best primary/middle school for highly intelligent kid

[Anonymous]

super-high intelligence? British boarding school

[Anonymous]

OP beware. My daughter is a high scorer but we didn't pick a school based on differentiation. We picked a nurturing school that we felt was the best all around. I am not trying to be condescending but you need to relax. The very idea of pushing a kid is not good. I was lucky enough to have educators in my family to keep me grounded. A high wppsi score and reading does not make a good student. It takes a lot of well rounded activities--what you should ask is what are the best most nurturing schools that bring out the best in kids..that would be the best start and lucky for you and the rest of us that DC has a lot of this. I promise you OP if you keep being so arrogant you will turn your kid into a basket case.

[Anonymous]

Agree with PP about finding a well-rounded, nurturing school. We have a "profoundly gifted" DC and were encouraged to visit The Feynman School. Based on our visits and from talking with a child psychologist we decided although Feynman would have allowed our child to be with "intellectual peers" social development would have been hindered. It didn't seem like they had much time for free play/social learning. We decided on a nurturing, low pressure program with enrichment in our child's interests provided at home and couldn't be happier. DC has grown so much socially and is happy and confident.

Don't be discouraged by the snarky comments! Profoundly gifted children are a challenge in their own way and it is hard to find someone to about these issues with. There are some parent groups in the area you might want to look into. Also, The John Hopkins Center for Talented Youth offers a variety of online programs for you to supplement with at home: http://cty.jhu.edu/programs/index.html

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are the best primary and middle schools in DC and MD for an exceptionally intelligent kid, if the goals are to ensure that she is challenged intellectually throughout her time there (by both teachers and students) but still gets the social development needed to be well-adjusted. I don't want her to see herself as better or worse than the other kids, but also don't want her to be bored.

When answering, please indicate whether you're basing your answer on reputation, personal experience, or something else.

p.s. If you feel the need to attack a parent for thinking their kid is highly intelligent, gifted, a genius, or whatever, please start your own thread to vent and leave this one alone. If you want to stay here, just accept my premise and answer the question.

We've had a decent experience in FCPS AAP with two DDs that are the same (measured IQs well north of 150) but are moving to private next year for 9th grade. Neither of my DDs enjoy school very much because of a) inconsistent teachers, some of which are outstanding but others of which are stone awful and b) overly bureaucratic rules that make sense given overcrowding but are rather silly otherwise and c) crappy food.

We have this problem too. I realized the issue was the crappy food. Then I was really hurt when I confronted the reality that I was packing DC's lunch everyday. Oh vey!

[Anonymous]

OP again. I really can never understand why there are so many people on DCUM who have nothing but nasty comments. You all do realize that there are people in the world (and in DC) who are exceptionally intelligent, right? And you also realize that their parents have to try to help them grow up well just like any other parent, in ways that are sensitive to their particular abilities and needs. So, even if I turn out to be wrong about my own child's abilities, the discussion I tried to start would be pertinent to and useful for some parents in DC. So it makes no difference whether I'm right about my own kind for purposes of this discussion. To call me arrogant, though, is really rich. Those comments are laced with condescension, whereas I was quite clearly asking for guidance on how to raise a kid who's *not* arrogant but rather comfortable in her own skin and good at getting along with others, while still being intellectually stimulated. If you post a question or comment like mine on DCUM, you get shredded for being an arrogant jerk; if you posted such a question or comment as well as a request to please not descend to a bunch of lame and nasty comments about whether I'm an arrogant jerk, as I tried to request here, you end up getting shredded for being an arrogant jerk who dared to make such a request.

Anyway, I really appreciate the posters who gave thoughtful answers to my question.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP again. I really can never understand why there are so many people on DCUM who have nothing but nasty comments. You all do realize that there are people in the world (and in DC) who are exceptionally intelligent, right? And you also realize that their parents have to try to help them grow up well just like any other parent, in ways that are sensitive to their particular abilities and needs. So, even if I turn out to be wrong about my own child's abilities, the discussion I tried to start would be pertinent to and useful for some parents in DC. So it makes no difference whether I'm right about my own kind for purposes of this discussion. To call me arrogant, though, is really rich. Those comments are laced with condescension, whereas I was quite clearly asking for guidance on how to raise a kid who's *not* arrogant but rather comfortable in her own skin and good at getting along with others, while still being intellectually stimulated. If you post a question or comment like mine on DCUM, you get shredded for being an arrogant jerk; if you posted such a question or comment as well as a request to please not descend to a bunch of lame and nasty comments about whether I'm an arrogant jerk, as I tried to request here, you end up getting shredded for being an arrogant jerk who dared to make such a request.

Anyway, I really appreciate the posters who gave thoughtful answers to my question.

