Would you be angry if your child was...

in a class with K-5? All in ONE classroom? Have any of you had children in this situation and how did it turn out? We are highly, highly concerned about my daughter who is being placed in this situation. This is a special ed classroom but that does NOT matter. Kindergartners have no business learning alongside 5th graders in my opinion. Way too much of a maturity gap. I would love opinions on this & more than that, if any of you have had a child have this arrangement, how did they do? My fear is my child will regress to the younger type behaviors. Other parents I've spoken to int he classroom are just as concerned. I've been told they'd keep them seperate but really how can that happen if they're in the same very small classroom? Just doesn't make sense to me and seems like her learning is going to get quite squashed this year. I really like this teacher as 2 of my other kids have had her. However, I think this is unrealistic to ask her to do...teach 6 different grade levels. What do you all think about this K-5 deal? Thanks for your opinions.

STephanie--mom to 7

 

I do not have personal experience, but...... 1st that's how schools used to be set up (not saying it was good or bad). 2nd I have friends that homeschool with multiple ages and the younger ones are always surprising us with their knowledge having been in the same room and listening to their siblings lessons. So..... I guess I am saying I would think that it could be a positive thing - but again no 1st hand personal experience.

 

yeah I kinda agree with this, my ? is do you know how many kids will be in the room and will she have an assistant

 

I think it is acceptable.

1st, there is more than one teacher in the classroom. They are learning in the same room but their curriculum is not the same.

2nd, If she's in Special Ed then I'm assuming she has and IEP or whatever they call the specialized learning schedule for each child. The teachers by law have to adhere to that plan. So having another child of a different age in the same room is of no importance to her learning.

3rd, if nothing else I would think she would mature rather than degress because the children would be older than her. I would be more upset if I was the 5th grader's mom, not the kindergartner's mom. I would think it would be a bonus for your kid. My son always benefited from being around older kids. He didn't act like such a baby at times.

Truthfully, given the current situation, I would be happy that your child has an option to go to a contained class. I'd be thankful that teacher has a job to be able to teach your child.

 

My wife is a teacher in that situation, but I think she only has 3 grade levels to teach. I don't know how it's going to work either, but I'll ask her how it's going? She's been teaching in that situation for about 3-4 weeks now(year round school). I don't know about the kids, but I know it's definitely been a challenge for her. I hope it works out for everyone's best interest.

 

I would not like it and definitely pull my child out.

 

Keep in mind the teacher is likely not teaching 6 grade levels. If the children are self-contained, the older ones are likely quite a bit behind their actual grade level. So, you may have 7 year olds and 10 year olds who actually need the same level of work.

How many children are in the class and are there any assistants?

 

Is the combined class due to lack of space and/or money?

 

thanks for all the replies. Now to answer some of the questions you all asked. Currently, and I say currently b/c we all know how that changes w/in the first few weeks of school, there are 11 students, 1 teacher and 1 ta. BUT, I have seen first hand when they add students and can't get antoher assistant hired what happens. It happened to one of my other kids and let's just say that year was a wash. So, I'm worried about more kids being added and no one else being added.

I know some of these kids in this class and that is why I'm highly concerned. My child has absolutely NO behavioral issues. Some of these kids do in there and imo need to be in another classroom. I personally HATE it when they mix behavioral students w/ LD students. It never works out well. Never. My kids have been in this system for 10 years now and it has never worked out when they've done the mix. This classroom is a mix of students. Last year, she had a behavioral student added to her class. She was emotionally traumatized and a wreck for weeks. She'd never seen anyone act out like that w/ kicking, spitting, etc. It really had an impact on her. I do NOT want that to happen this year as well. I'm nervous. I've given the teacher my concerns. She said they will be seperated for learning. I'm going to be talking to the principal once school starts to see how the first few days will go. Already spoken to other parents who are not happy.

Now, obviously all the children in there are most likely behind. That's a given or they wouldn't be in there. However, despite having an IEP, I am told they must be taught out of the cirriculum level for their grade. Trust me on this, I had a HUGE fight w/ the middle school at the end of hte year about it. Instead of catching her up in middle school, she(my other daughter) will fall further behind b/c of this stupid logic. So, though they have IEP's, they are supposed to be taught on grade level. Makes no sense to me as the daughter in question is nowhere near grade level. I have no doubt this teacher is qualified but I think they are asking why too much of her as well. There is only so much strethcing a teacher can do to teach several children w/ disabilities. And, I know for a fact not all parents in that room work w/ their kids like we do. So, even harder on the teacher. I have not met all the students in there and can not form a total opinion until I do. But I do know many of them. I know at least 7 of them and probably more but haven't looked at hte rest of the names.

