GBRS, Work sample and overall level 4 portfolio

[Anonymous]

I am concerned with the ability of my daughter’s teacher to get good work samples. The opportunities to demonstrate exceptional work seem slim based on the types of work I see them doing (and the completed work that I get to see). I understand that 4 samples have to come from school-only work. It doesn’t appear that the teachers and the parents are supposed to collaborate on the overall portfolio presented. Parents submit the referral and 2 samples. Teachers do the other 4 and GBRS. At least that is how it was presented to me.

I think this is a losing situation for some kids. The classes are big. Hardly any homework comes back from gen Ed. My daughter is bored out of her mind. She gets 100% on very basic quizzes. There is little opportunity to demonstrate deep thinking to help her produce great work. But the other part is that I think some kids may need *some* instruction on how to go a little deeper. What I mean by that is that if you teach my daughter the basics - she learns and demonstrates the basics. If you give her some direction on how to think more deeply - she will. But by herself, it may not occur to her.

It’s hard to explain. But what I’m trying to say is that she doesn’t tip the gifted scale based on what she gets to do. When she gets the opportunity and time to do more, she can. My interest in advanced classes is to overcome that she is bored and capable to do more. Also it seems unfair that some kids are getting lots of homework and ability to work with parents at home to advance their education. I’m willing to spend the time. Why not do it through the school and coordinate it with class work versus me getting a workbook but then she’s ahead in class.

At any rate, my question is whether teachers are truly able to rate the kids objectively when classes sizes are up to 25. My daughter routinely is discouraged because she doesn’t get called on. Or should some ‘advocacy’ be done with the teachers. Or perhaps that is a clear no no and I might tip the scale of overbearing parent. Again my premise is to make sure my child is getting challenged and gets more homework. Today there is 10 minutes of homework and 20 minutes of reading. She wants more and I want to help.

[Anonymous]

Third grade is a big step up from second grade, which for many kids can be boring or limited as the teachers focus on catching up all the students so they are ready for third grade. What this means is, don't judge grade school by how second grade (especially the first quarter of second grade) is going, it will step up significantly in third grade, whether in AAP or in general classes.

I wouldn't say that 25 is a large class, although it's not small. Does your AART work with the second graders? At our school, the AART did lessons a few times a month working on extensions and those were the samples used in the packet.

[Anonymous]

Your AART should be pushing into the class and working with the kids. I know that our child's packet included work that he completed with the AART, they were more logic puzzles and problem solving worksheets. They required kids provide an answer and write how they got that answer.

Teachers know what kids are above grade level in their work. Do your Teachers provide your daughter with extra work to do when she completes the assigned work? Is she doing that work? That tells them that she is completing her work and doing the extra work. Is she picking out different books to read in her free time? Is your daughter getting LII services? That would tell you that she is on the radar of the AART and that the Teachers know she has been seen as advanced in certain areas.

My son's GBRSs included specific comments about books that he was choosing to read that supplemented what they were doing in class. They included information about the extra work he was doing when he completed his work. They notice more then you think. DS had 28 kids in his second grade class but the comments were very specific in their examples for him. They heard him and saw him. They are far better at their job then people want to believe. Yes, there are some that are not good but most are pretty darn good.

If you want more then is happening at school you have to supplement, it really is that simple. This isn't new. My parents needed to provide extra tutoring for one of my siblings and myself because of LDs and supplementation for my other siblings because they were bored in school. That was 40 years ago. Is it fair? No but I am not going to leave my child's educational success in the hands of the Public school system that have to meet the needs of such a wide swath of kids. I think the foundational skills that he is getting at ES are solid and good but I know he is capable of moving past that. I know that the schools cannot meet all of those needs, they don't have the time or resources to do so, so I supplement. I am not interested in sending him to private school for a variety of reasons so we do RSM. And he reads at home. And we take him to museums. And we watch documentaries as a family. And he does Scouts. It is my job as a parent to look out for my kid so that is what I do.

[Anonymous]

In January, the AART at my school typically pulls all of the kids who were in pool or referred and has them complete some creative and critical thinking projects for the portfolio. The school submissions don't need to be from regular in-class work.

Your best bet, though, is to encourage your DD to do a good job whenever the kids are allowed to do some creative writing. The committee loves some good creative writing.

[Anonymous]

I echo comments about AART pushins and that work often allowing opportunity for deeper work. Also you don’t seem to have considered that if the teacher sees a great work sample, the teacher is likely holding on to it and not sending it home so you necessarily would not be seeing it.

I think you also touch on why both parents and teachers submit samples. Some kids in class, even without prompting, may be going quite deeply or creatively into classwork and it is fair that teachers can highlight that rather than just kids who do it when told/instructed. Likewise some kids may be shy or for whatever reason not do their best/deepest/most creative work in school and so parents can submit samples to highlight that.

I will also say you mention homework minutes and more homework throughout. I would be careful not to equate LIV with more or harder homework. Schools vary across FCPS but overwhelmingly FCPS ES has moved away from homework beyond regular reading.

