When he was 3 the teacher came to me about a month into it and said "he is reading" I said "yes, I mentioned that to you when he started" she said "no, I mean that he is really reading...and reading well. I didn't take what you had said that seriously because all parents say that when their kids start to memorize books" How annoying.
This is so frustrating, and we've all been through it.
I understand that teachers get tired of heairng the "my kids are gifted" line, though I don't believe that "all parents" make this claim. What I don't understand is why they just dismiss parents out of hand. The best way to deal with the situation would be for the teachers to whip out some SRA reading cards during a quiet moment and test the kid. Total time: five minutes. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.
I know that teachers have to contend with (and sometimes get blamed for) a lot of difficult problems that are beyond an individual's control (e.g. NCLB), but this issue is within their control. I hear shellymos's story too often and have lived it myself. For me, teachers lose a lot of credit as a group here because of this. Oh well.
Sorry shellymos. If it helps in some small way, I know your pain.
Val
