First, it wasn't my theory, it was the MN psychologist who put it in her book about extroverts and HSing.
I remember this woman told me that when she was in high school she was always friends with kids 2 years or more older. I asked her what happened when they graduated, she had this puzzled look on her face and couldn't answer me.
I know that my friends through high school tended to be ones that accelerated, so not only were we in the intellectual peer group but also age group. This is a big factor when puberty strikes. I do not want DD around kids that are getting more serious about boys and maybe doing things that she is not ready for, which could include drugs. This is something I struggle with when I think she needs acceleration and she has late Sept birthday, so is already one of the younger ones in her peer K class.
Intellectual pursuits is one thing but I want my kid to have a childhood too, just hanging on bars in the playground for 30 minutes after school with her buddies is not something she gets in Mandarin class. Note Kriston, the place next door offers 30 weeks of Mandarin twice a week for $3500. Not so cheap for extracurricular. Gymnastics for the year is 1400. Plus ballet and piano. Now we do all these things but relying on this can add up quickly. The Science & Nature program at the museum is $2600 once a week during the school year. But the social aspect of these programs do not match the energy output and socialization of that 30 minutes in the playground with her school chums talking about the cutest boy in class. Which should be a girl thing no matter how smart you are. My PG friend, who is a brilliant nuclear engineer, and I sang to Bobby Sherman's "Julie, Julie, Julie, do you love me?" over and over again in my backyard. And I hear my five year old daughter singing the latest Disney pop. I thought Disney was through taking my money after the princess phase and now I have Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato CDs. Sorry, I digress, but as much as DD5 loves the Science Center and do math in her head, she still talks about the cutest boy in her class (which changes monthly) with her friends.
Ren
