What is different about him is that he doesn't seem to have intellectual curiosity.{/quote}
[quote=KJP]DD5 seems to view the classroom as just one of several arena in which to show off.
What I read in your description is a classroom/school which seems to feed to your ds' natural competitive ability and perhaps doesn't provide the environment that makes intellectual curiosity obvious. Please know I'm not knocking your school - just observing that in a place where progress can be counted in the number of worksheets that can be finished in a school day, or in the grade level a child is progressing through vs other students, it's easy for a child who is naturally competitive to compare himself/herself to others. The schools my kids have been in are very different from that - few worksheets, and an emphasis on working in groups on projects. The potential downside for an HG+ student is that they have been also more of a mindset to have all students working on the same thing (not necessarily at the same depth/level). There is a lot of discussion and active teacher involvement, and what you can see is children who are actively engaged in following their intellectual curiosity. Again, I'm not saying that one type of school environment is "better" in any way than another, each has it's strengths and drawbacks, and I would imagine in any school, it's the teachers who make the largest difference, no matter what the educational philosophy.
I am thinking about signing him up for piano. He doesn't seem to have any special music ability. I'd like him to have to work at something.
I am not sure if you're simply looking for an activity that provides challenge for your ds, or a way to help him not always be "the best" in order to develop understanding or empathy or tolerance for others who aren't at his level. If the purpose is to simply challenge him and perhaps also to learn music, it's a plan that sounds reasonable. If there's a concern over his focus on competing I would tackle it in a slightly different way. Even if piano is challenging for him and he's not "the best" at it, he's still most likely going to head into it with a competitive bent, because that's his personality (I think - but of course I don't know him). What's worked the best for my kids (including one who's uber-competitive and likes to always come out on top), is participating in group activities (sports/camps/whatever) with others, even if they happen to be the highest IQ or the best athlete or the best-at-whatever in the group. Having to function in a group has helped my highly competitive loves-to-be-number-1 kid see in action the values we try to talk about at home. Hope that makes sense.
Best wishes,
polarbear