[Anonymous]

Best get thoughts like this out of your head, or it will drive you crazy: “Also it seems unfair that some kids are getting lots of homework.” It’s like this from now onward. It’s going to a teacher or school that gives easier A’s, easier texts to read, easier projects, less projects, harder tests, grades on a curve, drops the worst test, grades homework or other stuff to pull a grade up, etc.

You get what you get.

[Anonymous]

OP- you could also reach out to the teacher. I talked with my child's 2nd grade teacher at the parent-teacher conference a few weeks back. She had specific details on areas my daughter has been doing really well in and the plans for giving her extra assignments. We also discussed that I will be submitting the level 4 packet.

As an aside, she gets minimal homework (nothing challenging for her) and I've always supplemented.

[Anonymous]

In 2nd grade, DC1 was at a no homework Elementary (except reading, which isn’t homework, it’s just part of daily life) in a class of 29 kids. The work samples school submitted were from push-ins with the AART. Those AAP lessons gave the students opportunities for deeper level thinking and I was very impressed w/ what they submitted when I saw the final packet (after it went to committee). Focus on your part, which is showing what school doesn’t necessarily see about your child that makes you think they’re gifted and in need of AAP curriculum.

[Anonymous]

One of my kids got a 16 gbrs (old system) and the other got a 15 (old system). A perfect score was a 16. Both got in first round. Both had awful work samples submitted by the school. Don’t worry about that part.

[Anonymous]

In my experience, I've found that when the school wants to get your child in, they'll find the work samples to support the application. My DC didn't get in the first year and teacher didn't recommend AAP for them. Second year, both AART and teacher 100% supported their need for AAP and collaborated to find decent samples. Even went so far as to assign work so that those "samples' were created.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am concerned with the ability of my daughter’s teacher to get good work samples. The opportunities to demonstrate exceptional work seem slim based on the types of work I see them doing (and the completed work that I get to see). I understand that 4 samples have to come from school-only work. It doesn’t appear that the teachers and the parents are supposed to collaborate on the overall portfolio presented. Parents submit the referral and 2 samples. Teachers do the other 4 and GBRS. At least that is how it was presented to me.

I think this is a losing situation for some kids. The classes are big. Hardly any homework comes back from gen Ed. My daughter is bored out of her mind. She gets 100% on very basic quizzes. There is little opportunity to demonstrate deep thinking to help her produce great work. But the other part is that I think some kids may need *some* instruction on how to go a little deeper. What I mean by that is that if you teach my daughter the basics - she learns and demonstrates the basics. If you give her some direction on how to think more deeply - she will. But by herself, it may not occur to her.

It’s hard to explain. But what I’m trying to say is that she doesn’t tip the gifted scale based on what she gets to do. When she gets the opportunity and time to do more, she can. My interest in advanced classes is to overcome that she is bored and capable to do more. Also it seems unfair that some kids are getting lots of homework and ability to work with parents at home to advance their education. I’m willing to spend the time. Why not do it through the school and coordinate it with class work versus me getting a workbook but then she’s ahead in class.

At any rate, my question is whether teachers are truly able to rate the kids objectively when classes sizes are up to 25. My daughter routinely is discouraged because she doesn’t get called on. Or should some ‘advocacy’ be done with the teachers. Or perhaps that is a clear no no and I might tip the scale of overbearing parent. Again my premise is to make sure my child is getting challenged and gets more homework. Today there is 10 minutes of homework and 20 minutes of reading. She wants more and I want to help.

Your experience is our experience. It's frustrating. My child will do what's asked. Not more, not less. If asked to do a lot, go deeper, they will. If peers are digging deeper or doing more homework, they will. They're in AAP but in a cluster model school and they're not being pushed as rigorously as when the class was exclusively AAP. FCPS really knows how to kill education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am concerned with the ability of my daughter’s teacher to get good work samples. The opportunities to demonstrate exceptional work seem slim based on the types of work I see them doing (and the completed work that I get to see). I understand that 4 samples have to come from school-only work. It doesn’t appear that the teachers and the parents are supposed to collaborate on the overall portfolio presented. Parents submit the referral and 2 samples. Teachers do the other 4 and GBRS. At least that is how it was presented to me.

I think this is a losing situation for some kids. The classes are big. Hardly any homework comes back from gen Ed. My daughter is bored out of her mind. She gets 100% on very basic quizzes. There is little opportunity to demonstrate deep thinking to help her produce great work. But the other part is that I think some kids may need *some* instruction on how to go a little deeper. What I mean by that is that if you teach my daughter the basics - she learns and demonstrates the basics. If you give her some direction on how to think more deeply - she will. But by herself, it may not occur to her.

