Curriculum for accelerated learners?

[sweetpea3829]

Hi everyone! My oldest boy (just turned 5) had a speech eval today. He has always been very very bright, but his speech articulation has always been a struggle for him. He just talks so fast and runs his words together, that it's hard to understand him.

 

Anyways, as I mentioned, I've always known he was bright. He started K at just shy of 4 and was sailing right through it when we moved and took a year off. We recently re-started and he is picking up on concepts that I have not directly taught him (addition, counting by 2's, 10's, 5's; place value, etc).

 

Well the assessment is showing that he's really REALLY bright. LOL! He doesn't seem, to me, to be quite as advanced as they were saying he is, but they were talking about how we might want to reach out to the local college and see if any of the professors will mentor him.

 

I'm not going to do that, as I want him to have a normal childhood. However, I do want to make sure he is being challenged enough.

 

Any suggestions for curriculum and ways in which I can more effectively challenge him? We are currently using HOP1, AAS1 and Singapore Ka (we just started math in the last two weeks and he is sailing through it...I could have him skip, but I'd rather make sure he hasn't missed anything).

 

Are there curriculums that are better suited for accelerated learners?

[Cindyz]

I would just keep working through the curricula that you have. Singapore Math and AAS are solid programs. If he gets it, don't dwell, don't make him do all of the problems and exercises and just keep moving on.

[wapiti]

You may also want to ask on the Accelerated Learners board

[kristinannie]

I haven't done an evaluation, but I am dealing with a similar situation. My son is flying through math. We are in SM 1a right now. We also do Miquon. I think that Miquon is a wonderful supplement for advanced learners (and all other learners). It really allows my son to teach himself math concepts. I would really suggest working through a good portion of the Orange book and then moving into SM 1a. My son has sailed through 1a because he already learned a lot of these concepts in Miquon.

 

I think that the biggest thing to focus on with a really bright kid is to keep their love of learning alive. My son was really interested in Space. We used RSO Earth and Space, but it was way too simplistic for him. We went through Apologia Astronomy and it was exactly what he needed...meaty science. We are now doing NOEO Bio Level 1 which is also meaty and really nice. My son is very interested in learning real science. We also do lots of read alouds from the library every week. I think that if your son is interested in something, pursue it. My son is really into dinosaurs right now so we are reading lots and lots of dinosaur books! Let him take off on these subjects until he is satisfied and can move onto something else.

 

Prufrock Press has some wonderful gifted units. I remember someone on here was going to buy one and then critique it for the rest of us!

 

I agree with PP that you shouldn't dwell on a subject that he doesn't need to dwell on. You don't have to do every.single.problem on a page if he really gets it. Then again, he might struggle in one area or be average in one area so don't push there. I think homeschooling is great because kids aren't pushed into a mold and forced to either struggle or be bored out of their minds. Best of luck!!!!

[sweetpea3829]

I haven't done an evaluation, but I am dealing with a similar situation. My son is flying through math. We are in SM 1a right now. We also do Miquon. I think that Miquon is a wonderful supplement for advanced learners (and all other learners). It really allows my son to teach himself math concepts. I would really suggest working through a good portion of the Orange book and then moving into SM 1a. My son has sailed through 1a because he already learned a lot of these concepts in Miquon.

 

I think that the biggest thing to focus on with a really bright kid is to keep their love of learning alive. My son was really interested in Space. We used RSO Earth and Space, but it was way too simplistic for him. We went through Apologia Astronomy and it was exactly what he needed...meaty science. We are now doing NOEO Bio Level 1 which is also meaty and really nice. My son is very interested in learning real science. We also do lots of read alouds from the library every week. I think that if your son is interested in something, pursue it. My son is really into dinosaurs right now so we are reading lots and lots of dinosaur books! Let him take off on these subjects until he is satisfied and can move onto something else.

 

Prufrock Press has some wonderful gifted units. I remember someone on here was going to buy one and then critique it for the rest of us!

 

I agree with PP that you shouldn't dwell on a subject that he doesn't need to dwell on. You don't have to do every.single.problem on a page if he really gets it. Then again, he might struggle in one area or be average in one area so don't push there. I think homeschooling is great because kids aren't pushed into a mold and forced to either struggle or be bored out of their minds. Best of luck!!!!

 

 

LOL, your son sounds just like mine. When he's interested in something, he just really gets into it! Right now, he's very interested in the human body. He was always asking to google images of different internal body parts and asking how they worked. So I gave him my Anatomy book from college. He'll sit at the table and just flip through and look at the pictures and ask questions.

