Anonymous wrote:If you kid is smart but doesn't make the cut for gifted programs, it is rough. Prepare for years of mediocrity.

Anonymous wrote:Hi, DCUM. I’m looking for some perspective and hopefully some facts before I approach the teacher.

DC is in third grade. Last year, there were regular meetings with the teacher and a reading group, at least a few times a week. This year, my child has read a couple of books and done some worksheets, but no group discussions. No table time with the teacher and other students. At all.

There ARE reading groups in the class, and DC says that they sometimes meet with the teacher.

What is the standard for reading instruction in MCPS third grade? Do all reading groups have teacher meetings and discussion? Should I expect DC to have this regularly? Every day? Once a week? Is there a place where MCPS lists the minimum block of time students should be receiving instruction like this?

Our school is not yet doing the new ELA program, as far as I know.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP again. It looks like this class is just going to have independent reading and worksheets and no small group reading instruction for the kids who are above grade level. Not once in awhile. Never. Teacher is only doing small group instruction with some of the class.

I understand that some of the children need a lot more help, but it still makes me sad to think that a quarter of the class is never going to discuss their reading.

Get used to it. Public schools, regardless of where they’re located, have become awful. I’m truly sorry to say that because I’ve always believed in public schools, but some thing has shifted. I find it supremely unfair that children who can’t afford private get a subpar education.

I completely agree. DH and I visited a couple of private schools in MoCo (not the fancy ones, but well-regarded nonetheless) and looked at each other and said "this is basically what public school was for us." We both went to public school in the Northeast in the 90s. It's sad we need to pay $20-25K/year to access that.

Anonymous wrote:"Yep. My DS never received reading instruction on his level in ES. He was grouped with the above level kids starting in K. They only instructed them one grade level above even though my son was 3+ years above grade level. He actually increased his own reading level mostly by doing independent reading for the vast majority of time. By 5th grade, his teacher only met with his group once a week.

So, did the rest of the kids catch up, or did he stay 3+ levels above? If the latter, then obviously the teachers knew what they were doing, and met his needs.

Above level readers benefit from large amounts of independent reading. It's what they need. A good teacher respects that."

I'll throw in what my DC learned back in ES.

At the beginning of each year, there would be some testing for most kids to assign a reading group.

DC's testing never occurred like the others, although sometimes other kids weren't tested either, the classroom wasn't set up to test that far ahead.

Because of what DC was reading the year before, the teacher would ask DC to read from a MS/HS level book.

After maybe 60 seconds, DC would be sent back to their seat with the words, you will be your own group.

DC said she never met with the teacher like the kids that had a group but the teacher would have less than 60 second conversations with her about reading.

Sometimes these would be at recess, sometimes they would be on the walk to lunch.

Sometimes they would just be book recommendations but often DC felt they were interesting questions she was supposed to think about and answer next time.

Once DC got the message, she would approach the teacher with an answer or her own question pretty much every day.

This wasn't just one teacher one year that did this. DC is in college now and has never given up this questioning the teacher process.

Some teachers hate it because they don't have answers. Others have written end of the year notes praising DD's interest and how it made their day each time she approached them.

Learning happens at all times and in all sorts of ways.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP again. It looks like this class is just going to have independent reading and worksheets and no small group reading instruction for the kids who are above grade level. Not once in awhile. Never. Teacher is only doing small group instruction with some of the class.

I understand that some of the children need a lot more help, but it still makes me sad to think that a quarter of the class is never going to discuss their reading.

Get used to it. Public schools, regardless of where they’re located, have become awful. I’m truly sorry to say that because I’ve always believed in public schools, but some thing has shifted. I find it supremely unfair that children who can’t afford private get a subpar education.

Anonymous wrote:OP again. It looks like this class is just going to have independent reading and worksheets and no small group reading instruction for the kids who are above grade level. Not once in awhile. Never. Teacher is only doing small group instruction with some of the class.

