differences between East Dallas elementary schools (Houston, Fort Worth: college, live, centers)

[littlewmn]

I aoplogize. Obviously the stress of a move in less than a month to a place that I haven't yet been notified of, all while being unable to be released from my current lease, is getting to me. Just trying to make my son as comfortable with his new school as possible in a short amount of time.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by littlewmn

I aoplogize. Obviously the stress of a move in less than a month to a place that I haven't yet been notified of, all while being unable to be released from my current lease, is getting to me. Just trying to make my son as comfortable with his new school as possible in a short amount of time.

I have absolutely no idea which poster your rant was directed towards. If you actually read the responses, plenty of posters gave you a list of specific private schools to look into that sound like they would better serve your son's needs at this point. Start there.

[littlewmn]

Yes.. many did suggest private school.
Some seemed to me to imply that there was no place for my son in any GT program; that a child who was not quiet, reserved and complient would only get in by nepotism; that I was looking to excuse his (minor) behavior infractions; or that he would be preventing their children from learning.
That is what I was reacting to.
I don't have an extra $8,000+ a year for private school, and I can not use one with a religious viewpoint (as we are of mixed religions and I can not favor one over the other).

[pepper131]

What happens in the classroom when your g/t kid talks out of turn (including being in line, including at lunch, including gym class) or gets up and goes to the hallway to use the restroom or get a drink of water when they feel like it - they get a marked as breaking a rule and it comes home on your kid's daily progress calendar as a "yellow" faced mark and the worst being a "red" faced mark. So they get that type of label. It isn't fair, but that's the way it is.

One kid I know who fits the g/t profile very well gets a yellow face every day. His mom has had to choose to not care about his breaking the rules - it's simply what he's going to do until he in an environment that supports him. He will talk out of turn - not in a disruptive manner, but simply talking out of turn.

The g/t program in the neighborhood public schools is a one or two day/week pull out program. It isn't all g/t all the time. We wish it was, but they are not allowed to segregate kids any more based on their intellectual abilities.

[FarNorthDallas]

It's not your child's fault the public school's gifted program is not right for him - it's the school's fault. I'm don't believe for one second your child should be forced to conform to the G/T's requirements. I'm totally on your side on this. I'm sorry if my criticism about the public schools came across as a problem with your child. The problem isn't your child. It's a bad match between student and school. I'm just saying that how the public schools are designed and structured, y'all aren't going to like it.

There is one public school option though you might consider in DISD and that is the newly opened Barack Obama Male Leadership School which is a boys only magnet school (not sure of the grades it has). One of the things they tell their teachers is that boys need to be able to move around the classroom when they want to (and it's not considered disruptive) and that boys tend to respond better to louder voices. I also think the kids have to test to get in although it isn't necessarily a gifted school.

[littlewmn]

Pepper..these are the kind of minor (and I believe, petty) infractions that are making him really dislike school. You described my son perfectly! Line and lunch are big issues too, as he understands the need to keep quiet while others are working, and will just doodle all over his work until they are ready to move on.
I am afraid of trying Travis next year, after a year of a good elementary school, because I feel like he would only get even more of the feedback you described.
He gets his recess time cut; his time playing with friends on the playground is decreasing. This is at his current school (with an hour a week GT pullout and limited differrentiation). I don't care at all about the pullout-- I think it is a waste of time and they just do "fun" stuff. He used to make friends easier there (at pullout) but now the well-behaved ones are picking up on him as "trouble" because of the yellow and red for talking out of turn or moving about.
I was hoping there was a school without the emphasis on all that "petty" stuff where he could still be challenged. I keep considering homeschooling, but I am not truly up to the task when he advances.

[littlewmn]

Thank you, FarNorth. I am sure I took your previous comments in the wrong spirit. I am trying to stay as collected as possible under some difficult circumstances and to say I'm overly sensitive right now would be an understatement.
That might be a good fit. I had not heard of it, and will definitely check it out. I don't need to stay in DISD if there is a better fit (but I would have to go further west rather than east, I think). I was thinking DISD for the neighborhood and what I perceived as a better potential to find a good fit, given all the magnet options.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by FarNorthDallas

The problem isn't your child. It's a bad match between student and school. I'm just saying that how the public schools are designed and structured, y'all aren't going to like it.

Exactly what my first post tried to convey- a bad match, at least in this stage of her son's life.

OP, don't count out private school due to tuition. Many have scholarships and tuition assistance for families who can't pay the full price tag. It's worth looking into, at least. And I don't think any of the schools suggested in this thread are religious-based or backed. Shelton & Winston for sure are independent schools.

[littlewmn]

Obama is for 6th grade. It is a very interesting idea.
DISD’s Barack Obama Male Leadership Academy says “Yes We Can” | Dallas South News

I will look into private, too, though I thought most private scholarships were for the truly low income. We are sort of more in the high income/high debt category (at least until I am finished with my debt management plan in a couple of years). I am also hearing that in Dallas, religious schools are not as religious as I think (ie. St Mark's). I will see what options I might have there. Thanks for the reminder.

[VonHuffenHausen]

Advice about private schools is solid, I would say look at Montessori schools. If he is gifted, as you say he is, then he should be able to get assistance or a scholarship. There are some great Montessori schools in East Dallas. But keep in mind that there are gifted kids who do behave and are high achievers too, it is not an 'either/ or type of thing'. There isn't just one mold of G&T, a this or a that, there are many types of personalities and styles of gifted children.

If he is truly gifted, he will test into Travis or something similar. If he cannot test in, perhaps he isn't really "gifted" in terms of how it is defined for education, he just gets good grades for now and developed early, he would be deemed a BRIGHT child. Nothing wrong with that. Those types of schools have a little bit of structural differences from regular public schools which would be beneficial to him; however, no behavioral problems are tolerated and you are expected to work. Expectations are high.

All parents think that their kids are great, that is normal. But what you might call quirky might appear to you one way, but the rest of the world might see it as something else. It is all in perception. Quirky to you could be disruptive or scary to someone else.

A friend of mine has a little girl with similar types of issues. But she wasn't referred to as quirky. People just couldn't stand to be around her, she was labeled ANNOYING and WEIRD, not really UNIQUE as her parents called her. It took some time for them to realize this until someone had the nerve to tell them to stop making excuses and justifying behavior and take action to help her and change it. Not change who she is, but change how she deals with things. It isn't that people just didn't "get her", it was that she and her parents didn't "get it". Her mother got all sorts of books on how to work with her child on improving skills, focusing, behavior, etc and worked with her every day on improving her educational experience. She even followed along with lessons and came up with extra activities and more advanced work to do on her own. They realized that they were as responsible for her education as much as the school was, it is a two part process that many parents ignore. I am not saying it worked wonders, but the time she has invested seems to be paying off. She is doing much better. She is in a G&T pullout, but her parents say it really doesn't do much. They are considering Montessori for a more individualized approach, and her mother who doesn't work is going to get a job to pay for it. I am also happy to say that it is more tolerable to be around her because she can be a sweet, fun girl, especially now that she is more challenged and understands that she has boundaries and expectations to meet.

Where is it that you are moving from, small or large city or town? Have you lived in Texas before?

Good luck whatever you choose.
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