Homeschool Curriculum for Gifted Learners | Recommendations & Tips for Homeschooling Gifted Students
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- čas přidán 11. 07. 2024
- Let's talk about a few curriculum recommendations for gifted students. I do include a handful of specific curriculum options for gifted students, but I also spend time going into some of the major "pain points" or "struggles" that you are likely to find when using curriculums designed for typical students with these gifted learners. When we are aware of the pain points, we can adapt curriculum to be used effectively.
Check out my Q+A video with my mom about the experience of homeschooling a gifted learner: • *REAL & RAW* Homeschoo...
This is part of a special needs collaboration with Leilani from Living with Eve: / livingwitheve
Here's the playlist for special needs homeschooling:
• Homeschooling Special ...
Here are some of the curriculums I mention in this video:
Sonlight
Beast Academy
Art of Problem Solving
Singapore Math (several different options, including Dimensions and Primary)
Michael Clay Thompson Language Arts
Moving Beyond the Page
But remember that beyond these specific curricula, I talk about the big ideas of adapting your homeschool curriculum plans to meet the needs of your gifted learners.
WELCOME //
I'm Rachel, a mom of two and the oldest in a family of 8 kids. I'm a second-generation homeschooler who is passionate about education. I'm originally from Michigan, but am living overseas. My two young boys and teaching homeschool lessons to my youngest sisters keep me busy, but I make time for writing and for making CZcams videos, too! On this channel, you can expect videos featuring books and homeschool curriculum, homeschool tips for hard days, our journey raising bilingual kids, and vlogs about the intentional adventure that our homeschool lifestyle allows! Subscribe to join our family here:
/ @seveninall
Expect two videos a week, uploaded at 7:30 a.m. EST on Mondays and Thursdays.
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Wwwooooow, you blew my mind with the scaffolding!!!! My kids haaate it. Now I know why. This is going to help make next year easier.
Oh, I am so, so glad! I utterly detest scaffolding, I always have. From the educator and educational theory perspective, I get why it's now considered a "best practice" of educational design...but it needs to be understood that it's terrible for certain neurological wirings. I would 1000 times rather do an entire paper my own way based on a simple prompt than have the whole assignment scaffolded and broken up.
For Language Arts, I would recommend curating booklists and learning how to conduct Socratic discussions (our Socratic dialogues started in the early years, much sooner than I wanted). My gifted child instinctively wanted to discuss ideas in great depth and breadth and it was exhausting for me. So, I didn't always purchase Sonlight, or Veritas Press, or Bookshark; but I went to those sites to create booklists. Once you know how to ask the questions that are scripted in those curricula, you don't necessarily need to purchase them, just get your hands on the books. I do think that Michael Clay Thompson is a unique and stimulating curriculum and I recommend his books Classics In The Classroom and Classic Words, even if you don't use his curriculum. I also love the booklists from the Excellence in Literature curriculum by Janice Campbell.
For science, I would recommend lots of exploring and experimenting; and in many cases lots of study of the history of science. My son collects science curricula and encyclopedias and reads them for fun, so I haven't had to do a lot of instructing in this area. He particularly likes Berean Builders.
For math, my son uses more than one curriculum in a year. Some of his favorites are Beast Academy/AOPS, Math Mammoth (Light Blue Series is similar to Singapore), and Math Without Borders (this teacher is so opposite of every math teacher out there and I think he is definitely gifted...and against scaffolding for sure, lol). We too found that Math-U-See can be equally good for gifted learners, my son just skipped a lot of pages and tested out whenever he wanted. For online learning at an early age, I would say that RFWP.com has great accelerated math classes. I also think that Life of Fred can be good for bedtime reading to calm down the mind and promote sweet dreams. I have caught my son with a flashlight reading Fred Calculus on more than one occasion.
I would say that beyond the core subject areas that focusing on common sense and critical thinking is key. The drama is exhausting, and good mental health is crucial for this population. I also would work on the life/social/recreational/leisure skills that might help with quality of life. Actually making this a large area of focus. Giftedness can be a very isolating road otherwise.
My gifted learner has thoroughly enjoyed Berean builders science too!
