Hey,

Jonas (5 with a June birthday, class cut off Dec) is really having trouble in school. We are pretty sure that it is more of a focus and behavior issue than a learning disability. Jonas has been an exceptional child since he was 1. He has done speech therapy and we have been to child psychologists up the wazoo. The best they can give me is that he is just in the 10% of the population that is more intense. So he is very challenging- but still very sweet with a loving and good heart. His testing is coming back horrid- but at home I can get him to prove to me that he does indeed know the stuff the teachers can’t test out of him.

I have gotten the ball rolling on a few evaluations that will start after Thanksgiving break, but when I started to talk to his teacher today - the first words out of her mouth were “do you want to start the retention process.” This made me feel like she just wanted me to yank him out so she didn’t have to deal with him.

Now, when he left preschool they said he was ready for K. And this teacher has a very odd personality. She also has 5 stinker kids in a class of 20- so her hands are very full and I don’t think that it is possible for her to truly serve all of these kids’ best interest. From her immediate jump from me about to ask for intervention to asking if I wanted to pull him out and try again next year- well, I just get the impression that this is what SHE would prefer to do- and it would be really bad for my kid.

On top of that, I am hearing that the teacher has been yelling at the students. Parent volunteers and my own kid have told me this.

So. what do I do? I think what I want to see happen is for him to be switched into another class with a totally new teacher at semester time. And then I want him to finish out the year and move onto 1st grade- at that point- if he needs another year of 1st grade I would want to repeat him then- my reasoning is that this is the year they really focus on reading- I’d rather have him do that twice than colors, shapes and letter recognition- he knows most of that- he just won’t cooperate. Plus, we will be moving at the end on the following school year, so if he needed to do 1st over- he would be doing it in a totally different place so it wouldn’t feel like all of his friends were moving on w/o him.

So tell me- what do I do?

Oh- ok mid writing this I called and chatted with the principal. He wants to go ahead with the evaluations and have the school counselor work with him a bit. He sounded totally opposed to switching teachers- and this “Student Study” evaluation thing, yeah, they are so backed up that they will be getting to that AFTER CHRISTMAS. Seriously. Now I’m kicking myself for not going in there two days into school.

Want to pull my hair out.

And- Jonas had food coloring yesterday. A whole ICEE full of red dye, courtesy of Chris, the day before a week long break from school. I’m so beat I didn’t put a verb in that last sentence. Hara-kiri here I come!

Guide me, oh internet.