Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion help/advice request

Hi,
I've posted here before, but not for a while.
Background: We homeschool. Our 13 year old is highly gifted, and has been skipped to 9th grade successfully. She and her sister, who is also in 9th (age-appropriately, though)took the ACT a few weeks ago and both got a score of 28 composite.

They're both asking to begin college early, but I feel lost about how to handle it. Are we crazy to think that they could both jump from where they are in high school to all or almost all college classes?

I think they could handle the material, but it seems wrong somehow to skip over the rest of the high school classes. They've both told me that they would rather take the college level class (for example, in english) and get the college credit for it, and possibly be able to get their degrees earlier in life.

I guess I'm just looking for reassurance from others who have gone this route before, lol. Any advice/hand-holding would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
-Jen

We've been able to do AP for DC20 and DC17 during the high school years (with college credit for the exams), but I did the community college route when I was younger. It's possible, and I very much enjoyed my time as a young college student (albeit, not enrolled full-time due to laws about matriculation). It was easier to enroll in community college with ACT/SAT scores (higher than the school's average) and taking placement exams there than it would have been without the data, as the college was wary of taking a young student for core classes. Bringing them when you approach the administration, as well as maybe letting professors in classes of interest meet your daughters and see their interest in the material, may help you obtain permission to enroll.

Hello, my name is Emily. I am a graduate student in education at Manhattanville College in New York. I am currently in a special education class and interested in writing a research paper on giftedness.

I am hoping that someone could suggest a topic within gifted education that is pressing, timely and/or "controversial." Thanks for any input.

Emily

You may want to check with your school district and local community college about dual enrollment options. In our district, it is very common for kids to take courses at the community college while continuing at the high school for some electives and "specials", like music, PE, art, and drama. There is a well-developed procedure in place, and there are several different options for students, ranging from taking college-level work in only one or two advanced areas of special interest, to taking the entire core curriculum at the college level while earning concurrent high school and college credit, so that they graduate from high school and earn an AA simultaneously.

Wow, the above sounds great, but I don't think we have access to something like that. We live in the Appalachian boondocks, lol!

We're thinking of having them take a few online college classes next year, and then revisiting the question. The girls are in 9th, but the subject matter is more comparable to what a typical college-bound junior in high school would be taking.

I really wish there was a place that had all of the options (and their financial consequences) mapped out clearly. The resources on this site do help quite a bit, but there's so much to consider...

Thanks for the responses.
-Jen