What elementary school did your gifted child thrive in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The thing is, NW DC is well above average, IQ and school-wise. The number of my DC’s classmates parents who went to HYP is astounding (and those are only the ones I happen to know about.)

This. There will be plenty of kids who are as OP describes OP's child. There's nothing unusual about it in this area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The thing is, NW DC is well above average, IQ and school-wise. The number of my DC’s classmates parents who went to HYP is astounding (and those are only the ones I happen to know about.)

So all my neighbors went to an ivy or something similar (duke/stanford/MIT). Sure they may have high IQs, but most lack common sense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:Serious question: what should a parent with a (tested) high iq child say? The word gifted always leads to ridiculing comments. What should someone say instead? There are real questions to be answered, and perhaps having a different way of asking might help?

you should say nothing. “high IQ” likely applies to 50% of kids in a lot of DMV schools. There’s literally no good reason to ever IQ test your child unless there are concerns about cognitive disability or learning disability.

I don’t understand. If a child is struggling because of an intellectual development delay or similar, dcum is a wealth of information. If a child is struggling because of an intellectual difference in the other direction, posters like you tell parents to go away. Do you have a child with this second issue? If so, I’d like to hear why we should do nothing. If not, please stop making assumptions that parents asking for advice are having delusions of grandeur or whatever. We’re not.

how is your child “struggling” due to their high IQ? if your child is bored and unchallenged you don’t need an IQ test to tell you that, or a special school, or any special guidance. you get the kid in whatever enrichment is available. for a FIVE year old you also chill out considerably and realize that academic advancement can come when they are older.

OK, given a rising ninth grader who has consistently tested in the gifted range (+150), where in DCPS would this student find a place where they are appropriately served?

Maybe nowhere. But you're not entitled to be appropriately served. Kids with special needs are entitled to a free and adequate public education and everyone else is not really entitled to anything specific. Sorry if you don't like it but that's the law.

What about “academic advancement can come when they are older”? Yes, I agree that DCPS offers these students nothing and is not required to. I understand that. So parents have to look for the opportunities that might possibly work for their child at a particular school. But doing so is ridiculed by people like you.

[Anonymous]

Here is my advice as the parent of two DCPS children that may be considered 2E (twice exceptional, gifted and with some learning challenges). It is common and also often overlooked, particularly in girls, there is a lot of information out there of what to. look for. and I suggest you read to inform any concerns that may arise over time that are hard to pin down, whether social or academic. Ward 3 DCPS was good academically, but I wish I had known about testing for other issues that would have helped me help my children sooner. Smart girls with ADHD are often missed. I had zero idea that my highly engaging, high achieving kindergartners would have this.

How do I know that my children are gifted? It is observation plus an IQ test for my oldest when she was quite young but also that my oldest had the highest PARCC scores at her high achieving Ward 3 (JKLM) elementary school in all subjects every year (99th percentile in a grade of 100 kids - I kind of wish they did not tell you this on the scores but they do)

I now have a middle and a high schooler, with an official diagnosis of ADHD for one and a observed diagnosis by me of inattentive ADHD for the other, now that I know what to look for. Also, looking at my daughter I can see that I am undiagnosed ADHD and gifted (the gifted was measured in my youth, the ADHD is why I took a pretty unconventional path to success)

Both have some anxiety that is getting better with a better understanding of how their brains work. Both are thriving in DCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would suggest you choose a school with a social skills program such as Conscious Discipline. And if you're looking for differentiation, I found it was stronger at our Title I DCPS school than at the charter we ended up at.

We also felt that our Title I DCPS school did a great job at differentiation, much more than our private school abroad. They accomplished this largely with technology, but it seemed to really work for our son (probably not gifted, but at a higher current level than lots of peers). In the current crazy world, we have been supplementing with Bookshark, Reading with History, to expand knowledge out instead of up, and Beast Academy for my older child. I’d highly recommend both for any curious kid. We are planning to continue both next year back our home Title I DCPS school.

[Anonymous]

My close to but probably not actually technically gifted child did great at Eaton. There was a gifted kid in his grade, and he did fine, too, and his parents were happy.

The key is supplementing on your own - the boy I mentioned did the Russian math school (can't remember exact name). We did some Johns Hopkins stuff.

(ps, this board loves informing you that your kid is not actually gifted - just ignore that snark).

[Anonymous]

My god, the assumptions! I went to an Ivy, and I'm NOT gifted - I'm smart, I worked hard, but I'm absolutely not gifted. And probably most of my friends and classmates there were not gifted, although some might have been. Really smart? Yes. Gifted? Mostly no.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My close to but probably not actually technically gifted child did great at Eaton. There was a gifted kid in his grade, and he did fine, too, and his parents were happy.

The key is supplementing on your own - the boy I mentioned did the Russian math school (can't remember exact name). We did some Johns Hopkins stuff.

