Should we parent-refer?
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Anonymous
| Parents of a 3rd grader here who was not admitted into AAP Level IV last year. This year in 3rd grade, our child is getting advanced instruction in social studies, in math, is reading above grade-level, and is being given special projects to keep engaged. Our child also LOVES school and never wants to leave and go "where his friends go" (which is the Level IV school in our area). Test scores for all testing, including a private WISC IV, show off the charts in some areas, very very low in other areas due to visual processing issues (we're working on it...although I'm not sure if the therapy is a load of hooey or not). DC's teacher last year said we should apply to Level IV, and we parent-referred then, but were not accepted and never really learned why. 3rd grade has been a great year...but we are wondering if we should try to pull together a last-minute parent referral. Any thoughts? Please without getting snarky? |
Anonymous
| Honestly, no. I'm sure you have a bright child, but not necessarily gifted. |
Anonymous
|
it sounds like he is happy at his current school and they are
meeting his needs. why mess with success? |
Anonymous
I would submit a parent referral. I would also plan to meet with the AART at your school (AFTER the screening files are sent to central screening) to ask for her/his input about your son. AARTs have training/experience supporting 2E students (and it sounds like your son may be 2E) and (at a minimum) you may want to seek out accommodations for the upcoming SOLs. Your son may also be particularly suited for Level III services, and the AART at your school can help you with that process. |
Anonymous
If he loves his school and doesn't want to leave, what would you do if he were accepted to AAP? Would you move him or keep him where he seems to be happy? |
Anonymous
| I'd find out what the GBRS was last year. See what it says compared with the teacher telling you he'd be a good fit with AAP. |
Anonymous
And that's really the metric here... The AAP program is for gifted children whose needs cannot be met in the regular classroom. Sounds like you're set already, OP. No need to push it. |
Anonymous
|
OP here, thanks for all of the responses.
One of the reasons we question is b/c we don't see that much of a difference between the peers who are going to Level IV in our area and our DC, with maybe one or two exceptions....and we are not the only ones to notice this. Also, there is SUCH a discrepancy between the base school and the Level IV school in terms of school resources, that we worry our DC will be left behind in some areas. And I fully admit....my husband and I were both in gifted programs growing up, we just wonder if we shouldn't be pushing a bit in this situation. However, all of that is anecdotal (we are not teachers/psychologists), and as several of you have pointed out, our child is happy and really does love school (how many 3rd graders say that?!) and is having academic needs met. We should count ourselves lucky. It's a dilemma fueled by living in this area  . Do we push to make sure our child is getting "the best" of everything even when it may not be deserved? Or do we relax and say, let's ride this out because things are going quite well.
FWIW, our school has a new advanced academics teacher this year. The one from last year was quite flaky. When I submitted our parent-referral form, she called me and said, "We received your packet. I just want to let you know that when we...I mean if we turn your child down, there is an appeals process that works like this..." She then sent a letter home saying that our child would get Level II AAP in Math, with a handwritten note that said "^and social studies", but she then left our child's name off of the AAP lists for the start of this year. It took until the 2nd quarter to get that all straightened out. Good thing the 3rd grade teacher was on the ball and starting to give AAP for math anyway based on performance! My point is that I'm not very hopeful of getting the GBRS from the school, but I may ask anyway. |
Anonymous
The program isn't for gifted students only- that's why they changed the name to Advanced Academics Placement. OP, the decision you need to make is to parent refer or not. The decision for AAP placement is the committee's decision. If you don't refer, the committee doesn't need to decide anything for your child. |
Anonymous
|
Op, I would refer just to keep your options open.
You might not want to go next year, but maybe in 5th or junior high and an exceptance now gives you much flexibility in the future. |
Anonymous
| OP, did you appeal last year when your DC was not found eligible? And did you already have the WISC at that time to submit with the appeal? If the WISC is new information that the selection committee has never seen, I would appeal. If they already saw the WISC, what new information would you submit this year? If your child didn't retake the CogAT or NNAT last fall, and you have no substantial new information to submit, I might wait till next year, get the visual processing issues ironed out, and retake testing as available through FCPS for higher grades. Then you would have more information to submit. The only exception would be if you learned the GBRS was low last year and believe it would be better this year. I am assuming, though, that the GBRS was high last year since your DC's teacher suggested that you refer for level IV. |
Anonymous
| ^ Sorry: If the WISC is new information that the selection committee has never seen, I would parent refer. |
Anonymous
The above statement is factually incorrect. |
Anonymous
So what if that's not the exact reason? The FCPS website says "The AAP Level IV program for students in grades 3 through 8 offers identified students a highly challenging instructional program that follows the FCPS Program of Studies. Differentiation in the depth, breadth, and pace of instruction is designed to meet the needs of advanced learners with a strong emphasis on higher level thinking skills." I don't see the word "gifted" in that description. |
Anonymous
The program exists because the Commonwealth of Virginia requires school districts to provide "gifted" education. Don't have time for a link right now, but it's out there. The name of the program was changed to emphasize that it has an academic emphasis. When it was called "Gifted and Talented," there were parents who thought that it was meant for kids with talents in the arts and music. Another reason for the change was to avoid labeling the children but to label the program instead. |