@@Tamara-fz4wm that is wonderful. They have great customer and student support.
Kristy , thank you for taking the time to leave such a helpful comment! I truly do want the comment section to be a resource for other parents, and I appreciate the time that this took. Learning through those sorts of discussions is SO helpful for the (often unusually verbal) gifted child, and so is using multiple curriculums within the same year (for those kids that are gobbling up curriculum, ha!).
And your last paragraph is so key. This video was focused on curriculum, so I naturally focused on academics, but in reality, when dealing with giftedness, ALL the areas of life outside of academics are going to be something that need a lot of attention. I think that a few of the best things my mom ever gave me were a deep value for relationships and all the hobbies she let me have. It's easy for gifted individuals to end up feeling a little isolated in academia, like it's "all" they're good at (when we are so naturally good at academics that it's all we're ever given)--but I was given the opportunity to do many hobbies (I particularly enjoy just about every form of sewing and still sew clothing and household items regularly), skilled work with my hands, etc.
💕
Thank you for your comment!!!! So helpful!!!
Love that you show the not so “pretty” moments of gifted learning. I think your right that many people have an idealistic view of gifted learning.
Yes, it can be idealized, for sure, but my mom would tell anyone that it's a far easier and smoother road to homeschool a child with a brain wired for "typical" learning.
This is so helpful! I feel like my 4yo gets frustrated easily with things she understands. She wanted to start her workbooks so she could do school like her sister, but whenever she gets a page she already knows the answer to, she wants to skip it. It's hard. She already did half of the things I had planned for her for the next school year. In fact, she asked to start reading Bob books, because her sister was reading them, and I postponed it thinking she wasn't ready. Then she picked up the first book, sat down, and read it. So we already started with her phonics program, because she's getting to the point where it will be too easy and she won't be able to sit for it.
Smart move on starting the phonics program now, because if you wait, she'll have moved on whether you're ready or not, it sounds like! I would, slowly, not all at once, work on building the skill of feeling like it's okay to do a schoolwork page or sit through a lesson even when she feels like she knows it's all--that it doesn't ALWAYS have to be skipped. Just here and there, build up just that little bit of tolerance for the discomfort of having to repeat something you already know...not for the sake of academics, but because it's actually a good life skill. Some gifted people can struggle with having conversations or many social situations because they feel like they know everything they can learn from that situation already, so what's the point? Using schoolwork and many, small examples from her everyday life can slowly build up the muscle of seeing value even in the discomfort of review or repeating. And I know that the discomfort is very real!
I'm so glad I found your channel!! I've come a long way with my gifted 5yo daughter. I thought I wouldn't be able to homeschool her but after watching your videos and your story, I feel so encouraged.
thank you
Oh, I'm so glad to hear that!
Thank you SO much for this video!! You absolutely described my oldest child!
I am so glad it was helpful! Thanks for taking the time to watch!
Absolutely yes! I learned alot of this with my 1st child and am being reminded of it with some of my younger children. My 1st was that quick reader with little to no help getting there. I didn't bother with phonics but what I did do is show him how and when to use a dictionary. His area is Math (Math U See was and still is our go to)
Really love how you delivered this, made me smile (and laugh) at so many points throughout in recognition lol! I am enjoying what you are putting out into the community. Thank you 😊
Oh, thank you so much for your comment! It's truly a delight to hear that these videos are appreciated! :)
Thank you! I will check out these curriculums 😊
You are so welcome!
Thank you for your words of wisdom.
Thanks so much for taking the time to listen!
This video was so helpful. Thank you for talking through this topic so well.
Glad it was helpful! Thank you so much for taking the time to watch.
Great topic! I've never seen anybody cover this topic. I've still not done independent subject with Caris (almost 9), but I think she is almost ready for trying out one or two. I might wait until next year because I want her to be really excited for that independence. The beautiful thing about homeschool is that we can work with our kids on their levels subject by subject.
Yes! Not all subjects need to be at the same level!
Love your video! Please do more videos that help us understand better our gifted kids.
Thank you! I do want to continue to make video about homeschool and gifted kids--in the comments of this video I have linked a previous video I made with my mom on this topic. If you have any specific topics you'd like to hear about, feel free to leave me any video ideas or suggestions!