I'm the poster from above that has two profoundly gifted DDs. We haven't told them that, and rarely if ever discuss how smart they are; we instead reward (emotionally etc) effort and self-reliance in a big way. That's largely because I grew up with similar talent, but my parents divorced and both routinely made me feel good about myself for cleverness rather than effort. I skated through high school and then got absolutely crushed my first year in college . . . it took a while for me to figure out (emotionally, not intellectually) that regardless of how bright I or my kids might be, we will do better in our lives if we work hard and behave in a generally disciplined way. Really gifted kids present their own challenges and your questions are fair; I was bored in middle school and started smoking pot at 12. I ended up just fine, but I was at risk for making some pretty bad decisions. I would have done better, I think, in a private school with rather more individual attention.

Ignore the snark. There's a huge amount of cognitive dissonance with respect to parenting, and the anonymity of DCUM magnifies those tendencies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Listen, 140 or so and you are in good company around here. 150/60 different ball game and you will want to seek out appropriate educational settings. But also know a lot can change. The kid who teaches herself to read at 3 is often just part of the regular smart crowd by 9 or 10.

+1. Early reading means very little. My DD learned to read on the tail end of 1st grade but eventually did circles around most of the early readers. Once everyone learns how to read it makes no difference.

This is so true. I had a very smart and qualified educator tell me once that "Early reading is a great indicator of….an early reader." pin other words - it doesn't mean anything after a few years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Listen, 140 or so and you are in good company around here. 150/60 different ball game and you will want to seek out appropriate educational settings. But also know a lot can change. The kid who teaches herself to read at 3 is often just part of the regular smart crowd by 9 or 10.

+1. Early reading means very little. My DD learned to read on the tail end of 1st grade but eventually did circles around most of the early readers. Once everyone learns how to read it makes no difference.

This is so true. I had a very smart and qualified educator tell me once that "Early reading is a great indicator of….an early reader." pin other words - it doesn't mean anything after a few years.

Yes. My DS read at 3 and now is struggling with LDs in middle school, though bright. My DD did not read until 7 and is doing very well in school.

[Anonymous]

A public school in an area with a high concentration of parents who are academics. Hard to say where that would be in MD. I guess somewhere near JHU.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP beware. My daughter is a high scorer but we didn't pick a school based on differentiation. We picked a nurturing school that we felt was the best all around. I am not trying to be condescending but you need to relax. The very idea of pushing a kid is not good. I was lucky enough to have educators in my family to keep me grounded. A high wppsi score and reading does not make a good student. It takes a lot of well rounded activities--what you should ask is what are the best most nurturing schools that bring out the best in kids..that would be the best start and lucky for you and the rest of us that DC has a lot of this. I promise you OP if you keep being so arrogant you will turn your kid into a basket case.

Especially at the age of 4.

[Anonymous]

so many people debating early reading and whatnot. irrelevant. OP didn't ask how to tell if DD is really smart. OP asked what to do with really smart DD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What are the best primary and middle schools in DC and MD for an exceptionally intelligent kid, if the goals are to ensure that she is challenged intellectually throughout her time there (by both teachers and students) but still gets the social development needed to be well-adjusted. I don't want her to see herself as better or worse than the other kids, but also don't want her to be bored.

When answering, please indicate whether you're basing your answer on reputation, personal experience, or something else.

p.s. If you feel the need to attack a parent for thinking their kid is highly intelligent, gifted, a genius, or whatever, please start your own thread to vent and leave this one alone. If you want to stay here, just accept my premise and answer the question.

ours has 161 IQ and we picked nysmith - get's a lot of snark on dcum (as does anything related to gifted kids) - it's a pretty good school and good curriculum - kids are very happy - ignore the tour from Ken Nysmith - but the school is quite good if you can afford private tuition - if you have a public school budget the more competitive pyramids in Fairfax (Longfellow, Rachel carson, kilmer, and rocky road middle schools) will get you there especially after grade 3 when the advanced academic program starts.

More generally, like you would for any rational planning, do get you child's IQ tested (about $400-500) - if they are between 120-145 or so the usual gifted programs will be fine (that score range is about the top 10-15% of the kids in FPCS by the way and about top 5%-7% nationally and is the cut off for the advanced program offered throughout Fairfax, so they will have plenty of friends with this same level in intellectual ability as measured by IQ); if they are 145-160 etc... then you may want to do additional things over the summer - in any case, the main thing with gifted kids is to keep them challenged so that they don't give up on school and they feel "normal" by being around enough smart kids who can keep their own egos in check.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are the best primary and middle schools in DC and MD for an exceptionally intelligent kid, if the goals are to ensure that she is challenged intellectually throughout her time there (by both teachers and students) but still gets the social development needed to be well-adjusted. I don't want her to see herself as better or worse than the other kids, but also don't want her to be bored.

When answering, please indicate whether you're basing your answer on reputation, personal experience, or something else.

p.s. If you feel the need to attack a parent for thinking their kid is highly intelligent, gifted, a genius, or whatever, please start your own thread to vent and leave this one alone. If you want to stay here, just accept my premise and answer the question.

ours has 161 IQ and we picked nysmith - get's a lot of snark on dcum (as does anything related to gifted kids) - it's a pretty good school and good curriculum - kids are very happy - ignore the tour from Ken Nysmith - but the school is quite good if you can afford private tuition - if you have a public school budget the more competitive pyramids in Fairfax (Longfellow, Rachel carson, kilmer, and rocky road middle schools) will get you there especially after grade 3 when the advanced academic program starts.

