Hoping the Rain Stays Away-We're Going Back in May-TR started

[MaryAz]

Hi Mary,
I don't really have much advice but as another mom to a child in kindergarten, I can say that it is a pretty hard year for these kids. They are alone and having to make the right choices for themselves for the first time and so excited too because of this new environment they are in! In our school if you talk, your name goes up on the board and you loose 5 mins off recess. Myles LOVES rewards, so for us we have a chart and for each day that he comes home and says his name wasn't on the board, we put a gold star and at the end of the week if he has 5 gold stars he gets to pick something out for himself at the toy store. It seems to work good for us and he feels so proud of himself when he has a great week. Avery sounds like such a bright little girl, I am sure you will figure out what is best for her!

Thanks Nickie It is a hard year. And her day is so long 9-3p. Maybe I should try a sticker chart at home.

 

[mickeystoontown]

Thanks so much Lisa, judging by how well Lacey turned out I am thrilled to hear Avery is like her! We do talk about what happened at school. I just feel that if she was talking-the teacher reacted with the correct consequence then it was handled. Now if I got a note home everyday.....I look forward to the conference.

That's so sweet of you to say. Lacey did turn out pretty good if I do say so myself. I do have to confess though that she did get in trouble once in high school.........she skipped school! Wanna know where she went? To a prayer meeting. Yep, she skipped school to go to church. I just couldn't make myself punish her for that.

 

[Charlefours]

Going from a relatively shorter preschool time to full day Kindergarten is an adjustment no doubt!! (I am an advocate of all day kindergarten but that is besides the point. ).

It definitely sounds like she is bored. What is the ratio of the class? Does she have a helper? Is it only the center work she is having problems during? It's hard on the teachers to juggle the advance students with the regular and struggling students. Maybe ask her teacher how she feels about having her do more advanced worksheets whenever it is possible and she has time. Maybe have the teacher give them to her as a "reward."

However you choose to deal with it, you do not want A to be singled out constantly. YOU know you child best--how would she react to having a chart at home? Is is something that would motivate her to do well during school, coming home with green notes everyday? Have you talked with her saying it is not okay to make her teacher upset with her? Lilian normally reacts strongly to me mentioning being disappointed or sad about something she has done. Much better for her than to get mad or yell (though I have had my moments....).

 

[MaryAz]

That's so sweet of you to say. Lacey did turn out pretty good if I do say so myself. I do have to confess though that she did get in trouble once in high school.........she skipped school! Wanna know where she went? To a prayer meeting. Yep, she skipped school to go to church. I just couldn't make myself punish her for that.

Oh dear, LOL. What a naughty girl!

 

[MaryAz]

Going from a relatively shorter preschool time to full day Kindergarten is an adjustment no doubt!! (I am an advocate of all day kindergarten but that is besides the point. ).

It definitely sounds like she is bored. What is the ratio of the class? Does she have a helper? Is it only the center work she is having problems during? It's hard on the teachers to juggle the advance students with the regular and struggling students. Maybe ask her teacher how she feels about having her do more advanced worksheets whenever it is possible and she has time. Maybe have the teacher give them to her as a "reward."

However you choose to deal with it, you do not want A to be singled out constantly. YOU know you child best--how would she react to having a chart at home? Is is something that would motivate her to do well during school, coming home with green notes everyday? Have you talked with her saying it is not okay to make her teacher upset with her? Lilian normally reacts strongly to me mentioning being disappointed or sad about something she has done. Much better for her than to get mad or yell (though I have had my moments....).

I think there are 24-25 students in the class. No aide. There is a parent there during centers most mornings. Most of the notes say "talking at centers" They have been doing esentially the same thing at centers since Aug. I did get an idea from reading Meghan's post that maybe she could read her chapter book for 2 15 min time slots instead of practicing letters on a white board. Or have the teacher give her a worksheet to do. I did talk with her about getting all greens and what kind of reward she would like. She said ice cream. I don't usually like to do food rewards but I did ask her. I told her that it is not ok for her to be rude or disrupt her teacher or other kids learning. She goes to a school that is a canidate for International Bacalorette so they talk about being "principled learners' Thanks for the advice!

 

[SoonerGirl]

I think the biggest thing is just to make sure that she understands that even though what they are working on might be easy for her, it's not easy for everyone. I have a talker myself, and believe it or not, it's not my crazy younger one! Justin, whose in 8th grade now, has been a talker his entire school career. All through grade school I heard the same thing from his teachers: "Justin is smart, never disrespectful, eager to help, but boy he sure likes the sound of his own voice!"