You have such a delightful sense of humor! 🤣 Coming from the perspective of a gifted home learner, this was SUCH valuable information. We use Heart Of Dakota curriculum. It's literature based and very rich biblically.
Oh, thank you! I'm glad someone appreciates my sense of humor because my husband tells me I'm not funny at all. (But I keep on being myself even if I can't make him laugh...) Thanks for the curriculum recommendation!
Wow, I see a few of my kids in these descriptions. I am actually planning to switch over to a literature based LA next year, so thank you for the validation there. Even in early elementary, the repetition has already become a struggle. In our case, the littles are learning even faster because they have the benefit of the materials from their older siblings laying around. I've developed a new process for math, since I grew tired of crossing out large portions of their workbooks and feeling like I was wasting everyone's time. Now, I start by presenting the quarterly reviews as a challenge, and focus back only on the areas that give them pause. I love that it has offered a new level of "good frustration" as you mentioned, in that they are pushed to sit in the discomfort of not being able to answer a question. They are also better motivated to complete the corresponding lessons over the coming weeks, as opposed to growing in impatience from unnecessary exercises. The biggest shift is reminding my kids that they are not failing when they come across something new on the test for the next grade. It is simply a new problem they get to learn how to solve.
Literature-based curriculums are awesome for those brains that naturally make almost endless connections--they can be harder to use with other kids who need more explicit instruction and find stories distracting from the concepts they're supposed to be learning. And YES--the discomfort of NOT being able to answer a question is a very positive frustration experience. To learn that there are indeed things we do not yet know and will need some practice to learn. That's an awesome system!
Thanks for this comment. My newly 5yo is working of 1st grade maths and I can see the frustration in her eyes over stuff she already knows, so I'm copying your quarterly test idea!
I needed this video! My son is 5 and has an insatiable curiosity for cells, dna, and all things biology. He has to know how everything works. He picks up skills super fast and only likes reviewing of the science related topics. He doesn't read yet, but I feel like once he gets that, he's gonna surpass what I can do for him academically.
As far as his science goes, I try to learn with him. I've always loved deep diving into subjects, so him and I learn similarly. I'm afraid of holding him back though, honestly. My main focus with his school is to encourage his curiosity and learn with him.
As long as you're willing to provide the books and materials and let him fly, as long as you're willing to learn alongside him while he still needs help--I doubt you will hold him back. :)
This is so helpful! My daughter who is coming into Kindergarten gifted in math and science. You have so many helpful tips!
Glad it was helpful! Thank you for taking the time to watch!
Great topic, practical advice!
Thanks for watching!
I have a gifted 9th grader, and it's been a lifetime of learning how to educate him. I can relate so well to all the points you made in this video. We have especially struggled and wrestled with math review and scaffolding approaches to writing. So, this video is good verification for me that we can do it HIS way in those areas ;) He taught himself to read when he was 3... I just wish I had known then what I know now!
Sometimes...we can only learn through life experience, hey! Especially when it comes to parenting and educating these unique young people. But I can relate to finding scaffolding and review IMMENSELY annoying.
Thank you... just thank you. 👏🏽👏🏽
I'm so glad this video is helpful! That's my goal!
This is so good! I wish my mom had this video when she was homeschooling me. 🙃 I think it will be very helpful for me when my daughter starts school!
Glad it was helpful! Unfortunately CZcams wasn't a resource our parents had 'back in the day'!
I really appreciated this video. I’m it sure if my son is gifted or just above average but I was feeling guilty about never going through a formal phonics program (he taught himself to read at age 5) and I was about to order all about reading for him…..so glad I watched your video before I did! Haha. Our favorite math curriculums are Singapore math and Math Mammoth!
