Online distance learning programs are helping to meet the needs of gifted students by providing challenging learning experiences and opportunities to connect with like-minded peers. 

Some of these distance learning programs, such as those offered by the  Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth or Stanford’s Education Program for Gifted Youth, are excellent but they are very expensive, and they tend to only list typical academic sequences in Math, English, and some languages. 

A new program, the Gifted Kids Network (GKN) is offering engaging, multimedia-rich classes that encourage student activism.  This is fantastic!

Bright, talented kids are learning how they can make this world a better place.

Eight-year-old Alex just completed the Beta program for the Gifted Kids Network.  Despite the work involved and the late start (we didn’t find out about the class until a month into the session), he loved it. 

Each week in his Space Colonies Class, he got to watch videos or play games that taught him about the factors to consider - such as atmosphere or geology - when assessing the habitability of planets. Later in the course, he read The Green Book, a story about a family that is forced to leave a dying Earth to colonize a distant planet.

If you ask him, Alex will loudly proclaim that “The Green Book is the worst book on the face of the planet.”  I still don’t know why he had such a negative reaction, but I suspect it’s because the main character was a girl.  And, even though he hated the book, it certainly inspired his latest writing, Alex’s Journal: Journey to the New Planet. (See above.) 

Take a look at all the amazing projects that these talented students completed in various classes on the GKN Student Blog Site.  You will be impressed.

I think that what he liked best about this class was the chance to connect with other kids who share his interests.  Alex has been asking for his own IM account for awhile, but I don’t think he’s old enough to handle a public account like AOL’s AIM.  However, on the GKN there is a “lounge” where the kids can chat in a safe, teacher-monitored environment.

Now, he’s looking forward to GKN’s Animal Planet Summer Enrichment Class where he’ll get to create a humane, virtual zoo.  Older sister Kayla is also excited about the Cool Tools Summer Enrichment Class where she will get to create an online multimedia project that will incorporate “digital photography, video creation, web design, and more.”

Personally, I’m thrilled that they will both get to participate in a fun learning experience from the comfort of our home, or wherever we take our laptops!

More articles on Gifted Programs:

Testing For Talent - Why we signed up for Johns Hopkins Center For Talented Youth Talent Search.

Taking the SCAT Test - Taking the test that all 2nd-6th grade students must ace for Johns Hopkins CTY Talent Search.

Book Resource:

The Green Book (Sunburst Book): Jill Paton Walsh: BooksISBN: 0374428026 ISBN-13: 9780374428020

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I plan to sit around eating Bon Bons while watching the next Survivor Series:

Six married men will be dropped on an island with one car and
3 kids each for six weeks.

Each kid will play two sports and either take music or dance classes.

There is no fast food.

Each man must take care of his 3 kids; keep his assigned house clean, correct all homework, and complete science projects, cook, do laundry, and pay a list of ‘pretend’ bills with not enough money.

In addition, each man will have to budget in money for groceries each week.

Each man must remember the birthdays of all their friends and relatives, and send cards out on time–no emailing.

Each man must also take each child to a doctor’s appointment, a dentist appointment and a haircut appointment.

He must make one unscheduled and inconvenient visit per child to the Urgent Care.

He must also make cookies or cupcakes for a social function.

Each man will be responsible for decorating his own assigned house, planting flowers outside and keeping it presentable at all times.

The men will only have access to television when the kids are asleep and all chores are done.

The men must shave their legs, wear makeup daily, adorn himself with jewelry, wear < STRONG> uncomfortable yet stylish shoes, keep fingernails polished and eyebrows groomed.

During one of the six weeks, the men will have to endure severe abdominal cramps, back aches, and have extreme, unexplained mood swings but never once complain or slow down from other duties.

They must attend weekly school meetings, church, and find time at least once to spend the afternoon at the park or a similar setting.

They will need to read a book to the kids each night and in the morning, feed them, dress them, brush their teeth and comb their hair by 7:00 am.

A test will be given at the end of the six weeks, and each father will be required to know all of the following information: each child’s birthday, height, weight, shoe size, clothes size and doctor’s name.  Also the child’s weight at birth, length, time of birth, and length of labor, each child’s favorite color, middle name, favorite snack, favorite song, favorite drink, favorite toy, biggest fear and what they want to be when they grow up.

The kids vote them off the island based on performance. The last man wins only if…he still has enough energy to be intimate with his spouse at a moment’s notice.