More generally, like you would for any rational planning, do get you child's IQ tested (about $400-500) - if they are between 120-145 or so the usual gifted programs will be fine (that score range is about the top 10-15% of the kids in FPCS by the way and about top 5%-7% nationally and is the cut off for the advanced program offered throughout Fairfax, so they will have plenty of friends with this same level in intellectual ability as measured by IQ); if they are 145-160 etc... then you may want to do additional things over the summer - in any case, the main thing with gifted kids is to keep them challenged so that they don't give up on school and they feel "normal" by being around enough smart kids who can keep their own egos in check.

also forgot to say, that the more competitive DC schools will have a 120-ish level IQ cut off for the "smart" kid admission - so in the 120-145 range you would be fine with any academically competitive (read top 5-type) private school - you just have to make sure the particular school you choose actually has a curriculum or philosophy to adjust/accelerate the curriculum if your child starts "taking off" in that subject area - some schools do like to do this, and some are very rigid

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are the best primary and middle schools in DC and MD for an exceptionally intelligent kid, if the goals are to ensure that she is challenged intellectually throughout her time there (by both teachers and students) but still gets the social development needed to be well-adjusted. I don't want her to see herself as better or worse than the other kids, but also don't want her to be bored.

When answering, please indicate whether you're basing your answer on reputation, personal experience, or something else.

p.s. If you feel the need to attack a parent for thinking their kid is highly intelligent, gifted, a genius, or whatever, please start your own thread to vent and leave this one alone. If you want to stay here, just accept my premise and answer the question.

ours has 161 IQ and we picked nysmith - get's a lot of snark on dcum (as does anything related to gifted kids) - it's a pretty good school and good curriculum - kids are very happy - ignore the tour from Ken Nysmith - but the school is quite good if you can afford private tuition - if you have a public school budget the more competitive pyramids in Fairfax (Longfellow, Rachel carson, kilmer, and rocky road middle schools) will get you there especially after grade 3 when the advanced academic program starts.

More generally, like you would for any rational planning, do get you child's IQ tested (about $400-500) - if they are between 120-145 or so the usual gifted programs will be fine (that score range is about the top 10-15% of the kids in FPCS by the way and about top 5%-7% nationally and is the cut off for the advanced program offered throughout Fairfax, so they will have plenty of friends with this same level in intellectual ability as measured by IQ); if they are 145-160 etc... then you may want to do additional things over the summer - in any case, the main thing with gifted kids is to keep them challenged so that they don't give up on school and they feel "normal" by being around enough smart kids who can keep their own egos in check.

So you didn't get into any of the Big 3 or you picked Nysmith over Sidwell, etc?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are the best primary and middle schools in DC and MD for an exceptionally intelligent kid, if the goals are to ensure that she is challenged intellectually throughout her time there (by both teachers and students) but still gets the social development needed to be well-adjusted. I don't want her to see herself as better or worse than the other kids, but also don't want her to be bored.

When answering, please indicate whether you're basing your answer on reputation, personal experience, or something else.

p.s. If you feel the need to attack a parent for thinking their kid is highly intelligent, gifted, a genius, or whatever, please start your own thread to vent and leave this one alone. If you want to stay here, just accept my premise and answer the question.

ours has 161 IQ and we picked nysmith - get's a lot of snark on dcum (as does anything related to gifted kids) - it's a pretty good school and good curriculum - kids are very happy - ignore the tour from Ken Nysmith - but the school is quite good if you can afford private tuition - if you have a public school budget the more competitive pyramids in Fairfax (Longfellow, Rachel carson, kilmer, and rocky road middle schools) will get you there especially after grade 3 when the advanced academic program starts.

More generally, like you would for any rational planning, do get you child's IQ tested (about $400-500) - if they are between 120-145 or so the usual gifted programs will be fine (that score range is about the top 10-15% of the kids in FPCS by the way and about top 5%-7% nationally and is the cut off for the advanced program offered throughout Fairfax, so they will have plenty of friends with this same level in intellectual ability as measured by IQ); if they are 145-160 etc... then you may want to do additional things over the summer - in any case, the main thing with gifted kids is to keep them challenged so that they don't give up on school and they feel "normal" by being around enough smart kids who can keep their own egos in check.

So you didn't get into any of the Big 3 or you picked Nysmith over Sidwell, etc?

sidwell doesnt accelerate in math they said thry give extra wirk butvit mostly asking the more advanced kids to "explain" how they gotvtheir answers in english paragraphs. at least thiscwas true for early to 4th or 5th grade kevel and what wecsaw from reviewing homework from friends who sent their children to sidwell.

so we live in NoVa and use nysmith - not sure what we will so for high school