Hey, hopefully I saved you a little bit of money and frustration! ;)
Thank you so much for this, incredibly helpful! I have a very gifted 6 yr old I'm trying to homeschool and I find it challenging because he already knows so much, I feel lost as to where to begin. I worry about gaps like you said because it seems impossible that he already knows this, but he does. He taught himself to read at 3, already knows the main grammar rules because he delved into that and started asking tons of questions about each sign when he was 5. He's learned all the countries, all the states, all the mammals, all the reptiles, all the bugs, all the dinosaurs, all the organs and body systems, all the planets, stars, galaxies, etc. It's amazing to me after having homeschooled two very bright children through high school, I feel like I have nothing to teach this little guy. He tells me he's ready for Algebra already, lol, he's not, but it's funny he thinks so. This video helped me realize that it's ok to teach this one differently and not frustrate him with the repetitious worksheets which he hates. 🙏🏽💗 Sending love and gratitude from Okinawa, Japan.
I'm so glad it was helpful! Yes, it can be very tough to figure out what to plan for and teach to a child who's already mastered everything normally taught around that grade level...but with enough determination, you'll figure out the right mix of work and challenge that suits his abilities and maturity. Homeschooling gifted kids is an unexpected adventure for so many parents! And yes...I absolutely wouldn't worry about hypothetical gaps with gifted learners. I often hear parents worrying about this but...it's just really not an issue, and if you do come across an actual knowledge gap...you can address that specific gap pretty easily.
Thanks for you insight!
Gifted learners, or at least some, also dislike the repetition… my daughter always had an “aversion” on repeating things such as math concepts, or being asked about what colors things were, for example. I didn’t now about this giftedness until she got evaluated; I just thought she was just a strong willed child, or even “defiant” sometimes. She’s being doing very well knowing now what was going on “in her head”. Thanks!!
Oh yes, I can relate...I remember getting frustrated when being asked questions when the answers seemed so impossibly obvious--of course it's red!! Patience is a great area of growth for these kids, and a skill I will probably always continue to work on myself.
Please make more videos on gifted education. I love this video, so helpful. You are a breath of fresh air when it comes to educating my 8 year and 6 year old gifted children. They are both gifted in different ways. My 8 year old asked to read when she was 2.5 and I didn’t know what to do so I taught her when she was 3 and it took about 30 days for her to learn what is taught over 3 years in public school. Her reading was tested by a school at grade 4 level, age 5/kinder. The 6 months she was in school was a waist as she new everything and they wouldn’t do anything to meet her learning needs even though test showed her advanced. My youngest we started with homeschool and is now 1st grade and is such a deep thinker just like me so I know what you mean about logical coming up with answers based upon the info you have. I wish I would have learned about not doing so much review. As a new homeschool mom I didn’t want any gaps and was fearful about it. I later realized how frustrating that was to her. So much excitement made great days with fresh and new material. She’d say those were the best homeschool days. I have a BIG ask, did you formally have gifted testing done? I’m wondering if we should or not and if my children would have wanted as adults when they look back on their education? Thanks for great content. I plan to start posting on my channel again this month.
I'm glad this was helpful, and thank you so much for your comment! I do want to make more videos on gifted homeschool in the future, and I have a video from a few months ago, which was interviewing my mom about her experience with homeschooling me: czcams.com/video/NEeu5fedaaA/video.html
We talk a little bit in that video about testing. I was never tested for giftedness but displayed plenty of the traits and my mom was able to adapt my learning plan to fit me. I think testing is much more needed/useful when a child is in traditional education...versus when you're already homeschooling, if you are able to handle adapting the educational plan to meet your child and do what they need...then I don't feel the test is especially necessary unless you can see a particular benefit for it in your case. As far as I know, scholarships are typically based on achievement and experience, not giftedness in particular, so it will be different sorts of tests and proof that you would use if looking for scholarships in the future for academically high-achieving kids.
@@SevenInAll Thank you for your reply. I told my husband that your childhood examples sounded exactly like one of our kids. Once again so very helpful. This year I’m leaning toward literature based learning for my independent learner and to hear you mention that just let me know I’m on the right track as I continue to pray and seek God’s guidance for my upcoming homeschooling year. Have a great school year!
@@SevenInAll I’ll be sure to check out the interview with your mom. Thanks for the link.
I think you know my child inside and out, practically everything you talked about is our Son!! The frustration and meltdowns of “ not wanting to do review” the alphabet sounds leading into reading chapter books at age 5.. we are THERE! We are doing homeschooling because of his gift for knowledge, thank you so much for this video!!