If the last man does win, he can play the game over and over and over again for the next 18-25 years eventually earning the right To be called Mother!

The fact is, I’ve been cheating.

Today, (for the first time ever) I left the house before 8:00 a.m.  We rushed to Dunkin Donuts for a drive-thru breakfast, before picking up a pack of kids who needed a ride to their field trip. 

As a result, Alex and I were miraculously early for his Gymnastics class at 9:30.  While he worked out on the bars and trampoline, I caught up on my email.

Then, we returned for the field trip kids with just one quick stop at the Girl Scout store for training material.

We picked up 6 Middle Schoolers for the return trip, and I got to listen to the latest rap on KISS FM for a little bit of culture in our day.

After dropping off the tweens, Alex and I had a whole hour of leisure time - spent on piano practice, math problems - before running off to a Hudson River Watershed program at the science museum.

Back home now, Alex ran off to check on the birds and other backyard wild life, while I returned Girl Scout related calls.

By 4:30 p.m. my body was rejecting the early morning start, so I had to take a nap.  Of course, it’s impossible to actually keep your eyes closed when you have kids.  A few minutes later, we were back in the car for another ill-advised venture.

And now that the kids are enjoying another fast food meal - from Subways, this time - I’m catching up on my blogging.

So, I cheat: 

1. Fast food, and other forms of sustenance that don’t require actual cooking, are a staple in this household.
2. My house is only clean for about 10 minutes after a visit from the cleaning woman.
3. None of my friends or family expect Birthday cards from me; at least, not anymore.
4. My social function contributions are limited to pre-packaged items.
5. I avert my eyes when in front of my home so that I don’t get hit in the face with the filthy entrance and unkempt yard.
6. As for personal grooming, forget about makeup or nail polish, and I’ve taken to saving time by only wearing slip-on shoes.
7. Still, I don’t think that the kids would vote me off the island based on my performance.  (I know how to bribe them!)

OK, so I’m not Survivor Mom material, I’ll have to nominate my friends instead!

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As a parent, I’ve been learning to say no for years.

“No, no more candy!” 

“No, you can’t stay up five more minutes.”

“No, you can’t bike around the neighborhood alone.”

“No, no, no!”

Sometimes, it seems that all I ever say is, “No!”

This Spring, Kayla asked if she could sign up with the Classie Lassies Softball League, as she has for the past several years, and I said, “No!”

We could’ve fit it into her schedule which is remarkably free of commitments this Spring. 

Even though I think that watching sports is about as exciting as watching paint dry, Kayla loves being part of a team - especially a girls’ softball team.  I don’t know what she likes best: the camaraderie, thrill of victory, or just that sense of athletic accomplishment.

Still, I said, “No.”  I don’t want to have to plan all our family weekends around the team schedule.  And, I don’t want to watch my daughter spending another season on the bench because we haven’t played the behind-the-scenes game.

By the time kids reach the mature age of ten, you can’t just join a team, attend practice, and expect to play. 

No, you won’t be getting off the bench unless you’ve been playing year-round and attending clinics and camps to improve skills.  The best players sign up for multiple leagues so that they get lots of practice.  And then, of course, those awesome players join the all-star teams where they are constantly traveling to games.

Kids, and their families, are expected to give the sport everything they’ve got.  And, for what?

Children, especially girls, are suffering increased rates of serious injuries.  A whole generation of kids can expect to see increased rates of knee replacements as they get older.  Many former athletes will be hobbling around on crippled legs in their middle age.  Are these sports worth the pain?

In The Uneven Playing Field, Michael Sokolove takes a heart-wrenching look at the world of girls’ sports.  He argues that there is an injury epidemic in women’s sports, partly because girls are more willing to work through pain than boys.  And, he suggests that many of these injuries could be prevented with greater emphasis on proper form, strength training, and a reduction of tournament schedules.

There is hope for girls who love sports. 

For now, I’ll recommend that my daughter play fun, non-competitive team sports when she can gather a group, but we’ll opt out of competitive leagues.

Any suggestions for relatively injury-free team sports?  Do you know of any sports leagues that have succeeded in reducing injuries?  Please post a comment.

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It’s an odd feeling to look up to your young child.  Now, I can see that she isn’t so little anymore.

