We have been homeschooling all along, and I only recently figured out my dd 10 was gifted. (Duh! GAI of 163.) I've always assumed we would homeschool as long as it was working, but figured we would likely be sending her to high school. We live in Philly, so public school is not something we were ever considering. However, there are several highly regarded private schools here, some of the Friends schools, and a few with national reputations. These are expensive, exclusive places with beautiful campuses, etc. (In other words, there is a lot of $$$ there.) I had always thought they would more than meet our educational needs, but now I am not so sure.
My daughter is more verbally gifted than mathy. (Her VCI was 166, and she has long been reading 4-5 years ahead.) I don't think she is the kind of kid who would need multiple year acceleration in math. (She is currently only working one year head in math.) So maybe this would make it more likely that one of these private schools would be a fit? It seems like in lit or English classes, there is always the opportunity to dive in more deeply. She is a "slow but deep" kid.
On the other hand, the culture at these schools seems to be a lot about high pressure/extreme workload. To me, it seems there is a difference between work that is challenging because it is conceptually rigorous, and work that is challenging because it is so voluminous. I don't doubt that there is a certain amount of challenge at these schools for both of these reasons, but I wonder sometimes if it is more #2 than #1. While I think it is good to face a certain amount of #2 challenge in high school (develop time management skills, combat perfectionism)I think too much can be a very bad thing.
I am also curious about the social climate at these kinds of schools for gifted kids. I am pretty sure dd would fit in well. There seem to be plenty of other bright kids there. But am I kidding myself about that? I love that homeschooling has SOMEWHAT shielded us from the peer pressure driven materialism that comes with going to school with an affluent cohort. (No UGGS here!)I know I will lose that when/if she goes to school, but hopefully she will have a strong enough sense of self to make good judgments.
I have a couple of years before this becomes a real issue, but I am still trying to absorb this new gifted label and take in what it might mean for her educational future.
Any experience out there with private high schools? Thanks in advance.
