We didn’t have grand goals like “Finish Calculus by grade X,” “get selected for the US’s International Mathematical Olympiad team,” or eve

It's hard to stop Math Acceleration once you start

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2024-11-15 13:30:03

We didn’t have grand goals like “Finish Calculus by grade X,” “get selected for the US’s International Mathematical Olympiad team,” or even “start taking Algebra 1 before high school.”

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It was more innocent: " Our kid loves to do math, and she’s seen all the math they have to offer in her grade. Let’s see what else we can find that’ll be fun for her to do.”

Fast-forward a few years, and both of our kids are experiencing what is considered “Radical acceleration,” that is, schooling that is three or more years ahead of their same-age peers.

Depending on what US high school you are in and what classes the high school offers, our kids are now closer to 5 to 6 years accelerated.

What can we say other than it was a slippery slope, and once we opened the gates to doing math at home above grade level, it was very easy to continue.