Why do the schools call their services for some kids "gifted" services. This is so not really what we have here and all it does is label students, make others feel they aren't gifted and make parents nuts!

Speaking as a parent who has a child that does in fact receive these services it is just not a good name. If you understand the real gifted child there are probably only maybe 3 or 4 in the district, maybe. The rest of the kids that do well on the Cogat test who qualify are really just above their level in math or reading by a grade or 2. What the program should be called is accelerated math or reading.

Of course parents would want those too even if their child was not in the top 5 % but the label of gifted makes it seem that the other kids who did not test well are not. All kids have gifts but very few are truly gifted. Mensa College bound at 10 gifted.

Is there a way the services could be renamed? The other thought is that there are so many kids who test high but do not hit the 5% and can't get the accelerated work. Maybe district 41 needs to start teaching up and bring in more help in the room to address the diversity. If this many kids are testing high, than kids as a whole are smarter with all the enrichment programs in the early years and tutoring, etc.

I also do not like that the kids in the gifted services are told they are smart enough to be in there and they were put in their because they are really smart. Totally inappropriate to talk about kids smartness in a gifted program. So the kids go back and tell their friends I am in the smart program. Of course encouraging those kids they can do the work is important, but you are really smart is not. Sometimes I just think people need to think about the basic things they sometimes overlook.

You have a very valid point. I remember being in the "gifted program" as a kid and facing multiple other kids who used to tease me because of it. I also noted many friends who weren't involved in it feeling what you're describing here, feelings of inadequacy and that they were stupid. Whatever the reason, it was socially crippling to be involved in it.

This is why I made it a point when my kids were invited into their school's "gifted program" to strongly stress that it didn't mean they were smarter than other kids or anything like that. Simply that this program was designed to challenge their particular and individual intellectual strengths. Of course, the following discussion explaining what that meant to a 2nd & 3rd grader (at the time) was a lengthy one, lol.

D89 (K-8) calls it the "challenge" program and in D87 I think its "Advanced Placement" or "AP" for short. My younger son went through these and we often considered taking him out (at least in K-8) as the poor kid just seemed to end up with twice the homework and was staying up late to finish and was getting stressed about it. This in grade school for cry-eye?

When I got to college (albeit 1975) the first thing I heard was that K-12 should be focusing more on providing a thorough education in the basics and developing good study habits. Leave higher level classes to the university to teach. I think its probably more relevant today.

You're probably right, Bio. After going through the "gifted program" (albeit in the 80's for me, lol), I had no idea how to determine what and how to study. This is something that I still sometimes struggle with today. I never needed to study in grade school, I just had a knack for remembering things. Not learning this valuable and irreplaceable skill left me barely graduating high school.

Oldest kid was on the gifted track 4-8th. It did him some good....literacy in particular. His brother missed out by a point or two. Can't say as it will negatively affect him one way or the other. He will be just fine.

I will give props to Mrs. Hann at Hadley. Son had her for lit all three years. No nonsense woman who really stands up for her kids. Pushes them fairly hard, too. One of the few bright spots in preparing our kid for D87.

It's funny....but after reading what she wrote....sounds exactly like one of my kids. Auditory learning is very hazardous.

I can see where you are coming from as the word "gifted" has a much different connotation than "accelerated" (although I like "challenge" myself).

Anyway, when I was in early grammar school we didn't have a gifted program, but we did have separate reading groups and it took about two minutes to determine which of the bluebirds, the cardinals or the robins was the "smart" kids group. No need for descriptive words or anyone to point it out at all. Kids just know who's smart and who isn't. Just like kids just know who's athletic and who isn't.

ETA: My child's too young at the moment, but so help me God, if she's not in the "gifted" program in 3rd grade or whenever it starts, heads are going to roll . . .

quote:

Originally posted by GE Fan:
Do you think that GESingleMom2 will post again letting us know that she was in the "gifted program"?

I was in the "gifted program"
Sorry, it couldn't be helped

Clam, I'm inclined to agree with you in regard to the hazardousness of auditory learning. Though I can assure you all that I'm not one of his kids

Lol @ Mama. We had the different reading groups as well and most of the kids in the accelerated group were also in said program (better Fan? )

That sounds like something a buzzard would say.