Published: February 1, 1991

Turning On The Bright Lights

"I always associated the term 'gifted' with kids who were 5 years old and could play classical music,'' says Anne Marie Griffin. But nothing in that stereotypical definition prepared her for life with her son, Larry. At age 3, he could read and pronounce the polysyllabic names of preservatives on cookie boxes, and he could page through electrical manuals and learn enough to help his grandfather figure out why a new ceiling fan wouldn't turn.

By age 8, the Springfield, Mass., boy had been recognized for what he was: gifted. On standardized tests, he scored in the highly gifted range, with an IQ of 144.

Yet, in the fall of 1989, as Larry began 2nd grade, his parents found themselves locking horns with the Springfield public schools over Larry's right to an appropriate education, a quarrel that has spilled over into this school year. On one level, the Griffins are challenging established school policy. They want Larry transferred to a nearby private school for the gifted, at an expense to the district of $6,500 a year. As Anne Marie Griffin explains, "They'll never be able to give him what he needs...