She's always stood out, in her own wall flower way. Not the most outgoing at first, but boy... once Zari started talking, best pull up a chair. And always about the oddest things. Things you wouldn't guess a little girl of 5 or 6 would be interested in. Remote controlled tarantulas... NOT spiders, tarantulas. Then she became passionate about the triceratops... couldn't care less about other dinos. No, not Zari. The triceratops had a special place in her heart. For the last few years she's been dedicated to Kirby... the study of Kirby, his strengths, weaknesses... PPD (points per damage done to an enemy)... I used to think that her borderline obsession about very oddly specific things was just one of the wonderfully quirky things about my youngest child.
Until I read about Aspburgers. But I digress, I'm getting ahead of myself & the story.
Looking back now, I see the signs. She'd get frustrated quickly... she'd have meltdowns. Her retention has always been slow moving. Always described as highly intelligent by her teachers, no one could ever seem to pin point Zaris exact educational issues. In 1st grade she received an IEP... accommodations for sensory issues, moter skills issues, speech & language... but not really anything that could explain her issues in academics.
Looking back now, I believe the fact that Zaris 1st educational experience made all the difference in the world. Her 1st school was a charter school. A small, dynamic school with passionate & committed teachers & staff. A school with a student/teacher ratio of 9:1. Here she discovered her love for discovery. She gave birth to her love of creation. The passion her kindergarten & 1st grade teachers had for teaching quickly rubbed off on her, giving her a passion for learning. Lucky for us she knew these teachers, understood the potential of the excitement of learning... for when we moved her to our neighborhood school, they all but stomped it out of her.
Do you remember when in the Dark Crystal the Skeckies sucked the life force out of those cute little Podlings? Well, for 2years I watched DCPS suck the <3 Of Learning Force from my child. She went from inquisitive to withdrawn. She went from a class leader to someone who slept in class. She found the classroom noise overwhelming. The pace dizzying. She couldn't seem to make friends or any connections at all. It was a complete and total about face from her early beginnings. Her meltdowns became weekly. The calls from her classroom teacher became daily. In a two year period Zari barely completed a pamphlets worth of work. After a years worth of threatening & pushing, Zari was finally tested for ADD/ADHD, Autism & Aspbergers. She was found to have ADHD. I also find it interesting that she tested only a few points above the parameters for Aspbergers. Being in the parameters for social behaviors but performing to highly on the academic portion of the test. Till this day, I believe in my heart that she was socially promoted.
... Now here's the question. What is a parent to do? What do you do when the public school system is no longer taking care of the needs of your child? What do you do when the charter schools in your area have the same test scores as the neighborhood school? I had considered home schooling a year or so ago, but I was worried about stunting social growth. I always worried that taking my already shy and somewhat socially awkward scholar out of the only place she has an opportunity to be social. I'd like to say I could put her in classes or programs, but lets face it, this is a recession y'all. And even before the economy took a hit, I couldn't really afford lessons and things. But now I was forced to make a decision. Keep my child in public school, run the risk of loosing her in the shuffle. Run the risk of her suffering from school burn out at 10yrs old. Or do I make that move & keep her home this year?
After a bit of consideration, quite a few conversations with my young pupil, talking to friends who are fellow educators... I decided that it would be best for Zari to be home schooled. We found an awesome program. One that has an online component, an on sight component, a daily guided curriculum & assigns me (the learning coach) with a "teachers buddy". I think that staying at home with Zari will be beneficial for her. In a few weeks I've already seen that old spark start to flare in her eye. That passion is returning. She looks forward to class again. She's excited about subjects she finds challenging again.
And for the first time in a long time, I think she considers herself a scholar again.
Until I read about Aspburgers. But I digress, I'm getting ahead of myself & the story.
Looking back now, I see the signs. She'd get frustrated quickly... she'd have meltdowns. Her retention has always been slow moving. Always described as highly intelligent by her teachers, no one could ever seem to pin point Zaris exact educational issues. In 1st grade she received an IEP... accommodations for sensory issues, moter skills issues, speech & language... but not really anything that could explain her issues in academics.
Looking back now, I believe the fact that Zaris 1st educational experience made all the difference in the world. Her 1st school was a charter school. A small, dynamic school with passionate & committed teachers & staff. A school with a student/teacher ratio of 9:1. Here she discovered her love for discovery. She gave birth to her love of creation. The passion her kindergarten & 1st grade teachers had for teaching quickly rubbed off on her, giving her a passion for learning. Lucky for us she knew these teachers, understood the potential of the excitement of learning... for when we moved her to our neighborhood school, they all but stomped it out of her.
Do you remember when in the Dark Crystal the Skeckies sucked the life force out of those cute little Podlings? Well, for 2years I watched DCPS suck the <3 Of Learning Force from my child. She went from inquisitive to withdrawn. She went from a class leader to someone who slept in class. She found the classroom noise overwhelming. The pace dizzying. She couldn't seem to make friends or any connections at all. It was a complete and total about face from her early beginnings. Her meltdowns became weekly. The calls from her classroom teacher became daily. In a two year period Zari barely completed a pamphlets worth of work. After a years worth of threatening & pushing, Zari was finally tested for ADD/ADHD, Autism & Aspbergers. She was found to have ADHD. I also find it interesting that she tested only a few points above the parameters for Aspbergers. Being in the parameters for social behaviors but performing to highly on the academic portion of the test. Till this day, I believe in my heart that she was socially promoted.
... Now here's the question. What is a parent to do? What do you do when the public school system is no longer taking care of the needs of your child? What do you do when the charter schools in your area have the same test scores as the neighborhood school? I had considered home schooling a year or so ago, but I was worried about stunting social growth. I always worried that taking my already shy and somewhat socially awkward scholar out of the only place she has an opportunity to be social. I'd like to say I could put her in classes or programs, but lets face it, this is a recession y'all. And even before the economy took a hit, I couldn't really afford lessons and things. But now I was forced to make a decision. Keep my child in public school, run the risk of loosing her in the shuffle. Run the risk of her suffering from school burn out at 10yrs old. Or do I make that move & keep her home this year?
After a bit of consideration, quite a few conversations with my young pupil, talking to friends who are fellow educators... I decided that it would be best for Zari to be home schooled. We found an awesome program. One that has an online component, an on sight component, a daily guided curriculum & assigns me (the learning coach) with a "teachers buddy". I think that staying at home with Zari will be beneficial for her. In a few weeks I've already seen that old spark start to flare in her eye. That passion is returning. She looks forward to class again. She's excited about subjects she finds challenging again.
And for the first time in a long time, I think she considers herself a scholar again.
