(((Hugs))) to you. I especially admire how you consistently strive to support your child's growth and giftedness, although you may not have received that support yourself as a child. There are many gifted kiddos who were cut down as tall poppies, not allowed to eclipse their siblings
*, classmates, etc... you are not alone. Your many helpful posts indicate you've studied giftedness so thoroughly that you can see a lot of what of could've/would've/should've been done for yourself as a gifted child to provide far-reaching benefits into adulthood. Your kiddos are very fortunate to have such a dedicated parent.
To some degree, it may one of the important jobs of childhood to test the limits. Some kids may be especially adept at this.
I feel for the kids who do not have someone to set healthy limits or to maintain the limits when tested... whether the parents are unknowledgeable, unconcerned, or stretched thin for a variety of reasons.
I would see a potential advantage of public school for your son that he may have an
IEP and a
team of teachers who may not be as easily exhausted as a parent with a health condition. I would still advocate for appropriate academic placement, or least-worst fit... and not intentionally immerse him in lower level, unchallenging academics. I would also look into options for him to
self-advocate for higher-level, more challenging academics if he is not learning something new.
Kids need
appropriate academic challenge and
academic/intellectual peers in order to develop necessary life skills and mental health.
The outcome I would anticipate would be:
- a period of novelty
- a period of trying to coast and play the system
- a realization that his strategy is not working, he is not happy with what his choices are garnering, and that he is in control (can make different choices)
- a period of growth and self-advocacy
- readiness to homeschool, with a new-found appreciation for learning, internal locus of control, ferreting out resources to fuel his own growth and education (putting his energy and intelligence to good use rather than to testing limits).
*gifted kiddos not allowed to eclipse their siblings: Pet peeve regarding the Iowa Acceleration Scale, as described here and here.
