Discussions

9/22/2012

What topics would you like to discuss with other parents of gifted children?

Divya Kala

10/1/2012 12:31:33 am

During the North Halton open house, there were many parents looking for some answers on the Secondary education options for gifted kids and where are the best facilities available i.e. IB program, Technology related, Gifted cluster and so on.

Can we have an on-line discussion on parents thoughts and past experiences??

Sarah Ogilvie

11/19/2012 01:32:54 am

I would like to know more about options for gifted children with learning disabilities. My 10 year old son is in a regular classroom with supports in place (laptop, etc), but he is still not acheiving the way everyone had hoped (himself included). I have been told by his SERT that a self-contained classroom might not be good for him as the learning disabilities might hinder him in that environment, but my sister-in-law (who is also a SERT) suggested I look into it for the smaller class size and the enrichment aspect, and then his current teacher (he is in a 6 week course at The Learning Centre) said it was something to look into for the same reason, and she used to teach a gifted self-contained class..... Feeling a little lost here and hoping someone can give me some guidance :)

Angela McFadden

3/26/2013 11:55:09 am

Our oldest was identified as gifted with learning disabilities. We are seeing similarities with our youngest and would like to have him tested privately to provide him with the appropriate support. Who should we go to to have him tested?

ABC Halton

3/26/2013 10:28:50 pm

Hi Angela, please send an email to [email protected] and we can send you a list of some of the resources that other parents have used in the past.

Jessica

4/13/2013 12:03:55 am

My daughter has been identified as gifted in her public school. We would like to move her to the Catholic gifted program in our area. My understanding is that the public and catholic systems have different identification methods/testing. I have all the assessments from the school but the school offering the gifted program for grade 5 in sept.2014 will not accept her without going to the feeder school. We went to the feeder school and the only way to do this is to pull her out of her current school, register her into the feeder school so that the teachers can assess her in the classroom environment, test her again under the catholic board system -- then they will see if she 'qualifies' to enter the gifted program for next year. How can this be in the best interest of our daughter to pull her out of one school and place her in another for a 2-month period. And by the way we were told there is no guarantee that she will be labelled as gifted under the catholic school board - so all this could be for nothing. Is there anyone that can give me guidance on how to get this done efficiently without impacting my daughter?? Thanks.

Vimla

4/27/2013 10:23:27 am

Hi Jessica,
I'm experiencing exactly the same problem with the Catholic school board. I think the whole process is disruptive to my child's learning process. I am really struggling to understand how professionals could believe that this process is putting the best interest of a child first.
I have gone to the school board and to the Ministry of education and have got the same answers . I have been told that they are going to asses my child again, in a completely new situation by a teacher he doesn't even know just so that they can be assured that is the right fit for the gifted class. I think this is unfair to my child. I have been told that this is put in place because my child might have behavioural problems or disabilities that may not make him a good canditate for the program. My child doesn't have either of those issues however, wouldn't you agree that even if there are gifted kids with those issues, which is likely because of the nature of giftedness the gifted program should be inclusive and welcome all gifted children irrespective.
I am so happy to read your comment because now I don't feel alone in my advocacy for not only my child but all other children who are gifted. My child is in the 99th percentile which really doesn't mean a thing by them uprooting him and assesing him again.
What is frustrating is that I can't find any written policy anywhere that states that this process is in place. If anyone knows of any I would appreciate you letting me know. Aslo as a parent we are meant to be collaborative team members in the decision making process. So far none of my concerns have been validated. It's really disheartening.

Dean

1/9/2014 09:22:23 pm

My son has been nominated for the gifted screening. What comes next? What benefits are there for going into the gifted program vs. french immersion. He is in SK and we were going to register him this month for next years french immersion. He is very advanced and we would like to do what is best for him.

Sarah

1/9/2014 09:32:55 pm

Hi Dean :)
We are dealing with trying to move our son from French Immersion to the gifted program and being given a hard time. He is gifted with learning disabilities and French Immersion has been a nightmare. When considering moving him we discussed him situation with a few key people outside of our own school but within the community ( head of gifted program at a specific school, a educational coach who had taught children for 30 years, etc.). We were told that French Immersion isn't always the best idea for gifted kids because while they want to take their thinking further, they tend to get stuck in the new language. Also, science is taught in French, which is frustrating for my son because he hopes to be a vet someday. I would just suggest reaching out as much as you can. Maybe set up a meeting with the gifted school to see for yourself what is available there....
Good luck!

Sarah

1/9/2014 09:33:12 pm

Sarah link

1/9/2014 09:33:28 pm

Sarah link

1/9/2014 10:00:13 pm

Sarah link

1/9/2014 10:00:19 pm

sarah

1/9/2014 10:02:57 pm

Lol! Sorry! Typing on my phone! Please excuse the incorrect use of a/an, him/his! Also, the repeated posting!

Karen

1/14/2014 11:07:51 pm

My daughter is 12 and had been identified as gifted. Her brother, 8, is in grade 3 and will not be taking the screening test until next year, grade 4. I was wondering if there are any groups in or near Burlington that meet periodically to allow the children to interact with others who have been identified. My daughter enjoys the children in her gifted class and feels she can be herself. My son needs to interact with those more on his level. If anyone knows of a group (or maybe interested in starting one), please let me know. Many thanks!

Mel

11/20/2014 06:12:44 am

This board is pretty quiet... but wondering if anyone knows whether the Halton board criteria for gifted screening is harder now than it was 30 years ago.
Also looking for more discussion re French Immersion vs Self Contained gifted for my SK next year
Thanks!

Susan Burr

2/26/2015 11:01:10 pm

My son was recently assessed as gifted, and we are trying to decide whether we keep him in his present school vs the self contained gifted program at Sam Sherrat School in Milton. Any thoughts on this?

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