My son made it into the ES program :)
 

my son is six years old and just started kindergarten. He has come home several times saying he was bored. We made an appointment to have a conference with his teacher this past December. She told us that she would like to have him tested for gifted. We agreed. We finally had a conference with the physiologist, his teacher, the ES teacher, and another ES teacher. They handed us the paperwork and it said my son scored Significantly Above Average with a score of 153 and was in the 99.98 percentile. (not exactly sure what that means??) He will now be able to go to a gifted class one day a week to be challenged more. Which we are very happy about.

He was able to read a little bit before he started kindergarten. But now his reading level is almost a fourth grade level. And he understand what he is reading, he is passing the tests that they have given him on those books he reads. so, he is comprehending what he is taking in. I dont know if that was any indication of him being gifted, but sure as heck makes me proud a mama :)

I would love to post this on my Facebook page, but my mom is like, "you might be careful. I might lose some friends if I do". What do you think? Should I post it on FB or not? There are people that post how their kids are doing and awards that they get. Is there any difference with this?

Wendy

if there was a "like" button, I'd be pushing it ... LOTS!!!

It's your son. You should be proud of him. If you want to post, you do! You can be as detailed as you want to be. You can simply state that you are proud of him and that he is an exemplary student! Or you can state that you are happy that he will finally be able to explore his talents in school. Two of our three children were in the G&T program. I'm surprised it took the teacher this long to have him tested. In our state, all a parent has to do is say "I want little Johnny tested." The school has to test him. Even if little Johnny is NOT G&T material.

If your friends get jealous they're not really your friends, are they? Be proud! It's your page, post what you want!

I think it's fine to say your child has been accepted into a gifted program, but I would hold back on giving the numbers. I'm not sure what specific score that was – a particular test score or overall IQ score – but IQ is kind of private...someday, your child might not want that information to have been made public, for a whole variety of reasons.

But by all means, do be proud!

Our youngest Grandson has been in the gifted program for several years. When he was in the 4th grade he was reading at a high school level. He plays video games, watches TV and loves to read. He can read any book out there. Parents keep it at age appropriate. He would be considered a ' nerd' if that term was still used. We think he is wonderful. He was raised around adults and we think that helped him. He gets alot of attention because he is able to hold an intelligent conversation with adults. We are very proud of him.

[QUOTE=willferg;5993252]I think it's fine to say your child has been accepted into a gifted program, but I would hold back on giving the numbers. I'm not sure what specific score that was – a particular test score or overall IQ score – but IQ is kind of private...someday, your child might not want that information to have been made public, for a whole variety of reasons.

I think that is good advice :) I had a child in the Gifted program; she is now in college on scholarship and already has a patent pending. However, I also have a daughter in High School who struggles with school. I try not to constantly post about the achievements of one daughter since both are on FB; I just tell the college girl privately how immensely proud we are of her.

I wouldn't post anything that sets him apart to the extent that he may become excluded by peers in the future or treated in a unique way by others. Raising a gifted child has it's own challenges,not the least of which is making it possible to succeed socially,especially when his interests may not be the same as mainstream kids. MyDD used to ask me to help her find her doll,so she could go play with the girls. They often played school: she always got to be the teacher. She taught the other kids in preschool how to read. She and I negotiated a lot of school issues as she grew up. I put her in college when she was 11; however the prof made me take the micro. Class lab with her( the grown ups wouldn't be her lab partner). She got better grades than they did,,,no lab partner problems after that.LOL,

francie, that is a fascinating story! What is your dd doing now?

It is his private information, so I would keep it private. Those who know the child probably already know he is intelligent. The rest don't care. My cousin's child had a high IQ. But I reminded her, that IQ scores are used as predictors of educational achievement and that she would still smarter than he was for years to come.

Do you have other children?

How will they feel if they see their brother getting tons of praise for being "smart"?

What if one of your future kids is in special ed?

