Homeschooling - What If Your Child Is Gifted?
By Mimi Rothschild
While many children that have been labeled as gifted are often in programs especially designed for bright children, many children that are educated in a homeschooling environment often miss out on this. Some homeschooling parents often wonder what is meant by “gifted”. Some parents believe that since their child is learning in a homeschool setting, it doesn’t matter if their child is gifted or not. The fact is that your gifted child should be able to align himself in a gifted homeschool curriculum.
While it has been proven that an IQ test does not measure all aspects of being gifted, it has been shown that anything above an IQ score of 130 places the child in the “gifted” range. Approximately 2.5% of children meet the standard or even exceed it. However, these tests do not measure things such as leadership skills or creative ability. Yet, if you use the IQ test to measure your child’s intelligence, you may consider him or her gifted if he or she falls into the top 2.5%. This will allow you to base a homeschool curriculum upon your child’s learning pace.
If your child is educated in homeschool, remember that you are not restricted by public school guidelines. You can let your homeschooled child explore individual subjects as deeply as he wishes. Encourage your child. For example, in the normal classroom, the subject of the Civil War may be what is studied. Here, the children will read about the subject, study it, and perhaps be tested on the learned subject matter. While your homeschooled child may also study the Civil War, you can let him explore further. Take a trip with your homeschooled child to the museum to look at Civil War artifacts, or have him draw or paint a picture of a battle. The ideas are endless and this will allow your gifted homeschooled student to excel and take his learning deeper.
You, like others, may ask why it matters if your children are gifted or not, especially if they are in a homeschooling setting. The fact is that every child is a different type of learner. By educating your child in homeschool, you have the opportunity to assure the “fit” of the method in which they learn. Some gifted children simply do not thrive in the traditional classroom, as it is conformed learning. The gifted child needs room to expand upon and explore subjects deeper to fulfill his needs.
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