Let me just start off by saying, this may not be interesting to anyone but our family (mostly the grandparents) so I apologize for the length of this post. Feel free to skip it. I won't be offended.
We had two highlights today. #1) We closed on our refinancing for the house, saving us several hundred dollars/month. I know, I was a little speechless when I found out too. (Sean did all the work to make this happen.) We were thrilled that the appraisal came back at almost 50K above what we paid for this house 19 months ago. We knew we had gotten a good deal, but we weren't sure how it would hold up against all the new construction to the West of us. Our old house didn't appreciate at all over the five years we owned it (As in: we fenced the yard, finished the basement & landscaped the back yard and sold it for exactly what we had paid for it.), so this was a welcome surprise for both of us.
#2) Sean & I were finally able to meet with Carter's Preschool teachers & director, as well as the Instructional Coach for the elementary school to discuss Carter's test results. (To back up a bit, the Instructional Coach (IC) met with Carter over a period of days before Winter Break to get to know him and observe him in the classroom. She then gave him a standardized reading and comprehension test to see what his reading level was.) The meeting was good and we were able to get some insight into Carter's strengths and how we should move forward with him for Kindergarten.
The tests showed that Carter's reading level is that of a child at the END of their 1st Grade school year. He is able to comprehend 100% of the reading of fiction material at that level, but scored lower when the reading material was non-fiction. He was able to read it, just not able to comprehend the material as well. Because of that, they really want us to focus on non-fiction and foreign language reading material. Carter has already taken an interest in Spanish, so we are excited to expand on that. We have recently started reading the "Magic Tree House" series with Carter as a means to transition him to higher-level reading as they are simple chapter books with exciting story lines. We weren't sure if he would like them because there are very few pictures. However, he has once again surprised us by making connections and visualizing the characters and story in his mind, even with the lack of pictures. His teachers said this was a very important concept for him to grasp.
Moving forward, we are having Carter tested for "Early Access" through the school district. What this means is that they will give Carter a standardized testing of sorts, to see if he scores above the 98th percentile for kids his age. Basically, you need to be two grade levels ahead in order to qualify for this program. IF he qualifies, that would enable us to skip Kindergarten and move straight to 1st grade. This is not something we are interested in. So, the second option would be for the school district to make an "Advanced Learning Plan" (ALP) for Carter, pulling him out of his regular Kindergarten class and putting him with 2nd graders for reading, or whatever they deem to be appropriate to keep him challenged. The school explained it much better and emphasized that they treat every student as an individual, so Carter would not be singled out as being "different" from his peers. This made all the difference for me. Plus, if we get through Kindergarten and feel like things are not working out, Carter could then be transferred to a different school in the district that specializes in meeting the needs of kids who perform above grade level. Basically, a gifted school. Seems strange to use that word, but that's what they are telling us.
Let me just say, we are SO proud of Carter and the person he is. We have been handed a big responsibility to make sure our son is getting the education he needs while also keeping his social and emotional needs in mind. I'm not complaining, just hoping we are up to the challenge and are able to do it well. He deserves it. We are excited by his love of learning and hope it continues for many years to come. We love you, buddy!
To celebrate our big day, we went to Olive Garden for dinner! (Where else?)
Daddy read stories to the boys after we got home & then everyone crashed. It was quite a day!
