Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Questions about subject acceleration

Hi All,
I have posted previously in this forum, but can't find my posts or username, so I am starting anew. I have some questions that might seem silly or basic, so please bear with me. My ds is in third grade. We just got his fall math MAP score, which was 230-I think this is beyond the 99th percentile. I don't have reading scores yet. He has generally scored very high in the testing, but I can't recall the exact numbers from prior years (they are probably in my old posts here!), but they were along the lines of 95-99th percentiles. Our school doesn't routinely give out the scores. It was just out of curiosity that we asked for the most recent scores.

Because my son was complaining a lot about wanting to move faster, and I think based on his test scores, he is now spending some time doing math with the grade above him, but does not have a full grade level acceleration. He attends third grade math class, not fourth-his enrichment is doing additional math with the 4th grade. I know that his score, and his ability is pretty high, and I am feeling that he is not challenged enough yet. However, I'm not really sure how to proceed.

Is there a benefit to leaving him in 3rd grade math, and doing 4th grade enrichment? If he accelerated at some point, what happens to the third grade curriculum-I am mostly thinking of multiplication and division here, which would be taught this year. My son is picking this up on his own,and in enrichment time, so I don't think it would be much of an issue, or would it?

There is no gifted programming, although the teachers are dedicated to meeting the kid's needs. Does this seem like the situation that one would advocate for math acceleration? What we have right now is making him want more challenge, and frankly, I think he could handle more than 4th grade math at this point.

I would love some thoughts or personal experiences!

Here's a great tool for checking what level your child is working at based on MAP scores.

http://www.powayusd.com/projects/edtechcentral/lladder/Default.asp

Just check the box next to the score range that your child falls in, and click the button in the lower right-hand corner. It looks to me like he'd be just fine with a skip in math.

I thought I'd update that my child has done a math subject acceleration after a few "trial"weeks, and it's a great move!

Great news!

I have a son in 3rd grade. He has also had great MAP scores since 1st grade. This fall he got 239 math and 232 in reading. He is in 5th grade math and 4th grade literacy/reading. Last year he was put ahead in these subjects also. Problem now is the school has no future plans. The school system is pro acceleration, I am not sure we are.

Now we have got to come up with something.

How does your son like the move? I know you have to feel good about it.

My son is thrilled with the move, although the math doesn't seem to be that challenging. What's challenging is that he hadn't been taught the content, so that feels new and "not boring" (his words). My sense of looking at the MAPS math scores (my son's and yours) is that the content of what they were doing was about a middle school level, but I could be wrong about that? I really don't know what will happen from here because this is a K-4 school. I actually have no idea what his reading scores were, but they're generally 95% or higher.

He's pretty easy going, and I think having the chance to have social experiences with another grade is very positive.

The only problem my son has with moving around from class to class stopping by the library and catching a chapter of his latest book. LOL

good luck. I would love to hear more in the future.

You too!