Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment New...Totally heart broken and at a loss

I checked Duke based on his ITBS he would qualify for the science part.

I never believed those test results...especially since there was such a WIDE gap in the math from 3rd to 4th grade
In fact my email to the teacher was just that. I quoted his scores entering the school then his 4th grade scores 40% lower???

I told her that was THE SCHOOLS report card not my son's...LOL
I have never questioned or demanded. In our case it will backfire because this is a small Catholic school. I could DEMAND it but it will cause "issues" with the egos there.

This school will feed into a very good Catholic HS and that will be very good for them (I want to keep my 10 & 6 y.o together).

I am considering home schooling... My sister home schools and her kids are very smart. My background and education is in Medicine. My sister has a MS in ED. My Dad is a PhD in sciences
but he lives very far. He is totally an advocate for DS. They wrote a book together when DS was 5.

I am not confident in my background to teach him. I cannot understand half the stuff I get informed on in the morning on the way to school. Like this morning I told the kids we are going to NYC for 2 days. I mentioned the statue of liberty and he gave me the composite breakdown of the metal she is made out of. All the colors she had turned throughout the years and what metals mixed togther make what ? Yea I was lost.

This isn't normal right ?
He is different right?

You question yourself on the obvious...

He has a VERY difficult time answering questions down. His answers are not wrong for a 9th grader but is for a 4th grader?

His questions should be FILL in not bubble test.

There are SOOO many tests ...WHY ?


My son would probably think your son is cool too Hannah.
I cannot wait for DS to find that special friend.
He is such a great kid...

cricket his whole math portion was horrible (in the 40 low 50's) Science was 98

You have a gifted family. He is gifted. Highly. Probably profoundly.

He might not want to do the test because someone has to convince him why he should and why it matters. Some gifted kids feel offended that they've been asked such easy questions and refuse to do the test.

He will do better finding someone older than himself, as similar interests would help.

Mentors, professionals, in subjects that he is interested in.

I'm not much help... but do get him tested with someone who is experienced working with gifted children. Typically they may be able to convince him to answer some of the easier ones, and that it will get harder, etc etc.

You're not too late. Keep at it. Take care.

MyHeartBrks:
Wow, what an amazing son you have. And you have been doing what you think is best for him based on your past experiences. That says a lot to me. My son has some of the same interests as yours & almost daily surprises me with the knowledge he has acquired or absorbed (and usually like it's no big deal ).
I don't think my son is nearly as bright as yours is, but his scores on standardized testing have been lower than I expected. I attributed that to the pressure he places on himself as well as the way schools around here handle these tests. (Don't get me started. )
When he was evaluated by the school psychologist I was happy to hear that the one time DS got somewhat frustrated the tester put that portion away & revisited it the next day. I wouldn't worry about preparing your DS for an evaluation. If you are talking about test-taking skills for school in general, though, 5th grade is a good time to start. I have worked with lots of kids in supplemental education on those skills.
Remember, even though you are not a "labeler" you still know your son best. Your instincts are often right. Just be open to listening to information that is coming in; ultimately, you & your husband will make the best decisions.

Gosh, just reading though what your son does on a regular basis is just mind blowing. He's amazing!

I haven't read the other posts, but it sounds like school thus far hasn't dampened his love of learning and quirkiness, lol! Scores are what they are - a snapshot on a particular day, and maybe he didn't feel like doing the test on that day, but it doesn't take away from what he is at all. You know your child and the consistency he has with surprising you and your family.

Whatever decision you take, good luck and all the best!

Yes, he is different and high ability and high achievement are not the same thing. A gifted child may not have high achievement scores, but that doesn't mean that he isn't gifted much the same as high achievement scores don't mean that a child is gifted although schools often mistake the two.

In re to your ability to teach him, should you decide to homeschool, even if you don't feel smart enough, I can't imagine that his teachers are any smarter than you so they are probably no better able to teach him (as evidenced by what they haven't taught him this year if nothing else!)

