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Kicking-Off 2023 With Strengths: Week-1 In Our Virtual Village

Highlights from the first week of YSA's Winter enrichment courses — where gifted and 2e kids learn unconventional topics and find like-minded friends.

By Sam Young 4 min read
Kicking-Off 2023 With Strengths: Week-1 In Our Virtual Village

What an amazing way to kick off 2023!

We just finished the first week of our Winter 23 Enrichment Courses, and man, was it an exciting week!

We faced cyclones off the west coast and hurricanes in the southeast. Mother nature certainly threw us a few curveballs, but we were able to preserve and hit our home runs! We are so thankful that all of our families are safe and sound.

By today, Friday, I have received 76 emails from families just like yours, who all had a story to tell about the magic of this week. Each email detailed a special moment, or two, that really made this week special. Just like each student who is a member of our Virtual Village, each story was so different. What made classes special for one child was worlds apart from another. Across most of the messages, 2 clear trends emerged

  1. our students are thrilled to be learning unconventional material with unparalleled depth and complexity by some pretty amazing mentors

  2. there are some exciting friendships blossoming in both the enrichment classes and the Homeroom Social Club that our families join at no extra cost. Parents shared great stories about the visible change in affect that they noticed in their kiddos after having a place to share their unique interests with other students and meet other kiddos with similar interests

That’s what it’s all about! Having a dedicated space where your child can be their true, whole self, learn more about the content that lights their fire, and can connect with like-minded friends!

Here are a few highlights from the week:

  • Young N Thriving: Reflected on our goals, our processes, and how task management can help us achieve

  • Speech and Debate:

    • Beginner Debate: Practiced the art of using logos, pathos, and ethos to convince fellow classmates to see a movie or buy a household product!
    • Returner Debate: Explored Student Congress debate as we prepare to debate our new legislation on the floor! will it pass or get blocked? Stay tuned!
    • Advanced Speech: Discovered the world of Competitive Speech as we explored the 13 Individual Event formats and selected the burning topics we’re called to share with the world!

  • Improv: Invented a food/toy printer called the Maggleboogah Kalaruc that can be as tall as the moon, but can easily be collapsed and stored in your pocket! That’s what our creative, brilliant minds are doing!

  • Dungeons and Dragons: We got to know one another’s characters, made friends, departed on our quest, tamed wolves who we adopted as pets, and so took turns problem-solving!

  • Robotics: Unpackaged our new kits, programmed code into our robot brains (microchips), and then demonstrated what we created! Some played music, some displayed messages when turned upside down, and more!

  • Tools of War: Teamed up as historians, sifted through primary documents as we explored World War I weaponry at a level that would impress a history graduate student!

  • Weird History: Learned about Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm and his penchant for collecting… castles! It got even weirder as we explored his eclectic estates and mysterious death…

  • Chemistry: Explored proton, neutron, and electron and geared up for our big experiment next week where we’re clearing off our desks, rolling up our sleeves, and getting scientific!!!

  • Design Engineering: Discovered the engineering design process and spent time brainstorming solutions to some of the world’s largest issues by using marshmallows and string? OH YEAH!

  • Homeroom Social Club: Not to mention we made connections with others and started relationships with our new soon-to-be friends by playing games and linking up in breakout rooms to share our passions

  • AP Classes: Hit the ground running as we gear up for the big test in 5 months!!!

  • Adulting N Thriving: Our seniors worked on turning their resolutions into actionable habits that they create executive function plans around to ensure success!

And that was just week 1…

Can’t wait for next week!!!

Click here to learn more about these exciting programs!

About Young Scholars Academy

Young Scholars Academy is a WASC-accredited virtual learning community offering 200+ live online courses and camps for gifted or 2e children ages 5–18, in classes of 6–8 students, led by neurodivergent mentors. Young Scholars Academy currently serves 1,200+ families across 47+ states and 17 countries, with a 93% semester-over-semester re-enrollment rate. ESA funding is accepted in 10+ states.

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COMMON QUESTIONS

Questions Parents Ask.

Everything you need to know about Young Scholars Academy.

What is Young Scholars Academy?

YSA is a WASC-accredited virtual village for gifted, twice-exceptional, and differently-wired students ages 5–25. We offer 200+ live online courses (from Minecraft Redstone Engineering to AP Psychology to Mock Trial) with a maximum of 6–8 students per course, taught by 20 hand-selected mentor teachers who are neurodivergent themselves. We serve 1,200+ families across 47+ states and 17 countries. This is not a marketplace. It's a school and a community.

How does it work?

During Fall and Spring semesters, courses meet once a week, live on Zoom, 50 minutes per session. During Summer, camps run Monday through Friday, one week at a time. When your child enrolls in 3 or more courses, they get free access to Homeroom Social Club — a weekly gathering with a consistent group of friends. Between courses, students hang out on our virtual campus where they walk as avatars, eat lunch together, and build real friendships with kids from around the world who finally get them.

Who is this for?

Gifted, twice-exceptional, and differently-wired students, including kids with ADHD, autism, giftedness, anxiety, dyslexia, and PDA. No diagnosis required. If your child is clever, quirky, and hasn't found their people yet, they belong here. About 65% of our families homeschool. The rest use us alongside traditional or charter schools.

Is this a low-demand environment?

Yes. Enrichment courses have no grades and no traditional homework. However, for-credit courses include assignments and letter grades. Cameras always optional. Challenge by choice. Students are never cold-called, never forced to participate, and never penalized for how they choose to engage. For students with PDA, demand avoidance, or anxiety, this is the difference between a program they resist and one they ask to log into.

How much does it cost?

Semester courses start at $624. Summer camps are $149–$169 per camp. Payment plans, sibling discounts, referral credits, and ESA/charter funding accepted. We're an approved vendor with 10+ state ESA programs.

Will my child actually make friends?

This is the part that surprises parents most. Your child joins a course about something they love and meets 6–8 kids who love it too. Same group all semester (or all week for camps). Parents tell us their children are more connected with this community than with anyone physically around them. 93% of families re-enroll because their kids won't let them stop.

What if it doesn't work?

100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Switch courses, receive a credit, or stop payments. No questions asked. We can offer this because we know what happens when these kids find their people.

What do parents get?

Virtual Coffee & Connect hours every couple of weeks. Regular Expert Talks with leaders like Seth Perler, Debbie Reber, and Dr. Temple Grandin. A Facebook group where families connect and support each other. Progress updates from mentors. And the ability to watch your child's courses anytime (just stay off camera). You're not just enrolling your child. You're joining a village.