[kerriv]

The short story is that I brought home my daughter from Ethiopia in July. Her paperwork says she almost 6 but in reality she's almost 8. Because of her paperwork and me not realizing when she first came how old she really was, I put her in kindergarten. Now the school system says she's on grade level (after only 6 months of being in an English speaking country) so she's right where she needs to be. I want her in an age-appropriate grade. I'm okay with her being 1 year behind but not 2.

I've been told that there may be some federal statute through the US Dept of Ed that prohibits keeping a child in a grade lower than their age without parental permission. I have looked and can't find anything. Does anyone have any ideas about this or know where I could find any info?

Any other suggestions?

Thanks!

[SmileLaughLearn]

I used to teach elementary school, but I'm not an expert by any means! I've never heard of a Dept of Ed statute, but if there is one, it must be more specific than that. In my experience, at least, we didn't need parental permission to retain a child, and that would have made them in a lower grade than their age. We were allowed to retain once in gr. k-2 and once in gr. 3-5, making the kids 2 years below grade level when they got to middle school. I don't know if there were local, state, or federal mandates regarding retention, or if that's just what was understood in our school district.

With all that said, though, could you go to the school and talk to the principal (then, perhaps, the superintendent) and explain the situation? I'd be surprised if they weren't open to adjusting her grade level based on what you know now. Our administrators used to take a lot of different things into account when deciding where to place a child. Wishing you the best of luck!

[kerriv]

That's the problem. The principal is aware of the situation and refuses to adjust my daughter's grade. I really worry about when she's older and 2 years older than all her classmates. Her philosophy is that she's not big so she doesn't stand out and she thinks that it's totally appropriate that she is on grade level after only 6 months of being in an English speaking country. She refuses to give her the opportunity to get on an appropriate grade level.

There is so much about her school that I really like but this principal is awful.

[becky]

I am not sure what you are asking. Are you saying she is 'on grade level' as a Kindergartener, or that she is 'on grade level' as a 2nd grader?

If she is on grade level as a Kindergartener I would not try to push to have her put into a 2nd grade classroom. There is a HUGE difference in the educational material presented in these grades. Getting a good foundation in Kindergarten and learning strong reading and beginning writing skills in first grade are essential for success later in school. So, these are not the years I would push to have her moved up.

Now...if she does really well in first grade and second grade and is 'ahead of the game' academically, then maybe that is the time to talk about moving her up a single grade. I would never recommend having her skip 2grades of school at one time, that would be difficult for even the most advanced student to handle.

On the other hand, if you are saying she is on grade level for 2nd grade and you can 'prove' she is actually 8 years old, then I would go above the head of the principal because your daughter may need to be moved.

Good luck!!

[mommytoEli]

do you think she would be successful if she was put up a grade right now? if i were in your situation, and i did think she'd be sucessful, i'd try to talk to the district office. if i didn't think she'd be successful right now in a grade switch, but i thought that grade placement was best decided by age, rather than ability, i would go out of my way to increase ability. i'm thinking summer school, summer reading and math programs, or maybe a year of homeschooling, and then replacing the child in school when the placement could be based on both age and ability. would any of those ideas be options for you?

[mommytoEli]

hey, i'm curious....do you think she is grade level K bc of a previous lack of schooling, or due to language barrier? i ask because i am finding all sorts of information on the internet about schooling immigrant children who speak English as a second language. no citings of statutes or anything, but lots of things talking about how the best thing for these children is an age-appropriate placement, with support services for language skills. but again, if she is behind due to lack of schooling in the past, i don't think that is the same thing. but google "age appropriate education" and look for articles talking about immigrant children...i think that is what will mostly match what you are looking for. i also accidently downloaded someone's awesome looking thesis, and they specifically talk about adopted children...but i can't find the webste again...so if you pm me your email addy, i'll email it to you, it is interesting. oh, i found it: but it is hard to get to... cut and paste this: dpi.wi.gov/ell/doc/moe-placement.doc and it will probably just download onto your computer. it is thought provoking.

[keirasmom]

Eli's mom makes really good valid points. I think she should be in an age appropriate class too.

In PA where I teach, kids don't even have to go to kindergarten, it's not required. Could you pull her out of her present school and put her in 1st grade somewhere else or talk to other principals to see what they would do if she transferred to them. If she finishes grade 1 or 2 this year then she should be able to go back to your regular public school next year for grade 3, right?

Where I work we are not allowed to have kids more than 4 years (grade levels apart) in one room. I've heard it is a law, but I'm not sure who's law as my school services kids from PA, DE, NY, NJ, WV, CT, and DC. I wish they'd follow that rule. I have 8-12th grade in one room with ages ranging from 14-20. It's not fun!

I would raise a stink! Go above the principal and be armed with research! Good Luck

[spidermanteache]

I am a Kindergarten English Language Learner teacher. This is a tough one because when a student enters out school system (even non English speakers) we put them in the grade level that corresponds with their age. They are however tested with an English language proficiency test and placed in their grade level, but with appropriate ELL services. My question for you is what are they using to say that she is on grade level? Have they tested her Englih Language Proficiency? Second graders are reading and writing English. Is she able to do that? I would be glad to answer any other questions you may have. I'm just not sure what measures they are using to decide on grade level. Unless she was schooled in Ethiopia in English, I would doubt that after 6 months she's proficient in English.