I have no words of wisdom on how to deal with it, we've tried the stern talking to, we've tried taking things away, etc. Nothing really worked all that well, and on the bright side, as he has gotten older he is growing out of it. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that Jr High is much more challenging and he's also in some honors classes so he has to keep his mouth shut and pay attention!

I do agree that you should ask her teacher if she can read in lieu of doing centers if that is the main time that she is being disruptive. Good luck!

 

[leamom2princesses]

I can't offer much advice but I have learned to try to get some good communication going with the teacher. Lindsey spent the last half of her first day of K in the principal's office. It definitely wasn't funny then but it is going to be a great story when she is older. She was in trouble 4/5 days but never gets in trouble any more. I agree with some of the others that A will have to learn to behave even when the subject is boring to her but it doesn't sound like things are out of hand Mary. If the teacher knows where you stand I'm sure she will be willing to work out something to keep A interested and motivated. Lindsey has done the tummy thing a time or two.

Let us know how the conference goes.

 

[racefanof88]

Mary I would offer advice, but what worked with Amanda did not work with Tyler so I have a 50% failure rate. I just learned each child has their own way of learning. Amanda was always little miss perfect, so when she got in any trouble she would not repeat the act. Tyler on the other hand just acted like we were the ones with the problem....... Dallas is homeschooled so we don't run into those situations. I hope you find the solution that works for you as I know you will Avery is a very smart child and she will find her niche and what makes her most comfortable.

 

[brookelizabeth]

I don't have any advice really...considering I have a 2 year old who is not in school!

However, I would think the teacher would be willing to work something out a bit more, give her additional work to keep her busy. More challenging things, etc. like you are at home.

When I was in school I wasn't necessarily "gifted", but I was one of the "smart kids". School came easy to me. My teachers often gave me additional work to do if I finished early. I loved it! I loved extra worksheets and extra credit projects! The teachers never graded me upon the extra work, so I knew if I didn't finish it wasn't a big deal, that made me always want to do more and more of it.

 

[MaryAz]

I think the biggest thing is just to make sure that she understands that even though what they are working on might be easy for her, it's not easy for everyone. I have a talker myself, and believe it or not, it's not my crazy younger one! Justin, whose in 8th grade now, has been a talker his entire school career. All through grade school I heard the same thing from his teachers: "Justin is smart, never disrespectful, eager to help, but boy he sure likes the sound of his own voice!"

I have no words of wisdom on how to deal with it, we've tried the stern talking to, we've tried taking things away, etc. Nothing really worked all that well, and on the bright side, as he has gotten older he is growing out of it. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that Jr High is much more challenging and he's also in some honors classes so he has to keep his mouth shut and pay attention!

I do agree that you should ask her teacher if she can read in lieu of doing centers if that is the main time that she is being disruptive. Good luck!

I am a talker too I have tried to remind her that if she talks she may miss something. Glad to hear it gets better as they grow older. I think when the works becomes more challenging she will listen up!

 

[MaryAz]

I can't offer much advice but I have learned to try to get some good communication going with the teacher. Lindsey spent the last half of her first day of K in the principal's office. It definitely wasn't funny then but it is going to be a great story when she is older. She was in trouble 4/5 days but never gets in trouble any more. I agree with some of the others that A will have to learn to behave even when the subject is boring to her but it doesn't sound like things are out of hand Mary. If the teacher knows where you stand I'm sure she will be willing to work out something to keep A interested and motivated. Lindsey has done the tummy thing a time or two.

Let us know how the conference goes.

She is very open to communication. It's tough to be smart as I am sure you know! I will.

 

[MaryAz]

Mary I would offer advice, but what worked with Amanda did not work with Tyler so I have a 50% failure rate. I just learned each child has their own way of learning. Amanda was always little miss perfect, so when she got in any trouble she would not repeat the act. Tyler on the other hand just acted like we were the ones with the problem....... Dallas is homeschooled so we don't run into those situations. I hope you find the solution that works for you as I know you will Avery is a very smart child and she will find her niche and what makes her most comfortable.

You also have a 50% sucsess rate! I am considering homeschooling as a possibility-I am just not sure. Thanks for the support-I appreciate it.

 

[MaryAz]

I don't have any advice really...considering I have a 2 year old who is not in school!

However, I would think the teacher would be willing to work something out a bit more, give her additional work to keep her busy. More challenging things, etc. like you are at home.

