g&t?...where to try and start...

[lmh2402]

DS is almost 5. he's in our public school pre-k program. the teacher is wonderful, the program is lovely. and DS is doing all this great social growing and learning. but DH and I are somewhat concerned about his academic path. he is our oldest, so we're not all that versed in the details of our district re: G & T testing and/or programming. but from the little bit of digging I've done, the programming seems paltry at best. there is no testing until end of K. and then for those that qualify, there is a once a week 45 min pull out.

I will say that I realize that true G & T is not just being bright, so truly I'm not even sure if DS would qualify as G & T. but when I asked about the math curriculum in K, his current teacher told me they don't teach math. DS is fairly advanced in addition and subtraction and tonight I heard him discussing the concepts of multiplication tables in the bath. for whatever reason, he is drawn to learning. he loves math. he loves language and phonics.

i don't want to push him. but i don't want to let him languish either. i want him to be challenged and happy.

i think he's VERY happy going to school every day and playing with his friends. so i'm unsure. do i just let it all go and see what happens at the end of next year once they do testing? and/or, do I try and figure out testing sooner/earlier (how?) and then see if there are programs in my area that might be a good supplement for him?

FWIW, at our winter conference the teacher told us that she believe he is G & T and that we should be doing "enrichment" for him - when I asked what that was, she said she wasn't really sure where to direct me.

thanks for any thoughts. it feels all very overwhelming and confusing. and honestly, I really do not feel comfortable asking local parents because my town is HIGHLY competitive and, honestly, not all that nice (different post for different forum). but suffice it to say, I feel like I'm navigating alone.

[Green_Tea]

His teacher told you that they don't teach math in K? I find that hard to believe.

(Not that his teacher said that, but that they don't teach math.)

My personal belief is that G&T testing is best left until a child is older and the playing field evens out, in 3rd grade or so. JMHO.

[lmh2402]

His teacher told you that they don't teach math in K? I find that hard to believe.

yes, i asked very specifically and she said they don't teach math. they have centers that "generally cover concepts" but there is no actual teaching of math.

i asked a mom of an older kid about this as well, in passing, and she said that her recollection was that there was no specific math curriculum until 1st grade

[Green_Tea]

yes, i asked very specifically and she said they don't teach math. they have centers that "generally cover concepts" but there is no actual teaching of math.

i asked a mom of an older kid about this as well, in passing, and she said that her recollection was that there was no specific math curriculum until 1st grade

Are you in a state that has adopted the CCSS? NJ, right? There are standards for K, and teaching math is not optional. Perhaps it is not being taught in the way that we were taught, but it's definitely being covered.

http://www.corestandards.org/Math

[lmh2402]

Are you in a state that has adopted the CCSS? NJ, right? There are standards for K, and teaching math is not optional. Perhaps it is not being taught in the way that we were taught, but it's definitely being covered.

http://www.corestandards.org/Math

yes, NJ. I don't know. I'm so confused. I was just reading through this massive document I found on the district website that details the math curriculum for K. in my quick scan, it seems like a lot of comparing quantities, continuing to work on counting, shape work, etc, etc.

perhaps the teacher told me they don't teach math because I was meaning more like addition, subtraction, multiplication, division... is this kind of work usually started in K? so confused...

[hellbennt]

I'd go in & speak w/ the school counselor. S/he should be able to help you navigate the system. You can ask questions & she'll either know the answers or be able to help you find them. You can ask questions about curriculum, testing, things like that.


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[SnuggleBuggles]

They could be teaching math just in ways that aren't addition and subtraction. Ds2 is in k and does things like patterns and geometry. In pre-k, they just learned numbers and one on one correspondence type things.

Our school doesn't test til 2nd grade for gifted. I'm ok with that. I feel like they can do enough differentiation and enrichment without pull out instruction in k and 1.

[larig]

yes, NJ. I don't know. I'm so confused. I was just reading through this massive document I found on the district website that details the math curriculum for K. in my quick scan, it seems like a lot of comparing quantities, continuing to work on counting, shape work, etc, etc.

perhaps the teacher told me they don't teach math because I was meaning more like addition, subtraction, multiplication, division... is this kind of work usually started in K? so confused...

Multiplication is definitely not a kindergarten concept (more like 3rd--I'm tutoring in a split 2/3 math class and they are 1/2 through the year and working on their multiplication and division facts). As a h.s. math teacher (currently taking time off for DS), I like the list you've given here--very age-appropriate.

[egoldber]

I was just reading through this massive document I found on the district website that details the math curriculum for K. in my quick scan, it seems like a lot of comparing quantities, continuing to work on counting, shape work, etc, etc.

My younger DD is in first grade. In K, they did pretty much exactly that list. Towards the end of the year they did very simple addition and subtraction, all quantities less than 10, mainly things like 1+3=4, etc. Just introducing very basic concepts.

This year in first they have spent most of the year to date on math concepts around addition and subtraction.

Older DD is in our district's "Advanced Academic Program" and she did not cover multiplication until third grade, with some division toward the end of the year.

[LBW]

IME NJ districts are very hit or miss when it comes to G&T. My district, for example has NO G&T program. We also have 1/2 day K, and I would say there's essentially no math instruction.

Rutgers offers G&T testing services: http://umg.umdnj.edu/public/clinical...m=instdev/tgcc

For enrichment, you might want to look into the Montclair University program: http://www.montclair.edu/provost/new...rticleID=11679

or this program in Glen Rock: http://giftedchildsociety.com/

There's lots of info on the Hoagies page. I find the forums helpful, too. http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/

If you want to look into online courses, check out the JHU CTY program: http://cty.jhu.edu/
They have self-paced mathematics courses that could be enough to supplement what your son is learning in school.

Another fun enrichment option is learning programming. Scratch is fun and pretty easy for kids to use: http://scratch.mit.edu/