I have a handful of videos on my channel talking about homeschool with gifted learners, I know it can feel like a lonely adventure and I want to encourage families--homeschool can truly be an awesome way of life for gifted kids, allowing them to learn at the natural pace that doesn't "fit in" well with the pace of a standard classroom.
@@SevenInAll we are already doing Grade one curriculum ( he’s in KG) and I keep him home to work with him because he tells his teacher and other parents “ my school is not challenging “ he was more impressed by his preschool teacher who would give him worksheets to complete every day.. I love that he has recognized what he wants and can voice this to me
So helpful!
Glad it was helpful!
My gifted kid LOVES Life of Fred! Story base math and not a ton of repetitive problems checks those gifted personality boxes for him!
We hadn't yet discovered Life of Fred when I was a kid (actually...I'm not even sure if the series existed way back then, haha!)...but my family uses and loves Life of Fred! The minimal amount of practice problems could definitely be a good fit for gifted kids!
Ty so much for this video. My son (8) is gifted in some areas and but really struggles in others. After trying pretty much everything out there, he is doing well with Math U See, Micheal Clay Thompson,, and Sonlight. I am amazed at how well you nailed the reasons why they are working for him. For science he is loving Brendan Builders combined with reading through Encyclopedias. The area he struggles with is writing and reading comprehension. He can read at a high school level fluently, but can not answer even the basic questions about what he read, not even for below grade level books. We have been using moving beyond the page for those areas and it is slowly working for him. I do not find MBP to be for gifted students as my daughter who is normal is doing very well with it, but more of that structure scaffolding that you were talking out. It also contains a lot of craft projects that he thinks are for babies, so we just skip all those.
Yes, it sounds like you're working on exactly what's needed with addressing the lack of reading comprehension skills! Those will definitely be crucial as he gets older and progresses. I would be sure to have conversations with him about how speed is not the goal of reading: understanding is. Working on understanding the connections between words, how they relate to each other, and how to distinguish between main ideas and details are all helpful skills. Glad you are seeing some progress! Reading comprehension can be a long journey for some.
We've skipped phonics as well, at the recommendation of parents in my support group for DLD/MERLD...and I am so glad we did. My oldest is a great reader with excellent comprehension.
Yes--it's very true that for some brains...reading just 'clicks'...I could read everything and understand everything I read from a very early age. My next sister had dyslexia, and a years-long struggle learning to read, so my mom's introduction to homeschool was quite an adventure, to say the least!
For high school math, IXL is great. It is self-leveling, so it keeps pace (fast or slow) with your child. It also is self-scoring for kids who are ahead of their parents in math.
Thanks for the suggestion!
great video! we use beast academy for our 2nd grader (this coming year), and then we use sonlights book list along with an all in one language arts.
I've heard that many kids are thriving with Beast Academy!
Thank you! I have found unit studies to be amazing for my kids as well, particularly gather round. Enough scaffolding that I, the teacher, can teach the material confidently-but not so much guidance that my gifted student gets frustrated (though she still does at times lol). My biggest challenge is balancing that with her twin who NEEDS scaffolding & repetition to learn and retain.
Awesome that you have found what works! I love the variety that unit studies offer.
@@SevenInAll me too! Irony is, we are heading into Sonlight more or less, for a US history focus this year :)
So much food for thought here.
Glad this can give you something to mull over!
For Grammar, Painless Grammar is a easy leisure read, and covers everything. A couple of days with that book - reading for "fun" - your kid might start correcting your grammar.
Great!
Yes, the learning to listen to people.
A crucial skill!
This comes at a perfect time for me as I’m “officially” starting my homeschool journey with my eldest daughter. Many many thanks for this video. It helps me to put aside my fears of her “learning too quickly” and to pay attention to her specific learning needs.
I understand that it can be a little (or a lot) intimidating to embark on homeschooling with a child who races through learning. I've heard the phrase that homeschooling a gifted learner is like you've been "stapled to a cheetah" and I think that's probably a pretty accurate description of what the parent goes through. You can do it! A decision to intentionally be aware of what she needs vs. just going with what her age or grade level is "supposed to do" is a fantastic start!
