Ganna Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 (edited) Hi, I have 6 years old daughter and need advice. She started her first grade at age 5 in the public school that we believed to be the best in CA. As coming not from the district she was tested at her very first day in reading and writing, next day on math. It was her first day and she tested very low. I felt that she did not have the 'right click' with the teacher from the beginning, but we decided to give the school opportunity and continued. I also took a certified tutor to help her with the reading, my daughter progressed very quickly in reading, now she reads at level J-K (18-20) according to the tutor and according to the second grade teacher who I also asked to test her informally. She spells very good, near the end of the third grade. If I can go through her 'don't knows' kind of encouraging her to answers, she gives me (or the tutor) very creative interesting and to the point answers. She started to play piano and learning very quickly. Now, her classroom teacher states that she reads at level G (12) and at the end of the class (underachiever) without explaining how she decides so. She never prizes my daughter and never states that she doing anything good or right. The director of the school support the teacher in everything and tells us to abandon the idea of reading some of the magic tree house or even chapter books. My daughter states that she hates school, she hates reading and writing. Her output in school is much lower than that one she shows at home. But now her will to read or study almost disappear. She only wants to do crafts, gymnastics and music. But not math, reading or writing. I don't know what to do. I think she might be gifted, she catches everything very fast. Should I take her out of this school? Should I home school, even though I am an immigrant (no perfect English language) and work twice a week? How is all this done? Any advice will be appreciated. Edited January 30, 2011 by Ganna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 First, I just want to say, :grouphug:. I know that each of your options must seem incredibly overwhelming. Of course, on a list like this, you are going to encounter many people that tell you to pull her out. And that would definitely be my advice. I wish that I could offer more, but I am sure that others will chime in to help. I would suggest that you also ask your question at the TAGMAX (Talented And Gifted) forum. I think that you will find many people there that are homeschooling their children in languages other than their native language. You will also find a lot of stories about what happens to gifted children in their public school experiences. I hope that helps a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MSNative Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Hi, I have 6 years old daughter and need advice. She started her first grade at age 5 in the public school that we believed to be the best in CA. As coming not from the district she was tested at her very first day in reading and writing, next day on math. It was her first day and she tested very low. I felt that she did not have the 'right click' with the teacher from the beginning, but we decided to give the school opportunity and continued. I also took a certified tutor to help her with the reading, my daughter progressed very quickly in reading, now she reads at level J-K (18-20) according to the tutor and according to the second grade teacher who I also asked to test her informally. She spells very good, near the end of the third grade. If I can go through her 'don't knows' kind of encouraging her to answers, she gives me (or the tutor) very creative interesting and to the point answers. She started to play piano and learning very quickly. Now, her classroom teacher states that she reads at level G (12) and at the end of the class (underachiever) without explaining how she decides so. She never prizes my daughter and never states that she doing anything good or right. The director of the school support the teacher in everything and tells us to abandon the idea of reading some of the magic tree house or even chapter books. My daughter states that she hates school, she hates reading and writing. Her output in school is much lower than that one she shows at home. But now her will to read or study almost disappear. She only wants to do crafts, gymnastics and music. But not math, reading or writing. I don't know what to do. I think she might be gifted, she catches everything very fast. Should I take her out of this school? Should I home school, even though I am an immigrant (no perfect English language) and work twice a week? How is all this done? Any advice will be appreciated. :grouphug: Welcome! Sorry you're having these problems. Sounds like your daughter is a bright girl and you are a great, supportive mom. The way you are working with her shows that you could be a great homeschooler - if you want to and if it works with your family. Question - do you have someone who can watch your daughter while you are at work? If not, then you may want to look into afterschooling with her. Or is there a co-op in your area where you could enroll her? We have some here that are three days a week. They are great for people who can schedule work during that time. Maybe you could try homeschooling her on the weekend. http://www.homeschoolshare.com has free lapbooks on all sorts of topics. Lapbooks are fun- my kids don't even consider them schoolwork. Might be a quick way to get her interested in learning again. You may want to try posting on the General board if you don't feel like you're getting enough info. You'll get TONS from the General board. Perhaps even from some people who have dealt with unhelpful teachers and schools. The bilingual board may be another good place to look to get information on homeschooling. Personally, I think your daughter will be very lucky to be bilingual. Good luck!! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ganna Posted January 31, 2011 Author Share Posted January 31, 2011 Thank you for the answers. Yes, I would like to try home school, I guess...But really don't know yet how to start. I kind of already do aftershooling... My daughter does 4-5 math 1 grade math pages in Saturday, Sunday. Additional 3-4 'Minute' pages for math a week for the second grade, I do dictation for her almost every day of the third and second grade workbook . She read more than 100 books for 6 months, but now kind of stopped, reached her potential in motivation and reads maybe 5-6 books a week. It is very hard to speak with her about comprehension, she yells, cries and does not want to do it. Once she can focus though, she gives verbally very bright answers, when she writes though, she writes very basic correct sentences. I still think I lack on her strategic thinking development, creativity and giving place to her own voice- for now and I do not know how to deal with this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2smartones Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Is English also a second language for her? Do you think she struggles with it the way you do? A language barrier could be the root of the issue. If so, her teacher needs to understand that. A new teacher, a new school, or just a home environment would help for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarreymere Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 [it is very hard to speak with her about comprehension, she yells, cries and does not want to do it. Once she can focus though, she gives verbally very bright answers, when she writes though, she writes very basic correct sentences. I am thinking that as she is only six, maybe her fine motor skills are not yet at a point where she is comfortable writing more complex sentences? If her verbal answers are much better, maybe you could just have her answer you verbally until her motor skills catch up. I have a seven year old daughter who has trouble expressing herself with writing for just that reason, but has no trouble with expressing herself verbally using some pretty advanced vocabulary. As for withdrawing your daughter from public school, I am not familiar with the laws in your state but as long as you are in compliance with your state law you can certainly do as you please with her education. If her teacher is of the opinion that your daughter is at a lower level than you and the tutor believe her to be, then what is the benefit of having her continue to spend her day in a place that has very low expectations of her? Of course maybe next year she would have a more sympathetic teacher, but there is no way to be sure of that. Homeschooling is certainly a wonderful thing for a lot of kids and families. Some families make up their own curriculum and that can seem daunting, but you can look over a variety of packaged curriculum and see what you think might be a good fit for your daughter. I found that using a prepared curriculum is a good place to start. You might want to visit your local library and look for some books on homeschooling, just to help ease your mind about what would be expected of you. It has been my experience that if you as the mom are not proficient in a given area you can usually find a packaged curriculum that will explain very clearly exactly what you need to do to teach your child, especially in the elementary years. If you are reluctant to make such a big decision now, maybe you could try doing homeschooling over the summer break and see how and if it would work for you and your daughter. We normally do school all year in our family, but we do fewer hours in the summer so we have time to get outside and enjoy the weather. Good luck with your decision! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleIzumi Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Spammy spam reported. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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