By Nancy Young
Enquirer contributor

MILFORD - Kelly Kuhn had no idea her toddler daughter was advanced for her age.

Chris McCullough shows a paper house to her Origami class. (Tony Jones photo)

"When Karen was 18 months old, she was already counting and could recite the entire alphabet,'' the Milford woman said. "She was my first child. I didn't realize every child wasn't just like her. When Karen entered school, she continued to be ahead of her peers in most areas. My husband and I spent a long time not sure what to do with her intelligence."

One way of challenging Kelly, now 9, was the Super Saturday Program. Established in Greater Cincinnati 25 years ago, Super Saturday offers gifted children an opportunity to enrich their Monday-Friday education with classes covering dozens of topics.

Kids ages 4-14 can choose chemistry, French and other foreign languages, engineering, origami, Shakespeare, public speaking and newspaper reporting.

"Super Saturday supplements their academics, but more important, it gives these kids a chance to be with other kids who are just like them," says Kuhn, now president of the program.

"They don't have to hide their light under a bushel. It also gives parents of gifted kids a chance to compare notes with each other."

Super Saturday offers three six-week sessions in fall, winter and spring, and is open to students from Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. All classes take place at the College of Applied Science at the University of Cincinnati. Students can choose morning or afternoon sessions or both. Costs begin at $75 per class with additional lab fees. Class sizes are limited to 16.

Teachers include journalists, artists and ordinary citizens passionate about a particular subject.

Hyde Park resident Terri Russo teaches elementary-age children in the Milford Exempted Schools' gifted program during the week, and a class on Shakespeare to 12 students at Super Saturday.

"So much of the education focus today is on meeting standardized test scores, so Shakespeare doesn't naturally fit into the curriculum," Russo says.

"I enjoy the fact that Super Saturday gives gifted kids a chance to sign up for subjects they are really interested in. The students who select my class seem to enjoy learning about Shakespeare from both a literary and theatrical point of view, and our excitement about the subject feeds off each other."

Think your child might benefit from Super Saturday? The requirements include scoring in the 95% percentile in reading or math on standardized testing, being declared an intellectually gifted child or professional recommendations from school professionals.

Students come from public, parochial and private schools, as well as home schooling.

Karen Kuhn is a veteran of Super Saturdays, along with her sister, Jamie, 6. "Super Saturday gives me the chance to choose classes that really interest me. In regular school, at my age, I can't do that," Karen says.

"I have taken classes to learn French, Spanish and German, one on Egypt, and an acting class. We laugh and learn every week!"

Information

For information about the Super Saturday Program, visit www.supersaturday.org or call 786-6826.

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E-mail nancy@cincyhomes.com