We've managed to make public school work for two HG kids as well but it required more than just participation in the school GT programs even when they've attended schools with pretty robust programs for our area. The things that have made it work include:
For dd14 her bd made our K cut by two weeks so she was already the youngest in grade. That alone was not enough with just GT/honors classes. She also skipped the last yr of elementary b/c elementary was the place where we had the hardest time finding a fit for her. Subject acceleration in the entire language arts block to an accelerated 4th LA class in 3rd was the one yr where LA was a pretty good fit. She also doubled up on science, her passion area, last yr in 9th grade and is taking pre-AP and AP classes and will take some concurrent enrollment classes where she gets both high school and college credit starting next year in 11th grade.
For dd12, her bd missed our K cut by two weeks & we got her around it by starting her in a district with a later cut. The last year of elementary was her best academic fit but, by then, we were dealing with some significant underperformance issues due to yrs of improper placement & b/c she is 2e. That last yr of elementary she spent 2 hrs/day+ in the Gt classroom for LA and math. Math used the next grade up curriculum so essentially subject acceleration. After a trying year getting her back on track, though, middle school has gone pretty well. She's doing very well in Algebra I and honors classes for other subjects. She's currently a 7th grader and will turn 13 about a month or so after she starts 8th grade.
