortunately, K has been different.
I knew I couldn't HS him and DS8 at the same time. I need to get DS8 in a better place, into good habits. DS5 mentioned a few weeks ago when he was getting more vocal about being unhappy, that sometimes he wants to HS and sometimes he doesn't. I know he really likes his friends. But as I mentioned, last night he said he's happier plus all the holiday hoopla is starting and that's a good time in K!
anyhow, thanks everyone for helping me think through this!
