Why did you chose to homeschool?
The time at the elementary school was great. She was in the gifted program and enjoyed it tremendously. Switching to the middle school this year brought two unpleasant things - she didn't re-qualify for the gifted program (!?) and the social aspects of being in a larger group of students seriously bother her. I started thinking of switching to a local gifted school (they require 130 WISC as their entrance criteria), but it comes with a lot of complications, such as lack of bus service and the school being somewhat small. We specifically moved to an excellent school district ten years ago (and pay rather large real estate taxes), so it is just difficult to rationalize the move from the best schools in the country to an unknown school with the emphasis on gifted. At least not yet. Homeschooling isn't an option for us - both of us work and I am also in the middle of my doctorate, so not right now.
We tried to do a lot outside of school. Some stuff she enjoys and some she doesn't. She loves music and plays piano beautifully (better than I ever was). She doesn't really like swimming much, but I believe swim team is very important for her overall health so keep pushing it on.
While I am a great supporter of human neurodiversity (my younger son has some Asperger traits which I treasure), I also think that realization of the big dreams and potential that she has is more important here, so I would like to find a way to help get through the confusing middle school years with more confidence in her abilities, focus and sustained attention.
