Parent Teacher Conferences

[jenbrdsly]

This was Roadrunners idea. Here's a thread to brain-dump on, if you feel so inclined. :001_smile:

[jenbrdsly]

I'll go first. My husband and I were both really nervous because we know that our DS6 has a lot of energy and can be a handful. But we were both relieved to see that there is only one unruly child in the class who is forced to sit at a desk alone, and that child is not our son! Phew!

The other interesting thing was that the teacher laid out the math track that our son is currently on. Since he is doing two grade levels up in math, it means that he'd be doing IB Calculus by 10th grade. It also means that in 6th grade I'll have to drive him to the middle school for math, and in 8th grade I have to drive him to the high school. When exactly am I going to be able to go back to work (as a teacher) I might ask?

The funny thing was when the teacher talked about the importance of being well rounded in other academic subjects beyond math. We just nodded. She has no idea that our son (and our DD2) have now listened to 27 hours of SOTW in the car, or that we are doing science projects for fun over the weekend.

[Roadrunner]

I'll go first. My husband and I were both really nervous because we know that our DS6 has a lot of energy and can be a handful. But we were both relieved to see that there is only one unruly child in the class who is forced to sit at a desk alone, and that child is not our son! Phew!

 

The other interesting thing was that the teacher laid out the math track that our son is currently on. Since he is doing two grade levels up in math, it means that he'd be doing IB Calculus by 10th grade. It also means that in 6th grade I'll have to drive him to the middle school for math, and in 8th grade I have to drive him to the high school. When exactly am I going to be able to go back to work (as a teacher) I might ask?

 

The funny thing was when the teacher talked about the importance of being well rounded in other academic subjects beyond math. We just nodded. She has no idea that our son (and our DD2) have now listened to 27 hours of SOTW in the car, or that we are doing science projects for fun over the weekend.

First positive one! That's great. Calculus by 10th grade is very impressive. That will open up doors for him into technical fiels.

Our conference is in one week and a half. I thought I would have lots of questions, but at this point I am coming up blank. I see some parents on a daily basis talking to teachers and having meetings before classes. I always wonder what on earth they are talking about. I will have a report on the 16th!

[MBM]

The other interesting thing was that the teacher laid out the math track that our son is currently on. Since he is doing two grade levels up in math, it means that he'd be doing IB Calculus by 10th grade. It also means that in 6th grade I'll have to drive him to the middle school for math, and in 8th grade I have to drive him to the high school. When exactly am I going to be able to go back to work (as a teacher) I might ask?

 

That's great that the school isn't giving your son grief or making him sit around until the rest of the class catches up to his level. We went through that, and I'm so happy those days are over.

 

My son started taking high school math classes in 7th. I had to drive him there daily, but luckily, for the return trip, the school had a bus he could hop on that went by his middle school. If any other kids from your son's school will be on a similar track, you could try to arrange car pooling; otherwise, you will probably be tied to his schedule for a few years.

 

Will your son be taking an early class? Coordinating schedules between the schools can be tricky. My son was lucky and took early high school math classes that started at 7:30 and allowed him to get back to his middle school on time. During his middle school math class, he would work on AoPS in the back of the room, so he essentially had two math classes per day -- which suited him just fine!

 

Have you looked into math clubs, contests, or camps yet? Those can be a lot of fun for kids who like math.

[Bang!Zoom!]

I'm not going to be getting any conferences this year beyond the weekly check-in and once a month report. I just report statistics and that's it.

 

Somehow, I'm really okay with that. :)

 

I have to report on a schedule that shows 20 hours per week of work only.

 

Even though the real work load is above that in hours, I had her delete all additional content areas out of the system. Two reasons for it; it makes her job administratively much easier, and secondarily- I asked her point blank..

 

"Look, we do more than the minimums obviously. It is interesting work for her, it's up her alley, she enjoys this stuff. My question to you is if you want to know about it, do you want to talk it over with her, or would you just prefer not to know about it?"

 

Her answer, "It's interesting content. I'll speak with her from time to time on it if it's helpful to her. But as a regular thing or expectation to cover, I think we can skip it as a requirement."

 

I thanked her for her honesty.

