If My Child Does Not Pass the GATE Test, Then What?

I have a question and I'm hoping you can help me. My son took the Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) test this past February he is in 2nd grade. He was referred by his teacher. I received a letter last week saying that he was not going to be admitted to the GATE program and if I wanted to see or discuss the results to please make an appointment with the principal. I had been having a bit of a problem getting an appointment with the school, however it looks like this coming week I'll be meeting up with the GATE program coordinator. I was wondering what kinds of questions should I ask and what can I do? Can I have my son re-test and if I do it outside of the school would those results be considered? Please advise.
My Answer:
Do not worry about a list of questions. Simply ask for a thorough description of his results. You can ask if he was close to qualifying. If he was not close, and they should show you his score along with the score that would have qualified for GATE, then do not worry about retesting at this time. It is not a sign that your son will not do well in school and he is not missing out on anything. He just didn't qualify for this type of classroom.
If he is close, you can ask if there is a way to retest or ask the coordinator about outside testing. Districts sometimes have lists of people for you to consider. Again, if he was not close, I would not recommend this.
Do not leave disappointed if your son did not qualify or feel like it is a statement about his future in school. He will somehow know he did not "get" something you wanted for him, but there is nothing he could have done. It is a small check into him as a student. One day and one test will not determine if he is successful.
Do not make it your mission to get him into a program he is not ready for yet. You can ask the coordinator when the district retests kids. Often, they retest after a year has passed, so when your son is in fourth grade. This gives the kids a break and helps.
Remember: he can get into honors classes in high school, AP classes and all the best colleges without GATE. GATE is under the umbrella of special education and it is there to catch students who display a need for a different type of classroom with a different delivery. Not all students qualify because not all students need this. Your son may be suited to perform well, or better than that, in the average classroom. That does not make him average, it just means he will perform in a standard classroom.
It is all in how you look at it.
Contact the writer by visiting her website at http://www.goasktheteacher.com or email her directly at goasktheteacher@yahoo.com

How Do Art Classes Help Kids Succeed in School?

Do art classes help children do better in school? My husband thinks our children need to focus on school work only. It is the only key to success. My son does well in school (third grade), but he really wants to take an art class. He can’t really draw too well, but he loves drawing. My husband knows he can’t draw too well, so he thinks it is a waste of time. He says it obviously isn’t his ‘thing’ so why waste the money. I want to convince him that we should try. Are there ways art supports good grades? Also, are there classes for kids in the Mission Viejo area that you can recommend to parents?
My Answer:
Art classes certainly enhance the education of children. Children need a variety of experiences in order to develop as learners. If your child is interested, but not adept at art, it is the perfect after school activity. Your child sounds bright and is learning in the classroom and seeking enrichment. Not many children would ask to take a class in something they are not already good at, so it is a testament to your child’s creativity that he is asking for this experience. Your child is young and he is still developing physically as well as intellectually and art classes will help him focus on details, creativity, expression, as well as develop fine motor skills and observational skills that are important for all children. There is an art class I highly recommend called, Kids Art, Fine Art Classes. They have classes all over California in Los Angeles and Orange County ( http://www.kidsartclasses.com ). My child attends the Mission Viejo class and we love the program. The environment is totally positive and all the children are so peaceful and happy while they are there. The owner is a mother with vision and passion. She told me how much confidence the children build as they progress through the program, and I see it in my own child. They take all children, both those that have artistic skills and those without, and they show them what they can do. Classes fill up quickly, and they take ages 4 to adult, so contact the Mission Viejo class if you are interested. They give one free class to allow you to see if the program will work for your family. Contact them directly (949)454-9555 kidsartmv@dslextreme.com

Do Class Sizes Need to Be Small in Elementary Grades?

Question:I have a great deal of respect for teachers. My grandmother taught country school for 37 years starting with a horse and buggy, however, I don't understand the need for a class as small as 20 kids. I graduated from high school in 1957. All of my classes were from 30 to 35 students. There were no drop outs in my class of 350 students. All of us received a good education. If I could point out one problem today it would be the lack of discipline. This is from school and also from parents. I sent my two girls to Catholic school where they received a good education and lots of discipline.
My Answer:
Can teachers teach kids in a classroom with 30 to 35 students? Yes. It has been done before and it can be done again. Will it be better for our kids? No, of course not. The No Child Left Behind Legislation tried to address reasons to stop our schools from falling further and further behind.
The system that you and I were both in growing up was not continuing to work. The smaller class sizes were suggested for our earliest learners, Kindergarten, First, Second and Third Graders. Learning the basics, reading and math, became the focus. These children are 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 years old. It is extremely important to have children reading and fluent by nine years old if that fluency is going to be applied to later learning and development.
I am telling you as a teacher who has had small and large classes, you really can catch a lot more and spend a great deal of focused effort with smaller class sizes. I can work with larger groups. I can even reach the kids in the larger class sizes because I will commit to doing that, but if I have a smaller group, I will be able to do more individualized instruction. When you teach a child to read, it really helps to be able to sit down with the small groups and hear them read and progress as they should. In the past, kids worked in large groups in desks arranged to listen to the teacher lecture and then perform tasks.

Cutting the school year 5 days short?!!?

What is up with this idea to cut the school year 5 days short? This is outrageous. I know, 'let's just let them out early, who cares, it's only the end of the year, they aren't doing anything then anyway.' What a better way to send the message, 'school really isn't that important to us in California, but please move here because it is so desirable.'

