extremely gifted

Hello.

Does anybody have really academically advanced children? My son is 4 years-old and finds the first grade lessons easy. He is reading at about the 3-4th grade level, is able to write and is just very advanced in all of his thinking and experiences. For example, he has learned all the countries in the world, all the states in our country and their capitols, and is bored with most everything suggested for his age level. Since I have 2 younger ones besides Gabriel, I find it difficult to challenge him at his level and keep him stimulated. I wish I could provide more science experiments and activities that are not just his regular curriculum, but I have my hands full and lack the energy much of the time. What do we do with really gifted children, when there are other family members who need our attention? Gabriel is intensely gifted in his academic and mental capacities. I feel like I should be supplementing his curriculum with something...I just don't know what or how I can. Please help???

Thank you so much!
Marie

Marie,

It is definitely a challenge to keep up with a gifted child. You don't want to bore them by giving them work that they have mastered, but most people also would rather not send their child off to college at 14 or 16. Supplementing the curriculum is key. Of course you can add a few extra science experiments and activities to your curriculum, but not all learning has to happen in class. Fortunately for busy parents, one of the hallmarks of the Ignatian method of education is self-activated learning.

Your son can already read quite well, so I would suggest providing lots and lots of extra reading material. You can often find older used encyclopedia type series at library book sales or used bookstores. It is pretty easy to find sets on natural history, electricity and mechanics, world cultures and geography, architecture, art etc. Look for the ones with lots of good pictures. Most children find one or all of these subjects fascinating. There are also several old biography series written for children. (Many were written in the 40s, 50s, 60s, or even earlier and again the best place to find them is library sales or used bookstores.) Since your son is reading at a 3rd or 4th grade level, he would probably be up for those too. Let him read and then encourage him to play using what he has learned. Let him make clay models of the dinosaurs or help him make a tepee out of sticks in the back yard. Start a collection of simple toys like legos, lincoln logs, and blocks. Let him start a tomato or bean plant in a pot. It is amazing how much children can learn just by playing.

Practical skills are also an important part of education. Give him chores and have him help you around the house with everything that isn't dangerous. It takes some work upfront to teach a child how to do things, and you can't expect perfection, but it will be very useful to them later in life to know these skills, and it will also help lighten your load. Even a four year old can be a big help if he knows what to do and he will be proud when you let him know that Mommy is very grateful for his efforts.

I hope that this is helpful.

_________________
Jacinta Scheetz
Academic Advisor
Kolbe Academy