Homeschooling

When students are bright, they should be rewarded. This happened in our family.  In the 7th grade my son came to me with his math book and said, “Dad, I already know this stuff.” 

 

Since the beginning lessons are review in most textbooks, we set up this arrangement:  take the chapter test at the end of Chapter 1, and if you  get 80% or better, then you can skip all of Chapter 1.  Then you can take the Chapter 2 test and  if you get 80% or better, you can skip all of Chapter 2.  (Yes, that means no math problems on any of the pages in the chapter -- because if he already knows it, why make him prove it again.)  Chapter 3, same.  And so on.

 

When he got to Chapter 6, he did not get 80%, and we knew he had reached areas that he did not know.  So we started there in Chapter 6.

 

We challenged him to prove that he knew it, and he proved it.  We rewarded him for knowing it, and he loved it.  He was very pleased -- and very motivated!