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I'm really sad to see this: http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=5520755&page=1

Colin has been excelling in part time college for years. There are some truly ridiculous comments here, such as the one by a school admin who suggests that Colin be put in the 6th grade.

*sigh*

Stories like this and the comments that follow them remind me of just how far we have to go. And they make me sad.

I hope Colin lands on his feet and winds up having a wonderful college experience. Maybe this will be a good learning experience and not just a huge problem? I can hope!

Kriston, did you catch the negative posts regarding homeschooling? I don't see how people can think that we keep our kids locked in the house all day with no contact with others. My gregarious son used to get in trouble in preschool for talking too much and doing too much socializing. At home, he has MORE time to play with friends, not less.

Dottie, I understand your mixed feelings.

I think it's fine for folks to comment that they wouldn't feel comfortable with their child in that situation, but for them to condemn the family and assume that they know the whole story is just irksome. I haven't made the same choices for my children, but I support Colin,Josh, and Jessica's right to choose what they feel is the right thing for their family.

Yes, I saw a couple of anti-homeschooling comments before I got disgusted and stopped reading. It's one of the things (though not the only thing) I was thinking of when I wrote about "how far we have to go."

As I write this, my kids are over at a neighbor's house with a whole gaggle of boys ranging in age from 4-9. They've been running between houses all day, riding bikes, swinging, playing Legos and Transformers, and heaven only knows what else. I've barely seen them since brunch--oh, and we were joined by my son's best buddy for brunch. We call him our "third son" because he's at our house so much.

Yup. My HSed kid is an anti-social hermit, fer sure. <sarcasm, sarcasm> Ah, the misconceptions people have!

Don't let it get you down, Lorel. It stinks, certainly, but I'm more troubled by the personal attacks on that poor family than I am by the dingbats who think we HSers lock our kids in the basement. Ignorance is bliss, after all!

Well, as someone who has pointed out how much of the time in school is spent NOT being social, even when with people...

I completely agree with you that the all or nothing nonsense is precisely that, and I would never say "all day" is spent in line at school. That's patently false. And ridiculous.

But...

I DO think the very people attacking HSing are not thinking about how much of the time spent in school is NOT social, even if the kids are in a group of people. And as a product of the public schools myself, I DO feel qualified to make that statement. I'm not making assumptions about what it's like in public school, as the people who have never had dealings with homeschooling are doing about homeschooling. I waited in those lines for the water fountain or bathroom! I sat in those groups without being allowed to speak! I got the check-minus for talking to my fellow students when I was finished early with my seatwork! I've BTDT!

I guess I'm respectfully suggesting that I think you have it backwards: the "HSers are all social misfits" rant is ignorance, pure and simple, and the "school is often not a very social place" argument is an attempt to get people to really *think* about what constitutes social time, rather than simply assuming that time with people in the room = social time.

I definitely agree that there's no need to overstate the case though. And as I always say, no educational solution is right for all kids.

I'm certainly glad the public schools are there. Heck, my kid would be in our local one if they weren't doing such a lousy job teaching GT kids!

LOL! I hear you now, and I COMPLETELY agree! Sorry to have misunderstood.

Extremism like that ranks right up there with Slippery Slope arguments in the list of my pet peeves, as in "If we take one step, all heck will break loose and the world will come to an end!!!! Chaos! Dogs and cats living together! Aaauuuggghh!"



Yeah. I can't stand stuff like that.

Logic rules!!! <thrusting one fist triumphantly into the air>

Indeed! But it's a good sermon, so as far as I'm concerned, preach away!

I totally agree with this Dottie. It seems like when the media takes on stories about GT kids there is a tendency to sensationalize.

I don't know if I'd bet on that, but certainly there are many early college kids who do not seek media attention and prefer flying under the radar. Colin's family may have decided to go public a few years ago because they wanted to let the public know about PG kids, and that was a valid choice for them. I am very wary however, and though I enjoy reading the positive press on gifted kids, it appears that once a child is in the media, he is fair game for all kinds of speculation and attack.

I will share that I briefly considered sending out the press release that accompanied my son's talent search info. I thought it would be cool for people to see that a homeschooler scored highest in the state. But I decided (and DH was neutral, so it was MY decision) that it wasn't worth the risk. Both my son and I are fairly thin skinned and we'd have a terrible time with even one mean spirited comment.

I can't imagine how Colin and his family are dealing with this. I had an email from Jessica yesterday, but she sent me the links and didn't elaborate much on the mess.