(ps, this board loves informing you that your kid is not actually gifted - just ignore that snark).

here's the Russian Math: https://www.russianschool.com/locations/north-bethesda/schedule

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:Serious question: what should a parent with a (tested) high iq child say? The word gifted always leads to ridiculing comments. What should someone say instead? There are real questions to be answered, and perhaps having a different way of asking might help?

you should say nothing. “high IQ” likely applies to 50% of kids in a lot of DMV schools. There’s literally no good reason to ever IQ test your child unless there are concerns about cognitive disability or learning disability.

I don’t understand. If a child is struggling because of an intellectual development delay or similar, dcum is a wealth of information. If a child is struggling because of an intellectual difference in the other direction, posters like you tell parents to go away. Do you have a child with this second issue? If so, I’d like to hear why we should do nothing. If not, please stop making assumptions that parents asking for advice are having delusions of grandeur or whatever. We’re not.

how is your child “struggling” due to their high IQ? if your child is bored and unchallenged you don’t need an IQ test to tell you that, or a special school, or any special guidance. you get the kid in whatever enrichment is available. for a FIVE year old you also chill out considerably and realize that academic advancement can come when they are older.

OK, given a rising ninth grader who has consistently tested in the gifted range (+150), where in DCPS would this student find a place where they are appropriately served?

Maybe nowhere. But you're not entitled to be appropriately served. Kids with special needs are entitled to a free and adequate public education and everyone else is not really entitled to anything specific. Sorry if you don't like it but that's the law.

exactly. gifted kids have always had to find their own opportunities for advancement. CTY, college classes, competitions like Westinghouse, clubs, etc. A more important question is what you think is going to be better for your own kid. certainly you could try to get them into TJ, or go with a school like Basis or Banneker if staying in DC is important, or a “regular” nonspecialized
HS with lots of diverse course offerings and clubs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Serious question: what should a parent with a (tested) high iq child say? The word gifted always leads to ridiculing comments. What should someone say instead? There are real questions to be answered, and perhaps having a different way of asking might help?

you should say nothing. “high IQ” likely applies to 50% of kids in a lot of DMV schools. There’s literally no good reason to ever IQ test your child unless there are concerns about cognitive disability or learning disability.

I don’t understand. If a child is struggling because of an intellectual development delay or similar, dcum is a wealth of information. If a child is struggling because of an intellectual difference in the other direction, posters like you tell parents to go away. Do you have a child with this second issue? If so, I’d like to hear why we should do nothing. If not, please stop making assumptions that parents asking for advice are having delusions of grandeur or whatever. We’re not.

how is your child “struggling” due to their high IQ? if your child is bored and unchallenged you don’t need an IQ test to tell you that, or a special school, or any special guidance. you get the kid in whatever enrichment is available. for a FIVE year old you also chill out considerably and realize that academic advancement can come when they are older.

OK, given a rising ninth grader who has consistently tested in the gifted range (+150), where in DCPS would this student find a place where they are appropriately served?

Maybe nowhere. But you're not entitled to be appropriately served. Kids with special needs are entitled to a free and adequate public education and everyone else is not really entitled to anything specific. Sorry if you don't like it but that's the law.

What about “academic advancement can come when they are older”? Yes, I agree that DCPS offers these students nothing and is not required to. I understand that. So parents have to look for the opportunities that might possibly work for their child at a particular school. But doing so is ridiculed by people like you.

If you’re coming here to whine about Wilson not being good enough for your high IQ child, here’s the world’s smallest violin.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My god, the assumptions! I went to an Ivy, and I'm NOT gifted - I'm smart, I worked hard, but I'm absolutely not gifted. And probably most of my friends and classmates there were not gifted, although some might have been. Really smart? Yes. Gifted? Mostly no.

This. The thing about going to a top Ivy is that you meet people who actually are gifted and realize it is a tiny fraction of the student body. Kids who start at Harvard aged 16 and take the super elite math seminars and also somehow manage to be premed and play hockey. Stuff like that. 99% of the students are just smart.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Serious question: what should a parent with a (tested) high iq child say? The word gifted always leads to ridiculing comments. What should someone say instead? There are real questions to be answered, and perhaps having a different way of asking might help?

you should say nothing. “high IQ” likely applies to 50% of kids in a lot of DMV schools. There’s literally no good reason to ever IQ test your child unless there are concerns about cognitive disability or learning disability.

I don’t understand. If a child is struggling because of an intellectual development delay or similar, dcum is a wealth of information. If a child is struggling because of an intellectual difference in the other direction, posters like you tell parents to go away. Do you have a child with this second issue? If so, I’d like to hear why we should do nothing. If not, please stop making assumptions that parents asking for advice are having delusions of grandeur or whatever. We’re not.

how is your child “struggling” due to their high IQ? if your child is bored and unchallenged you don’t need an IQ test to tell you that, or a special school, or any special guidance. you get the kid in whatever enrichment is available. for a FIVE year old you also chill out considerably and realize that academic advancement can come when they are older.

