Dd didn't qualify for the district's "gifted" program. What now?

[BabyBre]

Dd8 didn't qualify for our district's "gifted" program. I'm so frustrated and discouraged. I've been fighting teachers and holding my breath for the last two years with the hope that she would at least have the benefit of this program one day a week. She's been sitting in the classroom nearly idle for the last two years while her peers have been catching up. To top it off, many of her friends did qualify for the program "for really smart kids" so she's feeling inadequate in the classroom (which is utterly preposterous, by the way).

 

I have such an urge to pull her out now! I feel like I shouldn't allow her to waste any more time learning at a pace that's far too slow for her. The academic gap between her and her classmates has narrowed significantly since kindergarten. While teachers will tell me it's great she's now being challenged in the classroom, I say it's because she's been moving far too slowly while her peers have been catching up.

 

I don't know what I hope to hear from the Hive. Just venting, I guess.

 

:banghead:

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

Did they give reasons why she didn't qualify?

[Elisa]

Did they give her a real IQ test or just a screening test? You could ask that she be tested again (if it was an IQ test I think you have to wait a year) or a diff screening test. Ask some questions at the school and see what can be done.

[BabyBre]

Did they give reasons why she didn't qualify?

 

They base the selection process on the scores from two tests. They give the Raven in 1st grade and the CogAT in 2nd, and then take the top 3% of scores in the district. She aparantly just didn't score high enough.

 

Did they give her a real IQ test or just a screening test? You could ask that she be tested again (if it was an IQ test I think you have to wait a year) or a diff screening test. Ask some questions at the school and see what can be done.

 

Is the CogAT considered a real IQ test? I always heard it referred to as a test to measure "giftedness", and I don't know what that means.

 

I'll be the first to say that I don't think dd is "gifted" by the traditional sense of the word, but she is quite a bit brighter than most of her peers and that's why I'm confused and frustrated that she must have scored poorly. I'm certainly not hungry to have her labeled as gifted or anything. If she must be in public school, I just want her to be challenged, and this was the only guarantee of that that I know of.

[Hillary in KS]

I was in the gifted program growing up, and never really benefited from it in grade school. It was just "extra" activities (like unit studies: archaeology, elections, theatre) , and I still had to complete the classwork I missed while I was gone.

 

Now, being tagged "Gifted" REALLY paid off in jr. high and high school, because we were automatically tracked into honors and AP courses.

 

If your dd isn't in the gifted program in grade school, I honestly wouldn't worry. It's just not that big a deal. Were it my ds, it would not be something I would fight with the school about.

 

HOWEVER, your comment that your dd has been killing time in classes while she waits for others to catch up - that IS something I would work to change. Have you spoken to her teacher about this? In what areas can she be working ahead? In what areas could she maybe visit another classroom? (E.g. Can she do math with the 5th graders instead of the 4th graders?) How does her teacher plan to make this a year when she learns as well as the others? THAT is what I'd recommend working on.

 

Also, when she approaches Jr. high and high school. I would work very hard to make sure she's tracked into the honors and AP courses.

 

May I ask, is there a reason she's not homeschooled?

Edited September 26, 2009 by Hillary in KS

[BabyBre]

I was in the gifted program growing up, and never really benefited from it in grade school. It was just "extra" activities (like unit studies: archaeology, elections, theatre) , and I still had to complete the classwork I missed while I was gone.

 

Now, being tagged "Gifted" REALLY paid off in jr. high and high school, because we were automatically tracked into honors and AP courses.

 

If your dd isn't in the gifted program in grade school, I honestly wouldn't worry. It's just not that big a deal. Were it my ds, it would not be something I would fight with the school about.

 

HOWEVER, your comment that your dd has been killing time in classes while she waits for others to catch up - that IS something I would work to change. Have you spoken to her teacher about this? In what areas can she be working ahead? In what areas could she maybe visit another classroom? (E.g. Can she do math with the 5th graders instead of the 4th graders?) How does her teacher plan to make this a year when she learns as well as the others? THAT is what I'd recommend working on.

