UPDATE: Please Read Regarding my 6yr old having problems reading -more details added?

Question

Hello everyone

I had recently posted a message about my 6yr old daughter that might have to repeat kindergarden, i wanted to offer a more thorough explanation.

Firstly I had enrolled my daughter in a ESE program for children with either learning disabilities she went to a pre-K class last year she attended it at her current elementary school, at that point they decided to pass her to regular kindergarten and continue speech therapy, they said they would watch her to see how she does in regular classes, well my mistake was not to ask them what would happen if she didn't do well, I guess since the teachers were so optimistic, and i thought that kinder was as easy as it was when i was growing up,I thought she would be fine.

anyway after she started kinder we went to one meeting and they said she was doing well except for math, well that was about 3 months ago, now the teacher tells me she might be held up in kinder because of reading problems, and that she is doing well in math, well we only have 2 more months of school here in florida and I am of course worried, I mean I do have many books, and I do spend some time with her, however I am now also asking myself why didn't they put her in some sort of special ed class if she is a slow learner, and it's not as if they didn't know it since for her to be put on that program she went through a lot of tests in 6 months.

anyway I am a bit upset at myself also would I have known that kinder was sooo hard nowadays I would have done more that I have to this point, but in the same token there the experts and they should have known what to do with a child that has learning difficulties, maybe take her out of a normal kinder and put her in some sort of special ed class?especially since she is enrolled in that ESE program, there solution is for her to repeat kinder, and I don't agree as I have seen how much she has learned.

The teacher tells me that my daughter is very well behaved and gives it her all, but with reading difficulties she cannot pass to 1st grade, I really don't know whether I should fight this or not, because I know I am the parent and I take full responsabilty, however some does fall on them since they should have informed me of this sooner, had I known she would have to repeat kinder for failing to learn how to read, I would have focused more on reading and not so much on math. I figured they could put her in 1st grade special ed class instead of having her repeat kinder.

I however did order Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons recommended by someone here I also and did go to the starfall.com website, this is the first time I have had this kind of experience since she is my oldest daughter and my youngest is in Pre-K I had no idea kinds could repeat kinder, anyway I will ask them about summer school and what else I could do, but this has all caught me off guard, I just need some guidance when it comes to this, because we will be having a meeting soon, and I don't know whether to fight it or just let it be, in any event I just want to look out for my daughter, Thanks so much to all the caring folks on this site, I appreciate all your advice. sorry for the long message.

Answer 1

I'll keep repeating in what I answered on your last post. another thought is to check into a transitional 1st grade program if offered. Just because reading is a problem shouldn't keep your child in Kindergarten another year unless the teacher thinks another year will help your child's OVERALL development. again, contact your local school special ed office, and check into the regional SERRC center (special education resource referral center). these are run by the state dept of ed, and offer lots of support for parents. (link below)
{flunking Kindergarten! heck, when I taught Kindergarten in the 80's the only way you flunked was due to an overall low performance and a lack of ability to keep up with the schoolwork. but reading!!!!! they are not developmentally ready to read at age 6!!!!!!! yes, some kids get it, some don't. what needs to be taught first are the basics. I mean rhyming (cat/hat), then words with similar beginning/end sounds (pie, pig) (scare/chair), and so on. Those are the basics tor reading. Dr. Seuss books are great for this. If she is successful with rhyming and identifying similar sounds, then go on to identifying sounds of individual letters. And here is the freebie tip of the day, because of the "No Child Left Behind" act your child is eligible for free tutoring services. contact your districts special education services department, most deny these services are available to you. (It is the law for districts to provide this!) a last resort is go to Sylvan services, they usually do a great job of tutoring, and offering advice to parents. good luck! below are two links, one for the dept of ed tutoring info, and one for a clip on the program. what a great mom! go for it!}

Source(s):

http://www.ed.gov/parents/academic/invol...

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/education...

Answer 2

Schools don't generally like to test students for learning disabilities until they're closer to second grade. There are many reasons for this, some being that kids just are developmentally different, and it's harder to be sure that it's a learning disability until they're a bit older. People don't want to assign a child a label unless they're sure.

