I hear all the time that PG kids are underserved in most schools and that parents need to advocate aggressively to get the most basic of accommodations - and those are the parents who know how to navigate the system. There are also parents who have no awareness nor the ability to advocate due to various reasons.
So, if a kid with IQ of 150+ does not get any acceleration or differentiation and has never seen advanced topics in math, how would that child work 2-3 grade levels ahead in that subject? Intuitive understanding due to high intellect can not take that child too far. I believe that the correlation between high IQ and working at a higher grade level is not a given. It is mostly due to the learning opportunities available to the child.
Agreed that giftedness + opportunity = achievement. I believe it is important not to
conflate giftedness and opportunity.
That said, there is much credit to be given to what another person recently termed on another thread, "a child-driven educational thirst".
Some may say the number of opportunities available to a child are dependent, in part, on the age of the child, and the number of questions the child may ask of parents, teachers, and other adults the child comes in contact with (pediatrician, dentist, eye doctor, grocery store clerk, hardware store employee, neighbors, relatives, librarian, etc). Some kids may read wrappers, labels, boxes, prices, road signs, car speedometer, billboards, making connections and formulating questions. A family which lets these everyday opportunities go by may also not make best use of formalized learning opportunities such as courses, tutors, or acceleration.
While some courses and tutors may be costly, there are many stimulating resources freely available and readily accessible for a child/family seeking every opportunity for positive mental stimulation and intellectual growth.
The take-away idea may be to strive for one's personal best, maximizing the opportunities which one may have or be able to create.
