Afterschooling for an accelerated learner (xposted)

[4KookieKids]

Sorry for the cross post... I wasn't sure if the best place for this was the afterschooling or accelerated learners board!

 

We're looking to move somewhere where we won't be able to homeschool anymore (and we're not really looking to move to a new country and see how much we can "get away with" by trying to skirt the rules). The education system there is good, but doesn't have much room to be "individualized". So what do I with my advanced kiddos? If someone's working 3-4 grade levels ahead in some subject (like math), do I just hope he adjusts without getting too bored? Should I afterschool at home in that subject, even though that could make the subject even more dreary/boring in school (seems like it could do more harm than good!)?

[SarahW]

It sounds like you're moving to The Netherlands. You don't have to say that you are (if you are or are not), just that the description fits.

 

Is it a place with school choice? In that case, look closely at all the options. But even still - Jenaplan seemed like a good idea for my kid (multi-age classrooms, self-directed activities, unit studies) but it has still been a poor experience for him, and he is deliberately underachieving there.

 

He's afterschooling math with BA and other things, and right now that is his math "learning" and what he does in school is just spiral review exercises. He needs some practice with computation, so this isn't a complete loss. But it is boring for him, so cue the vicious cycle of underachievement... His teachers know he's underachieving, btw, but he has them at bit of a loss.

 

I say continue afterschooling, even if it pulls further ahead. If all the math my kid had right now was what he has in school, he'd dissolve into "I hate math!"

 

 

Edited to save kittens from my lack of coffee.

[ErinE]

What ages? 

 

I have a 13-year old and 9-year old in public school right now. For the older child (depending on homework), I ask for 30-45 minutes of AoPS; the younger child, 1-2 pages of Beast Academy. I don't afterschool other subjects other than checking homework assignments and reading aloud during family car trips.

[sportsmom]

That's really tough.  Honestly, I don't know what I would do.  Assuming the school day there is about as long as it is in the US, parents (and kids) who afterschool simply amaze me, and I applaud their dedication and commitment.

 

Not sure if it's a possibility, but I wonder if you could work with the individual teachers?  For example, once he completes the teacher assignment, he would then be allowed to do lessons that you sent in, rather be given time to pleasure read or something else.  If you were the one making the assignments and checking his work, then I can't see how the teacher would object.  But this could be one of those ideas that is good in theory, but then doesn't work out at all IRL.  

[SKL]

I've done a variety of things over the years.  Right now I target a certain amount of time that the kids should work after school.  Then I check their homework load.  If it sucks up all the time, then I don't give the kids anything extra, though I might do a read-aloud or let them watch an "educational video."  If their homework is not so heavy, I give them something to do based on their needs and personality.  My advanced kid is difficult to motivate to do extra paperwork after school, but she enjoys reading and computer-based activities, so I try to build on that.  I also give the kids work on Saturdays; their teacher normally doesn't assign weekend homework.

 

I don't worry about my advanced kid getting bored at school if she learns "too much" at home.  The school math is going to be pretty much the same to her whether she's doing something else at home or not.  That said, I don't really have goals for her at home.  If I'm honest, she does afterschooling because her sister needs to.  She doesn't love it and I don't want her to burn out.  I give her a lot of choice as long as she does something that appears studious.  :)  We have a broad variety of books and workbooks, and turn everyday life into lessons at times.

[SMRB]

We afterschool math and some LA. For math, we tried accelerating at home, but it made the school problem worse. We tried just letting it go and not doing math at home, and DS starting hating math. Now our approach is first to go to a whole different level with challenge problems on the topic being covered in school, and then to go wide for other things that school won't really do. During summers we cover the upcoming grade with Singapore to make sure that we won't have to worry about school. That leaves us free during the school year to explore math with whatever strikes our fancy, which is BA this year. We do try to focus mostly on math problem solving at home rather than mechanics - that helps us to avoid boredom issues at school, too - there's plenty of algorithm/process practice there. We also work with the school to figure out a plan to allow challenge work during the day when the regular classroom work gets too easy, boring, or repetitive. So far it's working out much better this year for us.

[4KookieKids]

Thanks, all! I'm mostly concerned about my 6 yo. He just turned 6 in August, and will probably finish up Singapore 2B next month. I realize that his pace may slow considerably after that, but he currently does at least 2 lessons a day, and occasionally 10, all the while talking about how GREAT this math is, and how it's so much FUN, and how he wishes he could do it ALL the time (which is code for "I'll do more math if I can skip reading lessons today?"). :) But he only started level 1 a few months ago, so he's already ripped through 1.5 levels in just a few months, and I didn't want him to be super frustrated.

 

But you've all given me great things to think about and do. I really appreciate it! :)

[ThoughtfulMama]

We don't so much after school our accelerated kid as provide lots of fun learning opportunities. He has stacks of books on lots of topics, math games, Scratch programming, lots of paper and tape to build and things, etc. The learning never stops with this kid, but the "work" only happens at school.