I was curious about how your son feels about not being selected for the advanced math class on the basis of his test score. The big drop makes me think there's some kind of motivation issue. If he wanted to do the avanced math class it may help to point out the connection to "showing what you know" on the test. If that's the case, I'd ask the school if he could retest because the results were more a reflection of his motivation than his readiness for advanced math. Here's some information on preparing for the ITBS: http://www.education.uiowa.edu/itp/itbs/itbs_use_prep.aspx

Inky

My DS was SHOCKED and very hurt. I did not tell him the reason (ITBS) I found out the reason via email conversation with the advanced math instructor. DS always felt like "school" was his thing. The other kids could excel in sports and get picked for teams (he is always the last one picked for sport teams).
Learning was his thing. His older Brother is an athletic "legend" in these parts. Played at a big name HS then went on and played in college ball. DS10 always thought the "sport" thing would kick in. It was great when they picked teams in Science class. He was the FIRST one picked. I used that to show him how everyone has their "strengths".

It's because I have always down played the ITBS testing at the school that I didn't tell him. He just kept saying things like "How did Johnny get in he hasn't even passed his division yet" (DS test out on the first test in Oct). Or "Drew gets B's and C's on his tests". DS NOW claims to "Hate Math"

DS also is the same way at school as he is at home. All of his teachers say the same thing. I was thinking it is his "rambling on" that might have got him 'nixed" from the Advanced Math class.
If you are trying to teach different grade levels and have material to cover it may be more difficult with a child who questions a lot. This teacher is very tight with the principle and I have no doubt the principle would back her decision.

This is a private school with about 500 kids. There is one advanced Math teacher (grades 5-8). The school grades on straight % without a curve. He tests fine on smaller tests he missed 1 science question the whole year and won their science contest. He is getting a 94.5 in Math as I have stated his
need to educate everyone on things he knows is huge.
He answers questions on a higher level.
They do not have a school Physcologist any extra testing I do would be outside. However based on the dynamics I have seen, it wouldn't make a difference.

I have NO doubt he would get an A in Advanced Math. He will reach whatever level they give him...

sorry if this is scattered...little DD is yacking at me. :-)

I must confess, I was very anti-homeschooling before coming to this board. I would argue the typical reasons why it wasn't a good idea, but thanks to reading about other people and their children on this board I no longer feel this way. Background on myself: I have a Masters in Education and it certainly did not prepare me for my daughters giftedness and as I mentioned in an earlier post, she is only 3.5! We are not even in regular school age yet. My own education at one of the best educational schools in the area did not prepare me for the gifted child. Our educational world does not do the gifted child justice. They lump them all in a category and never consider the LOG and how a moderately gifted child is apples to oranges to a highly gifted to child; and apples to cars for a profoundly gifted child. I have no doubt that your son is on the high end of the HG+ range. (Highly gifted plus) Not that we have that much information about your son's school experience but I doubt that he is being challenged and the one hope you had of acceleration is (at this moment) not an option but I have to wonder if that would even be enough. I, personally, would not dismiss homeschooling. I suspect you aren't giving yourself much credit. Clearly you have resources in your family to pull from and you could always think outside the box. If you have a local university there ... think of the great opportunity he would have with students there: You could always hire a tutor from the university. And just because your father lives at a distance doesn't mean it isn't doable. Technology is there for video conferencing, among other things.

Don't think I am saying pull your child and homeschool, but if the reason you won't is those you argued then I just wanted to point out that you have options and the big one is your son will no doubt guide his education.

Also, are there any gifted schools in your area? Or college prep and charter schools? You might want to do a little research on methodology of the different schools in your area. IE. I was looking at a college prep school we have in our area and really like that they are progressive. Progressive is student centered and more project driven and certainly does not teach to the standards. Though their students do take a few of the typical tests it is more project oriented. It is definitely something we will consider for my daughter as an option when she moves into 6th grade.

If he's shocked, hurt and saying he hates math, I don't see any benefit to keeping the information about the ITBS from him. I think having the reason would more helpful than what he's probably coming up with inside his head to explain all this. I'd make sure he knows that the test is a snapshot and this snapshot didn't give the same picture of him that everyone usually sees. There are things he can do to improve the snapshot the next time.