At least, she doesn’t look so little.  She still thinks like a kid most of the time - living in the present, excited by every little thing - but with astounding flashes of maturity.

Gradually, I’ve discovered that I’m no longer leading her.  Quite often, she is leading me.

She is surpassing me in many athletic pursuits - skiing, running, biking, kayaking, even, possibly, hiking.  For the most part; fortunately, I can still keep up.

And, I’m grateful, that for now, this means that I have an equal partner as we we explore the outdoors.

Maybe I’m just an optimist, but I’m hoping that she’ll still drag out her old mom for outdoor adventures, even when she does reach the turbulent teen years.

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My daughter has been thinking of starting a new business using her new Photoshop skills to eliminate blemishes on her middle school friends’ pictures.

But, why stop there?  There is a ton of money to be made creating fairy tale photos.  Pascal Dangin, the “premier retoucher of fashion photographs,” has made an artform out of cleaning up and enriching images.  In his work, some of the world’s most beautiful people get airbrushed.  Now, Dangin is claiming that he applied his magic touch to Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty.

Big Surprise.  Real beauty is real fake.

So, why shouldn’t she indulge her creative impulses to produce photo fictions?

Well, I’m sure we can all come up with a long list of reasons to stop this venture before things turn ugly. 

Perhaps, I’ll suggest that she stick to pet photography.  Yoohoo, our Chocolate Lab, could use some airbrushing of his robust physique - and it won’t damage his self-esteem one bit.

More Articles on Media Literacy:

Learning About Media Literacy

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Alex had to write a simple paragraph on any topic that he chose.  Just one measly, little paragraph. 

Well, the smart-aleck decided that he would keep it as easy as possible.  He wrote the following:

I Collect Stuff

I collect stuffed Pokémon.  I collect Pokémon cards.  I collect plastic Pokémon.  I collect a lot of stuff.

If this had been the first time that he turned in a list instead of a paragraph, I might have let him slide.  It wasn’t , but I was determined that it would be the last.

I tried to explain the difference between a list and a paragraph, but he didn’t want to get it.

Alex argued that he had a main idea, three detail sentences, and a conclusion.  He thought that was a fine paragraph.

Instead of arguing, I decided to whip up my own paragraph:

Collecting Books

I love to collect books. I started collecting books when I was just 8 years old. My first book was a Clifford book that I picked up for 25 cents at a school book fair. Now, my house is full of books. I have so many books I can’t keep track of them, and sometimes I end up buying duplicates. The reason that I collect books is that I like having all those stories around me. Sometimes, I sort of remember a story but I can’t remember the details. With my book collection, I can always look for that book and remember the story. Someday, I hope my kids love books as much as I do and that they have a special book collection.

After just a bit of argument, with threats of FunKey denial and promises of a Battle of the Paragraph Blog Post, Alex rewrote his paragraph:

Collecting Pokémon

I like collecting Pokémon stuff.  I like collecting things such as cards, plush and plastic Pokémon.  Collecting cards is fun because I like to trade and battle with them against my friends.  I like collecting plush Pokémon because it’s fun to play with them like I’m a human vending machine.   If I have enough plastic Pokémon, I put them into two teams and have war with them.  That’s a fun game.  Playing with all my Pokémon items is always spontaneous fun.

Wow! What a difference!  His last paragraph is so much more interesting. 

We are cross-posting this on both of our blogs: On Living By Learning and Alex and Leperdy’s Learning Adventures.

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It was supposed to be the last big birthday party.  At eleven years of age, a girl should be too old for traditional birthday parties, right?

I always thought that the 10th Birthday Party should be the last big blast until the Sweet Sixteen Party.  However, my daughter begged and pleaded, reminding me that this was her final year in elementary school.  She convinced me that this would be her last chance to gather her friends before they moved on in middle school.

Well, since this was to be the last big party, I gave Kayla a lot of slack in planning the party.  Twelve girls, overnight, OK, no problem.  A Disco Dance Theme, alright, sounds like fun.

What I didn’t take into account is that fifth grade girls can be at varying stages of emotional development, and mostly, they aren’t so sweet and innocent anymore.

Not that these weren’t a good group of girls - they were - but in such large numbers, they egg each other on and the drama is probably inevitable.

Before blowing out the candles on her birthday cake, Kayla managed to catch the tablecloth on fire.  This bit of pyrotechnics was minor in comparison to the emotional fireworks at the party.

