Reply to Those of you asking for differentiation in ES have unrealistic expectations

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Reply to "Those of you asking for differentiation in ES have unrealistic expectations"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Honest question: why don’t some of the parents of the gifted/advanced kids look into skipping a grade if school is so boring for them?  That’s what the truly advanced kids did when I was in school...[/quote]

Skipping grades was the solution back when schools didn't have GT or AAP type programs.  I was skipped and can tell you it impacted me social-emotionally for literally years.  Academically you may be with your ahead of your new peers, but you're still young.  High achieving doesn't translate 1:1 into advanced socially or emotionally.  Not to mention, if kids realize you skipped they may ostracize you simply because kids can be mean.

IMO, much of differentiation isn't just about the base content but about the ability to think critically at a different level than average kids in subjects like language arts or social studies.  The ability to read more complex texts and have discussions that are more in-depth or involve more rigorous critical thinking is what can differentiate reading a book at a grade-level versus diving deep at an advanced level.  The Jacob's Ladder tool which is often used in APS seems to acknowledge that, but in our experience doesn't drive differentiated instruction.

Asking for differentiation is unrealistic, based on our expectations, because even in our low FARMS school the teachers must focus most of their time and attention on the lower performing kids. It sucks and is why we're exploring whether we can afford private.
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