 

He's also been into outerspace and sometimes mentions that he wants to be an astronaut. And he's done the dinosaur thing too. As well as under the sea. He's very curious, very inquisitive and he never forgets anything he learns.

 

I just hope that I don't hinder him or hold him back. If he wants to become an astronaut or a doctor when he's older, I hope that option will be open to him, even though we homeschooled him and he didn't go to some elite private school for gifted kids, kwim?

[kristinannie]

If he keeps his love for learning, he will keep learning throughout life. The key is for him not to get bored by learning. He already seems to have a lust for learning so just keep letting him learn more and more about what he is really interested in! I think he will be better able to do whatever he wants in life through homeschooling than PS. A private school for gifted kids would be nice, but that is a huge expense! You can do this!!! I am going to get a couple of books about teaching gifted students and look them over.

[sweetpea3829]

LOL, the bigger issue we'd have with private school is finding a school that serves accelerated learners AND is also conservative. We live in a pretty rural area...I don't think there's even a chess club around here.

[Staceyshoe]

Raising an extremely bright child can be a challenge in many ways. It's great that you are homeschooling so you can meet his intellectual needs. If you can find some local families in similar circumstances, that would be great. You may want to check out some websites about the highly gifted: Hoagies, Davidson Institute, SENG, etc. You'll find the Accelerated board here to be a safe and helpful place also.

[Crimson Wife]

For math, I wouldn't bother with Singapore K but rather bump him up to 1A plus the Intensive Practice book. Singapore math originally started with 1A and K was added later, so you totally wouldn't miss anything in bypassing the K level. Many bright K students do well starting with 1A.

 

HOP and AAS go through as quickly as works for him.

[LittleIzumi]

For math, I wouldn't bother with Singapore K but rather bump him up to 1A plus the Intensive Practice book. Singapore math originally started with 1A and K was added later, so you totally wouldn't miss anything in bypassing the K level. Many bright K students do well starting with 1A.

 

HOP and AAS go through as quickly as works for him.

 

:iagree::iagree: We started Singapore 1A and I wondered what on earth I wasted my time with K for--it was the same information. I also second pretty much all the rest, lol--follow interests (maybe research project-based learning), fly through if he's grasping it quickly, Miquon rocks, Singapore IPs rock, etc. Maybe let him watch the Khan Academy math videos online? Don't stress too much much about it. Just follow his lead until you feel like you have more of a handle on it. My dd loves biology/anatomy too, so I got her a small dissection kit (plus her microscope, etc). That was a huge hit.

[sweetpea3829]

That's good to know about Singapore 1A. We have Singapore 1A and 1B, but I haven't unpacked it yet. I'm going to do that tonight.

 

C received a microscope for Christmas. He asked for one so that he could "see little things bigger." He loves it! Yesterday he asked me if we could look at fly blood under the microscope...lol.

 

So would you do Miquon as a supplement?

 

He is strong in all subjects, but he is really strong in math and he is highly interested in all things science. We have not started a formal science or social studies curriculum yet (we are still settling after a relocation from RI to NY) but I have FIAR as well as Real Science 4 Kids on my shelves.

 

I'm not sure if RS4K is going to be too easy for him though.

[chicagoshannon]

I agree about Singapore. We finished Essentials K before Christmas and started 1A this month. It's basically a review. We are taking time to get our math facts down though.

[Zoo Keeper]

MEP math is FABULOUS for going deeper in math. Try year One; it looks simple, but it does challenge, especially as you go on. It is well worth the printer ink.

[serendipitous journey]

MEP math is FABULOUS for going deeper in math. Try year One; it looks simple, but it does challenge, especially as you go on. It is well worth the printer ink.

:iagree:

 

One easy way to boost academics: DVDs. IMHO, WTM underestimates the value of good videos, esp. for gifted little ones. We've had good luck with Schlessinger Videos on science, history, math ... science and ancient history are old earth, though. Many children like the Magic School Bus and Eyewitness videos for science, though they weren't hits here (they are also secular).

 

You might like Ambleside Online, esp. the literature book lists. There is a year 0.5 Yahoo Group which has an excellent booklist available; AO readings are meaty, use complex language, and are conservative in outlook. I esp. liked using the recommended Free & Treadwell readers for Button; he much much preferred them to Bob books, they have real stories and are quite interesting.

 

Another great literature source is Sonlight, with lists according to reading ability.

 

The Higher Up Further In curriculum is very similar to Ambleside, with different ordering of history and music and art suggestions many prefer if you want to add those things in sometime.