 

I don't know if we'll be around when the state required testing stuff rolls around, but I don't even worry about that anymore.

[jenbrdsly]

That's great that the school isn't giving your son grief or making him sit around until the rest of the class catches up to his level. We went through that, and I'm so happy those days are over.

 

My son started taking high school math classes in 7th. I had to drive him there daily, but luckily, for the return trip, the school had a bus he could hop on that went by his middle school. If any other kids from your son's school will be on a similar track, you could try to arrange car pooling; otherwise, you will probably be tied to his schedule for a few years.

 

Will your son be taking an early class? Coordinating schedules between the schools can be tricky. My son was lucky and took early high school math classes that started at 7:30 and allowed him to get back to his middle school on time. During his middle school math class, he would work on AoPS in the back of the room, so he essentially had two math classes per day -- which suited him just fine!

 

Have you looked into math clubs, contests, or camps yet? Those can be a lot of fun for kids who like math.

 

This was really useful information for me. THANK YOU! The future logistics of this is a bit frightening. I'm not sure of math clubs yet. The university that we live next to has summer camps for gifted children that start at third grade. A bunch of kids for our school will go, so that will be something to look forward to someday.

[MBM]

We went to our first set of conferences last night. It's high school, so parents can meet with their child's teachers for about 5". Anyway, wow! So far, I really love this school. The teachers are amazing -- smart as whips, empathetic to the students, out-of-the-box thinkers, and fun. Score! I keep waiting for it to get bad, but it's just not happening.

 

Tonight is the second set, and we will meet with his concert and jazz band teachers.

 

Hope this gives some of you who are frustrated with your school some hope. :)

[Mabelen]

I have my youngest dd's conference next week. I don't anticipate any surprises but I am looking forward to finding out her teachers take on my child and more detailed information about some of her work that I haven't seen yet like her story writing and the standardized testing results. I volunteer too so I roughly know where she falls in the class. The school has high expectations and this year's particular class has a lot of very competitive kids/families. I am pretty happy overall with how things are going.

[Little Nyssa]

Had DS's conference-- teacher seems to have sized him up pretty well! DS is doing well & learning at his level. One sad thing for me-- teacher said DS is working on pencil grip (he's in 2nd grade) since the way he holds it makes writing harder for himself-- I knew this but thought I resolved it last spring when we were HSing, but I guess not.

Had to laugh at myself-- I guess I wassecretly hoping to hear that DS is way advanced over the other kids! but there are several other kids at his level. Which is good for him, of course. Silly mama!

[momsquared]

Ours was great. Nothing surprising since I can look up grades online and email the teacher often. I really love dd's teacher.

 

DS was just pulled from our local PreK program and moved to a private Montessori style program. He has adjusted well. No conference for a couple weeks I believe.

[TracyR]

Hate teacher conferences. Our experience is they try to find the most negative thing about your child, and blame it on the fact you homeschooled. My husband refuses to go to them anymore.

For instance my 12 yr old is very insecure with math because she struggles with it. So if someone is sitting next her it , this seems to give her a stream of confidence. If you leave all that info seems to leave her head like you never taught it to her. Its a comfort thing and I know it. Of course it mentioned and the first thing out of the teacher's mouth was, Must be because you homeschooled them for so long.

 

Has nothing to do with it. Just her personality. There are kids that go to school that are like this. Even my sister was like this ( and we were never homeschooled).

 

Also last year my 8yr old's teacher was convinced there was something wrong with her. I told her that some issues she was having with grammar stemmed with her speech. Nothing more. She insisted on having her tested. So we did only to find that she tested about 97 out of 100 on the test they gave her and she was a 2nd honors student ( she had all A's and one B ( in language arts). They were so bent on trying to prove something because I homeschooled them.

 

Again this year my 8yr old is a 2nd honors student, but I'm waiting for the teacher ( the same one she had last year since they teach two grade levels at a time) to think something is wrong with her again. Ugh.

 

I just can't wait for the year to be over so I can bring my middle two home.

