I've been worried that Liam might be falling behind in math and science. He dislikes the former on principle, because when it's taught formally it tends to be in terms that don't convince him of any real need; and the latter usually takes a technical problem of his own invention to get him going
But when he does get obsessed with such a practical problem and starts throwing associated math and science problems at me, I make him learn the stuff and solve those problems himself.
This weekend, those problems took a sudden ramp upward when he decided he wants to start a home UHF television station and broadcast programs he produces (I wouldn't call him an Internet sensation, exactly, but he's had at least one video popular enough that YouTube contacted him about monetizing it) to his friends on the block.
Anyway, mean old dad wouldn't buy the ($30) transmitter until he did his own figgerin' on things like ranges to his friends' houses and the associated power and antenna requirements and came up with the required answers.
I think he learned more math this weekend, for what will end up costing $40, give or take, than he would have on a $40 investment in private school or the sundry expenses associated with shipping him off to a government indoctrination center.
I do expect it to get more expensive, though. I prophesy amateur radio equipment in his not-too-distant future (fortunately, there's a pre-existing ham antenna already poking out of the garage roof, courtesy of the home's previous owner).
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