OK, given a rising ninth grader who has consistently tested in the gifted range (+150), where in DCPS would this student find a place where they are appropriately served?

Maybe nowhere. But you're not entitled to be appropriately served. Kids with special needs are entitled to a free and adequate public education and everyone else is not really entitled to anything specific. Sorry if you don't like it but that's the law.

exactly. gifted kids have always had to find their own opportunities for advancement. CTY, college classes, competitions like Westinghouse, clubs, etc. A more important question is what you think is going to be better for your own kid. certainly you could try to get them into TJ, or go with a school like Basis or Banneker if staying in DC is important, or a “regular” nonspecialized
HS with lots of diverse course offerings and clubs.

And this board is one place parents come to get advice on how to access these resources and any others they might not know about - including anything DCPS might offer. But they do so with the almost certain knowledge that other posters will mock them for doing so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Serious question: what should a parent with a (tested) high iq child say? The word gifted always leads to ridiculing comments. What should someone say instead? There are real questions to be answered, and perhaps having a different way of asking might help?

you should say nothing. “high IQ” likely applies to 50% of kids in a lot of DMV schools. There’s literally no good reason to ever IQ test your child unless there are concerns about cognitive disability or learning disability.

I don’t understand. If a child is struggling because of an intellectual development delay or similar, dcum is a wealth of information. If a child is struggling because of an intellectual difference in the other direction, posters like you tell parents to go away. Do you have a child with this second issue? If so, I’d like to hear why we should do nothing. If not, please stop making assumptions that parents asking for advice are having delusions of grandeur or whatever. We’re not.

how is your child “struggling” due to their high IQ? if your child is bored and unchallenged you don’t need an IQ test to tell you that, or a special school, or any special guidance. you get the kid in whatever enrichment is available. for a FIVE year old you also chill out considerably and realize that academic advancement can come when they are older.

OK, given a rising ninth grader who has consistently tested in the gifted range (+150), where in DCPS would this student find a place where they are appropriately served?

Maybe nowhere. But you're not entitled to be appropriately served. Kids with special needs are entitled to a free and adequate public education and everyone else is not really entitled to anything specific. Sorry if you don't like it but that's the law.

What about “academic advancement can come when they are older”? Yes, I agree that DCPS offers these students nothing and is not required to. I understand that. So parents have to look for the opportunities that might possibly work for their child at a particular school. But doing so is ridiculed by people like you.

If you’re coming here to whine about Wilson not being good enough for your high IQ child, here’s the world’s smallest violin.

Nope, just wondering when this “academic advancement” the PP referred to might be coming along. And why do you assume high IQ kids are zoned only for Wilson?

[Anonymous]

This is always a livewire topic on this forum. But here's two cents from our family's perspective. There isn't much by way of formal programming in elementary schools in DCPS. Individual schools may approach things differently our experience at a relatively accommodating UNW elementary was fine. The school acknowledged that our DS was well beyond his peers in math, but there wasn't much they could do formally. They helped at the margins but were never condescending about it. Middle school is a little better, again from our limited perspective of UNW schools. Kids can take accelerated classes and being able to even do pre-calculus or AP Calc by 8th grade has not been ruled out.

OP: This is probably much too premature for your child who is 5. But as other posters on this thread have pointed out - DCPS or any public school is under no obligation to provide programming for advanced kids. There are many resources to supplement which you can find on this forum. The suburban schools are somewhat better. But TLDR - many DCPS schools (NW, NE) can provide enriched learning for elementary aged kids. It gets much harder for truly advanced students in DCPS proper in the older grades. If that's of paramount concern, then moving to MCPS (for their magnets) or NOVA for TJ is probably your best bet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is always a livewire topic on this forum. But here's two cents from our family's perspective. There isn't much by way of formal programming in elementary schools in DCPS. Individual schools may approach things differently our experience at a relatively accommodating UNW elementary was fine. The school acknowledged that our DS was well beyond his peers in math, but there wasn't much they could do formally. They helped at the margins but were never condescending about it. Middle school is a little better, again from our limited perspective of UNW schools. Kids can take accelerated classes and being able to even do pre-calculus or AP Calc by 8th grade has not been ruled out.

OP: This is probably much too premature for your child who is 5. But as other posters on this thread have pointed out - DCPS or any public school is under no obligation to provide programming for advanced kids. There are many resources to supplement which you can find on this forum. The suburban schools are somewhat better. But TLDR - many DCPS schools (NW, NE) can provide enriched learning for elementary aged kids. It gets much harder for truly advanced students in DCPS proper in the older grades. If that's of paramount concern, then moving to MCPS (for their magnets) or NOVA for TJ is probably your best bet.

Different ES but same experience here.