I am curious how this will play out. Cutting the school year will save a great amount of money. I was surprised how much it will save, $1.1 billion. If we are sure there will be cuts to schools, if the government really is about to run out of money, then cuts have to come some way. I get the impression that it is going to happen, but I doubt we will be posting it on any ads for our state. You have a good point.

Write to Stop Mid Year Budget Cuts this Nov '08

There will be a special session in the within the next month to decide on the cuts coming to our schools. Right now a mid-year cut is being proposed. Mid Year cuts will cause a disruption to the school year and to our classrooms. Students will be moved mid year, programs will be stopped, and it should not happen. If cuts must come, they must be planned for and schools must prepare.

WRITE OR CALL YOUR LEADERS now since the special session will occur within the month.


Our leaders pile these letters in piles FOR and AGAINST to see what the electorate think. We all need to tell them. Here is all the contact information I have so far:

The Honorable Arnold Schwarzenegger, Governor (R)
State Capitol Building Sacramento, CA 95814
Ph: (916) 445-2841; (213) 897-0322 Fax: (916) 445-4633

California Senate Districts Senator Dick Ackerman - Senate District 33 (R)
17821 E. 17th Street, Suite 180 Tustin, CA 92780
(714) 573-1853 • FAX (714) 573-1859
e-mail: senator.ackerman@sen.ca.gov

Sacramento Office—Room 4066 •
(916) 445-4264 • FAX (916) 445-9754

Find your representatives and assembly members here:
http://www.ocvote.com

or

Click “find my district” on this page http://www.assembly.ca.gov/acs/defaulttext.asp

Other Contacts

Senator Tom Torlakson
Senate Education Committee
7th Senate District State Capitol Building,
Room 5050 Sacramento, CA 95814 Fax:
(916) 445-2527

Assemblyman Fabian Nunez Speaker of the Assembly
California State Assembly State Capitol
P.O. Box 942849 Sacramento, CA 94249-0046
Fax: (916) 319-2146

Senator Don Perata
President Pro Tempore California
State Senate State Capitol Building, Room 205
Sacramento, CA 95814
Fax: (916) 327-1997

Assemblyman Michael N. Villines
Assembly Minority Leader
California State Assembly State Capitol, Room 3104
Sacramento, CA 94249-0029
Fax: (916) 319-2129

Special Education Funding Congressman John Campbell House of Representatives – District 48 610 Newport Center Drive, Suite 330 Newport Beach, CA 92660 Fax: (949) 251-309 Congressman Gary Miller House of Representatives – District 42 1800 E Lambert Road, Suite 150 Brea, CA 92821 Fax: (714) 257-9242

Getting children to want to read

I thank you for the responses in your recent column about helping kids become interested in reading. I could not help but notice, however, that although all of your book suggestions were wonderful ones, they all fit one genre: Classic Western Fiction. As this is the tradition grew up on, it is easy to suggest these books off the top of our head. However, I work with middle school youth who often have no interest in reading, and I find it is because they have not been exposed to a wide enough variety of books to find their special interest.

I suggest when parents take their children to the library, be sure to visit all sections! Some kids are turned on by non-fiction, others poetry, others Latin or African authors. Perhaps the student who is so interested in transformers would prefer books on science and technology. I had a student who had no interest in books until he started reading books from his Mexican heritage. I personally did not enjoy reading until well after college, when I discovered the joy of autobiographies (no one helped me notice that the only books I did like in school was the "Little House" books or, later, Diary of Anne Frank).

Please remind your readers that there is something out there for everyone--and not everyone is initially turned on by the "classics." And that is okay: Expose the students to a wide variety of books (and even magazines), and who knows where it may lead. The goal is just get reading!

You make an excellent point. I was making specific suggestions for the family of the ten year old who wrote in to me. We need to turn our children on to reading at a young age. There needs to be a hook, and it does not need to come in the form of classics. Do not rule them out, however, for the Little House books and Diary of Anne Frank are classics as well. Good books are good books.

As a middle school teacher, you know the ropes. I absolutely agree that magazines, newspapers, novels, short stories, and even comic books (an almost lost art) are all equally desirable. We just want the children reading and longing to read.

Families should regularly frequent libraries. The catalogues are amazing and children should learn to search for their interests. The reading list website http://www.californiareadinglist.com is also an important tool. Find books at your child’s reading level so that the content is doable.

Do you have tips for math practice at home?

Do you have any tips for parents to help our kids keep up on math facts over the summer? My son really struggled for the first part of this year, second grade. Now he is going to third next year, and I know we need to practice math. I read to him and took him to the library and stuff, but I forgot about math. What can we do to keep them sharp? Too bad there isn’t a math library.

First, there is a math library. It is the same library you go to in order to find fun story books. There are a ton of math related stories and fun books you can choose alongside those stories. Go to the computer catalogue and type in “Math” in the subject keyword space and look at all the options you and your child could fine.

Beyond the library, make math a simple part of your day. If it does not fit naturally into your summer routine, you and your child will not do it. One tip would be to wait every time you are going to start the car and make your child answer a certain set of math problems. Nothing too complex, but if you do it every time you are about to go somewhere he will essentially have the “key” to helping you start the engine.

It should be fun, and it will allow you to help him with the areas he might not remember as readily. When he struggles, help him with the answers and try to stop and memorize 3-5 problems that day repeating those the next day and building.

If you do not plan to drive anywhere with these gas prices, have him do these types of practice problems before meals, or before being allowed to go outside or in the pool. Tell him his math skills are his keys to his favorite activities.