I have 2 gifted children. With my son, I fought very hard to have him start K early. He has been at a private school since K and is going into 6th now. He is a pefect fit, academically and socially.
My daughter, scored much higher on IQ tests. She was reading fluently at 2. I have her at the same private school and have fought for years to try to get her advanced to no avail. The school's reason is social. They have been worried that she has no close friends in her grade level but contradictate themselves by saying she is a better social fit where she is than if she were to move up. Honestly, I have made every effort to go to the school and observe. She is very different from the kids in her class. Basically, she has nothing in common with them. She is more concerned with saving the enviroment than with Barbies! To me, she seems so much more mature than her age peers.
This past year, while in 3rd grade, she was pulled out for 6th grade reading, spelling, vocabulary and science. Still, they will not let her skip 4th grade and move to 5th! Her standardized test results came back with 99% across the board. She has a lot of anxiety during the school year, only at school. She is fine at home and during the summer.
Once again, I requested a grade skip and was told no. Now my options are to send her back as a fourth grader or to homeschool.(I have exhausted all efforts to find another school here that would compare or fit her needs and public school is not an option)
What would you do? Does anyone else out there HS their gifted child? If so, what cirriculum? How do you determine their grade level? Has anyone had success with virtual schools?
I am trying to research as much as I can. My gut instinct is to HS, my husband wants to send her back and only pull her out to HS if the anxiety comes back. I really would appreciate any and all comments or thought on the matter.
Thanks in advance.
~Gatorgirl
