I would second the idea of relocating to NYC and “homeschooling” him as an “8th grader”. As a homeschooled 8th grader, he can study anything; you can see if he can be dual enrolled in advanced German at Columbia, he’d have to meet with the DUS and get tested for readiness. Regardless of fluency, a 3000-level class at Columbia would challenge him. He should also prepare for the entrance exams.
Brooklyn Latin and Stuyvesant are the most likely to work for him. He’d be with intellectual peers and would still be able to mature socially.
In general, you should look at the Davidson Young Scholars program https://www.davidsongifted.org/young-scholars.
If I was an freshman 18 yr old freshman at a top tier college and found myself taking classes with 12 or 13 year olds, I would want my money back, no matter how smart they are. They just aren’t bringing enough life experience to the table to enhance my experience.
^ You wouldn’t be taking classes with “12-13 year olds”, but with one profoundly gifted kid.
He’d definitely bring in different perspectives to discussion and the passion they can have for their subject is often refreshing.
@JimPugilist : you may want him to branch out to other languages. My recommendations would be French, Wolof, and Korean.
When he was nine or so, my little PG giftie would write out everything in Tengwar!
How did his strong interest in German come about?
If you are considering moving to NYC, I’d look into Riverdale (and Wave Hill) and consider the specialized high school at Lehman College in the Bedford Park area. I do not think that Stuyvesant would necessarily be a match for a humanities-focused student. Very easy to get to Columbia (and the entire UWS) from Riverdale.
Good luck examining your options!
There are loads of kids at Stuy who go on to major in history, literature, music, art history, etc in college (I’ve hired many of them)so not sure why OneMore thinks Stuy would be a poor fit for this kid.
Nevertheless- the kid STILL needs to get admitted to Stuy… so it’s hardly a sure thing. OP- it’s a public high school but it’s got an exam to be admitted…
Compare cost of moving to Riverdale/NYC + free specialized high school v. Moving to Reno + Davidson Academy (free to Reno residents but residency would need to be established ahead of time).
Compare also the admission process.
@MYOS1634: “@JimPugilist : you may want him to branch out to other languages. My recommendations would be French, Wolof, and Korean.”
Wolof. Fascinating. Why so, @MYOS1634?
Because it is a good entry into African languages. With it, you can broaden your vision to another geographic area, then add French, German, and English to understand most of Western Africa 
and especially Cameroon, which may interest him a lot due to its German tradition.
In addition, the linguistic structure is very different from all others and I thought he might enjoy the puzzle. There aren’t many
If Wolof is too difficult, there are lots of African languages: Fula, Igbo, Bambara, Dinka… that open the student to realities rarely raised in US news or discussions.
I know Swahili is more commonly taught at US universities and it may be the only choice. Perhaps Swahili would be a better language for him to try.
I preferred Wolof because Swahili overlaps with a lot of countries colonized by the British, so it’s easier to get information and insight about them through English documents (especially in Kenya). There’s also no overlap that I know of with a country that was occupied by Germany and thus less of another vision of a German-speaking country. But these may not be good enough to justify the choice, especially since it’s not very practical.
An advantage to all these languages is that they’re all structured very differently but are relatively accessible (except for Wolof). They can serve as jumping off points to other, more difficult languages (other Western African language, other Romance languages, other Asian languages.)
BTW, look up Bino&Fino Might be too “young” for an 11-12 year old, but it’s interesting to hear in all the possible languages.
@MYOS1634 : :…In addition, the linguistic structure is very different from all others and I thought he might enjoy the puzzle."
I love it, the thought process and motivation behind the recommendation. It truly is unlike so many other languages.
I have an aunt who knows a bit and the few times she has met people who speak Wolof, entered into conversation and asked questions of them regarding this or that change which may have taken place since she was last deeply invested in the culture (the cultural aspects of the region in which it is spoken), I cannot tell you the sheer joy and amazement which has existed in those moments.
From the sound of things, this very special child would welcome exposure to the ‘more, more, more!’ that the larger world has to offer, across a spectrum of languages and ideas, perspectives, practices and customs.
Wonderful.
Hi @JimPugilist I have a neighbor like your kid! She’s 11, and homeschooled, because her district won’t let her skip grades. She’s on track to graduate from HS next June, wants to be a doctor.
Either OP isn’t interested in this thread anymore, or it’s not legitimate.
@barbthewarrior Nice that a 11 year old wans to be a doctor and will graduate HS at 12, UG at 16. She isn’t going to med school at 16, no way, no how. Dougiette Howser doesn’t exist. Sheesh, let the kid grow up.
FWIW, my kid went straight to medschool from UG at 22 and was among the youngest of the class.
@CottonTales from talking to her, she’s gonna have Sophmore standing when she gets there (hopefully). She’s also INCREDIBLY driven! She’s not Asian, but I would DEFINITELY consider her a “Tiger Kid”. She hopes to cure cancer! Sounds like future oncologist.
In one sense, there isn’t one. A 12-year-old isn’t going to have a normal social life. End of story. If he’s interested in STEM, the three best schools are MIT, Stanford, and Caltech.
Columbia GS requires at least 1 year off from formal schooling. Not that difficult to achieve.
I would add to the others who say that there is value/benefit to attending not only an elite college but also an elite HS, so rushing through a regular HS may be a mistake.
Also that the choice of major, in some cases, may close more doors than even where you went to college. And a teenager will definitely change a lot (as others have said), not only in interests. Languages and math are subjects that need to be learned young to be very good at as there is a certain window for our brain (excluding genius-types), so it’s great that he is interested in one other language, but I wouldn’t want to close the door on math in case he wants to pursue a quantitative field later in life.
I am sorry for not responding fast enough :“Either OP isn’t interested in this thread anymore, or it’s not legitimate.” I spent the last days every day 7-9 hours on the phone in loops with Collegeboard to get a SAT etc registration as well as officially withdraw from his school etc. Under 13 must be via mail, the booklet´s are outdated so you can not use those, via phone does not work due to his CLEP records—unbelievable. I am researching all recommendations and I am very thankful! He speaks German, English, Spanish fluently, some Portuguese and some Farsi as well as he started Latin lately. Languages def. his passion and he loved his African American history classes-thanks for the tip. Davidson last year would have been def. a great choice. But now he misses only 4 more essential hs classes, so it is not an option anymore. Cal State EEP program we might apply, but I was warned about the college itself by a former professor.
Again: I will start researching all the info you provided and surely will know more after the ACT´s (test ACT average so far 33).
Lastly: I worked with young men and women between 15 and 25 all of my life. The general note that an 18 year old has more life experience and would remand his money back itself shows he has not. I had 13 years old with way more matureness than plentiful of college kids-but that´s obviously a very individual decision .
sorry but you are wrong, I have the score report right next to me and he is in the 99% percentile and max is 1440
Before taking the trouble to register for a real SAT, why not take a practice test timed, at home, for a ballpark score? Eight of them are available free on the College Board website as well as Khan Academy.
On the maturity, the tiny fraction of kids at top colleges (if top colleges are still a possible goal here) isn’t necessarily cut from the same cloth as the rest.