You attend a parent-teacher meeting or conference and receive the feedback from your child’s math or reading teacher that your child is gifted. You are exhilarated and proud but may also not be sure if the teacher is just being polite, speaking in relation to the performance of the whole class, or if it’s just a phase of high learning your 5-year-old is going through.
It is possible that you will receive this feedback about your child more than once and from sources other than his or her school teachers. It may be from the sports coach or anyone who spends time teaching your child a skill. So, how can you be sure if your child is really gifted and what can you do to build on that gift, if he or she really is intellectually gifted?
Though intellectual giftedness characteristics are not standard features that you would find in each gifted child, as each gifted person is unique in his or her own way, there are a few characteristics that show up more often than others in intellectually gifted children. However, this does not mean that if a child does not make all or most of the traits mentioned below, he or she is not gifted. There are many "gifted-types" who are difficult to identify because their traits are skewed from common visible traits of gifted children. Let’s take a look at some of the common traits that run through many intellectually gifted children:
1. Learn faster, retain longer than their peer groups.
2. Are early readers and begin to read by 2 or 3 years of age.
3. Exhibit high analytical ability.
4. Are very curious about things around them, how they work, they like to take things apart and put them back together.
5. Possess a large vocabulary compared to the children their age because of their reading.
6. Are possibly emotionally sensitive.
7. May prefer the company of older children.
8. Are functioning on fewer hours of sleep than their peers.
9. May be poor with languages and wizards in working with numbers or vice versa.
10. May exhibit unusual and heightened response to external and internal stimuli (different from a child afflicted with a neurobehavioral disorder) leading to quick sensory overload and hyper-excitability.
11. Could posses well-developed abilities of abstraction and conceptualization.
12. Show flexible thinking capabilities.
13. Demonstrate elaborate and original thinking.
14. Have unusual and vivid imaginations.
15. Show interest in philosophical issues.
16. Get easily concerned about fairness and injustice issues.
17. Possess a well-developed sense of humor.
18. Is internally motivated.
19. Reads rapidly.
20. Enjoys learning new things every day.
If you suspect that your child may be intellectually gifted, you can consult with your pediatrician and get also get a reference to visit a child psychologist who can run a test on your child. Gifted children begin to show signs of intellectual uniqueness from as young as 2 or 3 years old. However, it is not recommended to test a child’s intelligence quotient (IQ) before the age of 5 unless there is a good case of providing her/him with a suitable academic course program which will be beneficial for the child or will seek to hone his or her giftedness. IQ tests alone are not completely and totally accurate and are considered to only provide the test taker or supervisor with an indication of the person’s intellectual strengths.
INFORMATION IN THIS ARTICLE IS NOT MEDICAL ADVICE. ALL INFORMATION GIVEN IS TO BE CHECKED WITH YOUR DOCTOR BEFORE IMPLEMENTING OR TAKING THEM AS STANDARD OR VERIFIED.
Mamta Singh is a published author of the books Migraines for the Informed Woman (Publisher: Rupa & Co. URL: http://www.amazon.com/Migraines-Informed-Woman-Tips-Sufferer/dp/8129115174/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1298990756&sr=1-2), the upcoming Rev Up Your Life! (Publisher: Hay House India) and Mentor Your Mind (Publisher: Sterling Publishers). She is also a seasoned business, creative and academic writer. She is a certified fitness instructor, personal trainer & sports nutritionist through IFA, Florida USA. Mamta is an NCFE-certified Holistic Health Therapist SAC Dip U.K. She is the lead writer and holds Expert Author status in many well-received health, fitness and nutrition sites. She runs her own popular blogs on migraines in women and holistic health. Mamta holds a double Master's Degree in Commerce and Business. She is a registered practitioner with the UN recognized Art of Living Foundation.