my kids are off to summer gifted program

[mopinko]

age 13 & 15. they are so excited. gothic filmmaking, chemistry, graphic novels, physics. chomping at the bit. it is a 3 week program at a local teachers college. they get some really top notch teachers, including a hollywood director who has been teaching the filmmaking class for something like 10 years. he started out in chicago, but went on to a really successful career. but he loves teaching this class, so he comes back for 3 weeks every summer to do it. everything is very hands on, and fun.
there is a lot there that would benefit the average kid, but i can tell you that they could not really do what these kids do. they really get to find their upper limits. other kids would not keep up.
and they are so happy to not be "that smart kid", sticking out like a sore thumb. my baby told me, "i feel stupid there. it's great." she has been writing furiously for half the summer, so that she will have her storyline down, her characters all worked out, and be ready to fly.
teacher's colleges are a great resource for gifted kids. both national-lewis, where they are going, and northwestern university here, have similar enrichment programs. you know you have a gifted kid when they are drooling over the course catalog.

[nosillies]

1. Yay! Nerd Camp!

:D Make sure they have some decompression time afterwords. As with any kid who returns from camp, all they're going to want to do for days afterward is talk, talk, talk about all the cool things they did. Make sure you give them a safe place to talk about it all. They don't want to go running their mouth to the wrong crowd and have their bubbles burst.

Glad to see you have a budding filmmaker! My brother and I are in this business. It's such a wonderful outlet.

[mopinko]

2. it's a day camp

this is the baby's 3rd year with the same film teacher and a lot of the same kids. they have to take public transportation there, and have made friends all over town, so it has given them both a narrow group, and a wide exposure.
it's especially great for my son, who is a real misfit in school. makes great contributions in class, but cannot do homework to save his soul. but he was saved by drama club.
and yeah, they will motor mouth. they have been for weeks already.