CHALLENGE

It wasn't until the fifth grade that I learned Justice's elementary school had a gifted scholar program called CHALLENGE.  When I finally realized it existed, I wondered why he hadn't been included in it.  His TCAP scores are always off the chart, as were all of his grade school standardized tests.  So I sat there and wondered, "How can a child that does everything at a 12th grade level be excluded from this program?"  I let it slide because I was already supplementing his education at home and didn't feel like he was missing out on anything.  But I was indeed aggravated.  That aggravation stayed with me until he got to middle school.  At the school's open house, I decided to go talk to the gifted education teacher.  She politely listened, and gave me the whole "well they should have caught it in elementary school" rigamarole and told me she'd go through his records and call me.  She never did, of course.  I could tell by the look on her face that she thought I was just one of those parents that thought their child was smarter than they really were because if he were truly gifted they would have caught it already.

About a month ago I got a letter from the school saying they had reviewed his latest TCAP scores and because he had scored so high they wanted to evaluate him for possible admission into the schools gifted program.   Now this really ticked me off, because his latest round of scores were by FAR his worst ever.  But they were high enough to trigger the gifted education teacher, finally.  I filled out scores of paperwork, as did his teachers.  The county-wide psychologist came and tested him and then we patiently waited for the results.  

Now, let's talk about self-esteem for a second.  Justice has been carrying around this "I'm not smart" thing in his head specifically because he hasn't been included in CHALLENGE.  I had NO IDEA he felt this way, because he never told me.  He acted like he didn't care.  But all his friends are in CHALLENGE, and he's the lone nerd at school not included.  I can see how that would negatively impact his self-esteem.  When they finally decided to test him, he came home in tears.  He was relieved and happy and nervous all at the same time.  That's when I REALLY got upset, because this had apparently been making him feel crappy for years.  I wish he would have told me.  If I'd known how truly important this was to him I would have beat down the doors of the elementary school last year.  AND I would have pestered the lady that never called me back.  Sigh.  

Today was my appointment with the special education teacher and the gifted program teacher to go over his test results.  They administered the Reynolds Intellectual Assessment Scales and he received a score in the "Very Superior" range in the 99th percentile.  Suddenly the gifted education teacher was singing a whole new tune about Justice.  Suddenly he was brilliant and gifted, and in her own words "a very rare type of brilliant child that I don't get the opportunity to see often" and a joy to have in school, and all of these wonderful things that he was not when I came to see her at open house.  While I am still upset about him falling through the cracks in elementary school, I am just thankful that he is now offered this opportunity.  

One of the things that sticks out the most in my head is that one of the teachers had told the gifted education teacher that Justice is able to re-teach her math lessons to the class in a different way to help the students understand how to do it if they are having trouble.  That's pretty neat, I wonder if he can teach me algebra… ha!  So far nobody has been able to do that, so I'll issue him that challenge when he gets into high school.  They also say he is a leader, a clear speaker with an extensive vocabulary, he strives to be different and is far more mature than other students his age.  He studies during free-time, is determined and strives to always be better.  He is quiet, and very polite.  He is a mediator, and is able to diffuse conflict between peers easily.  

So today I got to sign my first Individual Education Plan, or IEP as they are commonly known.  I mentioned how thankful I was that in spite of his severe ADHD that I hadn't ever signed one before, and the gifted education teacher's jaw dropped.  She had no idea he had ADHD.  She was genuinely impressed.  And I allowed myself to be really proud of him for a minute.  How he gets all that grey matter in his noggin organized and productive in spite of his attention disorder is beyond me.  But he tries SO HARD and I am grateful for his ambition and his drive.  

And the smile on his face today when they called him in and gave him his new schedule to include CHALLENGE was a picture worth a thousand words.  

"I did it Mom!" and he hugged me tightly.

Yes, you certainly did.  Congratulations buddy.

Do you know what I loved the most about today?  We walked down the hall together in school after the meeting and he held my hand the whole way.

Me:  "If your friends see you holding my hand they are going to tease you mercilessly.

Jus:  "Psssh.  You know I don't care what they think about that."

Then he kissed me on the cheek and went back to class.  And luckily I made it back to the car before I cried.