Parent-Teacher Conferences were this week. DH and I met with our daughter's teacher on Tuesday night. Here's what we learned: Our daughter is the best student in her class. Now that sounds really great, and it truly is, but we also found out that it's not entirely because she's a brilliant kid. It's because about half of the students in her class have IEP's. Some of the students have learning disabilities, some have behavioral issues, some have serious problems at home.

To satisfy some pissy parents, our elementary school holds a "sign up" at the end of the school year for parents who want to request a particular teacher for the next year. Because it is first-come-first-serve, parents start lining up about an hour or more beforehand, like they're trying to buy tickets to a sold-out concert or something. I suffered through this process to choose her first grade teacher, and dd did get the teacher I requested; But of all the parents I talked with about this (most of whom were in line way ahead of me!), I was the only one who got my first choice. Basically this sign up thing is bullshit. I did not bother doing it this year.

So here's how it went down: This is her teacher's first year at this school, and pretty much what happened is all the other second-grade teachers picked through the students who signed up, chose who they wanted, and left everyone else to the new teacher. That's pretty shitty.

I know her teacher has no problem dealing with students who have special needs. She has a degree in Special Education, and taught Special Ed. at her last position. Furthermore, I think intergrating these kids into the regular classrooms is one of the best things to happen to our educational system in a long time. But when you have that many special needs students in one classroom, it's hard enough to give each of them the one-on-one attention they need, but it's damn near impossible to do without holding back the progress of the other kids. This is a lose-lose situation.

My daughter is a sponge...She absorbs information as fast as you can throw it at her. She loves to learn and read and experience new things every day. And now she's BORED. And that really pisses me off. It is not her teacher's fault. Her teacher is doing the best she can. It boils down to the way crap goes down in this school system - the politics, the good ol' boy network, the under-the-table favors. And all of our kids suffer because of it.

Anyway, my reason for even writing about this was not to bitch but to tell a story that shows what an awesome, loving, beautiful child we have.

Her teacher told us that she has "assigned" DD a "special project". Now I'm thinking, book report? extra math? Nothing like that.

One of the students is autistic, and won't talk beyond an occasional whispered word to the teacher. The teacher has seated DD next to this little girl in hopes that my daughter's outgoing and friendly personality will help her. As the teacher is telling us about this, she starts to choke up and tears form in her eyes. She tells us that it is amazing how DD has taken this sweet little girl under her wing, helping her with classwork when she needs it, defending her against the ugly remarks from bullying kids. This little girl trusts my daughter enough to talk to her when she will not speak to anyone else. The coolest part of this is the fact that my daughter has no idea what autism is, or that this little girl is any different than herself. She doesn't know her teacher had a special purpose in seating them together. She just saw someone who needed a friend.

She never ceases to blow my mind. I ache with love and pride.