[RebekahnDavidMom]

Our 1st ever parent teacher confrence is today at 1pm. I am excited and nervous, lol. She is only in Pre-K but it's through the school district so they have standards, report cards and PTC just like a kindergarten classroom would. They know that my dd is advanced so I am a little nervous as to what they rae going to say. I have no idea what to expect. I'll update tomorrow as I have to work tonight but wish us luck!

[Roadrunner]

Ours is tomorrow. I am a bit worried as well.

I found out my older boy (1st grade) along with some others I suspect gets a lot more homework that regular class. I saw my friend's son's homework (he is in the same class). I know they are trying to differentiate, but I am working hard to come up with a polite way of saying, "thanks, no thanks." I would rather spend that extra time on MCT. I know I will just go blank tomorrow and smile like an idiot an entire half an hour.

The good news is we really like our kids teachers, especially the first grade teacher. I volunteer in her classroom when I can and it's going to be really hard not to have her next year as a teacher.

I will update tomorrow.

[Spy Car]

Ours is tomorrow. I am a bit worried as well.

I found out my older boy (1st grade) along with some others I suspect gets a lot more homework that regular class. I saw my friend's son's homework (he is in the same class). I know they are trying to differentiate, but I am working hard to come up with a polite way of saying, "thanks, no thanks." I would rather spend that extra time on MCT. I know I will just go blank tomorrow and smile like an idiot an entire half an hour.

The good news is we really like our kids teachers, especially the first grade teacher. I volunteer in her classroom when I can and it's going to be really hard not to have her next year as a teacher.

I will update tomorrow.

 

I try to be a "happy after-schooler" (as opposed to a "grumpy" one) because we are in a pretty great position school-wise. But I went to a "parent information night" for our GATE program the other night, and in the reams of "helpful" suggestions and ideas for "differentiation" there was a complete void when it came to parent-led instruction at home.

 

I guess I should not be surprised. Personally I'm all for differentiation in the classroom (please Sir, I want more) but more homework? Not thanks, we are busy with our own work.

 

The good news is in our situation every teacher we've had has been very supportive of our home education efforts. Just yesterday I got a request from our teacher to see MCTs Building Language book after William and his teacher got into a discussion of Latin stems in class.

 

I count my blessings.

 

Bill

[Roadrunner]

I try to be a "happy after-schooler" (as opposed to a "grumpy" one) because we are in a pretty great position school-wise. But I went to a "parent information night" for our GATE program the other night, and in the reams of "helpful" suggestions and ideas for "differentiation" there was a complete void when it came to parent-led instruction at home.

 

I guess I should not be surprised. Personally I'm all for differentiation in the classroom (please Sir, I want more) but more homework? Not thanks, we are busy with our own work.

 

The good news is in our situation every teacher we've had has been very supportive of our home education efforts. Just yesterday I got a request from our teacher to see MCTs Building Language book after William and his teacher got into a discussion of Latin stems in class.

 

I count my blessings.

 

Bill

 

So the teacher knows you are doing SM and MCT at home? How did you first bring it up? In my ideal world my kid would get exactly the same homework as everybody else (they can't differentiate in the classroom. simply no time for that) and we would write MCT and math journals for the teacher to see the extra work completed. I don't know how to even approach the subject. I am too afraid of inadvertently insulting her.

 

I already have an issue with spelling. At some point in October my kid began bringing insane spelling words (jeopardy, leopard.....). I couldn't understand what was going on. Apparently the teacher decided to let my son and another boy in the classroom pick their own spelling words each week since they can both spell the top 100 list. The result? Supercilious, anemone, etc.... Nothing wrong with those words, but it's not really teaching spelling with rules. So, I bought Megawords and I am planning to show it to her. I am afraid to whip out MCT and SM as well. :001_huh:

How did you do it?

[jennynd]

So the teacher knows you are doing SM and MCT at home? How did you first bring it up?

 

I want to know too.

 

DS wrote on one of his assay one time in school. Not sure if that draw any attention. Nevertheless, I will like the teacher to know... backoff on homework... We are doing just fine

DD3's conference started with the teacher saying.. you must done a lot with her at home. Sure I did :0

[Spy Car]

So the teacher knows you are doing SM and MCT at home? How did you first bring it up? In my ideal world my kid would get exactly the same homework as everybody else (they can't differentiate in the classroom. simply no time for that) and we would write MCT and math journals for the teacher to see the extra work completed. I don't know how to even approach the subject. I am too afraid of inadvertently insulting her.