 

Also, when she approaches Jr. high and high school. I would work very hard to make sure she's tracked into the honors and AP courses.

 

May I ask, is there a reason she's not homeschooled?

 

 

I'm not looking for a label for her, just a challenge. I have fought for my kids at this school, talking to their teachers, conferencing with the principal, spending as much time as I can stand in the classroom, etc. I do this every single day. We have also done a split-time arrangement where ds went to 2nd grade for math last year. But it's a constant battle that I appear to be losing because their progress is slowing more every year.

 

The only reason they're not homeschooled is because dh wants it this way, but I'm beginning to re-evaluate how badly I want to appease him. It was NOT a decision I took lightly at all and I fought it for years. I'm considering half-time enrollment, where I would take the kids to school at lunch time and have about 3 additional hours to work with them in the morning. Maybe dh would be able to live with this. I don't know yet.

 

And our district encourages all students to enroll in AP and Honors classes, whether they're capable of it or not. :glare:

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I completely understand what you are going through. I hope that things work out for you and your dd.

[lgm]

Having BTDT...afterschool or privately tutor. In our situation, we found out that most other parents whose children went into honors in middle school had been tutoring since the beginning. Our district uses test scores as well as teacher rec. The quality of reg. ed. is so poor that a prepped average child can outscore a bright but unprepared child.

[talexand]

It really is frustrating that the gifted program is the only tool that they have for children who are ahead. Kids who are right on the edge have the worst problems with this. That being said, I wouldn't assume that your child shouldn't be inthe gifted program. I'm not familiar with the Raven test but my kids have taken the CogAT here in Oregon. Its just an indicator. Its not a great test and its given here in a classroom invironment to second graders who have never had that kid of test before. Their ability to concentrate in that environment make a huge difference and skews the results.

 

I don't know about WA, but I would guess it would be similar to OR. Here they take the CogAT in second grade. They take the top 3% but that actually gets only a few of the kids who will eventually qualify for the gifted program. More come from third grade and they qualify by scoring in the top 3% of the state math or reading test. This is something they take every year so you can imagine that over the years more and more borderline cases get scooped up or kids who don't test at the top of their ability will finally have a good day.

 

The other thing to look into is wether they will take private IQ scores. They do here and that is what I did with my oldest son. He scored at about 92% on the CogAT. I knew that wasn't right so I had a private tester administer the WISCIV and he scored at 99%. THe school took those results with no difficulty. I just explained to them that the CogAT results confused me so I had this test done to help me understand his abilities. THe results of the subtest in the WISCIV really did help me understand his abilities too. I had made some assumptions about what he was good and at what I though he was more average at and those were shown to be false.

[Elisa]

No, Raven and CogAt are not IQ tests. If it was me, I would check to see what other tests they will accept for entrance into the gifted program. Maybe they could administer another test this year or at the very least test again next year.

I also would not wait till middle school for advancement. Being identified as gifted allows your daughter to have other opportunities right now. I think it will help you with negotiations with the school as her needs change.

Keep fighting!

[BabyBre]

I don't know about WA, but I would guess it would be similar to OR. Here they take the CogAT in second grade. They take the top 3% but that actually gets only a few of the kids who will eventually qualify for the gifted program. More come from third grade and they qualify by scoring in the top 3% of the state math or reading test. This is something they take every year so you can imagine that over the years more and more borderline cases get scooped up or kids who don't test at the top of their ability will finally have a good day.

 

The other thing to look into is wether they will take private IQ scores. They do here and that is what I did with my oldest son. He scored at about 92% on the CogAT. I knew that wasn't right so I had a private tester administer the WISCIV and he scored at 99%. THe school took those results with no difficulty. I just explained to them that the CogAT results confused me so I had this test done to help me understand his abilities. THe results of the subtest in the WISCIV really did help me understand his abilities too. I had made some assumptions about what he was good and at what I though he was more average at and those were shown to be false.

 

That is how they do it in WA as well, although I hadn't thought about having a private IQ test administered. I'll look into that. Thanks.

 

 

Keep fighting!

 

Thank you! Believe it or not, I actually hear a lot of the opposite, so I appreciate the encouragement.

