(no subject)

[felicula]

I talked to the school psychologist this morning. Aidan's at the fourth grade level in reading and toward the high end of second grade level reading. Just about every other aspect of the achievement tests showed him at superior or very superior levels for his age. Wow. Even more wow because Aidan wasn't yet reading at the start of this school year. She told me she didn't think the principal had known just how ahead Aidan was, because of the look of surprise on her face when she relayed his testing information.

I called the principal this morning, totally forgetting that today was the sixth grade graduation. At least I got to leave a thorough message with the secretary. The principal called me back a few minutes ago. She's taken his name off the lists for first grade. They are accelerating him into second grade. Wow. And the principal selected a teacher she thought would challenge him.

Tomorrow at his kindergarten graduation, I'll need to sign a form stating that the administration and I have agreed on his acceleration. I'll also be talking to the principal about arranging to meet Aidan's teacher for next year. The form and the records of his assessments will go into his cumulative record so we shouldn't have as many issues later on if he switches schools or moves.

It's nice to know that I don't have to worry about Aidan getting stuck in a class that he's already buzzing through the material for. We may end up looking into private schools, charter schools, or other districts for the year after, but this coming year should be a nice adventure. There might be teasing or resentment from other students to deal with, but there might also be kids he can relate to. It's scary and exciting at the same time.

This settles my mind a lot more than it had been. Today I was researching some of the private schools. The big names in the area have tuition upwards of $12K - $15K per year. That's like buying a nice used car from a dealer every year. Heh heh...heh...No. Even with 50%-75% of the tuition paid for in a grant, that's way too much. There's another that's about $8K a year, but their maximum grants are 50%. I don't think I know anyone with an extra $4K a year just hanging out. One of the charter schools might be good, but we'll have to look into it later. We'll probably take the time to tour a lot of these places in the fall.

In any case, I hope to arrange to meet Aidan's new teacher before the summer begins in earnest. I'd like to touch base with her, to start to get a feel for her, and hopefully start to build a rapport with her. That's just something I'd want to do regardless of which teacher he was going to have.

Let's all wish Aidan luck for next year!