 

I already have an issue with spelling. At some point in October my kid began bringing insane spelling words (jeopardy, leopard.....). I couldn't understand what was going on. Apparently the teacher decided to let my son and another boy in the classroom pick their own spelling words each week since they can both spell the top 100 list. The result? Supercilious, anemone, etc.... Nothing wrong with those words, but it's not really teaching spelling with rules. So, I bought Megawords and I am planning to show it to her. I am afraid to whip out MCT and SM as well. :001_huh:

How did you do it?

 

Fortunately we are in a friendly (and high-performing) school with teachers that are pro-education and not ones "on the defensive." That helps.

 

With the math it was too obvious that my son was working beyond grade-level not to have a friendly-chat with his teacher about where he was at and what we do at home. We didn't get into great detail, but she was already aware this was an area of strength and acceleration for my child and she was attempting to differentiate in the class-room with him as best she could—it is not easy having children at all sorts of levels—I admire teachers who try to provide for all.

 

Plus my son is a super-friendly and guileless sort who like to talk about what he is learning, so there is no "keeping things quiet" in any case. I have taken in math books (at the teachers request) and now I will take in some of the MCT (agan, at her request).

 

I'm very pleased to have an open working relationship with the school. We (especially my wife) are active parents at the school. The teachers know we support their mission and have found nothing but support for ours at home.

 

We are fortunate.

 

Bill

[Roadrunner]

Fortunately we are in a friendly (and high-performing) school with teachers that are pro-education and not ones "on the defensive." That helps.

 

With the math it was too obvious that my son was working beyond grade-level not to have a friendly-chat with his teacher about where he was at and what we do at home. We didn't get into great detail, but she was already aware this was an area of strength and acceleration for my child and she was attempting to differentiate in the class-room with him as best she could—it is not easy having children at all sorts of levels—I admire teachers who try to provide for all.

 

Plus my son is a super-friendly and guileless sort who like to talk about what he is learning, so there is no "keeping things quiet" in any case. I have taken in math books (at the teachers request) and now I will take in some of the MCT (agan, at her request).

 

I'm very pleased to have an open working relationship with the school. We (especially my wife) are active parents at the school. The teachers know we support their mission and have found nothing but support for ours at home.

 

We are fortunate.

 

Bill

 

Thanks Bill. I will see how it goes with us. We are also in the high-performing school that tries to differentiate, so maybe I will find similar reception.

Oh, GATE program here only starts in the third grade and it's for 2 hours a week. That's it. They spend the time building robots and doing logic puzzles (Logic Safari). :) Nothing else. No special math or English.

[Spy Car]

Thanks Bill. I will see how it goes with us. We are also in the high-performing school that tries to differentiate, so maybe I will find similar reception.

Oh, GATE program here only starts in the third grade and it's for 2 hours a week. That's it. They spend the time building robots and doing logic puzzles (Logic Safari). :) Nothing else. No special math or English.

 

Our school doesn't even have a separate time during the week. Granted 40% of the children in the school are evidently part of GATE. Nothing really special here either. Starting in Third Grade here as well.

 

In my experience teachers enjoy working with motivated students with good skills. This makes their job easier. And generally is is a whole lot easier having a child who is "ahead" than one who needs remediation. Every year the teachers get to "draft" children, believe me it is the ones who are "ahead" that get picked first.

 

Bill

[Roadrunner]

I just came back from parent teacher conferences (K and 1st). It couldn't have gone any better. The first grade teacher kept thanking us for being wonderful parents, which I take as "thank you for working with your kid and teaching him." Both boys are way beyond their grade abilities and both have friends (I thought for some reason they were having social issues). The teacher (1st grade) was so happy to share all the wonderful things my kiddo accomplished that I couldn't bring myself to discuss the load of homework. However, she was encouraging me to pursue poetry with him and even dab a little bit in Latin :). Apparently she went to the Catholic school. I am one pround mommy right now and I just can't wait to shower kisses on both my boys when I see them tonight. She was happy to hear we challenge DS in math, but didn't ask if we use anything particular, so I didn't volunteer. Overall, I could go and kiss that women thousand times. She is the teacher I mentioned earlier that we all love.

