Ds's evaluation

[SMB]

We had ds's school conference last night and were told ds will be evaluated to see if he is "gifted" I could not have been more shocked. I always thought ds was bright but not gifted. Ds is only in the first grade so maybe there just wasn't a lot for me to notice. His teacher said that he is grasping concepts very quickly and finishing his work way before everybody else. He also talks to adults with "interesting conversational skills" those were the teachers words. This is the child that I was worried about doing poorly in school because he just doesn't seem to enjoy it. He's always hated paper work and gets bored. I know some of you have mentioned your children being in gifted programs. What are they really looking for and what will probably happen after that? We have another meeting at the school to discuss this next week but I know somebody here has more information. My Mom thought this was fabulous news but I'm a little worried. I've already noticed that ds likes to talk to adults and isn't the best at interacting with his peers and this just worries me more. I don't want him to be a social outcast. Sorry if this post is a little scatterbrained I'm still a little shocked that this is a possiblity.
Sheryl:)

[AnnW]

My ds is in G/T (gifted and talented). In our school, and the way the test is..they are looking for kids who think "out of the box", not really smart thinkers, but almost circular thinkers.
They asked me to test him in Kindergarten. We declined. In our school, G/T in the early grades is just a little extra work with the teacher or sometimes with the counselor, and we just didn't feel it necessary (his teachers were already doing it and it seemed a little isolating). The test for the little ones is kind of tough and long because it is verbal. We just didn't think that he needed that much stress for what the benefits of the program were.
In 3rd grade, the program becomes a pull out, one day a week to another campus program. We let ds test, but he didn't get in. He chose not to test in 4th. He did in 5th and got in. He loved it and loves being in it in middle school. It is rather isolating in that all his classes are G/T so that are the only kids he pretty much sees and interacts with. In middle school, they have changed the model for G/T and it's become very accelerated (ie..he will enter high school as a junior in math). It's been a little hard for some of the kids that fit the G/T profile because of that..ds was always kind of a mix..he tends to think more in the box, but does like a challenge.

My advice is to investigate really well, find out what the program is, what it entails, what the testing is like, if this is a one shot only deal or you can choose to test in later like we did. Find out if he can get out of the program and what are the ramifications if he does. (if ds drops GT he can't go back in because he will be too far behind).

Congrats to you son.

[littlesista06]

Congrats and keep us posted on what happens.

Ann - I am so impressed!! What an experience he's having!!

They don't start "tracking" kids here until 3rd grade. They do have advanced reading groups which dd is in and they get extra reading and activities to do each week (she's in 1st grade) but they do not catagorize the kids this early here.