Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion The ultimate brag thread

My 2-year-old son has been studying topology since June!

Welcome, GiftedOne!


Your child has found a fascinating topic.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Topology

My son has just uploaded two videos to his YouTube channel - performing his arrangements of ‘Hallelujah’ & ‘Drivers License’. There’s also an original piece which he composed as a 13 y.o. I think they’re pretty good for a self taught musician (edited: I’ve since checked out a lot of other popular arrangements & IMO his are pretty awesome for a self taught musician) and illustrates how digital technology is a game changer & kids can learn so much on their own by exploring the internet.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPbOXk9HkoMEbQjWz1DGmsA/featured

Edited: Music is one of the co-curricular activities he will be listing for his Uni application. He plans to study R & D engineering. His other co-curriculars are Olympiad Maths & athletics (unfortunately, very little happening due to COVID lockdown, so he’s lately been directing his efforts toward music).

I totally agree that relatively inexpensive, accessible technology has really created so much more access to musical development for motivated, interested young persons. Nice little pieces! Is he planning to continue with music in some form during college?

Aeh, thank you very much for taking the time to view his video & post a comment.

I hope he does continue to explore music but who knows..

A few relevant points I’ve pondered:

There’re limited productive hours in a day - it can be hard to decide whether to pursue many interests well or a few interests very well.

The law of diminishing returns can make it seem more personally rewarding to pursue many interests, but to access resources & support for the elite, one probably has to focus on one path to be competitive and that would likely entail sacrifice of other interests.

Whilst digital technology is a fantastic enabler, it also highlights that mass popularity, a common measure of ‘success’, is about what appeals to the average who aren’t particularly interested in technical quality and the effort that goes into it - my youngest created a one minute Tik tok video of herself sketching an anime character and it went viral, with a flood of gushing, superlative comments. My son is happy for his little sister, but I suspect he has contemplated the different efforts vs impacts of their respective endeavours.

For now, I am pleased that DS is working on a couple of fully original major compositions which he will likely submit as his HSC works. I suspect whether he pursues music later may depend on the formal assessment & critique of these works by examiners (whose opinion he will value most highly) and/or reception to these pieces when he eventually uploads his performances to his YouTube channel.

The main aim of these short cover arrangements is to provide evidence of co-curricular activities for his Uni application, so in that respect, hopefully his efforts won’t be wasted.

Totally sympathetic with covid and ECs. DD had to improvise, but it turned out she found something online that turned into a very impressive EC in tech. Great leadership, initiative. Though her diving/research (which was her big thing in 2019) was cancelled in both 2020/21.

I don't know how it is in UK, but I would think that musical composition, instead of music would be very high on the EC for someone going into engineering. And it would show a great analytical brain.

Some of DD's classmates are applying to UK and I saw they have to get their applications done by Oct 15th. Best of luck. DD has until Nov 1st.

Best wishes to your DD for her Uni/College applications.

Here, ‘Down Under’, we are about six months behind in the school year, so DS still has plenty of time to put together his application(s). I think the Uni he is applying to is the only one which has ECs as a compulsory part of applications. Other universities encourage ECs by offering bonus admission points for selected ECs, however, for his application, if he doesn’t include and show evidence of them, the application will not be accepted. I don’t think the ECs actually have to be relevant to the course. Our universities are slowly becoming more like those in the US but not quite there yet.

These are fun to watch! Kudos to your son. Thanks for sharing.


But oh my, the YouTube ads... I was served two ads prior to each video... did others have a similar experience...?

I am wondering whether it might be worth the time exploring alternative video sharing platforms, to offer Uni admissions officials a choice of where to watch the videos. With their time at a premium and the ads running longer than the videos themselves, people may prefer an option to click on an alternative video sharing platform and watch without ads...?

Not to worry, Indigo. At least in the US schools, the submission of various “supplemental materials” is not new, and they have developed secure portals, as well as strict guidelines in many cases, on what, how, how long, etc extra materials can be submitted.

And yes, Eaglemum, thanks for sharing!

Indeed! The submitted music video on YouTube may be well within the length allowed... but when preceded by the served ads, may discourage or disallow the viewing of the intended video.

Or, are you intending to convey that an admissions department's secure portal is a type which would preclude ad serving?