Are you smarter than a fifth-grader? Probably not these kids.
Brilliance is the norm at Issaquah school’s MERLIN classes, an environment teachers say is ideal for the districts top 2 percent of elementary students.
“Sometimes I have to remind myself that they’re 10,” said fifth-grade MERLIN teacher Kim Ralph. “They just have a hunger and a thirst for knowledge.”
Gov. Chris Gregoire has proposed slashing money for gifted programs next fall by axing the states Highly Capable program.
The loss wouldn’t be a dealbreaker for the district’s SAGE and MERLIN programs, but with millions in expected cuts, everything is on the table, said Jake Kuper, the district’s financial chief.
“For the legislature, it’s very political,” he said.
For the gifted students, keeping MERLIN is a matter being engaged in the classroom.
While some teachers were proactive at challenging Vivien Hong’s two children, the pair were often still frustrated by the slow pace of normal classes.
MERLIN was a perfect fit, she said.
“A lot of times the students just blossom,” said third-grade MERLIN teacher Tonya Ruf.
In Ralph’s fifth-grade class, scraps of fabric were scattered throughout the room, while students designed Colonial Boston outfits for paper dolls.
One girl debated whether it’s historically accurate for a store clerk to wear an apron and have short sleeves.
While the class is vigorous, what really sets the kids apart is the depth of their discussion, said Ralph. “Their language is so rich and so deep.”
They speak with complete thoughts and in complete sentences, making them easier to converse with than some high school seniors.
They’re also not afraid to ask questions or interject.
“We get harder math, and what else?” said 11-year-old Danielle Bae as she thought aloud.
“We get harder everything,” interjected a classmate.
The teachers need to be as flexible as the students’ minds.
Sometimes 15-minute lessons take two hours, because the students want to keep discussing. Other times, hour-long lessons take 15 minutes, Ralph said.
“When you teach, it has to be an adventure,” added fourth-grade teacher Lorre Mark.
For all the kids, learning is cool and encouraged.
“Those kids just click,” said mother Khim Chau. “As parents, we only have wonderful things to say about MERLIN.”
The program is offered at Endeavor and Apollo elementaries in third through fifth grades.
All of the district’s second-graders are given tests in math, language and creative thinking. Kids must be proficient across the board to be considered.
If the Legislature agrees with the governor’s proposal, the district would lose about $150,000 for its Highly Capable middle and elementary school programs, including a 2-hour weekly SAGE program and Humanities Plus for middle school students.
Most of the $650,000 program costs go to the SAGE program, which requires extra staff.
Teacher Kim Ralph, left and fifth-grader Tiffany Zheng look through a book that shows how people dressed in Colonial Boston for a social studies project. MERLIN is offered to the district’s most precocious students.
Celeste Gracey/Issaquah Reporter
Maya Rajavel cuts out a paper doll as a part of a hands-on Colonial Boston project in the MERLIN class, which is offered to the district’s most precocious students.
Celeste Gracey/Issaquah Reporter