My 6 year old is gifted, especially in math. He loves beast academy! We have tried several math curriculums and he likes them at first but gets frustrated and bored with a lot of repetition. The online aspect is very visual and engaging which keeps his interest for a lot longer. He also loves unit studies!
Great to hear this experience with Beast Academy! And someone else mentioned that their gifted student thrives with unit studies!
Very helpful and insightful! I literally started a fight yesterday with my 3rd grader over a review lesson. At some point it hit me, you do not need this review. Why are we doing it? And I told her to just Nevermind it. 😂
We are using Lightning Literature this year and one of the complaints I read about it is the composition assignments. They are very open-ended (not very ‘scaffolded’ I suppose.) The instructions are rather vague-today come up with 2 characters for your story; write your outline today. Blah blah. We haven’t done a whole of writing yet but she is really just taking it and making it her own. So I suppose for her the vagueness of it is working because of her giftedness!
There can be benefit in *occasionally* doing a bit of review for building the skill of "you can do work that you think is unnecessary"....lol...but, by and large...enforcing a lot of review with a gifted child is just going to cause unnecessary drama and frustration.
And yes, many curriculums will automatically be critiqued if their writing assignments are open-ended vs. scaffolded because open-ended assignments cause many kids to feel almost paralyzed, not knowing what to do....but gifted kids can really thrive with open-ended assignments!
Personal experience is the best!
I think experts have a lot to add, and knowing the science behind different types of neurodivergence is helpful, but it's also very helpful to talk to people whose brains work in a particular way!
Such an amazing video that gave a ton of insight for homeschooling my gifted ADHD son. I’m learning now that I too am gifted and it makes so much sense. What level of frustration is appropriate for a 1st grader? He is very into science and me reading aloud to him, but he doesn’t care for math (though it comes easily to him) and learning to read himself. Would it be good at this young age to lean into his interests more and have less frustrating subjects? Thanks!
Even in first grade...I would look for creating a balance between interest-based learning and allowing them the discomfort and frustration of learning in areas where the child is not so intrinsically motivated. So...YES, do plan for a lot of schoolwork in the areas that he loves and delights in...but don't shy away from what he's not interested in at the moment. Communicate the ideas behind why that work is important, too. This is because the ability to handle frustration well and the ability to do work that you aren't super excited about are both key life skills...and both can be REALLY hard for gifted individuals (even as an adult, I still see some weaknesses in myself in these areas...although they are always areas I am aware of and challenging myself to grow in).
I have a two-video series on motivating your unmotivated student, which is aimed more toward gifted or simply strong-willed students who simply may just not be interested in a certain subject area. Part 1 is some big ideas and background concepts and Part 2 is practical strategies for motivation.
Part 1: czcams.com/video/3DR1k2ihu3Q/video.html
Part 2: czcams.com/video/LCUQL-s3RXQ/video.html
Oh my goodness, yes! Everyone wants a gifted child. But it’s a super challenge for some.
We aren't the easiest students in the homeschool. ha!
For our gifted son, who is almost 15, he has enjoyed Shormann math and Apologia science. I had to let go and allow him to schedule his day and work at his pace. Sometimes he wants to continue working on a particular subject longer than I would prefer because he gets so focused on that lesson.
I used Apologia science back in the day and it was one of my top favorite subjects throughout all of high school. :)
Realizing that my 4yr old has to be a gifted learner.... he learned each letter of the alphabet (uppercase, lowercase and sound) by hearing it one time and he hates going over them again cuz he already knows. Was looking into All About Reading for my older children and realized that he ticks all the boxes for starting level 1 right now at 4.5!! He figured out how to count to 100 himself by asking me "what's after 29? What's after 39?" etc. Thank you for this video!!
If you do go with All About Reading for a gifted learner, it can work....just expect to move through it pretty quickly.
@@SevenInAll yes I don't expect to have to do much of the fluency sheets at all. Is there something you think would work better for him? Also ideas for helping him love audiobooks/reading aloud? I've always attributed his dislike for it due to age which could still be. He enjoys having picture books read to him that he's interested in especially Dr Suess but he's also always attempting to memorize the book and be able to recite it back so I imagine that's more engaging than a chapter audiobook.
