So today I have a funny appointment--the school district called last week and set up an appointment for me to visit their "gifted team" to discuss my oldest son's gifted evaluation and "placement." But our kids go to a charter school that does not have a gifted program, and I'm not really interested in moving him, so I'm not sure what I'm going for, other than to get a copy of the report. He's doing well in this charter school, and I like what he comes home discussing from class. He's got a great music teacher, for example, and he'll listen to some classical music I have on and try to figure out which instruments are playing. I love that. His reading and math are above grade level, and they give him credit for reading lots of books--he even got an award for it at the end of the school year. And he's made friends there (last year was his first year there--in 2nd grade) and found other kids who are interested in school, which I love. He's learning a lot, and I don't know whether a 'gifted' class would be better or worse.
I know that I'm biased--I was in "gifted" classed in elementary school and found them to be a fun diversion that got me out of 'real' classes, but otherwise they were essentially worthless. Worse, they made some of us feel like we were somehow better than the kids who didn't get pulled out of class. And since they weren't graded, there was no need to work. It was as if 'being smart' was enough. It took me a long time to learn that smart is overrated and that hard work and persistence, along with other things unrelated to intelligence, such as social skills, are what really make a difference in life.
Well, I guess I'm wondering if anyone has had good experiences with gifted classes (for themselves or their kids/grandkids). I'm trying to keep an open mind and not show up with an obnoxious attitude.