O.K. I have bragged enough so now I am a little :blushing:.

[Spy Car]

I just came back from parent teacher conferences (K and 1st). It couldn't have gone any better. The first grade teacher kept thanking us for being wonderful parents, which I take as "thank you for working with your kid and teaching him." Both boys are way beyond their grade abilities and both have friends (I thought for some reason they were having social issues). The teacher (1st grade) was so happy to share all the wonderful things my kiddo accomplished that I couldn't bring myself to discuss the load of homework. However, she was encouraging me to pursue poetry with him and even dab a little bit in Latin :). Apparently she went to the Catholic school. I am one pround mommy right now and I just can't wait to shower kisses on both my boys when I see them tonight. She was happy to hear we challenge DS in math, but didn't ask if we use anything particular, so I didn't volunteer. Overall, I could go and kiss that women thousand times. She is the teacher I mentioned earlier that we all love.

O.K. I have bragged enough so now I am a little :blushing:.

 

:001_smile:

 

Bill

[Roadrunner]

And to earn my title of a "wonderful parent" I took the day off and spent my morning laminating SOTW geopardy game cards and timeline figurines. :lol:

[Spy Car]

And to earn my title of a "wonderful parent" I took the day off and spent my morning laminating SOTW geopardy game cards and timeline figurines. :lol:

 

I'm going to "Middle School Night" tonight at our elementary school. And yes, I started attending this annual event when my son was in Kindergarten :D

 

Bill

[jenbrdsly]

I try to be a "happy after-schooler" (as opposed to a "grumpy" one) because we are in a pretty great position school-wise. But I went to a "parent information night" for our GATE program the other night, and in the reams of "helpful" suggestions and ideas for "differentiation" there was a complete void when it came to parent-led instruction at home.

 

I was thinking about this over the past few days... From my brief stint on the Davidson Gifted boards (before I was publicly harangued and left in tears), it seemed that there was a vocal percentage of parents of gifted children out there who seem to think that unschooling is the ideal to aspire to... that you should either leave your child alone to pursue his own interests, or else enroll them in college at age 11. Any type of extra work you might do with your child afterschool could be attacked as "hothousing". Any of us who try Afterschooling gifted children and sharing our ideas of how, are mercenary and only interested in self-promotion.

[Spy Car]

I was thinking about this over the past few days... From my brief stint on the Davidson Gifted boards (before I was publicly harangued and left in tears), it seemed that there was a vocal percentage of parents of gifted children out there who seem to think that unschooling is the ideal to aspire to... that you should either leave your child alone to pursue his own interests, or else enroll them in college at age 11. Any type of extra work you might do with your child afterschool could be attacked as "hothousing". Any of us who try Afterschooling gifted children and sharing our ideas of how, are mercenary and only interested in self-promotion.

 

Remind me not to go there :D

 

Bill

[Roadrunner]

I was thinking about this over the past few days... From my brief stint on the Davidson Gifted boards (before I was publicly harangued and left in tears), it seemed that there was a vocal percentage of parents of gifted children out there who seem to think that unschooling is the ideal to aspire to... that you should either leave your child alone to pursue his own interests, or else enroll them in college at age 11. Any type of extra work you might do with your child afterschool could be attacked as "hothousing". Any of us who try Afterschooling gifted children and sharing our ideas of how, are mercenary and only interested in self-promotion.

 

Maybe we should explain to them what education means to us. :001_smile:

[Element]

I finally had dd's PTC today and I love her teacher (I thought I would) so that's good. I found out that a 2nd grade class in her school is piloting Singapore math! She didn't know whether it was MiF or Primary Mathematics, but either way I was amazed to hear that it's a possibility in our district. :thumbup1:

 

Dd needs improvement in "creative writing" (which I'm not that concerned with at this time) and handwriting (which I'm trying to work on.) She is very slow and her handwriting still looks like that of a struggling kindergartener (she's in 1st.) I have been taking the advice of the Hive and having her work on coloring as well as writing so hopefully we'll see some improvement there.

