Kindergarten

Wow it has been almost exactly one year since I was last on here.  So much for keeping people updated...

I am going to try and get on here more often and make posts about what all is going on.  I like to look back through the posts myself every once in awhile.

Recently I posted something amazing about Kassi on Facebook and got some flack from people over it.  A word of warning before you read any further...I will be bragging about my daughter, I will be telling you how wonderful I think she is, and how wonderful others think she is.  I am very proud of her.  Now that being said if you want to go to your address bar and get out of here that is fine, it's your choice.

Where to start to get caught up?  Last spring they tested Kassi for kindergarten readiness.  We always knew she was extremely intelligent, but you know how it is as a parent you should think your kid is great.  When we got her test results back they proved what we had known.  Kassi tested within the top 7% in the nation.  Now this testing is just a short test to see if kids are ready for school, and where they are at with their learning.  When we met Kassi's teacher for the first time I was a little hesitant to speak up about my fears of Kassi getting bored, but I did it anyway.  She was very encouraging and said it would take a few weeks, but she would see where Kassi was at and work with her however she could.

Within the first couple of weeks Kassi was moved up to a first grade reading class.  She loves this, because it gives her a chance to read books that are more challenging and have more of a plot to them.  They are not just books with sight words.  As the month went by Kassi started to tell me she was very bored in school.  After talking to her teacher about this she informed me that she had offered Kassi a couple of other things she could do, but they would separate her from the class more, and Kassi had told her she didn't want that.  When I went to talk to Kassi about this she said the other kids talk about her when she goes to leave for reading and she is afraid they will talk about her even more if she is leaving for other things.  It was hard for me to see my baby so upset about something, but at the same time I knew something needed to change.

After several conversations and trying to figure out what was right for Kassi the teacher told me they were just about finished with their map testing.  This is a test that is completed at the beginning of the year to see where kids are at, then again at the end of the year to see what improvements they have made.  The test is computerized and as the kids get answers right the questions get harder.  The significance of this was that the teacher was hoping the tests would give her an idea of Kassi's strengths and weaknesses so she could come up with a plan to work on the weaknesses.

We waited and waited for the MAP test results.

Last week we had our first parent teacher conference.  We of course discussed the usual she is friendly, helps the other kids, kind, caring, only a couple of times where she has had to be reminded of her behavior.  The teacher also told us that she had some 1st and 2nd grade worksheets that she was going to start giving to Kassi when the other kids were doing their kindergarten worksheets.  It was at that point that she pulled out a piece of paper and apologized for the fine print.  She said these were the scores we had been waiting for, these were Kassi's map scores.  I was nervous I thought maybe she had done poorly the way she pulled them out.  She then said they were absolutely amazing.  Kassi tested in the 99th percentile, her scores were amazing...I am still learning about the map testing, but given the way the questions change and looking at the actual scores it appears Kassi is in line with the average 2nd Grader!  This is amazing, and yes I do and will continue to brag about this, I am very proud!  We discussed the scores a little further.  She explained to us that she was waiting to see the final scores, because the test shows you areas where children need work.  Kassi's test shows she is High in everything, there were no areas that were lacking.

During our time at the parent teacher conference we were also able to meet with Kassi's first grade teacher for a bit.  This was our first time to get to speak with her.  She said that Kassi was doing amazing.  She has placed Kassi with her top readers and even then Kassi is ahead of them.  The one thing that really stood out to me was that she also said Kassi was very good about waiting for the other kids and that she never really boasted about being able to read better than them.  She said she had some books she would like to start having Kassi read, but she wanted to check with us and Kassi's kindergarten teacher to make sure we were all okay with the content.  She said the amazing thing about Kassi is her ability to really take in the story and understand what the author is writing about, because of this she wants to give her books that do have a plot, unfortunately they don't make many books for 6 year olds that have a plot.  She said it is rare at this age for a child to have such a good overall understanding like Kassi does.  She said she has seen lots of strong readers over the years, but not ones that really understand what they are reading.

Kassi's teacher has recommended her for the gifted and talented program.   We have filled out the parent permissions sheet and are awaiting the response and results.

Now that I am done boasting... how about a few more updates.

You may recall my last post was about Kassi's bunny breaking her spine.  Well Bun Bun has recovered fully and is living very happily in the back yard.

Our house has been for sale for over a year now with no takers.  We have taken it off the market and are waiting a bit to figure everything out.  The scary part is our new house plans are at the architects and the excavator is scheduled to begin on March 1st.  So rather this house is sold or  not, our new one is starting construction March 1st.  I am excited and petrified at the same time!

Kassi is still dancing away.  She is in tap, ballet and jazz this year.  She will have her first Christmas performances this year as well.  She has three places she will be dancing.

Well I suppose that is enough for now!