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Genuine newbie, genuine question
Comments
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What does gifted mean? Does she play the violin?0
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PasturesNew wrote: »I can't believe you'd put all that pressure on your child... selling the house etc.
Do you only have the one?
You don't need a large family home in the 2nd area. What about keeping your existing house and buying a small 2-bed place just for the 2 years she's in education, you could even go home to your proper family home at weekends/holidays.
Or, rent a small place in the new area - there are landlords that do take pets etc.
No pressure on our child, I assure you she is oblivious - and yes, we only have the one. We are also both survivors of "gifted" children programmes ourselves and are therefore overly conscious of the damage that can be done by "hot-housing" and pushy parents and try our best to avoid that and seek out as much "normal" for our child as we can.
Otherwise though this is actually a very good idea and again, not something we had considered - thank you.0 -
PasturesNew wrote: »What does gifted mean? Does she play the violin?
No, she is academically brilliant - straight 'A's and so far advanced in some subjects, especially English, that her teachers wanted her to sit GCSEs several years ago. We said no because we know the damage it can do to social and psychological development and luckily, it being a private school, they are very flexible, set her extra work if they think she is bored and adapt the classwork for her so that she still has a chance of having friends and being "normal".0 -
I think you're doing the right thing getting her into a good school. Smart kids do get picked on when they're in with the rabble. My hubby was brought up in a rough little mill town in Yorkshire. He's very tallented. He was bullied relentlessly at junior school and hated it. His mum was a widow and very hard up. Fortunately he got a scholarship to the local grammar school and did very well once he got there. He has very happy memories of that school.
A lot of people in your position would consider it too much hassle to uproot the family for the sake of a year or two at the end of your child's education. As michaels says, if she's smart she probably would do well at the local school. But what damage would it do to her?
Good for you for being prepared to move heaven and earth to get the best for your kids!!
Do you have a list of possible schools? If you feel the need to be doing something proactive now perhaps you could at least start making some enquiries in those areas? Other families have presumably been in similar situation to you. What did they do? Maybe they can help you if you can somehow get in contact?0 -
We're doing something similar for our DD1 - moving to be in the catchment of her preferred school. However, in our case, we're in rented, which makes it all much easier. Although we do have 3 kids, which makes it harder again.. But no pets and don't smoke.
So it's all swings and roundabouts. :rolleyes:
Don't see what's so hard - just put your house on the market, and it will eventually sell. Reduce the price if you need to move urgently. Or consider renting - as others have said, smokers do rent too, and the tenants before us where we rent now did in fact have dogs, even thoough the tenancy agreement says no pets - in real life, landlords want tenants, so are more flexible than they may at first appear.0 -
We aso don't want our child being disrupted around the time of starting a new school so we all need to be settled as soon as possible ideally.
I don't understand. If you move while she is at her current school, how will she get to school. If both (6th form & current) are within commuting distance, why not stay put and accept that she will have a journey in the 6th form?My child is very gifted at school and currently in private education but the school only takes her until age 16 (currently nearly 14). She will be put forward for scholarship at various schools outside our immediate area (rural Suffolk) as there are no 6th form colleges nearby that are rated which means we will most likely have to move. The question is that not knowing where she will be going to school until quite near to the time we need to be living there, how do we go about it?
Others must have faced this dilemma before you. What did they do? What does the school advise? Where do most children from this school go. You can't have the only academic child in the school seeking a good 6th form.I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.0 -
Sorry if I'm being cynical but this really does feel like the look at us thread "we've got a big house and a smart kid".
Maybe I should start drinking again......In case you hadn't already worked it out - the entire global financial system is predicated on the assumption that you're an idiot:cool:0 -
Sorry if I'm being cynical but this really does feel like the look at us thread "we've got a big house and a smart kid".
Maybe I should start drinking again......
hmmmm... feel slightly agreeable... Do 'smart' people really need to ask such questions on an internet forum? I guess OP has been quite polite about the whole thing though, so we should go easy0 -
So the lady has a big house and a smart kid. It's not unheard of. Does that mean she shouldn't be allowed to ask others for ideas on how to solve a problem she's facing?
Plenty of people talk about their personal circumstances on these boards - some start whole threads to describe every detail of their lives and finances. Many publish personal financial details with pride in their signatures. Are you suggesting that these are all "look at us" threads - and if so that there's something wrong with that? Or is it just when someone seems to have a lot more than you that you don't like it? Are we such a sad bunch of people that we just love to support the authors of those 'my life and finances' threads - but only if the authors are down on their luck thus making us feel superior? How about a bit of support for others without first figuring out whether they're better or worse off than you?
Yes, smart people will often want to ask questons on internet forums because chances are that there are other smart people that will be able to answer them. Do you think that these forums are just for dumb-asses with thick kids and piles of debt?0 -
It's difficult not to supply financial details on a financial website, especially if you're asking for specific advice on a complex issue, and as such I don't have an issue with it. My only caveat is when someone posts details that don't stand up to scrutiny, such as living in a mortgaged 3 bed semi and having £100k in cash savings.... In those cases I'm happy to mention my incredulity."I can hear you whisperin', children, so I know you're down there. I can feel myself gettin' awful mad. I'm out of patience, children. I'm coming to find you now." - Harry Powell, Night of the Hunter, 1955.0
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