I think that a gifted child follows a "unique" path. There are no two gifted children whose paths are the same. My child at age 5 finished all "elementary" grade math (using multiple challenging curriculum) - this could have happened at age 4 and maybe I did not test him then. At age 6, he can diagram complex sentences and can write poetry (a few different styles)- this goes beyond reading at "X grade level" and comprehending higher level books. I have absolutely given up on tracking his grade level - because he maxes out scores in above level achievement testing all the time. Science has been done using only one curriculum and a ton of hands on activities at our science museum and many months of science/innovation camps during the summer. What his grade level is on science is impossible for me to measure.
My best advise to a parent who accelerates is this: provide resources at all levels to your child - some at a higher level to keep learning new things, some at a lower level to reinforce/review already learned concepts. Keep challenging them to think and learn every single day.
