Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Feedback on the Davidson Academy Reno

Point of fact clarification: the Davidson Academy isn't private. It's a free public school.

I believe intparent was referring to the school that ZM previously applied to, not the DA. But Kriston is right, the DA is a free public school, not a private school. Keep in mind, though, that there may be costs involved for DA students taking college classes, if that's the level your child is working at. Tuition/books for classes that are required for high school graduation are covered by the DA, even if they are UNR or TMCC classes (which a student would be taking for dual enrollment). That said, there are some necessary restrictions. If a class is given at the DA, and a student decides to take a similar class at UNR, that tuition is coming out of the family's pocket (which makes sense). Classes that aren't required for high school graduation are also a family responsibility.

As for age, that is much-discussed topic among current parents. There have been DA students admitted as young as 9, but I really can't speak as to their success or difficulties with the program. I can tell you that the older students act and talk like high school-age students, and the subject matter of their conversations and the vocabulary they use is typical of teens today. Many students are also in relationships. Gifted teens are still teens, and the risk-taking, defiance, and generally annoying behavior so prominent among teens is alive and well at the DA (my own kid, included).

While younger/older students don't tend to socialize much, a certain amount of overlapping is unavoidable in such a small school (especially one at which ability-grouping is the norm). Young kids are going to see and hear the older kids -- in class, at lunch, on the shuttle bus -- there's no avoiding it. Basically, if you wouldn't want your younger child in a high school environment, I would think hard about the DA (or any school with older students). Most DA parents I know with younger siblings choose to wait until typical middle school age to enroll their second child -- even if they academically qualify for the DA at a younger age. If I had more younger children, I wouldn't dream of sending them to the Academy until they were at least 11 or 12. I, though, tend to want to extend the innocence of childhood as long as possible for mine, others may feel differently and I don't mean to imply that another point-of-view isn't justified as well. Everyone knows their own kid best, so it is an extremely personal decision. I'm just giving my opinion as someone who has been there, I certainly don't mean to say there's one right age for admissions. Nothing is that cut-and-dry with these kids!

Ditto the appreciation for Wayoutwest's insight. I am really confused at this point. Maybe I am not understanding what DA can provide to any child who has academic needs far beyond their age.

I don't want my 9 or 10 year old in a high school. I want an environment where he is with age peers (within reason, I understand 3 years is a typical spread at DA) and learning at his proper academic level. If I were to wait until he was older, then he would miss out on the upper middle school part of the education and go right to high school. I like the idea of DA because he could stay in a school environment and put down roots for a number of years- middle schol all the way through high school graduation.

On a practical level, I looked at the beginning levels of education at DA and I suspect that most PG kids are hitting those first subject levels at 9 and 10, so why wouldn't there be more kids in that age group at the school? Do you think the other social factors weed many kids out (perhaps mine included) so the school tends to sway more toward the kids working at high school and college level opposed to the high middle school years?

Thanks to the feedback I have some great questions to ask the folks at DA and would be very grateful for any folks with kids 9-11 at DA to write about their experiences.

We are not DA parents but recently did the tour. I felt like the one major thing they had to offer over other schools was the understanding of the whole child. They seemed really focused on giving even PG kids a very well rounded experience, rather than just hurrying them through school. I appreciated their desire to keep them as long as possible and not just put a 13 year old in college full-time. In a setting with a bunch of 11-14 year olds all working at very advanced level, they can keep them together instead.

As for being 9 at the academy, I wouldn't want to send my son that early (who is now 7). He might be academically ready but he is not physically or emotionally mature enough to sit through a college class. He would need the academics from a teacher who understands that he still needs to wiggle a little. He simply wouldn't be able to be in a class with 16 and 17 year olds.

Interesting. So maybe they're looking at the "whole child" being at least jr. high age? You'd need the organizational, writing skills, maturity, and patience of a 7th-8th grader as well as the academic piece for a good fit? I am a bit surprised as well they don't accommodate more younger students.

So sorry! I didn't mean to confuse, ZM, let me try and explain better. After that, CFK, I'll answer your question.

9 and 10 year olds at the DA do have peers, but the majority of kids are indeed 11/12 and up. The younger kids do tend to stick together, and they do have friends to choose from, but they are not exclusively in an environment with their age peers the way they would be typically. If you have a 10-year-old ready for Algebra or Geometry, he/she will not be in a classroom comprised of only age peers, he/she will be in a class with older students. I'm guessing the staff does try to keep ages in mind when they are scheduling classes, but primarily the classes are ability grouped and students are not assigned grades (6th grade, 7th grade, etc.), so the age range within a class can be big. Of course, the middle school classes tend to skew younger, so the problem does self-correct a bit for the lower level classes.

As for why there aren't more 9 or 10 year olds? Who knows? My guess would be maturity level. It also doesn't hurt that Washoe County has excellent self-contained gifted classrooms throughout the city for grades 3-6 (with similar test score requirements to the DA). Many younger kids are happy to stay in that elementary school environment, doing advanced work, until they finish 6th grade. Many DA siblings attend that GT program, and only apply to the DA when they are through.

Anyway, what I was trying to say, was that the DA may be perfect for some young kids, but the atmosphere is not like being in a typical middle school, and nothing like being in an elementary school. The only reason I stress that here, is that I'm not sure I really grasped that when we applied. Back then there were no 9 or 10 year olds (my ds, now 14, was 11 and one of the younger ones), and I never really thought about how interacting with older kids might impact him. I probably should have, and that's why I bring it up. But my impressions may not be relevant to anyone else, so please take them with a grain of salt. Again, I don't mean to imply that younger students should stay away. Absolutely, not! Each kid is different, and will have a different DA experience. The DA has plenty to offer kids of all ages, there are just a lot of things to consider when making such a big decision.

CFK, the social scene is indeed a big draw at the Academy. It really is much nicer to be a part of a larger group, then alone on a college campus. Our former school district was one of the best in the country, with a gazillion AP classes, so there was no need for dual enrollment, but I was concerned about age. He would have hit high school very young, without knowing anyone (b/c he was attending a private school for the gifted that went until 9th grade, at the time). I kind of thought saddling him with new kids in a new school full of older kids would have been a social nightmare. The DA also offered other perks to my math/science guy: the ability to do university research, the ability to work at different levels in different classes, and the ability to take college classes without me having to spend my days driving him back and forth between campus and middle and/or high school (DA students are escorted to and from UNR classes).

The biggest perk of all, though, is the cluster of other families. Reno has become a community with so many other families in a similar situation, that it is an absolute blessing being here (even if the transition has been tough). Not all are DA families, not all are even YS families, but all know what it's like to raise these kinds of kids. You can share victories w/o feeling like you're showing off, find sympathy when setbacks happen, and have numerous avenues available for BTDT advice. This time next year my ds will be moving on from the DA, but no matter where we end up, I know I will have the friends I made here forever.

Again, I apologize for any confusion I caused.

Thanks for all the feedback. I have been wondering about DA recently. It would still be a few years off for us.

Thanks WOW (wayoutwest)!
I am starting to get a much better picture of things. We will keep an open mind, knowing that if not next year, we can always consider it down the road.

I am jealous of the situation you have in Reno, or even where you came from before. We have none of that where we are.
I am sure I will be back with more questions if and when the process evolves.