Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Learning Environments Public School - Episode III

Perhaps you should bring this up in the newspaper or with some other parents. If enough people complain, the schools will be more likely to do something (not because it's right but because they were forced to act).

If it takes five minutes to line them up and get them to the cafeteria and another five minutes to get them out, and they only have 20 minutes...well, anyone can see the waste.

MoN, that sucks. Really, truly, sucks. Why aren't the parents of the free-lunch kids rioting?

I hope this isn't revolving around not being able to keep the school open for an extra 20 minutes so that children can eat lunch.

Not at DD's school. Each class has to go in their particular order, and each student has to be in a defined order in their class' line. The end result is that it's the same girl in my DD's class who sits last EVERY. DAY.

DD has reported that as soon as that girl sits down, the teachers call, "Pass your forks!"

DD has been seated for a few minutes by this time, at least, since she brings her lunch.

In my district, it appears the reasoning is based on that age segregation. They only let one grade in the lunch room at a time, and they basically lock them in for 20 minutes, so that someone else can be on the playground. It fits into a pattern, because it explains lunch, recess, and their appalling lack of support for acceleration.

Apparently, someone thought that 8yos and 7yos are volatile compounds that cannot mix.

With this as a basis, it would be impossible to extend lunch beyond 20 minutes, because then some classes would be eating too early and/or late.

I feel you on the 20 minute lunch, as probably most of us that have public school attendees do!

That being said...

I know it can be hard for schools to work schedules out for everyone. We have also dealt with this issue - one of the reasons our school told us DD can't go to a higher grade for certain subjects is because of scheduling. Of course we feel like they could probably make it work....somehow.

You mentioned your DD now spends most of her day in the G/T pull-out - is this entirely for math, how long is the pull-out, and how many days a week? I'm pretty sure one of the rules of my DD's pull-out is that she doesn't have to make up what she misses from the regular classroom. Now there have been times she has done the missed work anyway, but she doesn't have to.

How flexible is your G/T teacher's schedule? Maybe she could rearrange her time to allow your DD to at least catch the beginning or tail end of SS. If the pull-out is every day, could she skip one day a week to give your DD some time in the regular classroom with the other subjects?

If the G/T pull-out is a substantial amount of time, could they work on some other subjects while she is there?

Just throwing out some ideas....good luck!

This is insane. What kind of people are running schools that they would "think" like this?

There are two pull-outs, each with a different teacher. One is ELA, and the other is math. It's 5 days a week, for a combined 3:45.

DD does not have to do any math or ELA in her homeroom, but she's responsible for science and social studies, since that's the only way she'd get that.


The schedule is not flexible at all for the teachers, since they take different grade levels at different times of the day.

We were given the option of pulling her out of G/T math, but she'd be responsible for keeping up with what she misses there. That's why we figure she's better served maximizing her G/T time and keeping up with the other subjects at home... it takes so much less effort to keep up with things missed in the homeroom than in G/T.

I figure if I'm helping her with social studies at home, we can easily keep pace with just one hour's discussion per week. She'll probably get more out of that than 4 hours in homeroom.


I've noted that she's getting a lot of social studies in ELA. They're currently reading historical fiction set in WWII. Today she was learning about Jewish traditions. It seems to me they could easily overlap math and science while they were at it, too.

Unfortunately, she's still required to know what's on the state assessment exam, and there's nothing about WWII on there. Nice going, NCLB.

Dude, I am so sorry. Now, I know why my friend took her son out of that school. I know some nice kids there but they are 3rd grade. I don't understand our states obsession with keeping kids in herds with their exact own age. How this is positive socialization, I have no idea. There is also the problem of the huge budget cut that came to gifted education. All the elementary kids are only getting 2 day a week pull outs and it so far appears to be a huge failure. I am helping someone I know get her kid put in the school 3 of my 4 go to on a grade skip because the child is so miserable in a different public school in our area. You might consider going back to homeschooling until junior high when there are class periods and more gifted options. Maybe put her in classes or clubs with other homeschool kids or something. You might also just at least take a visit to LC. It has got to be better than that foolishness. I know in another post you said you weren't very religious, but I'll pray for you anyway.

Wow, words don't even begin to describe how I feel about this.

The lack of adequate lunchetime I find appalling (especially about that poor kid who is always last!) DD is a strong daydreamer and slow eater; she eats very little of her lunch. I know the schools have to get everyone through the cafeteria, but it shouldn't be difficult to change the policy so that there's a little more time. (I see on our school menus that they have a new "grab-and-go" lunch once a week, so kids can just grab a premade sack lunch and head straight to the cashier.)

Some minor advice: would the school be open to some sort of recess-time enrichment? Our PTA has a KIKS (Kids Into Keeping Strong) program for the kindergarten classes, who otherwise don't get PE. I think they used to do something for the older kids before we had a PE teacher. Some parent volunteers organizing a game during recess could help get more kids doing something.

I guess tge weather makes it impossible for the kids to eat outside? Here everyone eats outside with a duty teacher and after 25 minutes they are allowed to go and play or they can keep eating? Or the kids who bring their own lunches could eat in the classrooms which is what happens here when it is too cold or wet.