High Ability

The Heinisch children are high ability students.  For the oldest two boys that always meant extra work and being placed in the honors classes through elementary and middle school.  They liked being part of the gifted and talented program and it kept them busy in school.  I am not sure, however, that they really learned how to study.  Both entered high school with a record of nearly straight A's and both found a class early that just threw them for a loop.

For Brett this class was chemistry.  His teacher pushed the students and expected them to study a lot.  That was alright with us.  He needed to learn how to study the proper way.  Brett thought he knew how, but he struggled with time management, organization, taking notes, and such.  At one point during the trimester he had a C+ and wasn't sure he could raise it.  He did, however, earn a B, but not without a lot of help from his teacher and Doug.  More importantly than receiving a B on his report card, Brett learned the basics of studying and how to succeed in a class that was challenging academically.

The same reality hit Cal tonight as well.  I checked his grades this morning and he had dropped 4% in Dual Credit Pre-Calculus.  It doesn't sound like much, but it put him at an 83% with only the final left.  As the final is 20% of his grade, I was a little more than concerned.  I talked with his teacher and we agreed that his study habits had also gotten him into this position.  Thus, tonight we sat down with Cal to get his side of the story.  Basically, he said he blew it.  The homework took forever to do, so he just wrote down the answers with no work.  Since he hadn't put time into the homework, a C on the test was about the best he could do.  Thus, he spent the next several hours in his bedroom working on the final review packet.  Hopefully, we will be able to help him also learn the rigors of true studying.  He has a great math teacher, so that is a step in the right direction.

Doug and I have also learned a valuable lesson from working with the first two.  The next two high ability Heinisch children will benefit from our experiences with Cal and Brett.  Getting straight A's in elementary and middle school is not the answer.  It is learning the importance of studying and how to do so that will make a difference in their high school career and lead to a brighter start to their future.