Aside from the negative comments, I think the big issue is the liability the school is worried about. Dormitory -- drinking, drugs. They may be made liable for contributing to a minor, just guessing why the change of mind. And then the big issue is, will other gifted children suffer because of the liability issue and colleges afraid to admit them?

Ren

I guess this is what I meant by "sensationalize". If the parents had a chance to proof something before it went to print, the facts may be stated differently. Sometimes it might be easy for someone without any knowledge of the GT world to jump to conclusions. As someone not knowing anything about GT not incredibly long ago, it is easy to jump to conclusions! For every one of these kids you do see, there are a lot more under the radar. These kids are unique and rare, but probably not as rare as portrayed by the media.

I just think it's a shame this school couldn't get their story straight before Colin and his mother were ready to move. Not every college set up is going to work well for a 12 year old, but you would hope they would have a policy in place for young students.

Wow. Well, besides the fact that the school won't let him have a dorm affiliation, which is a separate issue ....

I cannot *believe* some of the comments. I think this is the main problem with having someone like Bill Gates spearhead a campaign for gifted children: Public sentiment says, "Why do these kids need special treatment? Let them be kids!"

The prevailing thoughts seem to be that the mom is pushing him, the kid couldn't possibly want to do it himself, etc. Of course, I think most of us acknowledge that you couldn't really *keep* most PG kids from learning if the opportunity is presented. Unfortunately, most people don't *know* any PG kids, and certainly aren't intimately acquainted with them. And if you have no exposure to a PG kid, sure, it could look like the mother is "pushing" him.

The other thing is that people seem to be thinking that the kid is missing out on a "normal" childhood. Erm ... is it just me, or does it seem fairly unlikely that this kid would have a "normal" childhood anyway, even if he was at traditional high school? Would going to high school put him in his "peer group"? Doubtful. They may be his age peers, but I highly doubt he'd come across more than one or two people he truly connected with.

It seems that most people either think she's a pushy mom, or that the kid is missing out on integral parts of growing up. What they don't seem to get is that a PG kid has needs that are a little more, well, pressing than going to the prom. Is going to prom fun? Sure. Is it worth sitting through pointless high school classes for four years, wasting away, without a real peer group? Doubtful.

However, this is the comment that bugs me the most:


*Really*? Wow. There's just so much wrong with this attitude, I don't even know what to say. First of all, where are all these gifted schools, and groups of gifted kids? I think if such programs were readily available at a payable cost, parents of gifted kids would be *jumping* on them. I sure am. Sounds like this lady has first-hand experience with a pusher parent who's using their kid as a status symbol rather than a concerned parent looking for the best fit for their kid.

Unbelievable.

Well said, Mia. Myself, I did attend high school and chose not to attend prom. If I can recall correctly, I think I would have preferred to rub ground glass in my eyes!
Looking back.......I still don't regret it.

I never attended a high school reunion, I've had no interest. And I don't have fond memories of my high school years like a lot of people. I was in a very poor academic fit and it was not a good experience.

I went to 5 proms (First and 3rd with an older boyfriend, second one with a friend, and then to two during my senior year because I dated someone at a different school), and I had fun at all but the one with the friend...so I'd say prom is marginally better than ground glass in the eyes, but nothing to worry about missing either. CERTAINLY not something a person can't live without! CERTAINLY!!!

And great comment, Mia. Right on the mark! Every parent of every GT child I know is looking for peers. Every one! Comments like that person with the so-called "firsthand experience" (Bah!) are just shameful, I think.

I went to prom twice. I was even elected prom queen. Was it worth spending four years fighting with the administration (which routinely dealt with gifted students) to allow me to work to my ability (which didn't work anyway)? Not at all. And my parents were not pushing me, as some of the people commenting on the article about Colin suggested. Well said, Mia!

The proms were fun. I was the only male sophomore one year - it was with the Latin Club/Math Club president. It certainly got me out of my geeky world. I went to the 10 yr HS reunion for the class two years ahead of mine and it was fun catching up.

Will a GT kid see thing they should not - probably. I went skinny dipping when I hung out with HS kids when I was 13. That was innocent fun. Drugs are still common today as they were then - I just ignored them. Should I have been driving late at night when I was 13? Maybe not. I never drank and in any case, they never offered me a beer, making sure I got a soda!

The biggest admonishment I got from my older relatives was to pick my friends carefully and to leave if I was uncomfortable. I took this to heart.

My mental peers usually treated me well.

The biggest danger I ever faced was an adult pedophile in the 5th grade. That was dealt with pretty well.