Gifted 11-year old unmotivated/bad grades of late?

He's in AP classes (for now) %26amp; has a history of making great grades but is all of the sudden making poor grades. Intact, loving family (no divorce); both parents hold advanced degrees (if this matters); his younger 9-year-old brother makes 100s on virtually everything (we don't play favorites). He's also a gifted athlete, is active in sports and we do things together (basketball) but I just don't get it! When asked what he wants to do during this lifetime he seems to think that working at McDonalds will suffice. Nothing wrong with this career choice but he's capable of much, much more.



Access to his video games has been stripped and he watches maybe two hours of TV/day. He has to be prodded and prodded to do things and complete tasks.



He's not bullied at school (we know his friends) and he is socially-adept.



** He's a year younger than his classmates.



I think it's an age-related issue... he doesn't act as mature as the 12-year old kids with whom he associates.



Any tips on how to motivate this young man would be greatly appreciated.Gifted 11-year old unmotivated/bad grades of late?
Maybe he's just bored. Maybe if you try to teach him something he'll be more interested in the things he is learning in school. Try to do a project together; something he is interested in. It could be anything from fixing the porch to building a model car to fixing a real car.



If he is interested in computers, try to teach him how to program or send him to courses that teach him. Take apart things that are broken and try to fix them. If you end up breaking them more... oh well at least you see what makes them work.



Encourage him to ask questions about his surroundings. For example, yesterday I noticed a large icicle hanging from a drain spout. Even though it had been cold for months now, this was the first icicle. Why is that? What are the conditions needed to created an icicle? Why was it able to grow so big? Why is it shaped the way it is? By asking the questions you can start to probe for the answers.



You have to want to learn, and learning can be very, very interesting if you approach it the right way. If you can instill a sense of wonder at home, it should carry over to the class room.



As for a career at McDonalds... He's only 11. Teach him the value of a dollar, teach about expenses, bills, and savings and let him know that it is a challenge to make ends meet even with a well paying job, and darn near impossible to live off a McDonald's worker wage. When he turns 15, let him work at McDonalds; Encourage it! It's great work experience, it will give him some control over his own finances, and (hopefully) let him realise that McDonalds is a tough career choice.



I worked at Burger King when I was 15. I didn't want to go back to school, and so after high school, I started up full time. After 6 months of getting up every day and going to work and still not being able to afford a car (even while living in my mom's basement), school started looking pretty good. I went back and now have a good job in the IT industry. 6 months of full time Burger King was probably the best thing for my career.



Encourage your child, and good luck! Remember though, grades aren't everything!



Q: What do you call the person that graduated at the bottom of his class from medical school?

A: Doctor.Gifted 11-year old unmotivated/bad grades of late?
Get him to do some volunteer work with disadvantaged younger children in a day-care or residential situation. Helping younger children will give him a sense of self esteem, and also might show him (if he truly is gifted) what the "other side of the tracks" looks like.



Almost EVERY mother sees their children as "gifted" who knows maybe they are all right.
Don't take the answer of "I want to work at McDonalds" as something bad...

He's just a kid. Lower your expectations or just don't have any expectations. You'll be pleasantly surprised by what he might achieve and if things are going downhill, then you should act, but don't panic on every single obstacle he might run into.



Might be bad explanation... If so, my bad.Gifted 11-year old unmotivated/bad grades of late?
Just because you know his friends doesn't mean he isn't being bullied. That was my first thought. There is obviously something going o.you are unaware of. I would contact the teachers individually and set up a conference and see if they have noticed anything. I would also contact the school counselor and see if they know something, or have any ideas. He could just be bored.
He sounds depressed. At some point, kids often realize there's no real point to what they're doing. It is so widespread, there's a movie about it called "Race To Nowhere."Gifted 11-year old unmotivated/bad grades of late?
I think this is typical of his age, regardless of his friend's ages. I did the same thing at that age.



Honestly? Money motivated me. I only got an allowance for the next quarter if I was on honor roll- an even bigger allowance for high honor roll.
get him out of there and home-school him. He's bored because there's no challenge
You might need discapline, until what goes stays, 'til it's final.