 

Overall, it went really well!

[Bang!Zoom!]

Remind me not to go there :D

 

Bill

 

Hey, Bill...don't go over there. :D

[jenbrdsly]

We told her teacher about her anxiety about her discipline system since the kid was terrified to speak up in class for fear of "having her clip moved." (The teacher has a traffic light with clothespins. If the kids misbehave, they must move their clip and if they get to red they go in time out or see the principal.)

 

:001_smile:

 

Is it an older teacher by chance? The clip moving system is from the "Assertive Discipline" philosophy whereas a lot of younger teachers use a "Positive Discipline" approach. Either is fine by me so long as the class is in order, I'm just curious. Your daughter would probably do better with a Positive Discipline approach since she's freaked out about the pin moving.

[Spy Car]

Ours is tomorrow.

 

Bill

[jenbrdsly]

Ours is tomorrow.

 

Bill

 

 

How did it go?

[Spy Car]

How did it go?

 

I was out of sync. It is tomorrow.

 

Bill

[Roadrunner]

Bumping the thread Bill :)

[Spy Car]

Bumping the thread Bill :)

 

It will take place this afternoon. I'm not exactly on edge. It's funny how it goes. My wife and I were probably as geared-up as an parents can be in Kindergarten, a little less so in First Grade, and are now heading towards blasé. Not there yet, we certainly care. But my heart isn't beating fast (yet :D).

 

We will see.

 

Bill

[Roadrunner]

And once again we had a parent teacher conference, but this time around, I am not feeling as happy. According to teachers both my boys are miles ahead and doing very well. In fact, teachers suggested we stop enriching at home, especially math, because of a growing gap in knowledge between them and their classmates. The school doesn't allow for kids to switch classrooms and can't accommodate kids that are ahead (although one of my son's teacher tried the best she could to differentiate in class).

Basically I was advised to do nothing at home other than reading.

We were so excited to dive into Beast Academy when it's out and keep learning. After today's conversations I am starting to worry that maybe I am actually doing disservice to my boys. I know it sounds insane, but I can't shake up that voice in my head that says teachers might be right. We should just stick to reading and piano and only afterschool on grade level. So discouraging. Hopefully I will wake up tomorrow and my doubts will be gone.

[Sneezyone]

I would a) ignore that advice entirely and b) schedule a meeting with the teacher and principal during which you pointedly ask whether the school/district's policy is to discourage parental involvement and prevent children from achieving to the best of their ability. If that's the case, perhaps you need to visit the school board to have the policy revised. Oh, and bring a tape recorder to capture the school-level backpedaling. :glare:

 

Assuming that is not, in fact, the school's policy then (in your most cheerful voice) surely you can work out an amicable solution whereby your children are instructed at their level. Perhaps they could walk to a different classroom for math instruction or receive math packets from a different teacher, etc. Ask them what the best practices are for these situations (ego-stroking can't hurt) and how they might be adapted to fit.

 

Your problem could be as simple as an overworked teacher who doesn't have the energy to come up with a creative solution.

Edited March 6, 2012 by Sneezyone

[Roadrunner]

I would a) ignore that advice entirely and b) schedule a meeting with the teacher and principal during which you pointedly ask whether the school/district's policy is to discourage parental involvement and prevent children from achieving to the best of their ability. If that's the case, perhaps you need to visit the school board to have the policy revised. Oh, and bring a tape recorder to capture the school-level backpedaling. :glare:

 

Assuming that is not, in fact, the school's policy then (in your most cheerful voice) surely you can work out an amicable solution whereby your children are instructed at their level. Perhaps they could walk to a different classroom for math instruction or receive math packets from a different teacher, etc. Ask them what the best practices are for these situations (ego-stroking can't hurt) and how they might be adapted to fit.

 

Your problem could be as simple as an overworked teacher who doesn't have the energy to come up with a creative solution.

 

This is apparently specifically against the district policy. The reasoning? Kids have to attend their own grade because of test prep. They need to learn the "language" used on the tests. :confused:

Actually the teacher is great. She has done a lot for a couple of boys (including mine) in the classroom.