Looking on, I didn’t really know what the private discussions were about, but for the girls involved they were intense.  And, it seemed that over the course of the slumber party, there were several high-drama situations.

Overall, this was my least favorite birthday party.  I prefer the fun, high-octane parties without the emotional roller-coaster.

In retrospect, the party would have been fine if we eliminated the overnight element. 

11 Year Old Birthday - A Disco Dance Party

Before the party, we cleared out a room and turned it into a Disco Dance Club with a Mirrored Ball and foil streamers hanging from the ceiling.

We also set the stage for making music videos: an old camcorder; a pile of neon accessories (from Oriental Trading); and a Karaoke Machine for the sound tracks.  That was a popular activity throughout the party.

The girls also loved creating their own, stylish T-shirt designs.  I picked up a bunch of bright pink T-shirts at Michaels and a copy of Generation T: 108 ways to tranform a T-shirt.  They cut and embellished their shirts until I’m not sure if you could even call them T-shirts anymore.

I had hoped that with all the dancing, singing, and a relaxing hot tub soak, that the girls would actually sleep.  I even stayed with them until I thought they were all asleep.  Most were.  Some weren’t.  In the morning, several woke up with magic marker writing on their faces. 

Yeah, it turns out, that tweens like to pull pranks at slumber parties.  Go figure!  They’re not sweet, innocent, little girls anymore.

More Birthday Party Articles:

Learn more about our party traditions on Birthday Celebrations.

Kayla’s Birthday Retrospective: Baby To Preschool.

Kayla’s 4th Birthday:

Ariel’s Caribbean Luau and our  Piñata Tradition.

Kayla’s 5th Birthday: A Mad Hatter’s Tea Party.

Kayla’s 6th Birthday: The Art Party.

Kayla’s 7th Birthday: A Pokémon Party.

Kayla’s 8th Birthday: A Harry Potter Party.

Kayla’s 9th Birthday: Tween Spa Party.

Kayla’s 10th Birthday: Chocolate Dreams Slumber Party.

Book Resource:

Generation T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-Shirt: Megan Nicolay: BooksISBN: 0761137858 ISBN-13: 9780761137856

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“Piñatas are for little kids,” said the daughter who would have been horrified by a piñata-less birthday party the previous year.

At the august age of 10, piñatas were out, but chocolate was in.

10 Year Old Birthday - A Chocolate Dreams Slumber Party

Ingredients:

Pizza and Soda for Dinner

1-2 Videos, Video Game Console, Video Games including the DDR (Dance, Dance Revolution)

Chocolate Fondue Fountain with an assortment of fruits, pretzels, and marshmallows for dipping.

Bundt Cake Filled with Strawberries and Whipped Cream

Mommy-enforced Bedtime

Grandma’s Palachinke filled with jam and whipped cream for breakfast.

IMPORTANT - High tolerance for high-pitched sounds and sugar-fueled non-stop motion.

More Birthday Party Articles:

Learn more about our party traditions on Birthday Celebrations.

Kayla’s Birthday Retrospective: Baby To Preschool.

Kayla’s 4th Birthday:

Ariel’s Caribbean Luau and our  Piñata Tradition.

Kayla’s 5th Birthday: A Mad Hatter’s Tea Party.

Kayla’s 6th Birthday: The Art Party.

Kayla’s 7th Birthday: A Pokémon Party.

Kayla’s 8th Birthday: A Harry Potter Party.

Kayla’s 9th Birthday: Tween Spa Party.

If you would like to receive free articles from On Living By Learning by email, click this link.  You can also click here to receive updates on a RSS Feed Reader.

Tweens are oh so mature one moment, and playful little kids the next.

9 Year Old Birthday - A Spa Party

The first activity at this party appealed to the little girls in them.  They each made a cake doll using materials that a friend, who is also a professional baker, provided.  (For professional results, take a look at Cake Fun.)

After finishing the hard work of cake decorating, they were ready for some pampering: facial, manicure, and a hot tub soak.  (Cosmetics, Headbands, and other “musts” were from The Dollar Store.)

With tweens, it’s sophisticated styling one moment, and the “George Washington” aquatic hairstyle move the next.  Even the ultra-serious tango gets a playful edge.

More Birthday Party Articles:

Learn more about our party traditions on Birthday Celebrations.

Kayla’s Birthday Retrospective: Baby To Preschool.