[EmilyK]

Definitely keep pushing. The testing they do is not very good. We ended up going to a private tester because we thought something was wrong -- my son was getting depressed about the work, yet he didn't score high enough on the TAG test. The private tester told me that the group testing done here failed to identify a lot of kids.

[Lovedtodeath]

If it makes you feel any better:

 

 

My very bright and accelerated DD has been bored and getting less accelerated at home because of my lack of consistent homeschooling.

 

I was in gifted classes in school and I very much wish I wasn't. I was still bored and had to work a lot harder with homework literally taking my every waking moment.

[LibrarianMom]

What does your gifted program do? Could you do that at home? Having taken coursework in education for gifted children, many gifted educators emphasize that they are looking only for those students who are gifted rather than simply bright. I was one of those who was in a "gifted" class, but it was a waste of time and even slightly embarassing to be pulled out of class. We did mindbenders and played Oregon Trail.

[Hillary in KS]

I have been thinking about this over the weekend. This has been an interesting thread.

 

Assuming your daughter does eventually get accepted into the school's TAG program, her classroom situation will remain the same 4 days a week. Will there be any changes to that end of her schooling experience?

 

I'd agree that one day of accelerated learning would be better than none, but she'd still spend 4 days a week languishing in her classroom. Is there anything to be done to help her during those 4 days?

[Haiku]

Unless your district's gifted program is a full-time program, I wouldn't waste too much time trying to get your daughter into it. I was in a one-day-per-week pull-out program when I was in school, and we just did silly little projects and played games on the computer. I certainly didn't get rigorous academic instruction from it.

 

Were it me, I would first sit down with my dh and explain to him that the school is NOT meeting your dd's needs even after several years of advocating for her. And me being who I am, I would also tell my dh that I would be pulling dd out and we could talk about her going back to school after he got a chance to see her working at her potential.

 

If that's not possible for you, then I would continue to advocate for dd to receive more challenging work at school and with supplementing outside of school.

 

Tara

[cougarmom4]

I don't have any advice for you, but just wanted to tell you I can relate to the frustration you are feeling. And yes, I'd also like to be homeschooling, but dh is not as interested...so we do the best we can with what we've got. I'm with ya, girl...

 

First, I wanted to mention the CogAT...I think it is called the Cognitive Abilities Test and if I remember correctly, it doesn't measure intelligence (or how much they know), it assesses the student's ability to reason or think through things. Don't feel too worried if your child didn't score well--it doesn't mean s/he isn't bright or even gifted...it could simply mean that s/he hasn't been exposed to some of those types of questions before.

 

I'd also agree with previous posters that the benefits of the pull-out might not be as high as you'd hope for them to be. Find out a little bit more about what they actually do during this time...if it is something you feel strongly would help your child, fight it...go for it...take the bull by the horns! It may not even be what they are working on that is important to you, but having your child with other bright/gifted students...(that is what I would want a pull-out program for).

 

In a nutshell, this is what I'm feeling:

1-Do as much as I can to get the teachers to try something different at school to replace assignments (even if I have to buy a different spelling workbook or bring in a Mindbenders book or something--to be done in class so we're using time wisely). I've found the more direct and open I am with the teacher, the happier I am with what happens (well, as long as she does what I want her to!).

2-Talk to the teacher and see if we can do alternate homework assignments (my dd10 has a reading comprehension worksheet every single week...it is simple and unnecessary for her; I'm going to ask the teacher if we can do a written narration about a reading selection instead...my thought is it works on the same skill but challenges my daughter in ways that she needs to work on rather than being busy work that is unnecessary for her)

3-Prioritize what is the most important area for us to afterschool and come up with a plan for consistency. This is where I am at right now; I want to do too many things...especially as I get all these great ideas from these forums. But our time is limited and I can't do it all. So I'm trying to figure out what is the most lacking in ps and what I can do about it at home. (It looks like you already have a great afterschooling plan in place!)

