Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy AP/IB Program. Our Meeting With GC

I decided to start a new thread on an old story thinking that some of you might be interested in what I have found out so far.

To re-cap... My son,Ghost, is in 7th grade. Greately accomodated in math, not so any more in other subjects. Started advocating for him this year to take science classes at local HS - not the best idea in the eys of our P and v-P, but they did not say no!
We are seriously considering IB program at a HS that is almost 1 hour away !!!! A very reputable program.

H and I met with a GC at the mentioned HS this am. She is a councelor for ELP/AP/IB programs (all are called IB track program). ELP is an Extended Learning Program offered to 7 and 8 grade students who have the highest scores at a district administered test. Cream of the crop. Ghost does not qualify as he is an out of district student. (I was thinking about contacting a Governor today as to his case - that is about the last option I have - but this one hour commute does not look like something Ghost would like to undertake earlier than necessary).
Anyway, looks like this IB program is a very flexible one. Kids actually take both, AP and IB classes. There is not going to be a problem with Ghost taking AP Calculus BC as a freshman, and for 10 and 11 grade he can take math at the U of U. He will need to take IB Math in 12 grade. The same goes for science. If he has prerequisites under his belt, he can take AP classes as early as 9th grade and write AP exams as a freshman.
Since we are considering studies in Europe for one year, I asked about a gap year. Not a problem! She suggested 10 grade as being the best, will give him credit for all if he makes sure and takes appropriate level classes while abroad.
We are still thinking and talking, searching for opinions - so please post yours - but the plan for today is as follows:
7th grade - Algebra 2 and regular 7th grade science class at
school, supplemented by an online Earth Sciences
class at BYU
Summer between 7/8grade - THINK
8th grade - Pre calc and introductory biology or chemistry
or physics at a local HS.
After that IB program along with some classes at U of U.
Still haven't figure out the English aspect of it all.
Oh, and he will most likely be able to take Spanish 3 once he gets to HS level.

Ania

Wow Ania,
Sounds like your IB program is more flexible than most! That's good to hear.
I like your plan. It sounds reasonable. Giggle to online Earth Science!
I bet he'll love THINK in the summer.

too bad about the drive - ELP sounds so yummy. I wonder if you can find a car pool? Still 2 hours of driving a day is a lot on a child. Can he at least visit to see if it would be worth his while?

Smiles,
Trinity

Ania,

These seem like excellent options! Are these free public schools?

You are very attentive to every nuance of your children�s education that I�m sure whatever you chose will work!

Hi Ania,

It sounds like a terrific plan. I particularly like the year abroad (are you all going or is this something he'd do independently, like an exchange program?). The hour commute is something I couldn't handle, with 4 involved kids and a busy husband who can't help with carpool, but I applaud you for finding the best options (and for being willing to make those sacrifices). You mentioned that he's developing lots of friends this year--does he care if his friends go to different schools, or are some considering the same plan?

My oldest seems to be coasting in high school (this is 3 wks into freshman year). Even with all honors and pre-AP classes, he has very little homework and can easily practice soccer for 3 hrs every day (plus go to games). He has a great social network and I know he enjoys that, but I'm disappointed that he wouldn't let me advocate for him to go right into some AP classes. I've printed off some distance learning courses for him to consider--this week is the last week of registration for JH CTY classes. In retrospect, that hard honors algebra course from Stanford EPGY last year makes this yr's pre ap Alg 2 course look easy. I guess what I'm trying to say is, you're lucky Ghost lets you help him. Do it while you can, because mine is being a little obstinate (or perhaps just indecisive) and I hate to have him waste his time. I've heard others say on this blog--relax, it's ok. I'm trying to let him be, but it's hard.

LOL! You've heard that on THIS board?
Golly - let me tell you a story about my mom, at age 12, and Summer Camp:

Every year My Grandmother showed her brochures and urged my mom to sign up. Every year my Mom plainly stated that she didn't want to gol

Finally my GM got fed up and sent her anyway. DM had a wonderful time, and return, to criticially demand:
"Camp is great. Why didn't you send me before? I've missed so many summers! It's unfair!"
GM: Well, dear, I did suggest it, but you always said "No."
DM: So why did you listen to me? I'm a kid! What do I know?


Possible Conclusions:
1) DM was a spoiled brat who deserved a swat. ((This is my gut reaction, and possibly true.))
2) No matter what course we parents plot, our hyper-alert, hyper-aware, hyper-critical inexperienced children will second guess us. We just can't win. ((BTW - it's our own perfectionism that tells us we have to be right all the time.))
3) We have a duty to observe our kids and excercise judgement about which times we let them make choices and live with consequences and which times we intervene. This is no one right answer.
4) We can use this story to explain to our children why we are making them do things that they don't agree with. My mom did to very good effect. You are welcome to "steal" this story, and "annex" my family. Become a broken record. The 37th time all you have to say is - "You remember what happened to Aunt Trinity's Mom and Summer Camp" for the kid to think - Ah! Children don't always know what's best, we lack experience!
5) What if DM had had a terrible summer? Would that have reinforced her notion that she knows better than adults and can't trust anyone to think for her but her?
6) Apparently one can be a untrusting, critical, obnoxious 12 year old, and still grow up to have a good life, perhaps starting a long line of supicious, critical, obnoxious offspring who hopefully also have good lives. One can hope.
7) Is bossiness perhaps "genetic?"


