I’m Still Sort of Really Qualified to Homeschool a Gifted Child. . .I Think

This is part of a series. . .if you missed the first two blogs you may want to go back and read part one and part two. Realizing My Skill as THE Homeschool Teacher I’m not a math dummy. I actually feel pretty confident that with the right curriculum I can get my kids through Calculus. I never anticipated having to think about what to do after Calculus. But here I am, teaching a 7 year old, and wondering where to go after Calculus in a few years. I’m not THE ultimate homeschool teacher. . .but I’ve realized that I … Continue reading →

I’m Still Sort Of Really Qualified to Homeschool a Gifted Child

A big thanks to Andrea for letting me share our adventures with Alex over the past year or so. In case you’re just joining us. . .Alex is our son and he is a little bit smart. This is part 2 of a series about choosing curriculum for him. I hope you find it helpful if you’re just starting to navigate the road of homeschooling a gifted child. Mom Panics I left our story last by describing the first leg of our journey–where I panicked. Last year, Alex flew through three whole grade levels of curriculum. But it was the … Continue reading →

I’m (Sort Of) Really Qualified to Homeschool a Gifted Child

A big thanks to Andrea for inviting me to share in the adventures of homeschooling our kids who have grown a bit since the last time I wrote. The last time I wrote, I had two children that I was homeschooling full time. Now I have three full time and two part time–Lizzy who is in 4th grade, Alex who is in 2nd, Meghan who is in K and the twins who are so insistent that they too be homeschooled that despite my reservations about preschool, they too get some “school time.” (Don’t worry folks, just reading out loud and … Continue reading →

Homeschooling is just a matter of time

This morning I read the story of a young homeschooler named Julia Nepper who is working on two Associates degrees at 14. Prodigy or not (she doesn’t like that word), her capabilities clearly outpaced the traditional school schedule. Neither the junior high school nor the high school that she went to for one semester each would promote her due to ability so she continued homeschooling and landed in college at 11 years old. “The atmosphere was too much of babysitting people’s problems,” her father said. “Here, it’s quiet, the institution is excellent and the students are focused.” While my kids … Continue reading →

Homeschooling Our Gifted Son: The Hunt for “Gifted Curriculum”

I have to first say that it’s not necessary to find curriculum specifically for gifted kids if you have a highly gifted child. But someone recently asked me a question about whether or not you should go deeper or wider when homeschooling a gifted child and what do you do about curriculum. (In other words, do you use ‘regular’ curriculum and just keep advancing grade levels. . .or do you take your time to explore grade level curriculum in depth with lots of investigation.) I think the answer depends on the family and the child, but I’ve offered some thoughts … Continue reading →

My Son’s Science Project Is Out of Control

I could’ve just as easily entitled this: What to Do When Your Gifted Child is Smarter Than You Are. It’s an idea and a concept that many parents of truly gifted children struggle with because the reality is that gifted children are often smarter than their parents in something. I still have things to teach him, but he will surpass mine, and my husband’s knowledge in science and math before he finishes high school. I am sure of it. He’s already challenging my ability to practically apply chemistry principles that I’m well familiar with. So what do you do when … Continue reading →

Homeschooling My Gifted Son. . .When the Others Are Not Part 2

Yesterday I wrote about a conversation in which my oldest asked about whether or not it was okay to not be as smart as her little brother. While the twins are too young really to know what’s going on, the older three are intuitive enough to recognize that Alex is highly intelligent in this specific academic area. Conventional wisdom says that you should talk about how each one is gifted differently. Certainly this is true. My oldest is a very talented artist and considering she’s 7, takes some amazing photographs. My 4 year old speaks Spanish really well; better than … Continue reading →

Homeschooling My Gifted Son. . .When the Others Are Not

One of the biggest challenges in homeschooling our gifted son is our other children. They are bright. . .but not gifted. Perhaps it would be a little easier if our son was the oldest, but he’s not. My twins are too little to be homeschooled in the formal sense, and so that leaves Alex smack in the middle. The other day we were working on Math. Meghan, who is almost 4 is learning to recognize different coins. Lizzy, who is in 3rd grade, is working on making change. Meanwhile, Alex is contemplating other matters. He already figured out how much … Continue reading →

Homeschooling My Gifted Son: The Basics

I have to tell you that although my son can measure trajectory, play chess in his mind several moves ahead, and has a deep fascination with bioluminescent animals. . .he still has to be taught the basics. It is true that he intuits quite a bit of information. For example, when I was teaching my daughter subtraction, we had to go through each set of facts and review them over and over again. With my son, I didn’t even have to teach him all the facts. He caught onto the principle of subtraction and went on from there. Despite the … Continue reading →

Why We Are Not Testing Our Gifted Son

I have found an interesting irony as we have discovered that our son is gifted. There is now this ‘push’ to have him tested to see exactly how ‘gifted’ he is. Yet if we were to find out and quantify his giftedness, there are very few resources for home schooling gifted kids. I still need better resources because we’re still home schooling him, but we have decided not to have him tested. Reason #1: Socialization I will admit that the only reason I put this as reason #1 was because it’s the first thing people ask us when they find … Continue reading →