How to Tell if a Child Is Gifted
Understand behavioral differences., Recognize intensity., Understand sensitivity., Note curiosity., Identify the problematic nature of gifted children in the classroom., Note high test scores in one or more school subject.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Understand behavioral differences.
To personally identify if your child is gifted, you may want to begin by observing your child’s behavior.
Experts believe that gifted children have certain exaggerated behaviors that may indicate heightened intelligence or talent.For example, a common exaggerated behavior is a gifted child being terrified of germs and visualizing them on his/her body.Another example of behavioral differences in a gifted child is if s/he prefers to spend more time talking to adults than to peers. -
Step 2: Recognize intensity.
The most obvious sign of intensity of a gifted child manifests through her emotions.
This is generally the first thing parents notice in their gifted child.
This intensity can be observed in a number of situations including:
Intensity in emotion
-- Child may exhibit both positive or negative emotions.
This may be showing extreme emotion or moving from one feeling to another in a short time span.
Intensity in the body
-- Extreme expression of emotion in the body or showing symptoms such as tense stomach, sinking heart, blushing, headache, nausea, or shyness.
Intensity in memory
-- Intense children can remember feelings associated to an incident.
They will often re-live or re-feel them when remembering the event.
For example, your child might appear to feel pain when recalling a past injury.
Intensity in self-evaluation and self-judgement.
She might self-evaluate her early art as bad or not good enough. , Gifted children often show sensitivity to situations.
Some examples from Dabrowski’s 1979 and 1994 studies show that gifted children often exhibit:
Open honesty and concern for others.
Children will exhibit these traits even though they know they will be reprimanded.
Sensitive to the feelings of others.
Gifted children may befriend outcasts and not tolerate cruelty to other children.
Easily upset with criticism.
Children may get upset when people ignore their suggestions.
They may also show compassion and awareness of other’s needs.
Awareness and consciousness with well developed sense of morals.
A strong sense of right and wrong. , A gifted child will show curiosity sooner than other children.
She will readily ask questions and explore her surroundings.
She notably enjoys learning, is keenly observant, and is highly self-critical.This curiosity is often paired with intensity.
A gifted child, when showing interest, will pursue it with intense passion.
For example, a gifted child might be curious about the world around her by asking "why" questions frequently or physically exploring the world around her, even if it may appear to be dangerous for her., It might be difficult to diagnose a gifted child in the classroom because at least one-fourth to one-half of their regular classroom time is wasted waiting for other children to catch up.In these situations, boredom becomes rampant and may create difficult relationships between peers.
Therefore, a gifted child may present possible problems in the classroom including:
Impatient with slowness and others.
Dislike of routine and drill.
Strong-willed.
Difficulty accepting the illogical.
Difficulty in being practical.
May use words to escape or avoid situations.
Overly intense focus. , A common sign of a gifted child is excelling in a particular subject (math, science, art, etc) or more than one topic.
If your child is receiving notably high grades, especially with seemingly little effort, your child might be gifted.
You may want to talk to your child's teacher to see if he/she notices any signs of your child being gifted. -
Step 3: Understand sensitivity.
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Step 4: Note curiosity.
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Step 5: Identify the problematic nature of gifted children in the classroom.
-
Step 6: Note high test scores in one or more school subject.
Detailed Guide
To personally identify if your child is gifted, you may want to begin by observing your child’s behavior.
Experts believe that gifted children have certain exaggerated behaviors that may indicate heightened intelligence or talent.For example, a common exaggerated behavior is a gifted child being terrified of germs and visualizing them on his/her body.Another example of behavioral differences in a gifted child is if s/he prefers to spend more time talking to adults than to peers.
The most obvious sign of intensity of a gifted child manifests through her emotions.
This is generally the first thing parents notice in their gifted child.
This intensity can be observed in a number of situations including:
Intensity in emotion
-- Child may exhibit both positive or negative emotions.
This may be showing extreme emotion or moving from one feeling to another in a short time span.
Intensity in the body
-- Extreme expression of emotion in the body or showing symptoms such as tense stomach, sinking heart, blushing, headache, nausea, or shyness.
Intensity in memory
-- Intense children can remember feelings associated to an incident.
They will often re-live or re-feel them when remembering the event.
For example, your child might appear to feel pain when recalling a past injury.
Intensity in self-evaluation and self-judgement.
She might self-evaluate her early art as bad or not good enough. , Gifted children often show sensitivity to situations.
Some examples from Dabrowski’s 1979 and 1994 studies show that gifted children often exhibit:
Open honesty and concern for others.
Children will exhibit these traits even though they know they will be reprimanded.
Sensitive to the feelings of others.
Gifted children may befriend outcasts and not tolerate cruelty to other children.
Easily upset with criticism.
Children may get upset when people ignore their suggestions.
They may also show compassion and awareness of other’s needs.
Awareness and consciousness with well developed sense of morals.
A strong sense of right and wrong. , A gifted child will show curiosity sooner than other children.
She will readily ask questions and explore her surroundings.
She notably enjoys learning, is keenly observant, and is highly self-critical.This curiosity is often paired with intensity.
A gifted child, when showing interest, will pursue it with intense passion.
For example, a gifted child might be curious about the world around her by asking "why" questions frequently or physically exploring the world around her, even if it may appear to be dangerous for her., It might be difficult to diagnose a gifted child in the classroom because at least one-fourth to one-half of their regular classroom time is wasted waiting for other children to catch up.In these situations, boredom becomes rampant and may create difficult relationships between peers.
Therefore, a gifted child may present possible problems in the classroom including:
Impatient with slowness and others.
Dislike of routine and drill.
Strong-willed.
Difficulty accepting the illogical.
Difficulty in being practical.
May use words to escape or avoid situations.
Overly intense focus. , A common sign of a gifted child is excelling in a particular subject (math, science, art, etc) or more than one topic.
If your child is receiving notably high grades, especially with seemingly little effort, your child might be gifted.
You may want to talk to your child's teacher to see if he/she notices any signs of your child being gifted.
About the Author
Stephanie Rogers
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow cooking tutorials.
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