Acceleration via competition

[SunshineMom]

My dd9 is one to want to try everything! I have had a hard time finding what she will stick with and what I am willing to "manage" however as she matures, she is making stronger commitments. She wants to be challenged, so I have been using gifted materials and making grade accelerations. I know input and output will often not reflect one another, however now she is seeking academic competition. This year, as a fourth grader, she joined our local homeschool middle school science olympiad team, competing in four events. I didn't push for this nor did I select her events. She had begged me to enroll. She was self-driven, however I was also her coach, so I had to manage her time, quickly put together study materials, teach test taking skills, deal with the stress of competitions, etc. I too had to be driven to help her succeed and somehow keep up with all the other homeschool skills/studies/online classes/violin, etc.. I don't want to give anyone the wrong impression here, she is a bright kiddo who is just motivated by competition. I was surprised however that competition became such a driving force and that she found a way to accelerate herself by insisting on taking the opportunity. She enjoyed studying! I don't think I could have replicated the intensity of her learning without having a competition. Maybe something else could have motivated her down the road, I don't know but now she is hooked for next year.

[Dmmetler]

FWIW, I've found the same thing. I have a "contest kid"-she did about 12 different competitions and exams this year, and it's been a driving force in her academic path this year. Spelling bees, multiple math contests, writing contests, Latin, Mythology, Language arts, Science, Legos...you get the idea. She would LOVE a science olympiad team!

 

For my DD, a bit part of it is feeling like she belongs, and getting the validation that there are a LOT of kids out there who love the same things that thrill her. She doesn't seem to care if she wins or loses so much as just plain loving being part of it. I think she really, really is enthused by NOT always being the smartest in the room, too ;).

 

I think that competition really can be a really, really strong motivating factor for some kids and can provide something they need. Unfortunately, in my neck of the homeschool woods, at least, Academic competition is often seen as less of the child's choice than athletics or fine arts competition. It seems hard for a lot of people to understand that a child can CHOOSE to spend their weekends at math competitions, or preparing for spelling bees, or just, generally, working on academics for the sake of academics.

[Luckymama]

Competition is most definitely a motivator for my dd, now 13. She was involved in Science Olympiad in fourth grade so finding a team once she became a homeschooler was very important! Since fifth grade she's done Science Olympiad (see signature), Math Olympiad, National Mythology Exam, Geography Bee, and the AMC 8 exam. Had I known about math competitions for younger kids, she would have started sooner!

 

Dd says she likes to be with her "kind" at the competitions. She's looking forward to some higher-level competitions for next year (like the AMC 10) and to trying new things like the West Point Bridge Design Contest (bridgecontest.usma.edu ---we learned about this year's a week before the deadline----she spent many hours that week working with the software :D)

[SunshineMom]

Ddmetler, I bet your little one keeps you on your toes! Yeah, there are some people out there that can't understand that some younger kids want to study and compete. It was funny, before a tournament, my dd9 and I were talking about whether she was nervous, she said kind of, but....it's more like, "Bring It On!" I had no idea she was that competitive! It is all fun, really, but of course winning is a high.

LuckyMama, your daughter is very driven! Cheers and best wishes to her:) After completing our first year with SciOly, I am now over the "initial shock of it all" and am so much more prepared for next year.

[quark]

[...] I didn't push for this nor did I select her events. She had begged me to enroll. She was self-driven, however I was also her coach, so I had to manage her time, quickly put together study materials, teach test taking skills, deal with the stress of competitions, etc. I too had to be driven to help her succeed and somehow keep up with all the other homeschool skills/studies/online classes/violin, etc.. I don't want to give anyone the wrong impression here, she is a bright kiddo who is just motivated by competition. I was surprised however that competition became such a driving force and that she found a way to accelerate herself by insisting on taking the opportunity. She enjoyed studying! I don't think I could have replicated the intensity of her learning without having a competition. Maybe something else could have motivated her down the road, I don't know but now she is hooked for next year.

 

 

I don't have a competitions-loving child. Unless his feelings about being timed for math contests changes, I often wonder how I am going to be able to validate his love of the subject if we need to show contest results on some application or other. Maybe he'll take a research route instead.

 

Anyway, why I wanted to respond was that I have always felt the need to mention the bolded about my child as well but have felt so much safer here on these boards that I don't do it anymore.

 

Just wanted to give you a similar sense of confidence, OP! Don't worry...we get it! I remember you posting about your elder girl as well I think? Good luck keeping your voracious learners satisfied! :D

 

Yes, it is truly amazing when your children drive you instead of the other way around. I was just thinking about our journey so far the other day and marveling at how willingly my son works so hard for his passion subjects and how far he has come vs. where he's at for those things I try to throw his way hoping he'd take the bait lol.

[SunshineMom]

Quark, thank you. People who know my dd9 also know this is all coming from her, she loves it! Actually, my older child has some LD's so I have only made posts about my dd9 on this board. What a gift for your son to be so driven to excel in math for the sheer joy of it!:)

[Mommy22alyns]

I don't have a competitions-loving child. Unless his feelings about being timed for math contests changes, I often wonder how I am going to be able to validate his love of the subject if we need to show contest results on some application or other. Maybe he'll take a research route instead.

 

Anyway, why I wanted to respond was that I have always felt the need to mention the bolded about my child as well but have felt so much safer here on these boards that I don't do it anymore.

 

Just wanted to give you a similar sense of confidence, OP! Don't worry...we get it! I remember you posting about your elder girl as well I think? Good luck keeping your voracious learners satisfied! :D

 

Yes, it is truly amazing when your children drive you instead of the other way around. I was just thinking about our journey so far the other day and marveling at how willingly my son works so hard for his passion subjects and how far he has come vs. where he's at for those things I try to throw his way hoping he'd take the bait lol.

 

 

Oh, gosh, how true! Rebecca has just vaulted (hee) in gymnastics since we put her on a competitive team. The difference is incredible. She always loved it, but the step up to competitive levels has really focused and motivated her. She is single-mindedly determined to become an optional as quickly as possible.

[SnegurochkaL]

I wish my oldest daughter would be thrilled to compete:( So far, she is so afraid to fail that I can not encourage her to even try. She would do it if I insist. I think she doesn't have a maturity to handle a competition preasure. She doesn't even want to try becoming a competitive skater at this point. When she was young she was a very competitive child wanting to try everything and excel in everything. Now it doesn't matter that much to her. She is interested in many things, get excited but doesn't always follow through. I am thinking of getting her on a speech and debate team next year so she can be around some bright kids. Any more suggestions? I am running out of ideas. Thanks.