“We just couldn’t let her stay in school, they were basically holding her back,” Emma’s parents told me, and I knew exactly what they meant. Gifted children are a wonderful gift – but they also create a challenge for parents and for educators, a challenge that most traditional schools are unable to meet.
While some schools supply gifted children with special programs, mostly in the form of after-school activities, many parents of gifted kids feel that for their child, sitting there for six hours each day learning in a pace that is excruciatingly slow for her just won’t cut it. For the gifted child too, having to sit in a traditional classroom is often torture. They often become so bored, that they begin to act out, which causes them to be labeled as “difficult children.”
One option is to see if there are any special schools for gifted children in your area. Another option is to homeschool your gifted child. Homeschooling is wonderful for gifted children because it allows them to work at their own pace – usually much faster than average kids – and to focus on the areas that are of the most interest to them.
For example, if your child is gifted in math, homeschooling will enable him to spend more time on math and to advance as fast as he is willing and able to advance. He will never be held back because other children have yet to grasp a concept that he has understood ages ago.
A 3D online homeschooling program with a strong technology focus is especially exciting for most gifted students, since many of them are very interested in technology.