My child gifted?Amanda Bennett (conference notes)

My child Gifted? By Amanda Bennett
http://www.unitstudy.com/


This session/class didn’t focus too much on the gifted aspect as it did unit studies. J

Remember, this is all about your child. It doesn’t matter if you do not like the topic.

Don’t be surprised when their interests change, because they will.

She says they (they who, I don’t know) have found you can teach a 17-year-old child in one year what they will learn in twelve years of public school. So, don’t sweat any gaps. If your child needs to pass a test for college, cover any aspects you have missed. Focus on their interests; you can catch up the rest later.

My thoughts on this- Even if you manage to cover everything with traditional methods they will likely forget. How much do you remember from your own schooling? Ever heard of that new show Are you smarter than a fifth grader?

If you have children who are not interested in experiments/projects that’s okay. She recommends doing them yourself where your child can “catch you”. It’s likely they will join in. If not, they may still get the lesson. (I can’t imagine my children not wanting to do a project/experiment!)

Encourage, encourage, encourage! NEVER nay say their idea. You never know, it may be their passion.

If your children aren’t interested in doing a study because it’s not on the list of daily workbooks they are used to then walk away from the workbooks. (Except for math) She says when she first asked her children about studying a particular topic they asked, “I don’t know… is it on my checklist?”

The more studies the children do the more confident in their own study/research skills they will become. Eventually, they will set out on their own studies and research.

Trust that your child will learn, they will.

Amanda recommends using the internet when available. She stresses that you must first check out the website yourself. Do not trust the site to be safe. A prime example: One of Amanda’s books has a web site she recommended, now the website is porn.

Don’t forget all the cool sites like:
Bill Nye the Science Guy
Zoom

Also, on an unrelated note- Amanda offers free curriculum to any missionaries. So, if you know any pass along the word!