Hello,
My sister has a child in the 2nd grade and he is doing well but the work that he is getting in his classes is too easy so the school placed him in some 3rd grade courses. He is doing exceptional in the 3rd grade classes but we need some advice on what to do for him. When he was in 1st grade they had him in the 2nd grade classes because again the work is too easy for him and he usually completes it faster than the other students and then serve as the "teacher helper". I want the best for my nephew and need some advice because now that he is in the 2nd grade we are noticing the same trend. Are there any mamas out there with a similar situation. I would hate to have him keep doing this split for 3rd, 4th, etc. Is this the only solution? Thank you I cannot wait for the responses because we desperately need some help!
Would the school consider having him "skip" second grade and move into 3rd? If he did 2nd grade work last year, he will be repeating everything.
If he is gifted in all areas, consider whole-grade advancement. Have him evaluated by the Iowa Accelertation scale: http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/iowa_accel_scale.htm.
Many of the fears people have about acceleration are unfounded and research has proven that being younger is no more or less a problem than anything else:
http://www.davidsongifted.org/db/Articles_id_10174.aspx
The Iowa test takes into consideration not just intelligence, but maturity, ability to handle stress, parental and school support. If he scores "excellent" on it (not just "good"), and his school is supportive and willing, moving him up a whole grade could be an alternative if your sister doesn't want to homeschool. People resist this, but you have to consider the individual child. If he is more mature than kids his age and being put in the position of helper, that can hurt him socially a great deal more. If he is in a classroom where he is challenged and the kids are his peers, he will do much better socially if you move him up.
I do not know what your sisters working conditions are, but if she is able to stay at home I highly recommend Ohio Virtual Academy http://www.k12.com
My son was in the same situation, I withdrew him from Brick and Mortar school and put him into OHVA. He is doing exceptionally. I am not a fan of homeschool being an educator, I always looked down on it. OHVA is different. You are schooling at home but you have a curriculum to follow and a teacher to answer to. Please feel free to give me a call or send an email if you or your sister have any questions. I could write forever on how great of a program it is. And I have not written off normal school either. My other 2 children go to one, OHVA is just more appropriate for my "gifted" son.
Take Care
M. P. ###-###-#### ____@____.com
The options are to have him "skip" and be promoted to third grade or to keep him in second with his peers and let him do the split classes and continue at the correct level for the classes he is not advanced in. Over the summer he can do school work to catch up to the next grade level and if he tests on he could go immediately into the fourth grade next year.
I guess I don;t see the negative. There are schools that do that anyway so that the kids are challenged properly and don't get bored. Also it helps them to learn how to socialize with older kids. I wish our school would do that more and not be based on a "grade". That is mostly for the convenience of the schools. In the old days when there were one room classrooms that was the norm and I swear they got a better education.
T.,
Is he having any behavioral difficulties because of boredon or are you simply concerned that he get the education that he needs?
As long as he is behaving himself, there is a lot to be said for keeping an advanced child with his peers, especially when they are too young for a gifted identification, and your nephew is.
It is not uncommon for kids who are advanced at this age to have their aged peers catch up with them by the end of third grade, which is the earliest time that a gifted child can be identified reliably. There are certainly extreemly rare exceptions where giftedness is clear by his age, but you are not discribing those circumstances.
He is learning more in school than just his subjects, he is learning social skills and pragmatics, and these areas need time with peers to develop well, so he is reaping many beneifits to being at school, even if the academic work comes easily now.
The school has done well by moving him up to more challanging work while keeping him in his grade, and my guess is that they understand how important his social development is, and they are waiting for him to get a little older to see if the trend continues for him.
If your school has a gifted program, find out about the details. Gifted programs are not mandated, but if the district offers it in one school in the distrct, they must offer it at all the schools. I would be very surprised if they offer any programing prior to 4th grade. While it is tempting to do so, giftedness is not the flipside of the special education coin, and therefore, does not qualify gifted children for individual education programs. Special education programs provide qualifying students with a basic floor of opportunity to access general aducation, and gifted children already access basic general education, so it is not the same thing.
My suggestion for you is to ask the teachers to assign him more reading that he can study independently. While the other kids may catch up with him, a lifelong love of reading and having more reading experience is going to stick with him for a lifetime. Asking teachers to assign the reading and have one on one time with him to discuss what he has read, or to present it to his class, may help him see this task as an assignement instead of being busy work while his peers do regular studies.
Being a teachers helper is also a very good way to develop leadership skills, and you may find that even if he is no longer advanced in relation to his peers, he is more accostomed to leading and gains confindence that will be invaluable to him in his future.
