I read the article last night, thanks for the link. I've been contemplating how it applies to GS8. I've been so focused on teaching GS appropriate coping skills that I've been slow to switch gears and think that maybe it's time to switch his environment.
Now that his reaction to frustrations is not so 'over the top', and he's got a teacher who has responded by giving him a lot more freedom to do projects of his own when he's completed the class assigned work; he's really making a lot of progress with academic achievement. He's enjoying our 'afterschool' activities with the Singapore math book.
I've casually asked his thoughts about skipping grades. He is dead set against something like that, at least those are his thoughts now. My conference with his regular teacher is postponed until next week due to bad weather.
The fact that his academic achievement seems to be accelerating exponetially has me looking at next year as the year that will be more critical in the path we choose. If he levels off at just 2-3 grade levels above his age, then a pull-out gifted program will most likely be adequate along with his extracurricular activities & afterschooling. I'm still wondering how he'll react next year when he's handed a page of multiplication and division problems for math at school, when he's working on algebra at home. Right now he likes the attention he gets in class for kicking butt on the timed tests and being allowed to read or work Sudoku puzzles.
In many ways, he's still very much 8 years old. I'm working from home today and he has a snow day. He did some 'aferschooling' and now he's playing with his favorite monster truck 'grave digger' and driving over all his cars. Hmmm, watching the commercials, maybe that's more a guy thing, and not just an 8 year old guy thing, hahaha.
