Wee Pip Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 Does anyone here intentionally accelerate their child's education? I know we have a lot of bright homeschooled kids out there that accelerate naturally. But anyone here have acceleration as their goal? I'm not asking to start a "should I/shouldn't I" debate, I'm just wondering. When dh & I decided to homeschool, we had the idea that we wanted our children to start college early and earn a bachelor's degree by age 18 or 19. My kiddos are still young yet (8 & 6), but I'm having trouble seeing how to make this goal a reality. Would love to find others with the acceleration goal and ask them how they make it work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TraceyS/FL Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 Have you checked the Accelerated Learner Board? Lower right corner, pop up lists of the boards... it's towards the bottom! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wee Pip Posted July 1, 2009 Author Share Posted July 1, 2009 Cool! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mesa Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 I have thought about it. If it works for the individual child then why not. I homeschool year round so it's seems more feasible to me. Finish up one grade and then start the next. However, I have not accelerated any of my children. I havent found just the right programs for us. Especially in math. Math currics seem to have their die hard users and then the people strongly oppose that curriculum. I'm trying to find a really great program that doesnt leave too much out. So far MUS and Singapore are my favs. So for now we are working 2 math programs and usually 2 language writing programs. If I could just pick the best option for my family I could totally see "accelerating" them. Simply because we do school year round it's easier for us to finish up one grade level and begin the next before our school year is up. I figure we could get 2-3 months extra schooling into each year. This doesnt take much time at all, my kids get 3 or more extra hours of play time into their school days than traditionally schooled children. So it's not like I'd be a super strict "teacher" mom or anything....LOL So yes, I can see how this could work. As long as the child is grasping all the concepts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillieBoy Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 We're accelerated but it wasn't originally by design. Dd was an accelerated learner so we started early, and have just kept going year round. She is now 7 and in 3rd and will end in September. She is on par to graduate HS hopefully with her AA (running start) at age 16. I am also not "light" on curriculum. We school at least 6 hours a day. I pretty much follow the WTM, however I am concerned that she will not be of the physical age of logic when she is accademically in the Logic stage. Does anyone else have any concerns with this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeatherLynn Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 My DD wants to graduate at 16. She is 11 now, and we are just starting to HS, so it will be a challenge. Dh and I have discussed it and we are just going to put our 3yo on the accelerated path from day 1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wee Pip Posted July 1, 2009 Author Share Posted July 1, 2009 thanks, so far! I'm not sure I belong on accelerated board because it seems to be about gifted kids & mine are pretty average (I think?)! For those that accelerate: what do you do for learning bumps? And attitude adjustment problems (the "I can't" & "I don't want to" syndrome)? And interruptions to schooling (medical emergencies, birth of a baby, etc)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeatherLynn Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 thanks, so far! I'm not sure I belong on accelerated board because it seems to be about gifted kids & mine are pretty average (I think?)! For those that accelerate: what do you do for learning bumps? And attitude adjustment problems (the "I can't" & "I don't want to" syndrome)? And interruptions to schooling (medical emergencies, birth of a baby, etc)? Well, we plan to school year round and just keep going through or after any stalls. Like, we are moving this month and not doing anything until AFTER the move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadyAberlin Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 I was homeschooled and and my mom didn't accelerate us, but we did take college classes in highschool. You don't have to be accelerated to take college classes. When your kids are a jr just sign them up for college classes. I found my college English classes were easier than my homeschool English co-op classes I took as a sophemore. I CLEPed out of college algebra after finishing Saxon Algebra 2. It isn't that difficult of a thing to do. I wouldn't worry about accelerating them for that purpose because they can do it without being accelerated. That being said, my ds5.5 is accelerated. But he has been so since he was little. He has been interested in the medical field since he was little. I think he will end up somewhere in that field since it is such a strong interest. Right now he wants to be an eye doctor. We shall see, for a while he wanted to be an obstetrician and deliver babies. Then he wanted to be plastic surgeon. He had a slight deviation from the medical theme when he wanted to build robots, but optometry stole him away from that dream LOL. I would like him to have his Associates or equivelent # of hrs to an associates when he graduates so that it will shorten the time it will take to get to medical school, since it takes so many yrs to do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafiki Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillieBoy Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 This link may interest you: http://www.accelerationinstitute.org/Nation_Deceived/ Also, Joyce Swann's articles: http://www.home-school.com/Articles/#JSwann Thank you for these, esp. the one from the Acceleration Institute. Very interesting report. :thumbup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skaterbabs Posted July 3, 2009 Share Posted July 3, 2009 We accelerate some with Dot. We often skip lessons that teach things she already knows, fly through lessons more quickly, and combine two (sometimes more) lessons in a sitting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoyfulMama_Karen Posted July 3, 2009 Share Posted July 3, 2009 I'm new to homeschooling, but we are starting DS4, who would technically be enter PK this year, in an advanced K program. We also plan to homeschool year-round and just start the next year whenever he finishes what we're working on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted July 3, 2009 Share Posted July 3, 2009 We didn't do it by design but my daughter was in college at 15 and will have her bachelors at 18 (though she's thinking she might be able to before she turns 18, a bit of a stretch if you ask me). However, have you looked at the Swanns? They accelerated 10 kids. They simply did 3 hours of school every day year round. Obviously their kids were very bright to do this. Also, the high school program they did takes 1.5-2.5 years normally anyway, so they weren't so "special" in that regard. Anwyay, I did enjoy reading their articles and such when my kids were little but it was not my intention to accelerate. I was scared of really early college. I would not hold my daughter back as much if I had it to over again though. We'd be even broader and deeper but I'd let her go more linearly also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted July 3, 2009 Share Posted July 3, 2009 Both of my kids are accelerated. It's not so much of a big deal on the front end; I just meet them where they are and go from there. Now that my older son is "officially" starting high school next year (with me) though, I'm starting to have some perspective on the other end. The first thing is that at the high school level, students need to be able to handle the output as well as the input. This means fluently and willingly writing out solutions to math problems, proofs, that sort of thing. It also means being able to write longer essays where they defend their own (well informed) opinions. If you want your children to have a rich high school experience (not just racing through the material), you will need time to do this. How fast a student can go through a rich high school program depends heavily on the motivation level of the student. In concept, it is fairly easy to get a few years ahead in the elementary years, simply by working through summers and eliminating unnecessary review. But there are places that tend to be sticking points for accelerated kids and you have to be willing to slow down or take a side trip when you stumble upon these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen in SEVA Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 (edited) My oldest is working at an accelerated pace. My goal is not to have him in college early, but rather to lighten the load later, or to allow us to take extra time whenever it is needed. If he gets to high school level and wants/needs to take college classes (at home!) early, that is fine. If he gets to high school level and wants to devote half his day to a certain subject, we will have the flexibility to do that. If we have to stop and spend an extra month on a certain math topic, no problem! For my family, we choose "better early (as long as they are enjoying it and can handle it) than late (and trying to play catch up)". It works for us, but I realize that most families don't agree and I respect their choices for their kids. I will say though -- and this is not directed at anyone in particular, just a general statement -- if you are going to accelerate, I would have clear goals in mind, and honestly look at the motivation behind them. If you ever say to your child "I know this is too hard, but we HAVE to do three lessons today or you won't get to Algebra before our neighbor does" you might want to re-examine. :) Edited July 5, 2009 by Colleen in SEVA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FO4UR Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 Ideally, my kids will leave my home with a Bach. degree by age 20. I think that in order to accomplish that, I need to make sure I build a solid foundation young. That might actually mean slowing down in the early years (k-2) so that they can be more independant in the middle and later years. Each kid has their own strengths/weaknesses. It's really something to be taken kid-by-kid and year-by-year. I seem to remember a post about you having a tiny baby to care for.;) I don't think taking a short break to adjust to baby will IN ANY WAY hold your older dc back......if I'm off base, forgive!:grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloggermom Posted February 27, 2012 Share Posted February 27, 2012 We are doing acceleration with average (non-gifted) children. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momtoamiracle Posted February 27, 2012 Share Posted February 27, 2012 I was going to do something like that with my son, accelerate him into the first grade, but his writing has kept me from doing that. He hates it and he really doesn't like doing a lot of work at once. So I scrapped that idea for now. I'm going pretty slowly right now and letting him play as much as he wants to. maybe later, if he's willing and able, we'll go a little faster. For now, my 5yo will just enjoy himself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LMD Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 Similar to WendyK here, my kids are not gifted but are bright and generally eager. They were ready to start early (compared to first year of school age here) so I started them early. I don't have a full on plan for them to graduate early or anything, but there are vague ideas floating around about graduating at maybe 16/17, taking college courses through upper-high school, maybe graduating highschool with also a diploma/certificate/trade. Also similar philosophy to Colleen in SEVA - I want to finish up all my 'must do's' with them leaving time enough for them to follow their interests before they are adults, so we know where to focus our energy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 No plans to accelerate, because there is so much else to do instead of school, lol. He has so many other interests, and rather than do twice as much in one subject we do extra subjects. So I guess we are more breadth than depth? It just seems more age appropriate to me at this point. I wouldn't want my 10 year old doing highschool level reading...not because of the skill of reading but