I feel there is an important resource that often costs nothing that people tend to overlook....people in the field of your child's interest, mentors. I know that one adult outside of school made a huge difference in in our eldest DS's life, a gentleman who was working on his doctorate in Organic Chem. He not only took the time to discuss my son's interests in the field of chemistry but toured him around the Univ. lab., did some experiments with him, and inspired him.
Most of us know people who are professionals in a wide variety of fields. A good many of them are likely willing to spend at least an hour or two if not meet on a regular basis with a young person who shows interest in their field sharing not only their knowledge but the path they took to get to where they ended up. People are usually more inspiring than books and media and they provide real world examples of what our children aspire to become.
