How to keep gifted children challenged when school is too slow
Standard school curriculums and online exercises move too slowly for advanced learners, leaving them bored within minutes and receiving extra work instead of actual instruction. This lack of a truly challenging environment prevents gifted children from learning anything new or having their advanced work properly engaged.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Doing online advanced coursework independently during class
- 2Meeting with the principal or school administration to request exceptions or acceleration
- 3Looking into private, Montessori, or Waldorf schools
- 4Exploring IEPs or gifted education programs (GIEP)
- 5Having students complete most of the readings on their own outside of class and using class time for analysis activities
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Most of my students are advanced learners and I can tell I’m going too slow for them (even as I’ve definitely picked up the pace from how I previously taught).”source ↗
“I’m still struggling to think of things that won’t bore them.”source ↗
“Does anyone have any advice for how to pick up the pace and provide a challenging environment for the students that isn’t just “give them more work”?”source ↗
“we know a couple of families that have advanced students (they were in science olympiad and math competitions together in elementary) and they are basically in the same boat as us.”source ↗
“She skipped 1st grade and just started middle school at 10. She had very high expectations of middle school after being completely bored in most classes in elementary.”source ↗
“She's still exceptionally bored.”source ↗
“In math she gets "challenge problems", which she diligently solves.. but nobody checks them or teaches her anything new.”source ↗
“In science there is no "lecture", they are asked to do some exercises on-line while teachers just sits in class. She does the reading in 10 minutes and nothing to do after.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 3How to switch schools in the middle of the school year
- 4How do I choose what grade level to teach?
- 11How to manage an oversized classroom with no support or SPED training
- 34Why are students coming to class missing basic foundational skills?
- 2Why are honors classes full of average students?
- 11Why is kids' modern homework so confusing to parents?