My oldest daughter was always in the gifted program and won every award, scholarship and job offered. My youngest was in special ed and could not even be mainstreamed (autism). He struggled just to get a high school diploma. We learned early on to praise our kids for being helpful, kind, thoughtful, etc. To much emphasis on "smarts" is not always a good thing.

Thank you all for your input! I did put it on FB but only said that he made it into the gifted program and left it like that. You are all correct. We will not make a big issue out of it with him or anyone else. Thank you all for your responses. :)

IMHO you did the right thing. My 6 year old grandson probably will never be in the G & T program. He is moderately deaf, has epilepsy, asthma, OCD, about two years behind other kids his age, and just got glasses! BUT...he is mainstreamed, adorable, loving, kind, outgoing, polite, and just about the nicest kid anyone could ask for...he struggles, and we celebrate every milestone...and you're right...we don't make a big issue out of it with him either! Celebrate his milestones!!! Every child deserves to know just how special they are, and how proud we are of them!! ......P.S....congratulations!

You should be proud of your son! It is wonderful that you and DH listened to him when he said he was bored and followed through with the school system. Hopefully, your son will continue to be challenged by the classes he will have and you will find other outside programs that can enhance his learning and development. I think how you addressed the Facebook issue was good- kept it simple and sweet!

Post on FBI. If you lose friends, where they truly friends? FB is we're you share! Enjoy

Be careful on FB! Anyone can see what you write by going through your "friends" pages. TOO RISKY!

I know you are proud! My experience with young kids high scoring is kids usually grow into their scores as they get older.

CAPITAL LETTERS AND EXCLAMATION POINTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!! YOU BETCHA. YOU GAVE BIRTH TO THAT CHILD. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE PROUD AND HE WILL HAVE A GRIN WRAPPED ALL AROUND HIS HEAD. A lot depends also if he can handle it. It is still up to you. Just don't shove it in everyone's face like it is always the topic of conversation to where every other child feels less than. One good post doesn't hurt. It's how it's handled after that. Don't forget to encourage the learning of common sense. One can have a very high IQ and absolutely no common sense. That to me is not so smart. As many sayings go though "If in doubt, don't!"

congrats on your son, that's wonderful. Does ES stand for extra special? never heard those letters used

I know you're proud of your child - we all are. Every child is exceptional in their own way. But my sister in law once said that no one really wants to hear about your child but family. And she's right. If your child was of average ability, would you really care that Johnny down the street was so smart? I doubt it. If your child is just starting off in school, I'd be real careful about going on about his ability, because I guarantee, its going to get old to the other parents real quick. I remember one parent like that - she would tell anyone who would listen how wonderful her son was, but the mom of the child who was valedictorian never said a word - but everyone know anyway who was the smartest. Again, I know you're proud, but as long as your child can do exception things, people will see it and you don't have to brag.

Congradulations on your son and know he continues to do well.

You have every right to be very proud.

My Daughter is fifty now , and she was a gifted child, I did keep her with her same age group, they wanted to skip her three grades. She is now working for Uncle Sam , as a computer geek and is a member of MENSA. I couldnt be more proud.cmaras. Ps she was reading the BIble at four

I would suggest that you don't put this on FB. You can always note how well he is doing in school and mention in general terms that he is doing advanced work. Being gifted indeed as someone mentioned brings along its own challenges and in today's digital word of cyber bullying please be careful not to give other kids an additional opportunity to bully or negatively single out your child. Some things are best kept private in order to protect your child today and most significantly in the future.
In the meantime enjoy your child's accelerated intellectual path in life and help him adjust socially with his extraordinary gift. Be sure to keep him intellectually stimulated and also offer positive non-academic challenges into his life. Is it not wonderful the possibilities that might exist for him? Best wishes always and enjoy your gifted child.

I do not blame you for being proud of him and it is just the beginning I am sure. I have a grown daughter that was in
the gifted class at school and everyone started calling her "the brain". She actually backed off on grades ,until she got
to college, so she would have more friends and excelled in sports so they would know she was like them.

