Above all, I believe that gifted children need good parenting. It seems to be a common theme with young achievers that they burn out quickly and become disillusioned or full of reject. It's always disturbing to see 12 year old pop stars on TV whose parents have chosen to keep the kids out of school, 14 year old college freshmen and other "prodigies".

I could not be happier that my parents did not let me skip grades. There was a kid in my class who was three years younger than everybody else in the grade in high school and needless to say he could not associate with us at all, and it's not like we didn't try.

Sure, I could have finished studies a little earlier, but the defining moments of my teenage years are those spent with my friends, not what the rest of society would deem as worthy achievements.