because of the content. Certain things are better for older, more mature people. I do plan to have him take college classes in highschool, to dual enroll. I ideally he will have an associates degree by the time he graduates highschool. Another option is early enrollment. I went to college a year early, instead of having a senior year, and it worked out really well. And here at least the state pays the bill for college classes taken during highschool, but if he graduated early I'd be footing that bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3Blessings Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 Both of my kids are accelerated. It's not so much of a big deal on the front end; I just meet them where they are and go from there. Now that my older son is "officially" starting high school next year (with me) though, I'm starting to have some perspective on the other end. The first thing is that at the high school level, students need to be able to handle the output as well as the input. This means fluently and willingly writing out solutions to math problems, proofs, that sort of thing. It also means being able to write longer essays where they defend their own (well informed) opinions. If you want your children to have a rich high school experience (not just racing through the material), you will need time to do this. How fast a student can go through a rich high school program depends heavily on the motivation level of the student. In concept, it is fairly easy to get a few years ahead in the elementary years, simply by working through summers and eliminating unnecessary review. But there are places that tend to be sticking points for accelerated kids and you have to be willing to slow down or take a side trip when you stumble upon these. Full disclosure: my kids are young- 8,6,4 They are accelerated learners and I'm happy to keep them on this path. I do agree with the above, however, as regards to input/output and developmentally appropriate work. It won't work to accelerate your children if they just aren't ready. In addition, I am not sure that I'd want my kids out of college by 17 or 18 years of age. I love the idea of getting some foundational courses out of the way, but I want them to take the time to get to know themselves, get to know the world, experience serving others. Just getting "through school" is not enough preparation for productive adult life, IMO. I think this question is a good one. Thanks for putting it out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5LittleMonkeys Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 Original post from 2009. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3Blessings Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 Wow- totally missed how old this post is . . . Acceleration questions everywhere today! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momtoamiracle Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 goodness, I didn't notice it was so old either! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NASDAQ Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 I am intentionally accelerating my oldest. She is not, as of yet, showing academic giftedness. I do no science and very limited social studies, no unit studies or crafts, and spend daily extended time on math (1 hr plus 20 min Kumon) and reading. She moves along ahead of schedule. Of course, these are early days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wee Pip Posted February 28, 2012 Author Share Posted February 28, 2012 Original post from 2009. Yes! LOL. I was the OP and my kids were 8 & 6 at the time:) I love that the thread was resurrected! We're not "accelerating", but just meeting the kids where they are at (sometimes slightly behind grade level, but always trying to lay a good foundation). We're also trying to keep an eye on their interests so that we can prepare them for whatever direction they might go in. Right now, my 11yo may go into science/technology, or childcare, or law; if it looks like any one of these directions may become more important to her, we'll develop her curriculum around these things. We're also hoping to start adding in some college classes around age 14-15; either from the local cc or online classes at home. They will only be enrolled if they are ready, but really, I think many kids are ready for that challenge at 14-15, if they've had a good foundation and supportive parents. In my own experience, high school didn't seem quite so different from cc (some of my advanced high school classes were actually tougher than college). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivka Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 I am intentionally accelerating my oldest. She is not, as of yet, showing academic giftedness. I do no science and very limited social studies, no unit studies or crafts, and spend daily extended time on math (1 hr plus 20 min Kumon) and reading. She moves along ahead of schedule. Of course, these are early days. I'd be interested to hear about your reasons for doing this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 I am intentionally accelerating my oldest. She is not, as of yet, showing academic giftedness. I do no science and very limited social studies, no unit studies or crafts, and spend daily extended time on math (1 hr plus 20 min Kumon) and reading. She moves along ahead of schedule. Of course, these are early days. Can I ask why? Why is being accelerated in math more important than crafts or science or social studies? I don't understand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pitterpatter Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 We're accelerating. Our goal is to provide DD with a better-than-average education. We don't really desire her to go to residential college overly early. What we want is for her to have her first two years of basic college courses out of the way via community college or online courses. Then, she can attend a residential college at 17 or 18. Hopefully, she can knock the second two years out by age 20 and then pursue a graduate/professional degree at her leisure. For us, college is where it's at. I wish I could have skipped high school and went straight to college. Best learning years of my life! Half of what I did in public high school was a complete waste. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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