Well, Dear One, I had a wonderful time sharing this family story with you - Who wants to start a fresh Topic on family stories so we can quit threadjacking Ania's topic?

Love and Big Smiles,
Trinity

Thanks so much, Trinity,

I love your story. I think I've experienced the same thing in many ways, both personally and with my kids. Some of my proudest moments were taking that leap outside my comfort zone--in high school applying to a program with the University of Iowa to spend Christmas break studying ecology in Florida (and miraculously getting the scholarship!) or being selected to work on a geological research vessel off Puerto Rico. It would have been so much easier to hang out with my friends at home over Christmas break, but something told me I should give it a shot.

I have cultivated this relationship with my son that I make a slurry of recommendations of possibilities for him and it's his choice. He has chosen to challenge himself in the past, with taking the ACT/SATs, summer institutes, outward bound, online courses (though I think skipping was not optional). I feel I need his buy-in and perhaps this time it's that I haven't done a thorough enough job of outlining the possibilities, partly because high school is all new to me and a bit scary to mess with. I'll work on that.

I do know better--you're right. I have convinced my kids to "try" camps or summer institutes or even extracurricular activities and that if they didn't like them--they didn't have to go again. It's worked out and opened their eyes, making them crave more.

Did you read that article in the Duke Gifted Letter by Graham, which ended by saying that these kids are often in school for up to 25 years, so trimming off a couple one way or another can only help them? http://www.dukegiftedletter.com/articles/vol7no4_feature.html

Gotta give this more thought--I'm sorry for interrupting Ania's topic and will stop now.

Thanks again.

You guys can interrupt as much as you want to, I love reading it :-)
To answer some of your questions :
As I have mentioned earlier, ELP is really a lost case for Ghost. Even if he had the highest scores in the entire state, he is still an out of district student and there are kids within the district who are waiting for accomodation. If the ELP program was something like 20 min. drive from us, I would be fighting like a lion. I would move heavan and earth for him to attend it. But it is an hour drive, and I do not want to take almost two hours a day away from him just yet. We will probably have to do it for HS, provided that he is accepted into the program. But by this time there is going to be a commuter train connecting our satellite city with SLC, so
1. the commute will take less time
2. you can do more on a train than you can in your car. There is going to be WI FI on it, so Ghost will be able to do homework or study as he commutes
3. he will be older
There are other people here who are interested , so a carpool occasionally will definitely be possible.
Ghost will go to an information sesion next year. Or maybe I should take him this year, so he understand better what it is all about? What do you think?
My kids are attending free charter school, chartered with Spanish. The HS I am considering for Ghost to take some classes as an 8th grader is also a free charter school, only about 0.3 miles from his middle school. The HS with an IB program ( they have been doing this program for close to 20 years now) is a regular public, huge HS. In the 70, erly 80 it was the worst HS in SLC area. The district decided to start a very selective IB program at this location as means to attracting better students. It worked. So today the school is home to the very bright young people as well as regular HS students. The GC told me that kids at this school speak 47 different languages !
.
Yes, I know it will be tough. But:
1. The train station will be very close the the middle school my daughter wil be at.
2. After two years both of them will be commuting (provided my daughter will choose the same school)
3. Their violin teacher is almost in SLC, enroute home.
4. Same goes for fencing - it will also be enroute home.
My husband can't help either, he travels a lot for his work. I do work but my schedule is so, I can always take care of the kids.
I also know that when the time comes I will be complaining about the whole situation. But I do feel that I have to provide what is best for them. When I went to HS I also had to commute close to one hour one way.
This is only in our dreams so far, but we kind of have two options. Both of them involve Europe. He can either go and live with our family and study the language that he is already fluent in or he can go to Spain and become fluent in Spanish. We do have friends in Spain that would be willing to look into it for us. In both situations it would be a totally private endeavour - not a formal exchange program.
Yes, he listens. Not to everything, but overall he trusts me. He is a huge procrastinator but just the other day he told me that he wants to be taking HS level courses now because he realizes that he is capable of it and also realizes that he needs to push a little harder to acomplish something. I think that he knows that he would not be where he is today without us advocating for him.
But he is still a child. Sometimes it bothers him that he does not know what to do with his life. He knows that he wants to own a plane and would like for his future job to involve flying. But he does not want to be an airline pilot because it is boring he says. He also loves to cook !
I do not think that going to a different school than his friends will bother him. He currently has a very good, close friend at school but others are in the neighborhood or at scouts. He is an individualist. Likes to be popular but will not go out of his way for it.
Ania