I didn't realize you are in CA... At least he will be in state for some amazing schools. I went to Berkeley at 17. No, I wouldn't send a 14 year old to live in the dorms! I know Berkeley had a 15 year old transfer student last year, but I'm pretty sure he lived locally. I had a 13 year old classmate once at Berkeley, I had no idea until the end of the semester.

Okay, you said you weren't planning for Ivies... I still think it's important to remember that there are a lot of different schools with super smart kids.

In my experience from grad school, the kids who went to Ivies for undergrad weren't just academic stars they were also star achievers. Focused, driven, always on the go. It was kind of nice to realize that I just wasn't that type. There are lots and lots of incredibly smart kids who aren't that type. I wouldn't worry if your son only wants to do the activities that are meaningful to him. He will find his tribe. It may or may not be at an Ivy. Not an Ivy may ultimately be a better fit.

Good for you for trusting your intuition and taking him to the ER! It can be so hard to know when to say when sometimes.

Keep in mind that the a-g requirements are seen as minimum requirements for admission. Those test scores would not make you competitive. Way back when I applied to the UCs I sent both kinds of SAT II test scores. A writing test score that just passed the minimum requirements, and a two others that were much, much higher.

There are a lot of amazing specialist kids represented on this board and I love reading about their accomplishments. There are also amazing generalist kids. I think it is easy to dismiss how remarkable it is to be good at a lot of different things.

Cake stand.

Take a look at the Memoria Press website. I've found their schedule for covering the classics in their curriculum to be interesting.

This has me tied in knots. I have an accelerated 2.5 year old with an October birthday. She's also the tallest kid in her preschool class. By a lot. Our cut off is September 1st with the possibility to test in kids born before December. I went to college at 17. I don't want that for her. I was more than ready academically, kinda sorta maybe ready emotionally. And yet the idea of waiting until she is nearly six for K... I think she'd be a menace to society. Nothing better than a big, bored bossy bully, right? (She's a strong personality.) I don't think there is a good answer. I daydream about having her do a year abroad in high school. I had a friend do grade 13 in Germany after graduation but before college...

Because understanding nominative, dative, accusative and genitive gives you powerful ways to think about English grammar. "These are they" not "these are them." Why? Because the verb "to be" always takes the nominative case. It's vs. its. The former is a contraction. The latter is a genitive. "Who" versus "whom"? Well, do you need a dative? I'm sure there are other ways to learn grammar, but Latin worked for me.

I'd at least try AOPS pre-algebra. If it doesn't work for her now she may love it in a few years as a challenging refresher. You may love it for yourself. I'm loving it at the moment, a good 25 years after my first pre-algebra. It's just that good.

I'm doing AOPS pre-algebra myself right now. (And really enjoying it.) I think it would be a great second year of pre-algebra. Don't think of it as just repeating what she has already learned. Think of it as using pre-algebra to teach problem solving. The problem sets are really well put together. I'm constantly pulling my husband over to show him something I've learned. We've both taken math as far as calculus, and there is plenty for us to chew on in AOPS pre-algebra.

This happened to me last week. Have your husband buy you flowers! Everything feels fancy with flowers.

She had half a peep and some bacon! Food coloring and nitrates! No terrors last night, but I will definitely pay attention to these foods going forward. This is fascinating. Thank you all for the suggestions.

Do the on/off bus in London. It's an absolute must and perfect for your first day. You don't even have to get off. Just sit and relax and absorb everything. I lived in London for years and I love that bus. Does Dover mean a lot to you? Personally I'd skip it and have more time for Cambridge, York or Chatsworth.

Hmm. Half a yellow peep and she dyed some eggs... Could that be enough food coloring?

I would think broader than just your language arts curriculum. What is the reading level on of your history texts? Science book? People talk about writing across the curriculum. You can up the level of the reading across the curriculum too. So maybe a high school history text for a middle schooler. Doesn't mean they need to produce high school level output, but they might enjoy the higher level reading.

Screaming, unconsolable zombie toddler for a half hour in the middle of the night? Ugh. I'm hoping Easter was just the perfect storm. Change of routine, action packed schedule, failed nap.... Because last night was awful and I really don't want it to be a reoccurring thing.

I was concerned about Russian in France. French in Russia will not be a problem. (Remember the Russian aristocracy was Francophone!) The American Council exchange program sends kids to Moscow and St. Petersburg. The Moscow program is at Moscow International University. They have a foreign language program which includes French. There is also the Moscow State Linguistics University which has an entire French Department... The St. Petersburg program is at the Herzen University which has a Romance Philology department, and a Linguistics department, and a foreign language pedagogy department. Whether she formally takes French classes or not, she will be able to find boatloads of French speakers. Honestly, her French skills will probably help her make Russian friends. (Taking a foreign language class in a different foreign country can be a great way to socialize where the linguistic playing field is less lopsided. Neither side has home team advantage.)

France first is absolutely the way to go. She may even be able to keep up with her Russian while she is there. It looks like UK sends their humanities students to Marsailles, which has a Slavic department. You'd have to check the fine print. I know when I was studying abroad my home university had rules about studying another foreign language while you were abroad. They wanted us to focus on the language of our host university. However I don't know if that such a rule would apply to a double language major. It may also be possible to participate in classes informally, as it was at my host university. In that case what the home university doesn't know won't hurt them.

I talked to my sister. Her best friend in college transferred to Barrett from a elite liberal arts school due to a familial financial setback. Sister said Barrett was fine for her friend. She liked her classmates. She liked some of her professors and some of her classes. It wasn't the same level of challenge as the college she left behind, but she got great grades and is now in law school. ASU wasn't ideal, but it was the launching pad she needed that she could afford.

She's done Latin? Okay. Next is Sanskrit. I'm not kidding. A serious Russian/French scholar needs a deep understanding of Indo-European! Sanskrit often hides out in Religous Studies or Asian Studies. Even if undergrad fit isn't the best, so many professors are going to love this kid. They will help her find amazing summer/research/graduate opportunities.

I was a German major. Here is how language departments/majors work: 1) Spend two years learning the language. 2) Spend one year abroad. Hope your students take full advantage of the breadth of courses offered at the host institution. 3) Try to offer enough advanced classes to somehow fill a fourth year. For smaller departments this fourth year can be a problem. One solution is offering literature classes taught in English to fill seats with non-majors. Another is independent research, honors thesis etc. Another is letting advanced undergrads take graduate classes. With four years of Russian already under her belt, your daughter will hit the 4th year problem early. ASU doesn't have a Russian graduate program. How much independent study/literature taught in English is your daughter willing to do? If I was her I would at least consider the two full years of study abroad school. It might be more satisfying than two plus years of studying Russian by herself. ASU has more French offerings, but she could run out of things to take in that department as well. They expect you to fill two years with elementary language classes. Are there any languages she wants to start from scratch? She can double major in French/Russian, but maybe pick up Latin? Minor in linguistics?

They come in colors!?!?!!!! My black Vitamix was a (very thoughtful) wedding gift.

The Cathedral with William Cook. Who knew there are so many gorgeous cathedrals?