We use and like Growing With Grammar. It is very independent and covers a lot of information. My son isn't a big fan of writing either and it's not too much for him. He has retained a lot from the program.

Thanks everyone! I think I might need to just print up as many lists as I can and cross-reference to narrow down the list. I really have no other idea about where to start with this. :willy_nilly: I have the list from Davidson, EPGY, CTY and and Duke TIP. Are there any other "big ones" I should add to my list?

Thank you!! :)

Thanks. I have that list and I tried to compare it to the EPGY list and found very few overlaps. I don't want to base the testing just on one program since I don't know yet what programs he'll be interested in. So, I'm trying to figure out which tests are the most widely accepted.

Hello! I've searched the archives and have done a lot of internet searching but I'm not finding what I need. I have a just-turned 9 year old who is a very bright boy. Up until now, we've left it at that without any formal testing. But I am starting to consider on-line coursework for him in an effort to meet his intellectual needs. He currently uses EPGY but through a group enrollment so he didn't have to apply to it. I'm not sure which programs we will apply to in the future, if at all, but I think it is time to get him tested so that options are available to him. And, even if we choose to not take advantage of those options until later, he will be familiar with the testing process. Which tests do you think are the most widely accepted by on-line programs for gifted youth (i.e. EPGY, Davidson, CTY, etc.)? He is a very strong reader and has excellent verbal skills, but he's not a fan of handwriting. He does well in conceptual math but has difficulty writing out his problems because he does them in his head without being able to break down the steps he took (and because he gets stuck in the handwriting process or gets distracted while he's trying to write out what he's already done in his head). He loves history and science and has a great memory. But, we haven't schooled according to state-based (Texas) standards. For example, he has extensive knowledge of ancient history and Greek mythology but can't name the state capitols. Given this information, which tests (that are widely accepted) would be most appropriate for him? Thank you so much for any insight you can give me. It seems most of the information I find on-line addresses children in school.

Do you think this is a series we could jump into late? Say, at 4th grade? Or, should I have him start from 1st grade and work through?

Did you find this to be true for the Building Thinking Skills Software? Or was it a different program?

I'm bumping this because I would really like to hear about the software from Critical Thinking Co. We love Mind Benders but my 9 yo is ready to move on from those and he has asked for more computer-based work. Any input on these? Also, has anyone had any problems with the software on a mac?

Well, that's the whole question. It looks like it would be great for us but we are looking for a secular program and I noticed that this includes a section on The Bible as well as Christmas Around the World. Are these sections easily skipped? Do they address other winter-based holidays and traditions around the world? Is there another secular geography program that is recommended?

Oh, so he wants to be in your lap still and grab at the book? My first would sit for books at 6 months but my dd was much more active. I think that is often the case for the 2nd because they see that older one moving around and doing so much! At 14 months, I really wouldn't worry about it. Both of my children love being read to but my daughter still, at age 5, is more active during reading time - playing with legos, coloring, doing handstands, etc. When my son was 3 and I had a baby, I had to read standing up so the little one wouldn't grab at it. I used to put her in a wrap on my back so she couldn't grab for the book!

Ditto what others said about talking with her about the books. Also, what is she like when she's reading? Does she laugh or giggle? Are there any "oh, no!" or "awww..." or things like that? Does she smile or frown or express in other ways feelings while she's reading? You could also ask her to draw pictures about what she's been reading.

How old is he? Can you give him a floor activity to do while you are reading? The big chunky legos, cars, blocks, etc. My dd loves listening to books but she's not keen on the "sitting for books." She's an active listener!

Anyone? I really need some guidance on this.

My son is the same with math. We use EPGY open enrollment and I supplement that with Signapore Intensive Practice. I feel like this gives him the ability to pace himself and work independently but also gives him practice with physically writing out his work (which he doesn't like doing - he just likes to do it in his head but not write out the steps, sometimes because he can't quite figure out how he got to the answer because, according to him "he just knows it.")

Is it by Evan-Moor? Daily Paragraph Editing. They have different grade levels. Try looking here

I just had him do the Year Three Mastery Evaluation narration and dictation. He read the passage independently one time and then gave me the following narration: "The rabbit, Little Georgie, had to escape an Old Hound. He had to run fast through the fields in order to avoid him. He found a stream and realized he was cornered. With a big leap, he leaped over the stream." Does that okay for this level? I think if I prodded him, he would have added more detail but I just wrote down exactly what he said without prompting. And then he did his dictation just fine. I read it to him 3X before he wrote. The dictation was "I hide well," answered Georgie, "and wait a good long time. I look all around for dogs. I look up the road for cars and down the road for cars." He needed help spelling a few words and he needed a reminder that one of the punctuations was a comma, rather than a period. After "answered Georgie", he wanted to put a period and start a new sentence with "I will wait a good long time." But then I prompted him with "not 'I,' but 'and' ..." and he figured it out. But he got all the capitalization and the rest of the punctuation and quotation marks. What do you think? Does he have mastery of level 3? Is he ready to move on to level 4, especially if we move slowly through it? We haven't worked on WWE2 for several weeks so I thought this was pretty good for doing it without practice and without any warning. Thoughts and feedback?

Thank you for the link! I searched and searched the website to see if they had any placement tests but was only looking around at the workbooks, not the textbook. Off to print...

ETA: I added his narration and how he did on the dictation from the Year Three Mastery Evaluation. See post below. My son has finished WWE2 and does very well with it. His only struggle is the physical writing but he has the narration and dictation down. But, he finds it to be a bit boring and I think this is because he reads A LOT and most of the selections are things he has already read. I know, I could pick my own but I'm just not good at that. Do you think we could skip WWE3 and move right into WWE4, but take a bit longer to work through it? It seems the literature selections in level 4 are more up his ally. What would he be missing if we skipped WWE3? :bigear: Heather

I was trying to decide between the intermediate and intermediate advanced for my 9 year old. My thinking at this time is to get him the advanced and let him take his time working through it rather than the expectation that he completes it in a year. From looking through the samples, I think it is right on his level for content but I worry about his ability to do the projects and experiments. Is the advanced option more "advanced" in this area, or does it just offer more? Does anyone know if there are plans to bring out other subjects like chemistry or biology?

This looks really great. Thank you for the recommendation!

My son gets this a lot because he is a public reader. We taught him to just say "thank you" or "I enjoy reading" or something of the sort. But, when it got to the point where he noticed the differences between his abilities and others, we talked a lot about how everyone has different strengths. An example that I used with him is that while he can read at a higher level than most of his peers, his friend can do karate really really well or his other friend is a wonderful artist, etc.

I use an app called ToDo on the ipad. I like it because it lets me create to-do lists for multiple topics. I have one for homeschooling, one for chores, one for my out-of-home work, etc.

I saw that about the writing lines so now I don't know what to do!! :confused:

BUMP :bigear:

Well, now that I know that the writing lines aren't those ''''' marks, I'm back to considering this. I was looking to add a new writing program because I don't feel that WWE is teaching him how to write his own thoughts, but I am hesitant to give that up because it is our only source of copywork and dictation, and my son loves the book excerpts. We really like GWG so I know this approach works well for him. I was going to continue with WWE and add Writing Strands and then switch from GWG to EPGY LA. Do you think I could do WWE and WWW with a 4th grader? Too much writing? Too much redundancy?