Out little "Math Star"....

[Dr Mordrid]

It's braggin' time

There is this math proficiency test series called Math Star. Each grade takes a series of 4 tests, one each week until the student passes all of them. To take test #2 you must first pass #1 and so on. The passing grade for each test is 94%

Pass all 4 test for the year and you are a "Math Star", get an award & Math Star tee shirt, get your picture in the paper etc.

Needless to say there aren't too many Math Stars. In Margies building (another district) they haven't had one for 2 years.

Point of reference: school starts in September.

Last year our son Erik won his 1st grade Math Star in February.

This year he won his 2nd grade Math Star in early November

Given his level the school decided to let him start the 3rd grade series early.

Yesterday we were notified that he not only passed the first 3rd grade Math Star test but that he had ACED IT!!



Mother and I are beside ourselves

Dr. Mordrid

[Gurm]

Congrats! (Kid sounds like me back then...)

[Nowhere]

Just don't attach too much value to it...

Anyway, from knowing you here, you probably won't.

[Dr Mordrid]

Just proud of him and his achievement.

What's important to him seems to be the tee shirt (of course) and being allowed to help tutor other kids who are having problems with their math.

We look on the latter as a sign he's on the right path.

Dr. Mordrid

[GNEP]

Hey good going for the wee one

[Tjalfe]

Congrats! (Kid sounds like me back then...)

.. no need to scare him

[Jammrock]

Congrats!

This puts Erik is tough spot, though. My little bro was like this. He could understand abstract math concepts that boggled most educated people. Scored in the top 1% of the top 1% in mathematics in the nation in 7th grade, but because he didn't like math class and his math teachers he flunked math and never developed his skill.

Erik will be hitting the age soon where Math may lose it's savor, so you and his parents will be in the tricky spot of keeping him interested without driving him away from it through overzealousness.

Anyway ... just some advice from experience.

Jammrock

[Dr Mordrid]

We don't have to do much with him, he's pretty much self motivated. Even likes doing math problems on his own as a form of entertainment or game.

Drives his mother nutsy though...she's not exactly a math person

Other thing is that his reading level is like the math: advanced. Last reading proficiency test he had "grade level" would have been a score of 45-50. He scored 196.

Margies opinion, and she's a teacher, is that "we have a ringer". As Jammrock says we do have to take care and not do anything to screw things up.

Dr. Mordrid

[KvHagedorn]

Congrats!

This puts Erik is tough spot, though. My little bro was like this. He could understand abstract math concepts that boggled most educated people. Scored in the top 1% of the top 1% in mathematics in the nation in 7th grade, but because he didn't like math class and his math teachers he flunked math and never developed his skill.

Sounds like Einstein or Matt Damon in that movie. For such a person to be stuck in a normal math class is mind numbing. Too bad he didn't get the special attention he needed. For some people there really isn't anywhere to go to find others at the same level, outside a major university.

Congrats to Erik, and hope he doesn't get bored with school!

[Nowhere]

Boy, I really hope for his own good he won't end in major university before "normal" time (although, granted, some schools wouldn't be that great either...but, as I recall, your wife's into education, Doc? )

DrM, if I might suggest something...if his reading skills are that good, that's a great opportunity for his more uniform development, for example by leaving in easily reachable places books that might be interesting to him

[Dr Mordrid]

Trust me, he has access to our library. The only rule is no peanut butter & jelly sandwiches or any other food, for that matter. He's still 7 years old after all

Fortunately our district's on a tear when it comes to making sure advanced kids get advanced materials. The one qualification: they have to finish their grade level work first. Then they can get anything they want from upper grades or external media.

Yes, my wife's a teacher.

Dr. Mordrid

[Nowhere]

I wonder how that last thing contributed...(apart from obvious things like "safe" house of course)

[Fat Tone]

Congrats Doc It's also nice to see another parent being proud of their kids.

Last school year Luke took his SATs (year 2, age 7) and got a raft of 3s and top of his year. We were equally proud, but didn't really want to start a thread about it. Now he's also doing well in Karate (should be black belt by next Christmas), swimming (starting to swim in the under 14s squad) and music (has played the cornett since September, and you should hear his sight-reading!). On holiday he read a 600 page book and still found time to do everything else going. He's a really well rounded kid who makes us proud (and sometimes frustrated in equal measures!)

[Dr Mordrid]

We both taught, but she's special/general ed. while I've mainly taught anatomy, math & physics in medical programs.

Erik's into basketball, soccer and is starting to like boxing and baseball.

Yes; proud and frustrated....with the latter being my wife feeling that there's so little she needs to do academically. I told her that just being a good "Mom" is enough.

Dr. Mordrid

[Umfriend]

Wow, I can imagine you two being proud of Erik, I know I would be

It doesn't sound like you are pushing him at all (which is good in this case I'd say) so the only thing is to keep him challenged I guess. Not that I think the two of you will run into problems doing just that (for at least 2 more years )