Congratulations bianc850a on your daughter's acceptance!
And thanks to everyone who has offered kind words and encouragement, even though we didn't get in.
Just to clarify for questions, my son is actually homeschooled now. We say that loosely though since he is not of eligible age for K in the public schools, the homeschool is unofficial at this point. He was accepted to start 1st grade at a gifted school this past fall (at 4), with pullouts for reading and math to a higher grade, but we identified some serious problems with the school based on so much of what I learned here that the night before school was to begin we cancelled. I posted about this experience when it happened.
That was by far the best thing we have done for our child to date and I am so grateful for how quickly I was able to learn about the issues facing these kids and identify some serious problems at the school, looking beyond their own label that they are "a school for the highly gifted". These included unsupportive teachers, administrators who wanted to make decisions based on a child's size and handwriting, etc.
This is a good opportunity to say thanks again to everyone who weighed in and helped us make the right decision.
I meet so many parents through chess that have lived what many of you have in that it has taken them years and so many scenarios to find a tolerable solution for their child's education. They are always commenting on how great it is that I am keyed into these concerns while my son is still so young and how they wished they had known more and would have done things sooner/differently. That is the gift of this forum for many of us with younger kids.