He can already read CVC words
Great 👍
Glad this was helpful!
For Writing, the *One Year Adventure Novel* curriculum by Daniel Schwabauer at Clearwater Press is the best ever. If you have a gifted writer, have him or her learn to write well (plot, pacing, character design, etc), and produce their first novel in high school (and maybe the second, too ; ) Bonus- they offer a wonderful online forum for fellow writers to hang out, and a *spectacular* summer writing workshop.
This is the 2nd time I've heard this curriculum mentioned recently. Sounds awesome!
great
Thanks for watching!
Yes! I experienced the same thing with reading - never did any phonics program and knew all the flash cards. So never did reading instruction and can’t remember every not knowing how to read. Also consider skipping grades Especially for maths …go straight to grade 5 if he understands the basics
Oh yes, many parent worry about "missing something" with skipping levels...Yes, read the scope and sequence, but don't make a kid work through an entire year of curriculum when they know 99% of the material! :)
The going back to phonics for my natural reading is what I was considering now, this is so helpful. What would you do if the reading and spelling is high but comprehension and grammer might be an issue? Do you have suggestions for a curriculum for that?
For literature based curriculum, do you still feel is best if learner prefers non-fiction or fact books? My struggle with fact books only is they don't learn how to follow a story.
So many questions, lol. What do you think of torchlight for a supplement?
My gifted learner far prefers non fiction. We use Sonlight as our core and it forces him to learn about other people's viewpoints and experiences which is super helpful for him.
In every case, I would recommend that if you can identify specific areas where skills need to improve--work specifically on those skills. There are many options for great grammar workbooks (I'm not a huge fan of Abeka but their grammar is very solid...I also like Winston Grammar). For reading comprehension, there are a variety of specific "reading comprehension" workbooks sold by some of the major workbook publishers (again, I know Abeka has some, Evan Moor, etc.) But! Reading comprehension issues with a gifted learner can often be a speed issue. The child loves reading very fast but hasn't disciplined themselves to take the time to think about and analyze what they read. I would suggest having your child read aloud to you (because reading aloud naturally slows them down), and assessing comprehension with conversations about the main ideas and what's happening in each part of the story.
And yes, even for those kids that LIVE for the non-fiction books and disdain fiction...learning to value and appreciate stories is a skill that will be valuable for them. It is important for gifted kids to grow in their ability to learn about things they aren't inherently interested in--and that can be a challenge. But I would have conversations with your gifted child about the value of stories and why they matter--gifted kids (and kids in general, often!) tend to have a deep need for understanding why.
I've heard many good things about Torchlight but haven't used it.
I recommend Reading Simplified Reading/ phonics/ spelling/ & more all in one program. Can pace as suits your child. Also Jolly phonics as a base for phonics.
Thanks for the recommendation!
I also find that my gifted learner has trouble staying on task. If I’m teaching one of his younger siblings he wants to take over and teach which can be a good thing but I need him to get his work done and stop talking so much!
The other thing is his lack of patience with his younger siblings who don’t know as much as him or don’t grasp something quickly. He has zero patience for that so we are working with him because that could be a heart issue too ❤️
I have heard that "executive functioning" can be a struggle for many gifted kids. I didn't personally experience that--planning, organizing, and finishing tasks effectively is very much a part of how my brain is wired. BUT! The patience...oh yeah...that's been a lifelong journey for me, and it's one very much worth working on, because patience with other people is truly a very necessary learned skill!
We don’t do review unless it’s needed!!! We mainly review a few months ahead when we need to!!! We find we just give assignments and then help where needed!!! We add writing assignments to science!!!
Sounds like you've figured out a good system that works for your family!
There are gifted children who are chill !
As I always say, "giftedness" comes in all sorts of varieties--though it probably is fairly rare and unique to have a gifted child who DOESN'T also have the big ideas, big emotions and intensity that so often comes alongside of a gifted mind!
My son hates scaffolded assignments. He is always ready to write and can not stand for it to be broken up into parts.
