Monday, September 28, 2009

Second Grade

E was tested today by a private school and is being accepted into second grade. I am kind of two minds about it. He was clearly not being challenged at all in first grade. I am just amazed at how easy the work has been so far. I can understand maybe taking a couple of days in the first week to go over things they may have forgotten from the year previous but we are a month in and I would have thought that everything they are doing was learned in kindergarten (or preschool). How much review are they going to do?

"Nat sat on the mat.
The cat sat on the mat.
Nat sat on the mat with the cat."
That’s first grade work? Adding together numbers less than ten? I look at the reading list for first grade and these books are all too easy for him. He is adding and subtracting, carrying and borrowing. He is learning his multiplication tables and is beginning division (I work with him a lot on math). We read a lot of books together. He has shown great interest in books on science and geography. I want him to be excited about school and learning. Right now he is not learning anything at school. And looking at the curriculum I don’t think he would learn much in first grade at all.

But it is a great social place. He makes friends easily and gets along with everyone. I hate that this will be the third school he will attend this year. He will be younger than everyone in second grade. He won’t turn seven until December.

He is still young and will adjust. I worry about kids teasing him because he is younger than they are. It is good that he is tall and looks older than he is. He is so tall. He already looks like a second or third grader (or fourth grader). Maybe he won’t be the tallest kid in class anymore.

I’m sure it will all turn out. But I will worry.

That is what mothers are for.

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