I have a gifted 4 year old who will be 5 on October 19th 2007. The cutoff in Massachusetts is Sept 1. He is already in his second year of preschool and I'm afraid a third year would be counterproductive to his future attitude toward learning. He is already bored. The principal and superintendant's office rarely allow early entrance to kindergarten but they have done is a few times over the years. Has anyone successfully fought the system? What was the determining factor? Thanks.
2007-02-19 06:50:39 · 12 answers · asked by Jennifer L 3 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Toddler & Preschooler
Have you looked into private schools? I am in a similar situation, my daughter is very bright and has a July b-day so there is no way she would be accepted for early admission. I have a lot of problems with the public school system, for example, they do not test for the gifted program until the end of first grade and I have read many articles stating that by that point the gifted child may have already started to regress and hide their gifts to appear like their peers. Another problem with the public school system is the No Child Left behind policy, schools are so focused on the students that are behind passing the tests in order to receive funding that the students who are ahead do not receive enough attention and often act out and become labeled a trouble maker.
We found a small independent private school in our area that develops a passion for learning in its students. I hope you have something similar near you.
Have you read the Hoagies Gifted page? There are a lot of good articles to get you started.
http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/
2007-02-19 11:04:15 · answer #1 · answered by 3B 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is more than reading and counting to 100, etc. to meeting the objectives in pre-K. So just because he can do those things does not mean he will be bored or his brain will not develop. (Hopefully you have not told him these things and given him permission to misbehave!) Also in my experience being the oldest (or near it) in a class works to the child's advantage. Being the youngest certainly does not. Many children, particularly boys, show a real lag in social skills if they are the youngest. There is much more developmentally to this than is apparent, particularly when you have not watched the process over years. (25 in my case.) You could home school if your time and energy allow. Or you might even be able to find a private school that would take him. But I doubt that he will be damaged by being put into a pre-K classroom for the coming year. Besides considering his social development, think about the thematic units he would benefit from, particularly moving to Houston, with the cultural diversity that he will learn about. Also here is a link to the pre-K TEKS so you can see if he really has mastered all these skills.
2016-05-24 10:57:12 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have seen it happen with a couple of girls, but never a boy. Boys tend to be ready academically or socially but very rarely in both aspects. Try a private school if you must.
I do understand your plight, as I have a very intelligent little boy. I have had him at a private academy, but right now I have him for a year in a home day care setting where the kids are all about his age and it is an environment that stresses social skills. I am hoping this is helping prepare him to be a well rounded kid in kindergarten (he will be the youngest in his class, as his bday is the cut off). He has always been very advanced for his age (was really into trapezoids at age 2, for example) and it is easy to imagine him being labeled gifted someday. However, kids don't get moved ahead grades unless they can handle it socially in large groups of peers, which isn't the same as interacting at home or occasionally in a sunday school setting.
good luck -
2007-02-19 07:31:10 · answer #3 · answered by Rosie S 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
We had thought about doing this with my now 6 1/2 year old....our cutoff is August 1st her birthday is August 9th...but in order for early admission we had to put her through sooo many things and then it was not a guarenteed acceptance. So we chose to just keep her home and come up with our own learning exercises. Once she entered school we just discussed with the teacher about her being advanced and so far the teacher has accomodated her(gives her extra assignments and has gotten worksheets from the higher grade levels for her to work on when her class assignments are finished) until she can be tested for giftedness and placed in the proper classes.
2007-02-19 06:59:26 · answer #4 · answered by mom2ace 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Try finding a development center in your area. They will cater to his needs. My 4 year old starts one next week. We also work at home with him a lot. Try not to push though, we work when he is ready. A lot of the time he would rather sit down with his flash cards or workbooks rather than color or play games. Anyways, they send report cards home every 6 weeks so you know how they are doing and where they stand on skills and everything. I'm not worrying about starting my son early (he will be 5 on October 6th) though I know he will be advanced for his age, I want him to be OK with social skills and be emotionally ready.
2007-02-19 10:13:30 · answer #5 · answered by spiceyangel83 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I doubt you'll be successful. Most place are fairly rigid about the age limit when it comes to entering school. Gifted academically at this age doesn't necessarily mean that the child is socially and emotionally mature as well. Once your child is in school, maybe they'd skip her a grade to challenge her. Most places don't test for giftedness until a child is old enough to have taken standardized tests. About 3rd grade or 4th grade.
2007-02-19 07:11:00 · answer #6 · answered by Sylvia 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First off, you probably do have a very gifted child :) thats wonderful!!! We have four boys and our oldest and our youngest are fantastic at catching on to things, remembering. Things that are hard for most children their age. Though i dont want to discourage them, i dont make them feel like they are smarter or better than any other child their age. Because thats simply not the truth. Most schools deny early admission because of the fact that menally they are smart and ready, emotionally they are not. They are not mature enough. Most children that are book smart, usually lack a little bit of independance and its hard for them socially to fit in. They just arent ready Goodluck
2007-02-19 07:09:03 · answer #7 · answered by jess_n_flip 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Take in samples of his work that he has done so far to the principal and the KG teachers. Have him read for them if he is already reading. Let them see what level of books he can handle. See if they will test him for early entrance. He is so close to the cut off already and if you think he is gifted, he is probably going to be better off starting now instead of waiting another entire year. Good luck!
2007-02-19 07:39:42 · answer #8 · answered by momma2mingbu 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
the school system I worked for tried early admissions to kindergarten. those that got in didn't always succeed and got held back. rather, see if you have a better nursery school, like Montessori or maybe a church school. a child has to be emotionally ready as well as academically ready.
2007-02-19 06:57:06 · answer #9 · answered by wendy_da_goodlil_witch 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Gifted? At his age? Who tested and determined this? A child needs to be physically, emotionally and socially ready to handle school. Not just academically advanced for his age.
What is the rush? Let him be a kid. If he is bored get him in some extra classes outside of preschool in music, art, sports, whatever!
2007-02-19 07:02:28 · answer #10 · answered by SouthernGrits 5 · 2⤊ 2⤋