Okay. So far I videotaped him reading from Popular Science, National Geographic, and Wikipedia--things he is comfortable with and has been reading for a long time. He is a little nervous about being videotaped. I also got him to read some things off of the Runescape website and also talk about it in his own words so they could see how he normally talks. So far the things I have videotaped him reading only come up about 11th grade Flesch-Kincade level when typed into Microsoft Word. He wanted a break so I will have to get him to read from the college textbooks later. He would not read through stuff before doing it on camera because he said that would be cheating.
I will have to have him do the spelling while playing video games tomorrow. He keeps reminding me that this is supposed to be his summer vacation.
I don't know if I should get video of him practicing piano. He is not particularly advanced in that--only Level 3 but he only practices a few minutes the day before his lesson and he still makes progress. He likes musical theater and likes to sing but he isn't particularly interested in piano and says he would much rather take guitar lessons.
I wish I could think of a way to document how he is able to go into "adult mode" when necessary because I think this is an example of higher mental age and leadership ability. Several months ago he had to help me take care of my mother who has Alzheimer's when my dad, who takes care of her at home, unexpectedly had to go into the hospital for a couple of days. My parents are both in their 70's and live next door to us. I was upset and my son helped me to calm down and figure out the medication my mother needed to take and patiently answered her questions over and over. He has an extraordinary ability to make jokes and help people get through difficult situations. My son put aside video games and books and did what adults in my family would not do because it is very, very hard. My son read somewhere about the stress that caregivers are under and how it can affect their health so he regularly visits his grandfather because he knows that his grandfather really enjoys his company. My dad is addicted to Fox news so they watch and discuss the latest news together.