It’s hard to explain. But what I’m trying to say is that she doesn’t tip the gifted scale based on what she gets to do. When she gets the opportunity and time to do more, she can. My interest in advanced classes is to overcome that she is bored and capable to do more. Also it seems unfair that some kids are getting lots of homework and ability to work with parents at home to advance their education. I’m willing to spend the time. Why not do it through the school and coordinate it with class work versus me getting a workbook but then she’s ahead in class.

At any rate, my question is whether teachers are truly able to rate the kids objectively when classes sizes are up to 25. My daughter routinely is discouraged because she doesn’t get called on. Or should some ‘advocacy’ be done with the teachers. Or perhaps that is a clear no no and I might tip the scale of overbearing parent. Again my premise is to make sure my child is getting challenged and gets more homework. Today there is 10 minutes of homework and 20 minutes of reading. She wants more and I want to help.

Your experience is our experience. It's frustrating. My child will do what's asked. Not more, not less. If asked to do a lot, go deeper, they will. If peers are digging deeper or doing more homework, they will. They're in AAP but in a cluster model school and they're not being pushed as rigorously as when the class was exclusively AAP. FCPS really knows how to kill education.

The kids that they are looking for AAP are the kids who do the extra work without prodding. They are looking for kids who are curious and self motivated as well as doing well in class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am concerned with the ability of my daughter’s teacher to get good work samples. The opportunities to demonstrate exceptional work seem slim based on the types of work I see them doing (and the completed work that I get to see). I understand that 4 samples have to come from school-only work. It doesn’t appear that the teachers and the parents are supposed to collaborate on the overall portfolio presented. Parents submit the referral and 2 samples. Teachers do the other 4 and GBRS. At least that is how it was presented to me.

I think this is a losing situation for some kids. The classes are big. Hardly any homework comes back from gen Ed. My daughter is bored out of her mind. She gets 100% on very basic quizzes. There is little opportunity to demonstrate deep thinking to help her produce great work. But the other part is that I think some kids may need *some* instruction on how to go a little deeper. What I mean by that is that if you teach my daughter the basics - she learns and demonstrates the basics. If you give her some direction on how to think more deeply - she will. But by herself, it may not occur to her.

It’s hard to explain. But what I’m trying to say is that she doesn’t tip the gifted scale based on what she gets to do. When she gets the opportunity and time to do more, she can. My interest in advanced classes is to overcome that she is bored and capable to do more. Also it seems unfair that some kids are getting lots of homework and ability to work with parents at home to advance their education. I’m willing to spend the time. Why not do it through the school and coordinate it with class work versus me getting a workbook but then she’s ahead in class.

+1

My kid finished early, so she often grabs extra pieces of paper and makes little books. Or she makes math problems for herself while other kids finish up.

At any rate, my question is whether teachers are truly able to rate the kids objectively when classes sizes are up to 25. My daughter routinely is discouraged because she doesn’t get called on. Or should some ‘advocacy’ be done with the teachers. Or perhaps that is a clear no no and I might tip the scale of overbearing parent. Again my premise is to make sure my child is getting challenged and gets more homework. Today there is 10 minutes of homework and 20 minutes of reading. She wants more and I want to help.

Your experience is our experience. It's frustrating. My child will do what's asked. Not more, not less. If asked to do a lot, go deeper, they will. If peers are digging deeper or doing more homework, they will. They're in AAP but in a cluster model school and they're not being pushed as rigorously as when the class was exclusively AAP. FCPS really knows how to kill education.

The kids that they are looking for AAP are the kids who do the extra work without prodding. They are looking for kids who are curious and self motivated as well as doing well in class.

[Anonymous]

The school work samples are crap. But you can't do anything about it. So just focus on what you can control. Get good work samples for yourself to submit and fill out the parent info sheet with a lot of good, thoughtful detail. You're right, the school and the teacher don't know your kid like you know your kid so give as much good info as you can.

In our situation, we had a first year teacher who knew nothing about my child. The comments on the GBRS made that very clear. They were either very generic or they rehashed comments I had put on my parent info form. The work samples were atrocious. We reapplied in third grade with new CogAT scores and work samples of our own (we could submit up to four I believe at the time) and she got in.

However, if you're thinking you'll get more homework in AAP, that is not always the case. My AAP 6th grader has none.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:But the other part is that I think some kids may need *some* instruction on how to go a little deeper. What I mean by that is that if you teach my daughter the basics - she learns and demonstrates the basics. If you give her some direction on how to think more deeply - she will. But by herself, it may not occur to her.

Different state with a PG child, gifted meeting, our child's teacher complained she never went beyond the rubric. Was our child ever asked? The answer was no. They won't do it automatically, most especially with boring work. And the ask was ridiculous. The instructions say write 4 sentences. My kid would absolutely die to violate an instruction. Speaking of, DC also has issues with poorly written instructions that lead to illogical results. Unfortunately the teachers just aren't capable of writing using clear and logical language.

Teachers look for that classical ideal of a high achieving learner. Something they can relate to. They don't care and it doesn't seem to matter to the program about max capabilities.