good and bad school news for ds
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| Fri, 11-03-2006 - 8:30am |
I was stopped yesterday. Seems that Mike is still melting in mainstream math and it is getting consistently worse. So is math homework. So we have decided to pull him out of mainstream math and back to the SDC for that.
HOWEVER, on the good side, Mike is doing really well in language arts. Since he loves social studies and science (which he usually misses in SDC due to speech, etc) he is going to try mainstreaming for those 2 classes instead. They don't do science or SS each day. Darn state standards have made it such that language arts takes up such a huge portion of the day that there isn't time to do SS or Science daily. Usually during the same period they have SS, science or PE depending on the day. Mike is already mainstreamed for 1 PE (all the kids in SDC are with the other PE with the SDC kids) so he would just go there at the same time on the other days.
Overall I think his time in mainstream will remain about the same or maybe be a little more so we will have to see how it goes.
Renee


Sounds like you are on the right track Renee.
Renee,
Good luck,
Thinking about it; It might work out better to hold the more solo and thinksome subject in SDC and the more interactive and discursive ones in mainstream.
My 2¢...
-Paula
visit my blog at www.onesickmother.com
We shall see how it goes. I am kind of 50/50 on it. Math has always been one of his stronger subjects. So the problem is either 1) by math he is done being able to handle mainstream or 2)5th grade math is harder than expected. Lately he has been doing long multiplication and division. He gets the steps but needs help to get through the process and it is long and he gets overwhelmed. I would say that is it but he has been having a rough time all year in math even when they were doing easier stuff.
I think it is the schedule and length of time. He goes to LA all morning, has recess, then goes back for Math then goes to lunch. Now he will go to LA all morning, recess, back to SDC for math then lunch, then back to mainstream late afternoon for science or SS. He loves science and loved SS last year in SDC so that will help.
So I am cautiously optomistic. If it is the math itself then this switch should be fine. If it is the time in SDC and the stress I am SURE we will find out soon enough.
However, currently he doesn't really get any science or social studies because of going between the 2 classes. I don't want him to miss that material so if it doesn't work we will have to figure out something.
Wish us luck. I think it will start tomorrow.
Renee
I taught LA for so long and the school always pushed it like it was the golden subject; put the LA dept under huge pressure, one of the many reasons I burned out I guess.
Could it be the seasonal change too affecting his meltdowns, time of day etc.
Unfortunately due to budget cuts and our dear govenator/wonderful california educational system and minute requirements for academic subjects, we don't have art or music at our school. The teachers interweave it when they can in class but no separate classes. They barely have time for science and social studies. But that is a completely different issue.
When Mike was in K and 1st he was in a performing arts magnet school. SOme of his biggest problems came during the music and art classes because there was less structure, new teacher, social interactions, change, etc.
Math has always been one of Mike's best classes. He tests where he should be in the top math class and we have him in the middle one so he will have the same teacher that he does for LA and she understands special needs (she was Cait's teacher too).
The more I think about it, the more I think it is just too much time in the mainstream. There are 36 kids in the general ed in 5th grade here and there are 16 in his SDC. Plus he has to fake it and try to keep up when he is in general ed. He is smart and can do it at his pace, but his pace is way slower than the general class and he gets frustrated.
Social studies and Science kind of mandate good comprehension. The more I think about it the more I am worried that this isn't going to work. I will give it a week though.
Renee