Gosh Good advice. I wouldn't think of putting it on FB but I guess I have maybe shared to much with friends and family. Just didn't think of the "down side of it so thanks!! Our grandson as aspergers and is 16. At a recent IEP meeting the principal said "so what did you think of his scores on the MAP test or didn't he tell you. I said well he didn't tell us but I bet he did well. He (Grandson) said I guess it was OK. Princiipal said I would say 100% better than anyone in your grade in the US is a little better than not to bad. Our Grandson said No I think it was just this school. Principal said no all the US. I guess they are some kind of test they give everyone?? My husband and I went home just shaking our heads. His mom knew and didn't share with us either!! But............. He has NO common sense like someone on here mentioned. Just hope we can keep him out of trouble!!! If we can he will go far!!

I noticed that you're in Florida. We lived in Titusville when my boys were in the early grades. Both of my sons were in the gifted program there. (They are now in their late 30's, so that was a long time ago.) At the time, Florida was way ahead of most other states in providing a good program for these types of students. They were able to do it because they recognized that gifted students have special needs that are frequently not met in regular classrooms, and so they funded the program in the same way that they would other special needs programs. My kids did well there, and when we moved there were gifted programs, but not as great as the one in FL.

Boredom is a real concern for gifted kids. Sometimes they just kind of turn off and fail to excel to the extent of their abilities. It's a real waste and a loss for our communities when some of the brightest minds are wasted because of mismanagement in their early school experience. Sadly, a significant number of high school dropouts have been identified as gifted. As a parent, you might find it worthwhile to go to the library and read whatever you can get your hands on about gifted kids.

As for posting it on Facebook, I wouldn't. There is nothing to be gained by it, and one of the worst things you can do is make a kid feel socially "different", including in a good way. From the earliest grades they will encounter other kids who resent them for the simple fact that teachers tend to like them and give them more attention and more rewards, and also because sometimes other parents make comparisons or teachers grade on the curve, and the high achiever is going to throw off that curve for the other kids. When my daughter was in kindergarten the class was rather large and the teacher actually recruited her and one other girl to help teach some of the slower ones to read. She had mixed feelings about that, but luckily they didn't seem to hold it against her. There is a strong social instinct to want to belong, and sometimes kids will deliberately fail at things just to avoid the negative response that they might get from some of the other kids.

The main thing about posting this sort of thing on FB is that it's just one area of a kid's development. You don't want to give him the impression that it's enough just to be brilliant. He also needs to be caring, friendly, hard working, etc. and needs to know to appreciate those qualities in others, even if they might not measure up to him in brain power. When we were given our son's high test scores as you have been, we were told not to even tell him the numbers because it's too easy for a kid to sort of think that the numbers themselves are a measure of himself as a person. It's just one aspect of who he is. I agree with quiltmom04 that you don't have to toot his horn - others will definitely notice his achievements all along the way, and they will be much more impressed with team spirit and hard work than with test scores. Rather than focus on the scores, focus on what he is learning day by day; help him to explore the many opportunities that are available. At the same time, let him still be a regular kid. Soccer, swim team, band, volunteer work and all sorts of other non-academic things can also enrich his life and help him to grow into a well-rounded individual, and - just by the way - look good on college applications, too. It's not too soon to notice that an officially high IQ never got anyone into college, all by itself. Wishing your little guy the best possible future!