4-Grin and bear it...and try to look at the positive things that are happening for my ds. Seriously, as passionate as I feel about education, in some ways I need to just relax and hope that things work out in the end. (Not saying entirely, of course...but I can only do so much...). And remember that even if we're not focusing on it all right now, there are plenty of years to come.

 

I thought I'd mention one plan I was considering last year: perhaps there is a subject that you could teach at home...say math...during homework time you teach your daughter the lesson. The next day, she takes the homework of that lesson to complete during 'math' time in class. Of course, you'd have to have a teacher who is willing to 'think outside the box,' but I thought I'd throw the idea out there in case it might work somehow in your situation.

 

Hang in there...

[jplain]

Not sure if this option is available to you, but I figured it would be worth describing how my mom got all 6 of her kids into G&T.

 

My mother had IQ testing done privately, though she didn't tell us that it was IQ testing, and didn't share the scores with us. She just told us it was testing to qualify us for the G&T program.

 

Then she submitted the scores to the school. She knew what scores were required to qualify for G&T, and she worked with the psych to choose tests for each of us that played to our strengths. A couple of us (not sure which) didn't score quite high enough to qualify on the first test taken, so she and the psych would consult about what the areas of strength and weakness were, and choose a different IQ test. (Yes, you aren't supposed to take a particular IQ test more than once a year, but you can take a different one!) Ultimately, all of us qualified.

 

I don't think the testing was terribly expensive, because the tests were administered by someone who was still in her graduate program, and she needed to give tests as part of her program of study.

[BabyBre]

Thank you for all your advice! I have tried to arrange where dd might bring work from home, and that's still a possibility, but over the weekend I've really realized how sadly desperate I've been. Dc have been in ps for two years now and I've been banging my head against a wall to get them quality education. We do 2-3 hours of work at home daily, teaching almost as many subjects as we did full-time homeschooling. There is very little I find academically redeeming about their ps.

 

The reason I had desperately pinned my hopes on this one day a week program is because my dh wants them in ps. I conceded with a broken heart two years ago and have been fighting an uphill battle with the school every day since. Dh is happy, but I'm exhausted and dc are slipping. Well, although I seriously re-evaluate and consider pulling them back out against his wishes every year, I'm doing it much earlier this year. Qualifying for the 3rd grade program also qualifies dc for the full-time "gifted" program in 5th and 6th grades and I think that's why I had so much hope in this. I'm leaning toward half-day enrollment (which is within my right in WA). One of dh's reasons for wanting the kids in school is because he works nights and often needs to rest or work at home during the day, however, dh is rarely here in the mornings anyway so we wouldn't be bothering him much if we stayed home until lunchtime.

 

It's extremely frustrating to me to feel so powerless and at the mercy of the government schools. I'll always be a homeschooler and that puts ME in control.

[SheWillFly]

Wow, that was like a flashback in time. My mom went through the same thing with me. I test horrible. I just hated them because I thought they were stupid. I missed out on the gifted program because of my attitude toward testing. So it left my mom fighting for me to be placed at my actual skill level all through elementary school. I got shafted in middle school because my teacher in 5th grade refused to look at my whole portfolio instead of just the end of the year test that was to be used for placement in 6th grade. My mom finally found a teacher that was on her side and was able to force the admins hand in getting me into honors classes in 7th grade. She was lucky I was not a trouble maker because I was so stinking bored in most of my classes.

 

What did she do? She kept handing me good books to read, taking me to museums that challenge me to think outside of what I learned in school and experience the world around me in a way that kept my brain engaged and learning.

[babysparkler]

I'm not looking for a label for her, just a challenge.

 

I would set up a meeting with her teacher and explain this. She should not have to sit around waiting for everyone to catch up. If they are unwilling, I would pull her out to homeschool.

 

My son had a great K teacher who made tremendous efforts to meet him where he was. When he entered 1st grade and we met with the teacher we were notified that this would not happen again and that he would have to work "on-level" (We later found out that the K teacher was fired for "causing leveling problems for the first grade teachers"). The gifted pullout program he was in was great, but only one hour per week of challenge was not enough for him... what you really want is an "all-day-long challenge." We pulled him out to homeschool.