 

For science, consider Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding as a supplement or a spine. I'm recommending it though it has some things that irk me, so I don't use it -- nobody else has the same irks as I do, though, and it is really excellent. If Apologia fits your worldview, you could look at the samples online and see if they suit (even if Apologia doesn't fit your worldview, you might like it, but that's more challenging).

 

It sounds like this child is also your sensitive one? Are you familiar with the literature on sensitive children? if not, you may like reading The Highly Sensitive Child.

 

Also, do remember that being so bright means that he can maybe take things _easier_, academically, than otherwise. Does he have an intense temperament? such gifted children can have some very difficult phases/stages, and if you feel like they need to be moving forward academically that's a lot of pressure for you both. As the PPs said, as long as he loves learning he'll move ahead just fine; so if there's a period of working more on discipline & family life than on academics, that is fine.

Edited January 25, 2012 by serendipitous journey

[lakshmi]

Moving Beyond the Page is marketed to accelerated hands on learners. You could try there. I use it and sometimes getting the level just right is a bit tough so ask around if you decide to look at it.

 

And RightStart Math, Dr. Cotter designed Level A to be used with 4 year olds, I started both my children in B when they were 5 & 6.

 

Good luck

[sweetpea3829]

Moving Beyond the Page is marketed to accelerated hands on learners. You could try there. I use it and sometimes getting the level just right is a bit tough so ask around if you decide to look at it.

 

And RightStart Math, Dr. Cotter designed Level A to be used with 4 year olds, I started both my children in B when they were 5 & 6.

 

Good luck

 

Thanks for your info!

 

Thanks everyone for chiming in. :-)

[boscopup]

For curriculum, I suggest using programs that don't have a tight spiral, as tight spiral curriculums are harder to accelerate. Singapore is an excellent choice for math, and I agree that you may need to bump him up to 1A now.

 

My oldest flew through the early elementary math. He could have easily done Singapore 1 in K if I'd been homeschooling him then. We used Math Mammoth to accelerate to where he was when I pulled him out of school (halfway through first grade). That was a good choice for us because we had to use 4 different grade levels in a calendar year. :tongue_smilie: Now he's going through material quickly, but not THAT quickly. ;) An accelerated learner often won't do one level for one school year. Be financially prepared for that. :lol:

 

For other subjects, sometimes you just need to pick a more challenging curriculum or pick one a grade or two (or more) up. Grammar was difficult at 1st grade because all of the 1st and 2nd grade programs I could find were way too easy for him. He needed a 3rd grade program. Even that is still easy, but not ridiculously easy like the 1st and 2nd grade ones were. The 3rd grade programs at least get into some cool stuff like predicate nominatives, prepositions, etc. The 1st and 2nd grade programs usually do noun, verb, adjective, and maybe adverb. DS didn't need that long to learn those parts of speech.

 

Another thing to be aware of is that you can often have asychronous development - the input ability and output ability may not match. For example, my son can read books at middle school level quite easily, but he's not ready to analyze them at a middle school level, and he can't write a paragraph about things yet (though he can narrate orally). So if you run into a road block with what you're doing, always step back and say to yourself, "Is this developmentally appropriate for a child this age?" My son can't physically write an essay yet, but I don't expect a 7 year old to be able to do that. So if my accelerated son can't do that, it's normal for his age developmentally, and I need to give him time to mature and develop before I require that type of output.

 

Also, pay attention to what your child knows and understands. If you're doing a math page with 30 problems on single digit addition and your child already has his addition facts memorized and it's incredibly clear that he does, don't make him do all 30 problems. Maybe do a few as a refresher and move on. Sometimes this might mean skipping whole topics in your math book. When we did double digit addition/subtraction with regrouping in MM2A, we ended up needing to skip the triple digit addition/subtraction with regrouping chapter in MM2B because it was very clear that he understood the process. He had demonstrated it in the Singapore IP book. So there was no need to slog through a whole chapter on something he was already clearly competent with. That topic is used in later math, so it wasn't like he was not going to do those types of problems again. He just didn't need to be taught how to do them, since he'd extrapolated that info from learning two digit. In fact, the 2nd day of doing two digit addition, I gave him a five digit addition problem and had him do that. Easy peasy. So no need to spend a lot of time adding each digit. You teach it at one level, and they extrapolate to the higher levels.

[lakshmi]

Thanks for your info!

 

Thanks everyone for chiming in. :-)

 

You're welcome...

 

Also, RightStart has a blog that talked about spiral or mastery. It gives a good description if those terms are unfamiliar.