AboutMarsha Cunningham Expertise My expertise is in 1st-3rd grade, I specialize in beginning
reading and writing, but I teach drawing and painting first to help students gain confidence.
I also use jigsaw puzzle strategy to teach concentration as a subject and enlist parents to keep their children away from scary movies,among other things,which cause nightmares, sleep deprivation and low test scores!
Experience I have taught K-3 for 24 years, given in-service to parents and teachers and presented at reading conferences. To see my children's art work and examples of improved test scores go to www.artsimprovingacademics.org
Expert: Marsha Cunningham Date: 2/28/2008 Subject: Keeping Son Challenged
Question QUESTION: Hi there -
My son just turned 5 and starts Kindergarten in the fall. He is reading at a 2nd grade level I believe (i.e. his favorite books are Frog
ANSWER: Hi Sherry,
I think that your message got cut off or sent before you intended,
Marsha
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Hi there - Sorry, I'm not sure what happened. Here's my question:
My son just turned 5 and starts Kindergarten in the fall. He is reading at a 2nd grade level I believe (i.e. his favorite books are Frog & Toad, Curious George, etc.) and he reads about 10 books a day. He also can do very basic addition, counts in the thousands, and can write equations. In addition he writes very well - writes all his own thank you cards, letters to friends, etc. He cuts well with scissors, draws, and understands dates and calendars.
We had him tested for IQ and the results were 132 (on the Wechsler) 140 for performance and approx 125 for verbal, which means he doesn't qualify for our local gifted school (Mirman).
I feel like he is somewhat bored with Preschool and I'm even more concerned about Kindergarten in the fall. Do you have any suggestions for keeping him challenged? Are there classes that might be good for a kid like him? Or some kind of club where he can meet other kids with similar interests? It's hard to know exactly what his experience is since he probably can't express it well at this age - but I sense that he might benefit from something more than we're doing.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Sherry
Answer Hi Sherry,
I see that you've been busy with this boy and he must be an eager learner.
There are other benefits of preschool and kindergarten, such as social skills and physical activity but he should not be expected to sit through things he already knows. The school might be understanding and accommodate, or they might be resentful and feel burdened by anything outside the norm.
I would have a talk with the teacher and ask that your son be allowed to work in a second grade workbook, do free reading and writing for most of the time and even ask him to be a teacher helper. I allowed children who were advanced to help other students and set up separate centers for them to experiment in; but it will take the cooperation of the teacher if she has a vision for it. Not all teachers like to improvise.
I would ask your local chamber of commerce for organizations that might be of help, but the best bet to keep him challenged is to just keep doing what you've been doing.
Such as : get educational videos from the library on nutrition then involve him in creating menus for meals and shopping, explain the house hold budget, teach him to make his own toys and games, teach him to use computer programs, how and why to be helpful to others, and then open a savings account for him so when he starts earning money he'll have a place to save it.
The ball will always be in your court.
If you are a person of faith, there are churches who practice Christian Healing. Such an eager child could easily learn to heal the sick in the right Sunday School, or you could get a child's Bible and study the Sermon on the Mount, explaining that these are the standards of living that Jesus employed in setting his example and healing, which he told us to do, if we could become again like a little child.
Isn't it wonderful? The grand possibilities that lie before you and will always provide for the best adventures and the most joy.
Sincerely,
Marsha Cunningham
P.S. To read about some of the experiences I had in this area you may see my website at www.artsimprovingacademics.org and click on Experiences and Children Teach