Edited September 28, 2009 by babysparkler

[EKS]

Is the CogAT considered a real IQ test? I always heard it referred to as a test to measure "giftedness", and I don't know what that means.

 

 

 

The CogAT is *not* an IQ test. It is a speeded test and discriminates against slower processors. My older son tests as highly gifted (99.9 percentile) but only scores at about the 90th percentile on the CogAT. Our district will *only* accept CogAT scores for entrance into the gifted program, no individual testing (meaning no real IQ scores). By doing this they are missing twice exceptional kids who could benefit from the program.

 

Also, they should be giving the test at least a year, and preferably two years above grade level. Otherwise, there are ceiling effects that are muddying the score information.

[mchel210]

My dd was screened in 1st and they told me she didnt qualify. It was one thing that kept us homeschooling. I had her privately tested in 2nd grade and she tested over 141 even though the school said she wouldnt qualify. Once they did the end of second grade tests...they said they would have tested her and she would have qualified. Either way, our gifted is full time...but I still dont see benefit. Im going to pull my kids out...after all this work...and put them into private school. I give up. I dont homeschool them as my son takes all my efforts to homeschool. I am still fighting with our system for both my girls in the gifted program so...IM not sure it really makes a huge difference.

[jec3113]

Even if your child didn't pass the test. She should be able to get in GT with alternative placement. It is as easy as the teacher and you filling out questionaires about your child.

 

I have seen many truly gifted kids not "pass the test". Some kids don't do well on these types of assessments. In our district the GT test is a 15 minute assessment given by the counselor. It is a joke really and most of the kids in the program are not truly gifted, rather smart kids who were alternatively placed.

 

Of course, the bigger issue is your child's boredom which won't be cured by getting into GT. We are now homeschooling because 1 hour a week of GT just doesn't cut it. Schools today are totally unwilling to educate the gifted. It is just too much trouble when the focus is bringing up those who bring down the test scores.

 

Good luck and ask about the alternative placement. I think it is called a Catagory 2 placement.

[Sahamamama]

Breann,

 

This may be completely off-base advice, and if it is, just toss it out. As I read about your situation -- with your husband not being in support of homeschooling -- I keep thinking about his job as a firefighter.... But first, some thoughts about your children....

 

This might not be true for every child, but when your children are in school -- with the other students catching up -- your children are being bombarded with the message, "Why bother learning? Why work hard? Why be excellent at academics? Why go at your own pace, when it only leads to boredom later on?" And they get this all day, day after day, for a few years. After a while, without any challenges in the classroom, is it any wonder that they are "slowing down?"

 

Now back to your dear husband. I'm assuming here, but perhaps as a firefighter he puts out fires. ;) His training has given him plenty of reasons to want to do his best, to risk his life, to provide leadership to others, to continue getting trained and conditioned, and so on.

 

What would happen to his heart, soul, body, and mind if -- day after day -- he was shown videos of burning structures, exploding chemical plants, and dying people. And then, what if he was given the message, "Why bother? Why put the fire out? Why get the people out? Just sit there and be passive and let the buildings burn. It's okay if you don't do anything except wait for someone else to learn to fight fires that we will never go out and fight."

 

It would take an enormous amount of will-power and moral fiber on his part to combat that assault daily, to put his boots on in the midst of the "Why Bother Brigade," and go put the fires out. But, in a way, he is expecting this degree of character and determination out of his own very young children. How is it possible for them to be in an anti-intellectual setting daily, and still be motivated to work on excellence in academics?

 

Can you pour your heart out to him? I don't know your husband or your marriage, but perhaps you really need to pour out your heart to him concerning your precious children.

 

One other thought, the longer you are exposed to the "Lowest Common Denominator" thinking of your school system, the longer you have to fight it, the more likely you will be to wear out and cave in. Act now to avoid future regrets. Stake out your territory as a family: We pursue excellence, beauty, and truth in all things -- though we know before we begin that this path will challenge and refine us (or something like that).

 

If your husband is committed to excellence in his work, then homeschooling just does not seem to be inconsistent with that uphill, upstream, carpe diem work ethic. Can you leverage this? HTH.

