From: Gail (for Teacher2Teacher Service)
Date: Nov 16, 1998 at 19:01:14
Subject: Re: A homeschooled child in my class

Kimberley,

I am assuming (and we all know how dangerous THAT can be) that this
student must be in a grade lower than 3rd. Here is what I do with those
students in my fifth grade class who have "mastered" what I am currently
teaching. I give a quick pretest on the topic every day, and use it to do
a quick sort of the class into the "got it already" group, and the "need a
bit more – or a lot more – practice" group.  I have an enrichment sheet on
the same topic, or an activity to be done with a partner independently in the
back of the room.  They must not only complete the sheet, but be ready to
teach it to someone else (me, or another student from the "need" group who
demonstrates I misplaced them somewhere during the time we are working).  If
those "advanced" students finish early, there are a variety of math related
activities for them to explore, including pattern blocks and power blocks,
calculators, and computers.

This is just one strategy, mind you, probably not the only answer, maybe not
even the best answer, but it works for me; they feel challenged, and I feel
that I am reaching out to more than one group.  The down side is that the
"got it" group doesn't get as much direct instruction, but they probably
don't need as much, either. The good news is that most everyone in that
group finds themselves in the "need" group at some point or another, and
sometimes the "need"y ones find themselves in the independent group. I have
the needed documentation of the students' mastery of the material.

 -Gail, for the Teacher2Teacher service

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