I'm with him! I could never tolerate that--still don't like it even from the teacher's chair although I realize it is helpful for some students.
Math mammoth has been great for my 4th grader
That's great to know!
Did you or your siblings used the Language Arts portion of Sonlight?
Yes. It's been quite a while though and they have updated it since. My mom wasn't a fan of their phonics back then (she stuck with Sing, Spell, Read, and Write for all my siblings, which is, I'm pretty sure, out of print by now). We have used Winston Grammar quite a bit (which I think was recommended by or scheduled by Sonlight at some point but I'm not sure if it is anymore). I like what I see in Sonlight LA but haven't used it recently enough to know how smoothly it flows or if I would like the way they teach LA concepts.
My seven year old is reading at a high school level and did the huge leap that you discussed with not needing the cards as soon as I taught her to read. So yeah, we skipped them. She consumes chapter books so quickly I'm running out of ideas of age appropriate reading material for her. Obviously I don't want my 7 year old to have free reign on the adult section of the library. Any tips?
That is definitely a problem you can run into with young, speedy readers who gobble up books. Finding appropriate reads will be a more time-consuming endeavor than it would be with a more typical learner.
I would search through reading lists designed for homeschool (i.e. Sonlight, Stories of Color, Read Aloud Revivial) and write down any and all recommendations that sound good from the homeschool moms you follow. Have operating lists that grow and that you can head to the library with because
There are lots of quality upper elementary reads that are so well written that they are engaging to read (even for adults) and clean as well. As I'm sure you already know, just because she CAN read at a high school level doesn't mean she needs to be reading books with the heaviness and mature themes of To Kill a Mockingbird, for example--those heavy themes will be best wrestled with at an older age. "Bronze and Sunflower" is a fairly new kids' book that is written beautifully and tells a fabulous story. There are many classic series that we sometimes forget about: "The Story Girl" series by L.M. Montgomery, Eight Cousins by Alcott, and so many more!
@Seven In All Thank you! These are all new series I haven't heard of yet! Excited to check them out!!!
Is there not a full curriculum to purchase? Having to research different books and levels is VERY stressful 😅
It's often very hard to meet the needs of a gifted learner with a full or "box" curriculum. Not entirely impossible. You can look into the complete "All Subjects Packages" offered by companies like Sonlight, but many people realistically do end up doing some 'piecing together' in order to get the right combination of subjects and levels.
I am sure you have answered this before... but at what age did your mom notice and know you were a gifted learner?
Her main story of when she started to notice was when she bought me a cute and fun preschool curriculum when I was 3--and only after she started doing it with me, she realized that I knew all the learning topics covered either before she taught them or immediately as soon as she taught them. And the rest of homeschool continued to go "not quite as planned" after that... haha! Sorry, mom.
My son really enjoys Horizons math. Yes, it reviews a lot but we just skip as needed. He likes story of the world and his narrations are extremely detailed. He doesn’t like language arts but he loves reading. And I just can’t keep up with him in Science. He reads something or is told something once and then he has it
Aww, sounds like you are on a great adventure with homeschooling him (and you will learn a lot of scientific facts that you never knew you needed to know!) That's awesome!
@@SevenInAll oh everything is a dissertation! Lol! If I hear the phrase “well, technically…” one more time! Lol! As a kindergartner he tested into 3rd grade and in 3rd grade he was reading on a 7th grade level which makes it difficult to find books that challenge him but are also appropriate. Anyway, he’s got a beautiful mind and we are on this adventure as a family 🥰
Teaching the Classics is good for gifted.
Thanks for the recommendation! I so appreciate all of you who have taken the time to leave curriculum recommendations in the comments! :)
Ohhhh yes, my kids are not fans of review. Our curriculum does it in sneaky ways, but that busy-work review kills my kids' love of learning.
I definitely understand how reviewing what's already been learned practically feels like an insult to these young minds!
Recall is more exciting and demanding mentally so periodically just ask a gifted question 🙋♀️ and let go of traditional teaching methods
Oh yes! I have always enjoyed opportunities for recall--to this day, "question" games are my favorite.