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#1
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How do you decide?
This is the first year that I have had the option of putting my girls in a
different class, since their preschool has three 3 year-old classes. The director called me to ask if I want them in the same class and I told her I do. At the end of last school year I asked Jordan & Madison's teachers how they did in the same class....did they play with other children or stick together, etc.? The teachers said they did very well in the same class and that they were surprised that one of them was not more dominant than the other. They said that with all the other twins they have had one twin was always more dominant than the other. They both have different interests (Madison's favorite thing at school is art and Jordan's is music) and when I dropped them off last year they almost always went into 2 different directions. Jordan has been clinging to me a lot lately too and I think it will help her to know that Madison in the room with her. So I'm pretty confident I made the right decision, but then I started thinking about other factors that should be considered when they get older. I am going to make the decision on a year by year basis, but I would like to hear how those of you with twins in school have made your decisions over the years. TIA, Andrea twin girls-Jordan & Madison 3 yrs. old |
#2
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How do you decide?
Andrea wrote:
So I'm pretty confident I made the right decision, but then I started thinking about other factors that should be considered when they get older. I am going to make the decision on a year by year basis, but I would like to hear how those of you with twins in school have made your decisions over the years. Together as long as possible, I vote, because dealing with two different teachers is a lot of work (and if you volunteer in the classroom, you need only go half as often! though I had a younger child and didn't volunteer until he was in preschool). We went to two different classes in second grade, and this year (fourth grade) one will be going to a magnet program in a different school. --Helen |
#3
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How do you decide?
Andrea --
J&M are fraternal, right? I have b/g twins, so the situation is perhaps a bit different, but I'm with Helen -- don't separate them unless there's a compelling reason to do so. C&E will be in first grade this year, and have been together since they started two mornings/week of preschool at age 3. Their preschool had just one class per age group, so there was no choice, but the school left it up to us in kindergarten. In April, I met with their kindergarten teacher to get her opinion on the subject, and she reported that they did just fine in the same class (I was a bit concerned that some of their habits from home -- interrupting each other to finish each others' sentences -- carried over to school, but she told me they didn't do that at school). She also noted that she had recommended that the last set of twins she had be separated due to one being dominant, so I knew that she would have felt comfortable making that recommendation had it been her opinion in C&E's case. In their case, they are both remarkably evenly matched in academic abilities, so there are no unfavorable comparisons to be made. In our particular case, the kids are in a fairly small school, with just 30 kids in their grade, divided into two classes. In the event that I have a strong preference for one teacher over the other, I would hate to have to choose which child gets which teacher. Also, if one teacher assigns a lot of homework and the other doesn't, that would be difficult at home. And as Helen points out, it's much easier to deal with one teacher, and have the kids have the same homework, than it is to have two teachers and two different assignments. By the way -- if they switch schools and the new school tells you that they have a policy of separating twins, and you feel that M&J should be together, ask them then and there if you can please *see* their policy. I'll bet they can't produce one! Trust your instincts, though do ask their teacher for his/her observations as well. My biggest reservation about them being in the same class is that they are together 24/7 -- more than any married couple I know -- and sometimes I wonder if it's too much. But both of them, Chris, especially, spend time playing by themselves at home, so they seem to be able to seek and find solitude when they feel the need for it. Julie Mom to Chris & Erica, 07/97 Andrea wrote: This is the first year that I have had the option of putting my girls in a different class, since their preschool has three 3 year-old classes. The director called me to ask if I want them in the same class and I told her I do. At the end of last school year I asked Jordan & Madison's teachers how they did in the same class....did they play with other children or stick together, etc.? The teachers said they did very well in the same class and that they were surprised that one of them was not more dominant than the other. They said that with all the other twins they have had one twin was always more dominant than the other. They both have different interests (Madison's favorite thing at school is art and Jordan's is music) and when I dropped them off last year they almost always went into 2 different directions. Jordan has been clinging to me a lot lately too and I think it will help her to know that Madison in the room with her. So I'm pretty confident I made the right decision, but then I started thinking about other factors that should be considered when they get older. I am going to make the decision on a year by year basis, but I would like to hear how those of you with twins in school have made your decisions over the years. TIA, Andrea twin girls-Jordan & Madison 3 yrs. old |
#4
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How do you decide?
I think you made the right decision, too. I have 6 year-old twin boys. They
were together for Pre-K and Kindergarten, and I was thinking that I wanted to separate them for first grade. I wanted to do so mainly because their Kindergarten teacher was constantly somparing them ("Did you know that one reads better than the other?" etc.) It drove me crazy because I see them as completely different people, and I hate it when people compare them like that. I was thinking then that I would separate them, but everyone (teachers, people at church who work at their school, etc.) recommended that I keep them together. There also is one really good first grade teacher, and I did not want one to get her and the otehr to not get her, so I jept them in the same class this year for first grade. So far, so good. My point is that I think it is a good idea to take it on a year by year basis. Each circumstance is different. I am sure some twins work better together and others work better apart. I love it that you are taking it one step at a time. Way to go! Tina Mommy of Kyle and Joey - 4/9/97 Mommy of Kyle and Joey - 4/9/97 |
#5
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How do you decide?