Of course, the big problem of that is by second grade you can be very behind, as you've already thought of. You don't want your daughter falling behind even more when she could be getting help for a potential problem.

There are a few things I'd do. First, I'd talk to the teacher and find out exactly what it is she seems to be having problems with and if she has any activities you can do to help her out. I would also talk to the school counselor and possibly the school psychologist about this. Tell them that even if she can't be tested yet, you'd like to do the best you can to make sure she doesn't fall too behind and want to know what you can do to help.

Also, be sure to ask what the reasons are for having her repeat kindergarten. It's possible that if they explain the reasoning behind holding her back (as opposed to putting her in a special ed class) you might find that you agree with them. If not, it would give you something more to work with in terms of opposing it later on.

To be honest, this might be the best thing for your daughter. If she's struggling a little now, then she'll probably struggle in first grade, too. She could just be a little slower developmentally, and that's okay. It's possible that another year in kindergarten will have her mastering the skills she needs and she'll do better once she moves on. Also, if she did another year of kindergarten and still had problems, the teachers might be more likely to try to get her tested to find out about a special class.

Actually (sorry this is so long), just so you know, schools are trying to move away from separating students as much as possible. They try to keep kids in "normal" classrooms, and offer support as necessary. If your daughter has only a reading problem, she may have a special tutor, or someone who takes her out of class a couple of times a week, or a special reading class, etc. Recently there has been a big push towards having kids with all types of disabilities placed in regular classes to the greatest extent possible. You might want to talk to your school about the different options they have for this. They probably don't want to put her in special education if she can be kept in a normal classroom because this is the philosophy of the moment, but they may have tutors who could work with her if you asked.

Answer 3

You will have to trust your gut on this to some extent. My sister has gone through a lot of this with her daughter who has significant LD. I don't know why they would be blaming you. I don't really believe that the difference between most kids who read vs dont read is whether the mother is doing worksheets with the kid at home. I have to encourage you not to blame yourself.
I do want to point out that kindergarten is usually thought to be the easiest to repeat. If it isn't treated as a punishment, but as a chance to catch up and be really ready for first grade. If the extra year would allow her to largely keep up with her peers then it may well be worth it. I would certainly demand some special ed support for her during the repeated year. Some school systems have great sp ed programs and some are really weak. In general it is harder to catch up the further along in school they are.
Best of luck to you and your daughter.

Answer 4

I'm in the same boat as you-my son repeated kinder because he stutters and he is shy. So when the teacher asks him to speak in class, he refuses or he mutters, because the other kids laugh at him. I felt just sick having him repeat kindergarten, but his teacher recommended it. School is not the same as it was for you and me. Hell I thought it was fun, but they are too focused on what a child doesn't know and darn quick to blame the parents. Just teach my son-that's what I say. A few times a month, I volunteer in his class to see where the problems are and having other kids laughing at you IS a very big problem. Also if there is no teacher's aide, the teacher has a lot on their plate-teaching, reteaching, all the students in a short period of the day to stay on track with the learning objective. Sylvan learning center has helped my son learn to read at a slow pace so he can control his speech better, that's helped with the stuttering. Also we put him on a bowling league for beginners to help with his self esteem. He's learning how to focus on one thing at a time, through Sylvan so next year he should be ready for 1st grade. Still Sylvan suggested he go to summer school-any extra learning never hurts, right?! Good luck to you and try to remember that repeating this grade level does not mean your child won't go to college...or better yet, become our next president!!! Don't be so hard on yourself, you aren't alone and this won't be the last time you'll feel like you failed your child-TRUST ME!!Make this learning time fun for both of you. Dollar stores have a lot of activity books, so does DOVER PRINTABLES, now that's a great site to visit. Good luck, Hon. God Bless.

Answer 5

if ur daughter has disabilities then they shoulda kept her in special-ed classes!!!!!
u have to fight this and tell em they wanted to see how she would do
if they knew she was bad at reading they shoulda put her back in special ed!!!!
tell em to put her back and special ed and pass her to 1st grade
y should ur daugther suffer cuz they made a mistake