Also, what I'm thinking is if you would have known she was actually 8 when you enrolled her she probably would have been placed in 2nd grade at that time. This is a tricky one.

Let me know if I can help you further.

[kerriv]

I believe she's reading on a kindergarten level because of lack of English. She had some reading in Amharic (her first language) when she arrived. Unfortunately she has lost most of her Amharic already.

I plan on having her tutored over the summer as well to help her continue to catch up.

Her teacher and I have discussed the situation at length and she agrees that Medina would do better later on in a more age-appropriate grade but the principal won't consider it unless she passes a proficiency exam with a score of 90%. She doesn't have the English to do this yet, although she has made huge strides over the last 6 months.

I guess my main frustration is that if her birth certificate had been correct, she would have been placed in the correct class to begin and there never would have been an issue. Because of inaccurate age assignment in Ethiopia - a very common issue - she is being force into what I feel will ultimately be an inappropriate grade here.

[mommytoEli]

Originally Posted by kerriv

I believe she's reading on a kindergarten level because of lack of English. She had some reading in Amharic (her first language) when she arrived. Unfortunately she has lost most of her Amharic already.

well, kerri, then your problem is LANGUAGE skill, not academic skill. that's good news. and so, from my experience, i believe based on that alone that she should be placed in a higher grade with support services in ELL/ELD. now, i still don't think i'd be quick to move her, if it were me, i'd let her finish K, tutor over the summer like you suggested, and then try A grade higher with support. i am not saying it will be easy on anyone. ideally, academically, staying where she is would help her learn the content in each grade level to mastery while acquiring English. but socially, i understand the dilemma. it is a tough call. if it were me, and i were going to push her on closer to where she should be anyway, i'd call the principal one more time and ask for a meeting. i'd ask about how they service ELL students. if you do this, go armed with her english proficiency scores, if she doesn't have any, she needed to have been tested at the beginning of the year. ask for that to happen. if they still do not want to cooperate, go to the district. explain your situation. talk about her status as an english language LEARNER (bc there is NO way she's proficient in a language in 6 months. she may be a quick study, but she still needs support! don't let them tell you otherwise!) has the bc been corrected? do you now have documented "proof" of her legal age? i think that will go far in a district office as well. there was a mistake made, now it needs to be corrected, here's why.....blah blah blah. i think this is a battle you can win.

in the meantime, print out your districts standards for whatever grade or grades she will maybe eventually "miss" in this district, and see what skills she should have mastered at each level. be sure that those are skills she works on in tutoring or at home. in the end, i'm a realist, and the real picture is this will be hard, and she will need lots of support at home and school.

good luck...keep us updated!

[carolynpep73]

Hi Kerri,
It seems like you've gotten some really great tips on how to handle this. I would keep pushing until you get the answer you want, but I would guess it's going to take a while. I urge you to call your district office and request that the ESOL or ESL (same thing but different terms in different districts) rep for the district attend a meeting with you, the principal, and the teacher to discuss her needs.

Would they be open to her going into another grade level for one subject area a day, for example, math? That way she would have exposure to same age peers but the transition would be smoother and less stressful.

Just food for though; taking the social interactions off the table, please remember that first/second grade at this point in the school year is very big jump from K...especially if you have limited English. The last thing you want is to have a very frustrated little girl on your hands who is overwhelmed and underprepared for the demanding curriculum of anything past K. I've seen it happen. I once had a student who had a few months of English but was completely overwhelmed with the demands of first grade. I did everything I could but it was too much too soon. When we met to have her move back to K, she was so relieved she cried. She was just getting ready to turn seven at the time. I still see her at school and she's happy and well adjusted with many friends and a lot of confidence.

How does she feel about this? Does she seem happy with where she is?

Good luck! I hope you find a solution soon.

[saranbr]

Have you had her age legally changed? If you have a new BC with her new age on it, the school shouldn't have an option to keep her two years behind-- especially since she hasn't even tried the older class. The developmental status of kids that age varies hugely with two years. Looking at my son's K class, I sure wouldn't want my eight year old in there! We did the age change thing with DS and it really wasn't a big deal. PM me if you need info on how we did it.

[LMblue]

I think you should push your district for what you feel is best for your daughter. Follow the chain of command for your school district and keep pushing until you feel heard. Take as much documentation as you have. Take copies of her current classwork, her current reading level, math assesssments, doctor's notes, letter from the classroom teacher, and any other documentation you can get. You could even have your adoption social worker write a letter.

Is there a 1st and 2nd grade multi-age classroom in your daughter's school or in a neighboring school? She could go to this classroom for the rest of this year and next year. She should be ready for third grade in a year and a half.

You may be able to do as the previous poster recommended, have her attend math class with the first graders. Your daughter's kindergarten teacher may know a first grade teacher willing to let her attend math class. She may be able to go to PE or music with the older students to see how she does socially.

Good luck and keep us posted.