What a good aunt you are!
M.
I think you have to take into consideration not only his learning development but also his social development if you choose to put him in a higher grade. Of course you also have to consider the school structure and what programs they offer. Another great way would be to supplement his learning with outside resources like Beestar. They have a great gifted and talented program which caters to help students with achieving high scores and being placed in GT programs that are offered. I generally go for supplemental worksheets and websites because sometimes learning goes hand in hand with social development.
I have a daughter who like you became bored in traditional schools because she was done before everyone or was learning things she already knew so I looked around for other options. This is when I found OHDELA. OHDELA is a tuition-free online charter school. It allows her to work at her own pace and even progress grade levels as she completes them. We started her in this program two and a half years ago and things have gone so well we put all our kids in it this year. You can learn more by going to their website or giving them a call. 800.493.8680 or at http://www.ohdela.com
My oldest daughter was just like that in kindergarten and first grade. It was frustrating because she was bored and unhappy. We moved to another city and she is now in a gifted and talented program and it has made a huge difference. We love it! It's called ELP-expanded learning program. She is in a classroom with 19 other children just like her so they do all advanced work. My youngest daughter just started kindergarten and I got her tested. She also placed in the ELP program. She is also very happy.
My son is in 2nd grade but he is in the gifted & talented program at his school. He's in a classroom with other gifted children - all are 2nd and 3rd grade students. They are doing 3rd or higher level work. All school systems are different so she needs to see what's available. If there's not a gifted and talented program in place (there should be) then he should be considered for grade-skipping. There used to be some fears that grade skipping would be bad for the student but they found it's much better for the child emotionally/socially than staying "stuck" and not being able to work to their potential. By law, the schools need to have some sort of testing for gifted/talented. The laws for gifted education do vary by state.
I see that most of these responses don't really address the issue. I can't say that my answer will, either, but my nephew is in the same situation. One mom posted a gifted program -- that's what my sister has done. (My nephew is 15 now.) For a few of the younger years, she put him in a gifted school (they live in the Chicago area). I don't know if that is an option for you, but you're correct to keep him challenged. Boys, whether they are gifted or not, still mature slower than girls. =) They should stay in their approximate peer group, but his brain also needs challenged. Keep working with the school -- it IS awesomet that they are working with you!! I just hope you can find the solution that works for you guys. Check out gifted schools in your area!!
You don't mention where your nephew attends school.
There are different laws and options depending on the state and school district.
My best advice would be to contact the gifted coordinator of the school or even the state if it hasn't been addressed appropriately by the school district.
A friend, just yesterday, contacted the Ohio coordinator and got LOTS of information. She learned that the school was not following appropriate procedure. As a new parent to the school system she relied on the principal and teacher to help her. And she didn't know her rights.
The school needs to impliment an appropriate education plan specific for your nephew.
AND don't wait for him to "level" out with his peers. Leveling only happens because these gifted children are ignored and expected to wait for their peers to catch up. It is the responsibility of the school to teach ALL students to allow them to reach their full potential. Your nephew needs to be challenged so he'll continue to excel instead of stall.
Best wishes for your nephew and all gifted students.
Your nephew appears to be much more advanced than the other children, but eventually it will even out.My younger sister was doing 2nd grade work in kindergarden, but I was coming home from school and teaching her what I had learned.Around 4 th grade it leveled out and she no longer was the "Nerd" that was smarter than the rest.Actually him being advanced right now is not so bad because most of my students I tutor are boys that are falling behind.Boys seem to mature slower the first few years of school.I tutor reading and so far in the last 4 years all but one of my students were boys.
Your nephew must have wonderful parents who spend a lot of time teaching him things. Be thankful and let him be him and enjoy ever moment you can with him, they turn into teenagers before we know it.
Yeah, I can see how that would be hard to keep switching him a grade ahead. I really don't know what to tell ya. My girls are homeschooled. One is 3 and average for her age as far as academics, the oldest one however is 4 and is doing first grade work. Like I said we homeschool but we still put them in extra activities like story time at the library, ballet, swim lessons, etc. If you can't or don't want to homeschool, I'm not sure what to tell ya. You don't want him thinking that school is boring. But to him it probably is or will be. I do know that sometimes homeschooling is looked down upon because of the "social deprivation". I say "poo" to that, our girls even though still young make friends often when we go to the park and things like that.
I would be grateful the school is willing to challenge him. when i was a kid i was in 2nd grade but reading at a 5th grade level. my school did nothing and had no plan or program for gifted students so i spent a LOT of time in school waiting....
my parents chose to homeschool me... so i could learn
