Macyn Rice,10,Freshman in High School

[MadeaBecBec]

Macyn Rice,10 at home

So, Macyn Rice, who shares a sea-theme bedroom with her 4-year-old sister, still has some of her baby teeth and is six years away from getting her driver's license, will start ninth grade at Cumberland Valley High School on Wednesday.

"I'm going to feel like an ant," said Macyn, who stands 4-foot-3 and weighs 50 pounds.

Upperclassmen got wind of her visit by the end of first period, said brother, Zachare, 17, who will be a CV senior. "They said, 'I hear she's 10 years old. Is she really that smart?' " he said.

Actually, yeah, he told them.

Macyn, a talkative girl who smiles often and laughs easily, ignored the initial teasing.

"The first day, everyone's like, 'What are you doing here?' By the third day, they were like, 'Hey, can I get a picture with you?' They'd take out notebooks and ask for my autograph. Most kids were nice," she said.

Macyn doesn't show a trace of conceit.

She isn't going to high school because she thinks she's better than other 10-year-olds.

"It's not that I love the idea. I just want to get this done," she said.

Macyn, who is called 'Macy" by her parents, brother and sister Marah, 4, started kindergarten at a private school at age 4. Teachers said she was ready for fifth-grade work. The next year, she went to second grade at a public school. She received half-hour-a-week gifted services, despite testing on a seventh-grade level. Her parents took her out at Christmas.

"I haven't been in a real school since I was 5," Macyn said.

Instead, she zoomed through a virtual, charter school. Although Macyn's classes came through the Internet at home, her parents don't teach her.
She took first place in her school's science fair last spring. Her entry tried to refute two Notre Dame scientists' explanation for a noted tendency of children born in winter to be less healthy and less smart. She filled columns with data she gathered on her own.

"Macy got ticked off because she's a winter baby," Christy Rice said.

I am glad she refuted this, I'm a winter Baby,LOL!

http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/ind..._cumberla.html

I hope Macyn gets the respect she deserves while in High School and that she still enjoys her childhood, she seems to have what it takes, in the way of social aptness! She's as cute as a button! It's hilarious that she called the teens, "kids" in saying they were nice!!
You go, Macyn!

[AngelFire]

These kids amaze me, and scare me too.

[biteme]

I would never do this to a child, no matter how gifted.
She's had a Child's virtual life, with virtual events and virtual friends
She'll be lonely in the future, I'm willing to bet she has no real friends.

[Rockin Ma]

I hope the best for her. I knew someone who was in college at 15 and it didn't work out for him. The social part can be very difficult on kids like that. A heavy pressure to succeed and do everything right.

SHe's looks bright and cheery though, I hope she goes on to happily do great things

[Coyote]

I would never do this to a child, no matter how gifted..

What would you do with a child like this? Force her to go to public school and stay with her grade/age level? Believe it or not, kids are very resilient. She knows she is gifted, so why not go with it. From what I read in the article, I don’t see anything that leads me to believe that she’s being forced to do this, or even seems hesitant about it. Like any other adolescent, she will have friends as well as enemies, and she’ll have her good days and her bad.

She'll be lonely in the future, I'm willing to bet she has no real friends.

What leads you to believe this?

[Aslan]

This little girl needs to be taken seriously.
My oldest brother was born with brain damage, he graduated from high school at 12 and college at 15. His worst clothing sin was plaid pants. What would I do with her? Treat her like a real person.

She needs to eat something. She also needs the chance to be a child