RUDisney,
Some of the things you have been stating are coming pretty close to home for me. My DD is in 3rd grade. We adopted her from Russia at age 4 yrs, 10 months. So English is a second language for her, and we don't use Russian at all in our home. I know DD struggles with certain parts of reading, not necessarily comprehension, but some parts of the actual reading itself. She can comprehend a book, and tell us about it, but I don't know how much of it she is actually digesting. Also, from some of the research I've read, third grade is when kids do start to struggle when they have English as their second language. Whether it's the speed at which the teachers talk, or the distractions that are normal for all children, this is the beginning of tougher classes.
We also have found out that DD is reading at a second grade level, our private school didn't tell us that she was that far behind. (I loved our private school, oldest DD is still there. Our private school regularly scores above state/national average on testing scores) However, they couldn't offer the extra assistance the public schools offer- for us the difference was the ESL program.
I would be very concerned though, with a staff member not calling me back because she just didn't want to or think it was important. I would be showing up at her door if that happened.
Good Luck!
Michelle