When I was in school I wasn't necessarily "gifted", but I was one of the "smart kids". School came easy to me. My teachers often gave me additional work to do if I finished early. I loved it! I loved extra worksheets and extra credit projects! The teachers never graded me upon the extra work, so I knew if I didn't finish it wasn't a big deal, that made me always want to do more and more of it.

I think she would be responsive to my suggestions. I also got extra stuff to do in school. I think that would also be something that she would like! Thanks for responding.

 

[leamom2princesses]

She is very open to communication. It's tough to be smart as I am sure you know! I will.

It's good that the teacher is open to communication. I'm sure this minor chatter issue will go away next year when she gets in the gifted program and gets pushed more.

Hope it goes well. Too bad kiddos don't come with an owner's manual huh? It sure would be a lot easier to be a parent.

 

[longing2Batdisney]

Hi! Mary
just caught up on your last topic...hope things are starting to flow better for you (not sure when your conf. is/was)...when Gwendolyn was in K, she was enrolled in a paraochial (sp) school. So, the school allowed student ability to sort the students into class groups. They had two classes and two enrichment programs...well Gwendolyn was a little advanced than most of the kids in her class. So, she spent most of her day with her main teacher. One day my mom came to me all upset that Gwendolyn was upset that she was not allowed to go to VAN (this was what the enrichment classes were called). So, while she was lucky enough to have the attention of her teacher to work with her on her level 30 min a day, as a Kindergartner she did not understand.

As for any advice, I agree with the reward chart at home (we do that with the little girl I watch...if she does not have any timeouts in a day her mom gives her a sticker for her chart after 10 stickers she can get a reward from the store), I love how you are buying her books for her ability and workbooks, and working with the teacher is your key here. Maybe as a reward in the classroom, when she has completed her work she can bring her book from home to read (that is what is usually done in the older grades) or one of the workbooks. Kids usually love to bring things from home as they love bringing things home from school.

As for homeschooling...I did that with Gwendolyn & Dayne. Loved it and would not trade the experience for anything in the world. But, that is a very personal decision and my only advice there (before you start) is to find a local HS group that you are comfortable with to join. You will need the support, advice, and social interaction it provides (that was where we failed--we could not find a group that suited us...they now have a great deal of groups now...I think about it with Ashton; but, leaning toward a private school at the moment).

Good luck and prayers to help you through...
Cayley will bring new challenges as each new stage of their lives will...

Connie

 

[ladybugmom]

Mary--I hope I can offer some advice as I'm somewhat in the same boat with Ally and I am a former K teacher. Ally is the youngest in her class and was reading on a 3rd grade level when she entered K. Needless to say she is incredibly bored--however she wants to please her teacher so we don't have the behavior issues. Yes, the teacher can definitely do more to challenge Avery. I'm frustrated with Ally's teacher b/c she isn't making any adjustments to challenge Ally. So we've been focusing on AR (Accelerated Reader)--I send books to school with her that are on her level and she takes AR tests on them. But I still feel that Ally is a free teacher's aide to be quite honest. I don't think her teacher knows what to do with her. When I taught I always grouped my kids by ability whether it be math groups, reading groups, writing groups, etc. That way I was able to work on each child's level. I tried to incorporate writing in everything they did--i.e. I did a thing called Math Workshop where the students did hands-on activities and then had to write about what they did and why it turned out the way it did (highest kids) and then my lowest kids would draw pictures representing what they did. In writing groups I taught the highest ones to write stories using journaling cards to give them ideas. The lowest students would draw the picture and copy the word in their journals. Yes, it was a lot of extra work but it was necessary to be able to teach to all levels. Each kid also had Busy Baskets that were filled with educational activities that their parents sent from home that were on each student's level. They knew that they were allowed to work in those once they had completed their work and got the ok from me. It kept them from ever just sitting there doing nothing--they always had something to do which kept them out of trouble. I'm amazed that your school system starts the gifted program in 1st grade. That's wonderful!! Here they test them in 2nd grade and they don't start the program until 3rd grade!! Crazy--huh?! Anywho, I hope I gave you some ideas that you might could take to the teacher. It's so hard when you have kids coming in on so many different levels--some reading fluently and then some can't even recognize their letters or even their name for that matter!! Good luck meeting with the teacher!!

 

[MaryAz]

It's good that the teacher is open to communication. I'm sure this minor chatter issue will go away next year when she gets in the gifted program and gets pushed more.

Hope it goes well. Too bad kiddos don't come with an owner's manual huh? It sure would be a lot easier to be a parent.