Chris was so quiet and timid keeping them together in Pre-K, and K was a
good thing for them. By the end of K the teacher (who I thought was wonderful), said their is a lot of competition going on and I think maybe separating them for the next year is a good idea. We did. The school put them in classrooms side by side so their schedule was the same for lunch and recess and they felt at least close. It was a tough call as Chris still was very clingy and I had to walk him to class daily and watch him cry as I said goodbye. But by the end of the year he was a different kid. Totally confident, they had their own stories to tell so they felt much more powerful and unique. Second grade we moved and the school put them in the same class. I wasn't sure how it would work but then again, the teacher made all the difference. She put them in separate work groups, kept them working on separate projects and it seemed to work out. Now that they are going into 3rd the competition is rampant BUT we love only one 3rd grade teacher and they are both in her class. From my point of view as a parent it is so much easier - same homework, they actually do remind each other of short cuts to problems that they learned that the other might have forgotten - and it works. I can be a room mom for one grade and conferences are easy. I don't know what the year will end up like, we might separate them next year but we shall see. They only have one more year (4th grade) before they go to Jr. High (our middle schools start at 5th grade here 5-8), Then it's only a homeroom and they change classes just like in high schools. So for the moment keeping them together might not be a bad thing. Shirley Chris and Kathleen 1/95 "Twins409" wrote in message ... I think you made the right decision, too. I have 6 year-old twin boys. They were together for Pre-K and Kindergarten, and I was thinking that I wanted to separate them for first grade. I wanted to do so mainly because their Kindergarten teacher was constantly somparing them ("Did you know that one reads better than the other?" etc.) It drove me crazy because I see them as completely different people, and I hate it when people compare them like that. I was thinking then that I would separate them, but everyone (teachers, people at church who work at their school, etc.) recommended that I keep them together. There also is one really good first grade teacher, and I did not want one to get her and the otehr to not get her, so I jept them in the same class this year for first grade. So far, so good. My point is that I think it is a good idea to take it on a year by year basis. Each circumstance is different. I am sure some twins work better together and others work better apart. I love it that you are taking it one step at a time. Way to go! Tina Mommy of Kyle and Joey - 4/9/97 Mommy of Kyle and Joey - 4/9/97 |
#6
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How do you decide?
I am curious, several people have mentioned keeping the kids together because they had a preference for one particular teacher. I wasn't aware that the schools let you choose the teacher. I taught at a private school and parents had no say in choosing the teacher, unless there was an extreme circumstance. I wonder if you are allowed to choose because of the twins or if everyone can choose. ~Kimberly Mommy to Alexis Iliana 07/17/99 and Emma Elidia & Aislyn Gabriela 10/01/02 come see us... http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/a/aislynemma/ |
#7
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How do you decide?
We can't really "pick" teachers but you can voice a strong preference for
the teacher you want your child to be taught by - at least in the last 3 schools we've been to. You can write or talk to the principal and tell them "why" you want a particular teacher for your child. Does it mean you will get them - no - just raises the chances of the pupil assignment and if the reasons are rational - not some gibberish, two to one you'll get the teacher of your choice. As a school secretary for the district my kids go to - even my principal listens to the parents and we have reassigned kids accordingly. Shirley "KimandJuan" wrote in message ... I am curious, several people have mentioned keeping the kids together because they had a preference for one particular teacher. I wasn't aware that the schools let you choose the teacher. I taught at a private school and parents had no say in choosing the teacher, unless there was an extreme circumstance. I wonder if you are allowed to choose because of the twins or if everyone can choose. ~Kimberly Mommy to Alexis Iliana 07/17/99 and Emma Elidia & Aislyn Gabriela 10/01/02 come see us... http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/a/aislynemma/ |
#8
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How do you decide?
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#9
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How do you decide?
I wonder if you are allowed to choose because of the twins or if everyone can
choose. I have taught at 4 different public schools and at 3 of them they did not let parents request teachers. The 4th school let parents request teachers, but did not guarantee placement. Jordan and Madison's preschool is private and they will accomodate requests if possible. I think it has a lot to do with the principal, at least here in S. Carolina. Andrea twin girls-Madison & Jordan 3 yrs. old |
#10
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How do you decide?
Tina writes:
I wanted to do so mainly because their Kindergarten teacher was constantly somparing them ("Did you know that one reads better than the other?" etc.) It drove me crazy because I see them as completely different people, and I hate it when people compare them like that. I don't get it. Why does this bother you? My twins are completely different people too, which is why they have differences in the first place. It doesn't bother me to talk about those differences. David desJardins |
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