Kayla’s 4th Birthday:

Ariel’s Caribbean Luau and our  Piñata Tradition.

Kayla’s 5th Birthday: A Mad Hatter’s Tea Party.

Kayla’s 6th Birthday: The Art Party.

Kayla’s 7th Birthday: A Pokémon Party.

Kayla’s 8th Birthday: A Harry Potter Party.

If you would like to receive free articles from On Living By Learning by email, click this link.  You can also click here to receive updates on a RSS Feed Reader.

The first time that Kayla read a “big” book - all by herself! - she was so excited by her accomplishment, that there was no question about the theme of her 8th birthday party.

It had to be a Harry Potter party.

Unfortunately, finding party ideas for a large crowd wasn’t easy. 

I had to improvise, so I just tweaked the previous year’s Pokémon party plans.

Instead of a Pokémon Trainer’s Challenge, partygoers were invited to attend our own Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

8 Year Old Birthday - A Harry Potter Party

Wizard Prep:

Prospective students received hand-delivered invitations - parchment paper scrolls tied with black ribbon.  Kayla, carrying a large, plush snowy owl, delivered these personally.

Wands - Every wizard needs a wand.  So, upon arrival, the “students” made magical wands.  They decorated sticks (previously gathered in our backyard) with hot glue, yarn, chenille, and glitter.)

Sorting Hat - After leaving their wands to “cure”, our wizards-in-training sought out the Sorting Hat.  Blindfolded, they pulled out their house selection - displayed on a pin-on badge (made like the Pokémon badges.)

When the prospective students of magic completed the sorting process, we separated them into four groups who rotated through wizard classes that were staffed by our staff of professors (adult and teen volunteers.)

Wizard Subjects:

Herbology - Students had to transplant a “mandrake root” (pansies) into pots, while ignoring the deafening screams (of happy kids) around them. 

Potions: Using a wide selection of Kool-Aid, the students created exotic drink concoctions.  They were supposed to tell us the potion’s purpose, but they were having too much fun sampling the drinks.

Care of Magical Creatures - Students produced dragon eggs by whipping up a batch of flubber that they put into plastic Easter eggs. 

Defense Against The Dark Arts - A game of Simon Says was an excellent tool for learning to listen well to avoid enchantment.

After mastering these subjects, the wizards were ready for the challenges.  The House Team with the most points was the winner, but everyone received prizes (goody bags with Giant Pixie Stix bought in bulk at Sam’s Club and other treasures from Oriental Trading Company.)

Wizard Challenges:

Jelly Bean Identification - This was a gruesome challenge, much like Fear Factor’s eating stunt.  The kids had to sample a Harry Potter Bertie Bott’s jelly bean and identify the flavor.  Some of the flavors were stomach-churning: Earwax, Booger, Sausage, Black Pepper, Vomit, Dirt, Soap, Rotten Egg, Pickle and Earthworm.

Quidditch -  I had no idea how to play the game, so I pulled out all of our balls, brooms, plastic bats, lacrosse sticks, hockey sticks, and pop-up goals   - pretty much the entire garage - and I let our panel of tween “experts” figure it out.   They had a blast!  Basically, they played it much like Leah Spivey’s land-bound interpretation of the game.

Spells Challenge - Using their magical wands, the wizards took turns issuing elaborate spells.  A panel of teen experts judged these based on creative presentation.

I can’t remember which House Team was declared the official winner.  It didn’t really matter since everyone won the coveted Wizard Title and Certificate (follow link for wording suggestion.)

Piñata Time:

As always, this party concluded with the piñata - a dragon one, this time.

Since we had over 40 kids, we set up the piñata outside on the basketball hoop.  And the children formed a large semi-circle far from the line of fire.  I also held a reserve bag of candy that I used to spread the joy once the piñata was decimated.

More Birthday Party Articles:

Learn more about our party traditions on Birthday Celebrations.

Kayla’s Birthday Retrospective: Baby To Preschool.

Kayla’s 4th Birthday:

Ariel’s Caribbean Luau and our  Piñata Tradition.

Kayla’s 5th Birthday: A Mad Hatter’s Tea Party.

Kayla’s 6th Birthday: The Art Party.

Kayla’s 7th Birthday: A Pokémon Party.

If you would like to receive free articles from On Living By Learning by email, click this link.  You can also click here to receive updates on a RSS Feed Reader.