Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy Help! Middle School Acceleration.

This is tricky, and I agree with her reasons for wanting to stay where she is right now, but if you feel she could be all that WITH a gradeskip, then at some point I reccomend explaining to her that being a hero, at the cost of having one's needs met, is a bad, bad road to take. What if she was given the option of staying back so she could be sure to get as much praise and recognition as Ghost?

My guess is that you are right, and that you are going to have some 'teaching' to do here. Not an easy chore, but important. How many of us females have had the support to really push ourselves? Not many I would guess, unless economics was chasing at ones heels.

I'll bet she could do all that with a skip. If you agree, you owe it to her to 'put her on notice' that both is nice, but a 'right-sized' challenge is worth more.

Smiles and Love,
Trinity

I only have boys so I don't know much about the difference between gifted girls and boys except by observation of others' kids and having been one myself. Girls seem to be more sensitive to changes, more attached to friends, need more loving and nurturing. One bright girl we know skipped 5th and was doing very well in 6th grade academically. Surprisingly her mother removed her after 1st semester and put her back in 5th saying she was not mature enough. She wanted to hug everyone, hold hands with her classmates, and basically be a little kid a while longer (middle schools often have a no-touch policy). The mom supplements with jhy cty but felt strongly that the girl needed to be in elementary school a little longer.

This was not the case with my boys. They are all fine with skip and enjoyed the older kids more than they ever liked kids their own age. The only drawback is that the other boys go through puberty 1-2 years earlier than my kids, so they get teased a little. Then there's the very developed girls who can be pretty aggressive calling and asking my boys to the movies or a party. It's such a riot to see the 14 yr old "young women" flirting with my skinny 11 yr old. It will even out eventually I suppose.