Planet Smarty Pants

As Smarty is getting close to 13, I made a decision to make my blog private. I still want to write but I don't feel like it's fair to her to keep sharing her journey with an entire world. If you...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/09/psa-going-private.html

Since Smarty rocked her SAT when she took it 2 years ago at the age of 11, she could apply for the SET - Hopkins University program called Study of Exceptional Talent. Frankly, the program is fa...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/09/set-gathering.html

It was another busy week - work, homework, taekwondo classes all blurred together making the week feel shorter than it was. Last weekend, Smarty took advantage of unseasonably warm weather to...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/09/the-week-in-review-september-21-2019.html

Smarty's school is rather big on tests. I think the idea here is for students to get used to testing in low stakes environment, so they are more prepared for high stakes testing of PSAT and SAT....

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/09/testing.html

DISCLOSURE: I am an Amazon affiliate, and this post contains Amazon affiliate links. We are sort of enjoying the unexpected heat wave this week. It feels like the last hooray of summer. Smarty...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/09/the-week-in-review-september-14-2019.html

I have tried different task management systems over the years - everything from paper lists to computer-based systems. I could not stick with anything (except paper list) for a long time. And th...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/09/habitica.html

Last week, Smarty got great news - she was selected as a Caroline D. Bradley scholar. She was a finalist last summer but the selection committee chose to "defer" her and offered her an exception...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/09/cdb-scholarship.html

It was a Labor Day weekend and we all enjoyed our trip to Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks. We are still adjusting to the school schedule. Smarty was acting tired and grumpy throughout...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/09/the-week-in-review-september-7-2019.html

Until Smarty switched to her current college prep school, she had an insignificant amount of homework. She would usually complete most of it in school between classes and would rarely spend more...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/09/high-school-homework.html

This long weekend, we have decided to escape Silicon Valley and see two of the National Parks that Smarty and I haven't seen yet - Kings Canyon National Park and Sequoia National Park. Smarty wa...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/09/sequoia-national-park.html

It was the second full week of school, and Smarty is settling down back to the routine. We put in a desk in Smarty's room to give her more space to spread out her books and papers and get her...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/the-week-in-review-august-31-2019.html

At her ripe old age of 12, Smarty has a very straightforward view of the future in front of her, "I want to get good grades because then I can go to a good college and get a good job." It amuses...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/life-long-learning-part-1.html

One thing that I really like about Smarty's school is its flexibility. Students can try many subjects regardless of their official grade - as long as there is space. This year, at least half of ...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/flexibility.html

The biggest highlight of the week was the start of the school year and all the adjustment that comes with it. Smarty is excited about the year but she is not exactly enjoying getting up early...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/the-week-in-review-august-24-2019.html

Yesterday, we drove to San Francisco for Smarty's finalist interview for Caroline D. Bradley scholarship . There is a part of this interview when one of the interviewers talks with parents a lit...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/how-do-we-keep-up.html

Today, Smarty headed out back to school for her first day of 9th grade. It was a short "class preview" day where they mostly received their syllabuses and textbooks and talked a little bit about...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/hoping-for-great-year.html

The last week of summer vacation was a relaxed one. I could work from home one day and came back early most of the week except on Friday when I had an exhausting all-day offsite.  On Tuesday...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/the-week-in-review-august-17-2019.html

Last week, Smarty had a camp on Stanford campus with Digital Media Academy. This organization has all kinds of technology camps but Smarty was only interested in one particular offering - Artifi...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/artificial-intelligence-summer-camp.html

DISCLOSURE: I am an Amazon affiliate, and this post contains Amazon affiliate links. It was the last week of summer camps for Smarty. She enjoyed her AI & Machine Learning class with Digital M...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/the-week-in-review-august-10.html

My husband and I talk a lot about how to approach conversations about sexual harassment and flirting with our almost teenager. We both struggle with mixed messages common in the US where girls a...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/i-am-not-nice.html

It was another camp week for Smarty with an outdoor "farm camp". The good part was that she was there with her best friend, and I could split driving duties with his parents. The bad part was...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/08/the-week-in-review-august-3-2019.html

It was a "reunion week" as I picked my family up at SFO airport on Monday night.  Most of the week was a recovery from jet lag for Smarty but now she has fully adjusted to our time zone. My ...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/07/the-week-in-review-july-27-2019.html

DISCLOSURE: I am an Amazon affiliate, and this post contains Amazon affiliate links. While my family enjoyed their stay in Germany, I read through the Kindle version of Quirky: The Remarkabl...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/07/quirky.html

My husband is a German citizen, so as soon as Smarty was born, we headed to the German Consulate in San Francisco to apply for her German naturalization papers. This gives Smarty an opportunity ...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/07/dual-citizenship.html

DISCLOSURE: I am an Amazon affiliate, and this post contains Amazon affiliate links HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK Smarty and her Dad are still in Germany and busy seeing family and friends. I fina...

http://www.planetsmarty.com/2019/07/the-week-in-review-july-20-2019.html