I must say I'm suprised that most of you say you'd like it. Then again, if it were such a good thing, why don't they do it in mainstream classrooms as well in pbulic schools? I'm not here to start controversy I'm just here to get opinions to see if I should give this a chance or not. There is a very long story how this all came about and I am not saying all that I know on a public forum. Just kind of tired of what seems to be "experimenting" w/ the special ed kids. We have been shuffled from school to school and can give you many personal examples of this. And please, please do NOT take this wrong. I absolutely love this teacher and was thrilled to find out she would have my daughter this year. (remember, had her twice before w/ two of my other kids). Love the style and just her motivation to get the kids to learn. But once I found out the classroom arrangement, I totally lost all hope of what transformation may transpire in my child this year. Devastated. And yes, I do know it can be worse. I have a friend who works for wake county schools as a science teacher. She has 37 in her class and doesn't know what she is going to do. IT's like I finally got her out of a bad situation and now it seems to be getting worse. But, you all seem to think give it a chance. I will give it a month. I think that is reasonable to see what transpires in a classroom then. Plus, I have plenty of other kids in there and their friends that give me a heads up as to what hpapens--LOL. Giving it time, giving it a chance and maybe it will be positive. Trying not to think of what has happened in the past though it is hard not to as it affects their future. Parenting...sometimes it's hard.

Stephanie--mom to 7

 

Realistically, what are your options? I think that I would be upset, too, honestly. I agree that kindergarteners should not be in the same classroom as fifth graders. I think most schools, when they do combined grades, only do two or three grade levels in one setting which seems much more reasonable from a developmental point of view. But I think I would take a deep breath and try to really think about what my options are, from a financial standpoint, because private school is incredibly expensive. Placement in another public school could have you driving every day for hours. Home schooling may be more than you can fairly handle if you have other young children at home. I don't know what your personal situation is, or the ages of your children, etc. but before I personally would do or say anything I would really take a long hard look at how alternatives would work.

 

You can thank the "No Child Left Behind" for them teaching on grade level. It really does tie the teachers hands in many ways imo. As far as why 1 class for all is not a mainstream thing if it's a good idea - bureaucracy does not always feed good ideas... Not saying it is per say - just saying that anytime you have to come up with an across the board solution to fit every child into a square peg when some are circles isn't going to work.... In my head that sounded good - hope I don't sound too much like Chrissy from Three's Company... ;-)

I wish there were more options, and I hope your child has a good year.

 

A few thoughts here...

I taught for a few years in a SC k-5 class. I also taught for 5 years in a SC 3-5 class. While it was a challenge and required careful planning, I feel all of my students received a top-notch education. I fully utilized my teaching assistants as just that...teaching assistant(s) and not secretaries.

I have also taught at the HS level. When teaching various subjects,teachers must follow the curriculum set forth by the state. Teachers must also mesh the curriculum with IEPs. I know when I taught history (resource) I had 9, 10, 11 and 12 graders in the room. 15 of them. I taught the curriculum and met IEP goals at the same time. My students did very well.

I have had all positive outcomes in my multi-grade classrooms. The kids learn social skills in addition to academics. Its hard for the teacher to juggle but def can be done. Best of luck to u. Go in with a positive mind frame and you'll be amazed at the good things that come!

 

Thanks for the input. It's nice to hear from someone who has btdt for sure. I appreciate your perspective. Like I said, I really, really like this teacher. So if she's been good before, no reason she won't be now I guess. We'll see.

 

There is a huge difference between resource and self-contained children. One child with severe behavior and/or academic needs can totally dominate a teacher's time. Hearing more about the class I can understand the frustration and concern.

 

SC=self-contained. I've taught both resource and SC. Most sc classes in JoCo are CC - cross categorical. What I was trying to do with my post was to ease her mind a little bc I truly want her child to succeed, eventhough I don't know her. I tend to try and focus on the positive.

 

I did speak to my wife who teaches EC to 3 different grade levels. She does create 3 different lesson plans and definitely uses the TA during class. The best thing she could say for the students is that they get more 1 on 1 time, but none of her kids have behavioral issues. If the teacher is good, I'm sure it will be fine. I'm so happy to see a parent that is concerned about their kids education. With a good teacher and a caring parent, I'm sure it will work out for the best.

 

In our school we have a separate class for the children with behavioral issues. Then we have 2 other classes for ld students,etc. I feel like my only concern would be the children with the behavioral issues in the same class not necessarily the grade levels. The students should be taught at the levels they are working at. Or grade level with modifications. Good Luck, I hope you have a successful year!

 

she probably thought you meant South Carolina.....

 

Hi,

This furthers my beleif that Johnston County Schools does not have the resources to help special needs students. I hope the teacher can handle the challenge.

 

so can't wait to hear how day 1 went!