 

:grouphug:

[BabyBre]

Breann,

 

This may be completely off-base advice, and if it is, just toss it out. As I read about your situation -- with your husband not being in support of homeschooling -- I keep thinking about his job as a firefighter.... But first, some thoughts about your children....

 

This might not be true for every child, but when your children are in school -- with the other students catching up -- your children are being bombarded with the message, "Why bother learning? Why work hard? Why be excellent at academics? Why go at your own pace, when it only leads to boredom later on?" And they get this all day, day after day, for a few years. After a while, without any challenges in the classroom, is it any wonder that they are "slowing down?"

 

Now back to your dear husband. I'm assuming here, but perhaps as a firefighter he puts out fires. ;) His training has given him plenty of reasons to want to do his best, to risk his life, to provide leadership to others, to continue getting trained and conditioned, and so on.

 

What would happen to his heart, soul, body, and mind if -- day after day -- he was shown videos of burning structures, exploding chemical plants, and dying people. And then, what if he was given the message, "Why bother? Why put the fire out? Why get the people out? Just sit there and be passive and let the buildings burn. It's okay if you don't do anything except wait for someone else to learn to fight fires that we will never go out and fight."

 

It would take an enormous amount of will-power and moral fiber on his part to combat that assault daily, to put his boots on in the midst of the "Why Bother Brigade," and go put the fires out. But, in a way, he is expecting this degree of character and determination out of his own very young children. How is it possible for them to be in an anti-intellectual setting daily, and still be motivated to work on excellence in academics?

 

Can you pour your heart out to him? I don't know your husband or your marriage, but perhaps you really need to pour out your heart to him concerning your precious children.

 

One other thought, the longer you are exposed to the "Lowest Common Denominator" thinking of your school system, the longer you have to fight it, the more likely you will be to wear out and cave in. Act now to avoid future regrets. Stake out your territory as a family: We pursue excellence, beauty, and truth in all things -- though we know before we begin that this path will challenge and refine us (or something like that).

 

If your husband is committed to excellence in his work, then homeschooling just does not seem to be inconsistent with that uphill, upstream, carpe diem work ethic. Can you leverage this? HTH.

 

:grouphug:

 

 

Wow, what a great perspective. I really appreciate the though you put into this post. This, of course, is something I think about often as my dc are immersed in a pool of mediocrity all day long. They have come home showing signs of this. It is hard enough (or at least it was in the beginning when I was a newcomer) to keep my head clear and focus on the objective of academic excellence. However, I feel so strongly about it that I'm now able to put my head down and charge into battle on their behalf every day, but imagine how hard that must be for them to do when they're surrounded by forces all day long that pull them away from the principals and values we try to instill in them at home. This is exagerated only slightly at my younger dc's elementary level, but not at all with regard to ds16 in high school.

 

With regard to dh, my heart has been poured and he knows it's broken over this. Although we don't talk about it much, he knows how hard it is for me to do it this way. The baffling thing to me is that most of the time he agrees with me, but he thinks these are the ups and downs of growing up "normal". Honestly, he thinks they'll be "fine". I'm sure they will, but I could make them exceptional.

 

I'm still thinking. To me the decision comes down to either maintaining the status quo, or putting my foot down on what would be the ultimate compromise between my desire to homeschool and dh's desire for public school - half-time enrollment. Because dc have made so many great friendships at this school by now, I would be very comfortable with that. I'd have 4-5 hours a day with them. Just imagine what we could do! We hardly spent that much time per day homeschooling full-time.

[msjones]

I recall that when I was teaching, there was a student (form another class) who regularly brought in work (designed by her mother) from home. She was able to do the regular classroom work quickly, and went on to her work from home when she finished. (I think it may have been Singapore math, actually...)

 

Maybe that would help with the 'languishing?'

 

My opinion is that the teacher should provide the extra instruction/work/materials/assignments, but if the teacher won't...I can't imagine him/her refusing you to allow assignments/activities from home. (As long as they weren't anything disruptive.)

 

This would be a very frustrating situation.