 

Another teacher told me she is now prohibited from sending home anything she hasn't covered in class. She did this last year to differentiate instruction. Apparently higher grade teachers have been complaining about different academic levels of kids, so they managed to institute this new policy. There goes differentiation.

And we live in a "very desirable school district."

[Nart]

I wonder if parents whose children weren't advanced complained. I wouldn't listen to the teachers. Go ahead and keep afterschooling, and don't say anything to the teachers unless you are asked. The reality is that teachers are all about the test scores and making sure all students are at least proficient, so all the resources go to the lowest performing students. Don't expect that the school will differentiate for your kids, but don't be bullied into stopping and letting them stagnate so it will be easier for the teachers.

 

I think Roadrunner, from your previous posts, that your school uses EnVision Math. I work at three schools that use EnVision and I don't see any differentation going on. Perhaps there is a separate component for advanced students but I haven't seen it. I like certain aspects of EnVision, but it seems awfully boring for students who are advanced in math. My oldest will start kindergarten next year and his school uses Everyday Math. I am not thrilled, but I am willing to give it a chance because at least he will be doing something different at school than what he is doing at home with Singapore Math.

[Roadrunner]

I think Roadrunner, from your previous posts, that your school uses EnVision Math. I work at three schools that use EnVision and I don't see any differentation going on. Perhaps there is a separate component for advanced students but I haven't seen it. I like certain aspects of EnVision, but it seems awfully boring for students who are advanced in math. My oldest will start kindergarten next year and his school uses Everyday Math. I am not thrilled, but I am willing to give it a chance because at least he will be doing something different at school than what he is doing at home with Singapore Math.

You are right. There is no differentiation in the classroom for enVision math. She has however given us different homework in math (some sort of a math rubric that has a list of activities to pick from). It's really in language arts that she has been very helpful. My son's class has several kids that are ahead and she managed to differentiate on spelling, writing and reading. She didn't have to, so I am very grateful that she did.

She is concerned that my kid will start disliking school because he isn't learning much. I think it's a valid concern, but it would take 2 years for the class to catch up to him in math. It's frustrating.

[Sneezyone]

I would still probably take the issue further up the food chain. A lot of the times the school board is not aware of the day to day impact of staff-led policy changes. It wouldn't hurt to make them show you the policy.

[MBM]

I was in a similar boat, Road Runner. Don't take your school's advice! Fuggetaboudem! (Translation: Forget about them.) Their advice is silly. Yeah, your son will probably be bored in class. Send in a few pages of the stuff he does at home and keep him going. Eventually, maybe the school will allow your son to just work independently. My son did that during grade school, but initially, the school didn't allow it. In the meantime, scout out middle schools, junior highs, high schools. Now is the time to try to find out what they truly offer. Good luck there!

 

Also, area math groups can be helpful in finding local resources, and they will very likely know the details of other schools' math programs. If you're in California, you probably have something around you.

Edited March 7, 2012 by MBM
forgot a word

[jenbrdsly]

This is apparently specifically against the district policy. The reasoning? Kids have to attend their own grade because of test prep. They need to learn the "language" used on the tests. :confused:

Actually the teacher is great. She has done a lot for a couple of boys (including mine) in the classroom.

 

Another teacher told me she is now prohibited from sending home anything she hasn't covered in class. She did this last year to differentiate instruction. Apparently higher grade teachers have been complaining about different academic levels of kids, so they managed to institute this new policy. There goes differentiation.

And we live in a "very desirable school district."

 

:glare::glare::glare:

 

Very frustrating!

[Roadrunner]

I hope you guys are having better experiences.

[rachsr]

I have one scheduled tomorrow. I am bracing myself for complaints. DS seems to have started just putting random numbers on the page these days for his math work. He claims to be confused doing time problems that he had done very easily 2 years ago. Have to see how it goes.

[aly9712]

Ours is this week.....I'll post afterwards.

[SweetPea]

I'm actually looking forward to our conferences. I really do like both teachers. The 1st grade teacher has been quite helpful in helping my ds take pride in his work :D