I would imagine you are thrilled with your son's giftedness. I guess I think about the family who posted a picture of their 11 yo son who was in camo and had a rifle. Someone on the fb friends called CPS stating that this was child abuse! His father was an instructor for gun safety, and his son had all the courses, and a hunting licence. Not everyone thinks the same. To me this really underlines that whole concept. I have children who were in the gifted program. There are some great things about it and some problems as well. I feel sure that the schools must be doing better each year(--at least I hope so.) I guess my point is I would feel very proud that my son was in the gifted class, but I would encourage him to include others that aren't in it to be friends as well. My son really pressed himself to do well in GT. When he got to 7th grade he was struggling in a couple classes. It seemed that he was gifted in English, and math, but history wasn't his thing. At the time, the program was ALL gifted classes, no exceptions. So when he no longer was getting good grades in the one class, he was taken out of all GT classes. (I thought that was really dumb.} So he went into a accelerated and achedemic (misspelled) classes. He was distraught(his whole social circle was in those classes), until he figured out that he didn't have to work at a grades the rest of his jr. high and high school years. Just be careful.

Congratulations on your gifted child..That said, be aware, "gifted" is not always "great". Sometimes, the gifted have a not so great relationship with most of their classmates and it is a hard road they travel at times. I speak as the mother of several of them.

Gifted children are wonderful and full of promise at the age yours is. What you may not see coming is the antagonism and discrimination of other families who think you are bragging. Also, being gifted with such a high IQ will bring with it other problems that you may or may not escape. Do some research before publishing anything in such a public forum as Facebook. Gifted children are not gifted in ALL areas of life. We had a child that scored in that range, also. The highly gifted child has obstacles, but also opportunities, that others don't. Be sure not to let this child "overshadow" your other child/children. All that said, I wish you the best on your journey and much success for all of your children.

Be proud of you son and post it.

That 99.98 percentile means that he scored better on <whatever test they used> than 99.98% of the kids his age who took it. Something to be proud of! I think I'd leave off the numerical details and just announce that he's earned the right to take a special enrichment class one day a week this school year based on test scores. Here's why: When I was about 10 or 11, I ran across my IQ and my brother's. His was several points higher than mine and I was crushed. I shut down academically, thinking I was DUMB.....many, many years later I realized as I was finally in college to become a teacher in my 30's (it took me that long to convince my dumb self to try college) that first, I have a decently high IQ and second, the point difference was small enough that it statistically didn't matter. It could have been the difference between his having a good day testing and me not. AND------IQ scores need to be compared at the same age and from the same test---if compared at all----and that isn't what happened. I realize that your son doesn't read the quilting board so I hope he hasn't seen all of this....but please be careful. IQ is, in my opinion as a Master's degreed teacher, far over-used and over-talked about. A happy well-rounded kid who isn't bored is far more important!

I hope your son finds the programme stimulating and rewarding. Make sure to praise him for effort. There is no point praising someone for being smart, any more than for being tall, or having blue eyes. It's learning how to make something worthwhile from what you have that counts. He is fortunate that he has the ability to achieve wonderful things. But he hasn't done it yet!

As a retired gifted teacher and mother of two gifted adult children, I would not post it on any social media. I'm glad he will be in a part time program and in other classes as well. He needs to interact with all students as that is who he will be interacting with as an adult. As far as being bored, I wouldn't let mine mention it after the first time it was said, because they have to learn how to cope in all types of settings. We have all been bored at one time or another and have learned to be patient when someone takes longer to understand a concept. The nice part of resource classes is the in depth studies of various topics.

As the mom of 3 kids who were in the gifted program, and as a retired teacher, I would seriously ask you to reconsider posting this kind of information. First, there are the issues others have mentioned about peer interaction. Second, there is the appearance of bragging. Third, there is a privacy issue. Think about it this way: would you want your husband telling stuff about you at work to his friends? Maybe it's things he thinks are great, but maybe you would prefer not to be talked about. Well, kids have a right to privacy as well. The people who will rejoice in this great news are most likely his grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. and presumably they already know. So why advertise family "stuff" to others? We always had special little family celebrations for braces coming off, great report cards, etc. but didn't feel the need to brag publicly about it. In this weird day and age of too much info being out there, we need to keep a careful eye on protecting our kids. I am not paranoid, but IMHO, do think kids can potentially be at risk when everyone in the world can access info about them.