Hi all to those who have BTDT dd4 is due to start school in May - the school has suggested she do 6 weeks in year 0 (kindergarten) for assessment/settling purposes and then if they are happy with her she'll be bumped up to year 1 so she can go year 2 next year (so one grade skip.

DD has highly unrealistic expectations of school, did any of you do anything (or wish you had done so) that eased the transition to school? Social or academic suggestions would be great. DD is one of those kids that charms older kids and adults however she struggles with kids her own age due to **ahem** leadership characteristics... and also talking like a 10 year old. She thinks there will be some serious study going on. The school she is going to is lovely which lots of outdoor play (5 times a day) and very accepting of different kids so I really want it to go well for her!

Yes, to manage expectations we talked about a typical day. This included the fun tasks which children may be assigned, such as posting the letter of the day. For the higher level things kiddo wished to learn, libraries and museums were among our weekend activities. Making lists helped bridge gaps of time between when kiddo identified a subject to delve into an when we were able to follow through.

The same adults and older kids which may now be charmed and engaged with a precocious child may later grow weary of these same attributes; The attributes are not negative or positive in themselves but may be highly situational. Therefore it may be in a student's best interest to consider ideas presented in resources such as Gifted Kid's Survival Guide, The Unwritten Rules of Friendship, You are a Social Detective, and social thinking (perspective taking) may be helpful.

You may wish to tell her this.