[Lovedtodeath]

I was languishing all through school because I learned mastery from a couple of examples in class and then had to spend my time doing 100 repetitive, boring, tedious extra problems, or write spelling words 10 x... or, you get the picture. I always set the curve even if I slept through class but my assigned work took all of my time and then some. I had ADD and well... it was boring. Just another perspective. Not every bright kid is going to get the assigned work done quickly. If it is something that they do not need to learn then it shouldn't be assigned to them at all.

[tdeveson]

Pull her out of school. Letting her waste time, bored and discouraged, is no good.

 

By the way, dd was in the gifted program for a year before I brought her home. They bused her once a week to another school for exceptional children. It was a complete and total waste of time and resources.

 

Eventually I brought her home when it became apparent that they were wasting her time, her intelligence and her desire to learn. I just thought I'd mention this to let you know that she may not be missing much by having been turned down for the program.

[tdeveson]

Breann,

 

This may be completely off-base advice, and if it is, just toss it out. As I read about your situation -- with your husband not being in support of homeschooling -- I keep thinking about his job as a firefighter.... But first, some thoughts about your children....

 

 

Very well said! I completely agree with Sahamamama. :thumbup1:

[Happy2BaMom]

I'm going through so much of what you are right now...my ds son 6 (hs'ed last year - in ps for this year only due to personal reasons) is in 1st grade. He's bored out of his mind, spending all day - literally- doing things he already can do in his sleep.

 

I am having him privately tested so I have some ammo with his teacher. I also had someone recommend this book - "Losing Our Minds: Gifted Children Left Behind" by Deborah Ruf, Ph.D. It is an awesome book by a well-credentialed gifted child specialist.

 

It specifically may apply to you for two reasons: 1) She details why age-grouping for high-ability children can be so damaging, and she writes with great clarity and insight (negating the "they'll be fine" attitude so many people have), and 2) she arranges the levels of giftedness by IQ scores, but she believes - and details why - children who are in the 90th percentile and above belong in the gifted category. Your child might very well be in this category.

 

This book has been a godsend to me already. Perhaps if your hubby is deadlocked over this would you, he would listen to an expert??????

 

Finally, I am also in WA State, albeit on the east side....could you please explain the "half-time enrollment" thing...perhaps it would help me. Feel free to pm if you want. THanks!

[BabyBre]

Finally, I am also in WA State, albeit on the east side....could you please explain the "half-time enrollment" thing...perhaps it would help me. Feel free to pm if you want. THanks!

 

 

From what I hear, mainly on this board, we're pretty fortunate in Washington State to have the liberal homeschool laws that we do. I would love a part-time arrangement, but dh wouldn't, so it's going to have to be a last resort for me. Otherwise, I'd do it in a heartbeat and I feel very fortunate we still have this right.

 

Are you familiar with the Washington Homeschool Organization? They can answer a lot of your questions. This is from the their website (www.washingtonhomeschool.org):

 

Part-Time Enrollment is Guaranteed for Homeschoolers

 

Our state law and your tax dollars guarantee part-time enrollment privileges for your homeschooled student in public school. This includes part-time enrollment in Public School Alternative Learning Experience Programs. When you participate in public schools on a part-time basis, you retain your Home-Based Instruction status.

 

You might ask, why would a homeschooler want to participate in public schools part-time? Participating part time means that you may take advantage of the resources and classes offered by your district and still be in total control of your child's education. You, not the teacher, would set your educational goals and decide when, where and what assessments would be given. You, not the district, would keep your child's educational records. And, since you were a homeschooling parent, your child would not have to take the WASL.

 

How can you take advantage of the part-time enrollment option? RCW 28A.150.350 Part-Time Students -- Defined -- Enrollment Authorized, section (2) is the law that guarantees part-time enrollment for privately schooled and homeschooled students.