I understand that some of the children need a lot more help, but it still makes me sad to think that a quarter of the class is never going to discuss their reading.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yep. My DS never received reading instruction on his level in ES. He was grouped with the above level kids starting in K. They only instructed them one grade level above even though my son was 3+ years above grade level. He actually increased his own reading level mostly by doing independent reading for the vast majority of time. By 5th grade, his teacher only met with his group once a week.

So, did the rest of the kids catch up, or did he stay 3+ levels above? If the latter, then obviously the teachers knew what they were doing, and met his needs.

Above level readers benefit from large amounts of independent reading. It's what they need. A good teacher respects that.

They still need engagement with their teachers. As a kid who was always in gifted programs, I can personally attest to this.

Reading groups are one tiny portion of the kid's day. As a teacher, and someone who would have qualified for the gifted program had we not moved around constantly, I can tell you that the kids at the top get more engagement than the other kids at every other piece of the school day. Reading groups by third grade are a small portion of the day, which ensures that those kids who can't engage in the whole group lessons, because they're below the level of the text, or don't have the verbal skills to keep up, get some attention.

Tiny? My kid had reading groups for an hour a day every day throughout ES. So for 20 minutes out of five hours in a week, he was taught by his teacher in his group. Hardly tiny.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yep. My DS never received reading instruction on his level in ES. He was grouped with the above level kids starting in K. They only instructed them one grade level above even though my son was 3+ years above grade level. He actually increased his own reading level mostly by doing independent reading for the vast majority of time. By 5th grade, his teacher only met with his group once a week.

So, did the rest of the kids catch up, or did he stay 3+ levels above? If the latter, then obviously the teachers knew what they were doing, and met his needs.

Above level readers benefit from large amounts of independent reading. It's what they need. A good teacher respects that.

They still need engagement with their teachers. As a kid who was always in gifted programs, I can personally attest to this.

Reading groups are one tiny portion of the kid's day. As a teacher, and someone who would have qualified for the gifted program had we not moved around constantly, I can tell you that the kids at the top get more engagement than the other kids at every other piece of the school day. Reading groups by third grade are a small portion of the day, which ensures that those kids who can't engage in the whole group lessons, because they're below the level of the text, or don't have the verbal skills to keep up, get some attention.

Anonymous wrote:I sometimes question whether kids are super accurate and saying they never got any kind of reading instruction.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yep. My DS never received reading instruction on his level in ES. He was grouped with the above level kids starting in K. They only instructed them one grade level above even though my son was 3+ years above grade level. He actually increased his own reading level mostly by doing independent reading for the vast majority of time. By 5th grade, his teacher only met with his group once a week.

So, did the rest of the kids catch up, or did he stay 3+ levels above? If the latter, then obviously the teachers knew what they were doing, and met his needs.

Above level readers benefit from large amounts of independent reading. It's what they need. A good teacher respects that.

They still need engagement with their teachers. As a kid who was always in gifted programs, I can personally attest to this.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yep. My DS never received reading instruction on his level in ES. He was grouped with the above level kids starting in K. They only instructed them one grade level above even though my son was 3+ years above grade level. He actually increased his own reading level mostly by doing independent reading for the vast majority of time. By 5th grade, his teacher only met with his group once a week.

So, did the rest of the kids catch up, or did he stay 3+ levels above? If the latter, then obviously the teachers knew what they were doing, and met his needs.

Above level readers benefit from large amounts of independent reading. It's what they need. A good teacher respects that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yep. My DS never received reading instruction on his level in ES. He was grouped with the above level kids starting in K. They only instructed them one grade level above even though my son was 3+ years above grade level. He actually increased his own reading level mostly by doing independent reading for the vast majority of time. By 5th grade, his teacher only met with his group once a week.

So, did the rest of the kids catch up, or did he stay 3+ levels above? If the latter, then obviously the teachers knew what they were doing, and met his needs.

Above level readers benefit from large amounts of independent reading. It's what they need. A good teacher respects that.