I am not sure the chatter will go away-look at me Just wait till she meets Cayley An owner's manual would be outstanding!

 

[MaryAz]

Hi! Mary
just caught up on your last topic...hope things are starting to flow better for you (not sure when your conf. is/was)...when Gwendolyn was in K, she was enrolled in a paraochial (sp) school. So, the school allowed student ability to sort the students into class groups. They had two classes and two enrichment programs...well Gwendolyn was a little advanced than most of the kids in her class. So, she spent most of her day with her main teacher. One day my mom came to me all upset that Gwendolyn was upset that she was not allowed to go to VAN (this was what the enrichment classes were called). So, while she was lucky enough to have the attention of her teacher to work with her on her level 30 min a day, as a Kindergartner she did not understand.

As for any advice, I agree with the reward chart at home (we do that with the little girl I watch...if she does not have any timeouts in a day her mom gives her a sticker for her chart after 10 stickers she can get a reward from the store), I love how you are buying her books for her ability and workbooks, and working with the teacher is your key here. Maybe as a reward in the classroom, when she has completed her work she can bring her book from home to read (that is what is usually done in the older grades) or one of the workbooks. Kids usually love to bring things from home as they love bringing things home from school.

As for homeschooling...I did that with Gwendolyn & Dayne. Loved it and would not trade the experience for anything in the world. But, that is a very personal decision and my only advice there (before you start) is to find a local HS group that you are comfortable with to join. You will need the support, advice, and social interaction it provides (that was where we failed--we could not find a group that suited us...they now have a great deal of groups now...I think about it with Ashton; but, leaning toward a private school at the moment).

Good luck and prayers to help you through...
Cayley will bring new challenges as each new stage of their lives will...

Connie

Thank you so much for sharing your experieince. I am just not sure I have the dedication to out twoard homeschooling. My hubby is all for it.

 

[that's nice]

Mary- I don't have any advice for you but I've read some of the other posts and they have some great ideas. I hope you get it worked out. 25 students in the class seems like a lot to me. Juliana is currently in a class of 7 kids so it is basically one on one interaction. There are 2 classes that has an aide that floats between the two. But it is only 3yr old pre-K.

 

[MaryAz]

Mary--I hope I can offer some advice as I'm somewhat in the same boat with Ally and I am a former K teacher. Ally is the youngest in her class and was reading on a 3rd grade level when she entered K. Needless to say she is incredibly bored--however she wants to please her teacher so we don't have the behavior issues. Yes, the teacher can definitely do more to challenge Avery. I'm frustrated with Ally's teacher b/c she isn't making any adjustments to challenge Ally. So we've been focusing on AR (Accelerated Reader)--I send books to school with her that are on her level and she takes AR tests on them. But I still feel that Ally is a free teacher's aide to be quite honest. I don't think her teacher knows what to do with her. When I taught I always grouped my kids by ability whether it be math groups, reading groups, writing groups, etc. That way I was able to work on each child's level. I tried to incorporate writing in everything they did--i.e. I did a thing called Math Workshop where the students did hands-on activities and then had to write about what they did and why it turned out the way it did (highest kids) and then my lowest kids would draw pictures representing what they did. In writing groups I taught the highest ones to write stories using journaling cards to give them ideas. The lowest students would draw the picture and copy the word in their journals. Yes, it was a lot of extra work but it was necessary to be able to teach to all levels. Each kid also had Busy Baskets that were filled with educational activities that their parents sent from home that were on each student's level. They knew that they were allowed to work in those once they had completed their work and got the ok from me. It kept them from ever just sitting there doing nothing--they always had something to do which kept them out of trouble. I'm amazed that your school system starts the gifted program in 1st grade. That's wonderful!! Here they test them in 2nd grade and they don't start the program until 3rd grade!! Crazy--huh?! Anywho, I hope I gave you some ideas that you might could take to the teacher. It's so hard when you have kids coming in on so many different levels--some reading fluently and then some can't even recognize their letters or even their name for that matter!! Good luck meeting with the teacher!!

What a great repsonse Becky, thanks so much. I figured you were in a similar situation with Ally. They do have AR at her school. In K they do "bookworm" which are way below Avery's level. The books she reads take her awhile to complete but she does do book reports on them. I am going to ask about AR at the conference. The teacher does group them for "literacy centers" Thre is another little girl who is at A's level or higher. She is a behavior issue and a little "quirky" WHat a great teacher you must have been! I love the busy basket idea. Also going to bring that up! I think K is a hard year all around. Like you said the kids are on so many different levels!!