 

The WACs (Washington Administrative Codes), or rules, that administers the Part-Time Student law are in Chapter WAC 392-134 Finance -- Apportionment for Part-Time Public School Attendance. It details how part-time enrollment is administered. Of interest to homeschoolers are three WACs in that chapter:

 

WAC 392-134-010 Attendance Rights of Part-Time Public School

WAC 392-134-020 Provision of Educational Program to Part-time Public School Students -- Reports -- Sites

WAC 392-134-030 Compliance With Rules as a Condition of State Funding

 

The Attendance Rights WAC states very clearly that part-time enrollment must be allowed. The Provision of Educational Program WAC states that courses must be provided to part-time students at the same level and quality as for full time students. And the Compliance With Rules WAC talks about the financial penalties the district must bear if they do not allow part-time enrollment.

 

HTH

[BabyBre]

Last week was rough as I've been in despair over what to do with dd now that she wasn't accepted into the program. Last spring when I had only heard the rumors about who had been accepted, I called the program's director and we had a nice talk. She told me dd's scores and that dd may also qualify if she scores high enough on the state standardized test, but that won't help her until next year. This woman was very understanding and helpful, and didn't sound at all annoyed by me, a desperate, pushy, discontented parent. :D

 

I finally pulled myself together and called her again this morning to find out about dd possibly retaking the test, or about whether a privately administered test score would be accepted. She said dd's scores weren't close enough to the cut-off to warrant retesting, but that they can accept the results of the WISC IQ test. I think I'll arrange to have dd take that. (BIG thank you to everyone who suggested that!)

 

What I was even more impressed with was that the director told me to fill out a Parent Nomination Form that I can get in my school's office and send it to her. She said she would personally take it to the board of the program and see if she could convince them to do anything in dd's favor. I'm so thankful to finally have someone on my side!

 

In the meantime, I conferenced with ds7's 2nd grade teacher last week about math. In 1st grade last year, ds went into this teacher's classroom for math and so he has done most of the curriculum already and it's far too easy for him anyway. His teacher looked at the work we do at home and we brainstormed together about how she can increase his learning in the classroom. WHAT?! You mean there actually are teachers out there who will do their job with accelerated students?! This was the one bright spot in my sad, sad week. I wanted to hug her!

 

So, asap, I'm going to dd's teacher to insist upon the same from her. And I'm going to get it. :angry: I'm done messing around. More to come...

[cougarmom4]

You go, girl! :party:

[Erica in PA]

Dd8 didn't qualify for our district's "gifted" program. I'm so frustrated and discouraged. I've been fighting teachers and holding my breath for the last two years with the hope that she would at least have the benefit of this program one day a week. She's been sitting in the classroom nearly idle for the last two years while her peers have been catching up. To top it off, many of her friends did qualify for the program "for really smart kids" so she's feeling inadequate in the classroom (which is utterly preposterous, by the way).

 

I have such an urge to pull her out now! I feel like I shouldn't allow her to waste any more time learning at a pace that's far too slow for her. The academic gap between her and her classmates has narrowed significantly since kindergarten. While teachers will tell me it's great she's now being challenged in the classroom, I say it's because she's been moving far too slowly while her peers have been catching up.

 

I don't know what I hope to hear from the Hive. Just venting, I guess.

 

:banghead:

 

If it's any consolation, I was in the gifted program from second grade through twelfth grade and I always considered it (and still do) a colossal waste of time. The activities were never interesting to me at all. I wouldn't sign my children up for a gifted program even if they qualified, unless I knew for sure that the gifted program was much different than mine was growing up. And in any case, I don't think it makes up for having schoolwork that doesn't fit a child's needs for the rest of the week. I don't know your reasons for having your dd in school, but I personally would bring my child home it at all possible if I felt that her needs were not being met in the classroom.

[Erica in PA]

 

Assuming your daughter does eventually get accepted into the school's TAG program, her classroom situation will remain the same 4 days a week. Will there be any changes to that end of her schooling experience?

 

I'd agree that one day of accelerated learning would be better than none, but she'd still spend 4 days a week languishing in her classroom. Is there anything to be done to help her during those 4 days?

 

 

:iagree: The *possible* advantages of being in a special program one day a week (and as I said in my other post, I'm not even sure that many gifted programs are really "all that" anyway) would not undo the harm of being in an unacceptable situation the other four.