2nd grade… when finished with classwork you were permitted to choose from the collection of toys, to play quietly until everyone was done. the work was so simple that i would challenge myself to do it as quickly as possible, plus there was the added bonus of choosing toys first and getting more playtime. i remember having enough time that i would create very large and elaborate sets of dominoes.
3rd grade… in the first week of class the teacher when speaking about what we would learn that year…offered a stuffed animal to whoever learned their multiplication tables and another for whoever learned all the division (1 through 12). i went home that evening and memorized both and claimed my prize the next day. shortly after we had a "guest teacher" who came in to teach us something and she wrote a few things on the board. i innocently raised my hand to let her know that she had misspelled two of the words. the next day i learned that they were going to have me take some tests to see if i was gifted. i found out years later that they were IQ tests when i found the paperwork with some old photos and schoolwork that my parents kept. on the paper it specifically stated that my parents should not share with me the results of the test (158). at some point i was told that i would be joining the GATE program when the next school year started.
4 grade… i don't remember very much about the gifted program, but not because i think there was anything nefarious occurring. i do remember that we would occasionally get projects that we were to complete at home and they were supposed to be fun and challenging. i didn't consider them to be either, so as has always been the case in my life, i would wait until the night before it was due and throw something together.
7th grade… GATE became optional and we could enroll in different programs that were mostly STEM related. once i heard the word optional, i didn't even consider enrolling because by 7th grade i like most kids in public school… learned to HATE learning. why do something optional when i could go home from school everyday and NOT have homework?
8th grade… don't remember a whole lot but i do remember algebra class. the teacher would put a problem on the board and give everyone time to work on it. it was not difficult to quickly do the problems in my head…so to fuck with the kid in front of me i would quietly say the answer right after the teacher finished writing the question on the board
12th grade… enrolled in 6 AP courses and still RARELY had to take any books home and NEVER had to study. so it because just like the rest of my school career, pay attention in class and memorize what i needed to know for the exams, and promptly forget it.
i believe there are many like me, who were natural geniuses and could've accomplished great things if they had not been dulled by television and a crappy public school environment. in fact i'm sure that is a big part of what has given this movement such power…geniuses who flew under the radar their whole lives, never being burdened with great responsibility giving us the freedom to dig