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In a related question, a user linked this article. It might be relevant to your concerns about the social implications of home schooling. However, if your child enjoys his current school, then I would suggest simply adding in in-home supplemental education. Allow your child to pick subjects (or suggest a list of possible subjects, if you'd like), and do ...

It is concerning that he said that, but it may or may not actually mean that he's depressed, let alone suicidal. It's safe to assume that your nephew is really bothered by something. How bothered isn't really clear at this point. Talk to him, but do not make a big deal about the suicide comment -- doing so could increase his tendency toward self-harm by ...

I was a "gifted" kid growing up in a place where there wasn't much for me. I made it my mission for awhile after that to learn as much about gifted education as I could. There's only so much that traditional formal education can do for a really bright kid: traditional educational models are heavily rote, which is anathema to the active gifted mind. To ...

Well, formally speaking, I'm not in a parenting role but am gifted myself (16 y/o, from Israel). Just thought I'd give some input from my experience in that age. In the third grade I was accepted into a special program for gifted children at my school, where we learned all the subjects at a quicker pace but that wasn't the great part. The great part was that ...

An IQ test is not something you are supposed to be able to study for. The best things you can do to prepare your child for an IQ test are to make sure that he is well-rested and comfortable during the test. Try to avoid projecting any cause for him to feel nervous about the test itself. The National Association for Gifted Children has some good ...

Before school starts, have a sit down meeting with your child's prospective teacher. Bring an example of what he's already capable of for reading and writing, and explain your concerns both about him, and his possible impact on the class should he be bored to tears. See if you can't come to an agreement about finding ways to challenge him that won't disrupt ...

I would be more concerned about your son's potential being wasted by being bored than about how the teacher might feel if he acts up out of boredom. Fortunately, either way, the solution is the same: explore options that would allow him to be challenged or at least entertained without being disruptive. Possibilities include: Talk to the teacher and let ...

Yes, there is a relationship between being very advanced and perfectionism, especially in the first child. she is used to getting everything correct so when she doesn't it is frusterating. What I did with my child is as follows. I made mistakes (sometimes on purpose) and narrated as I corrected myself and sometimes even laughed at myself ensuring that she ...

Gifted is a useless term. Every child is brilliant to the parents, just as every child is beautiful to the parents. Albert Einstein was thought a slow-witted child, until he found his talent. That the child may be "gifted" is not really relevant. The highly intelligent child will not learn differently, but perhaps will learn more quickly. Provide a ...

Giftedness requires challenging curriculum and the diligence necessary to acquire and execute many learned skills in order to produce academic success. Giftedness includes intellectual, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, and emotional intelligence as well as artistic or creative giftedness. According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gifted intellectual ...

At 9 months, I believe the best thing you can do is what you would do with any child (gifted or not) and that is to encourage learning and exploration in every opportunity. If you believe the child is gifted, you might notice your child advancing faster. It would be a good idea to probably look at possible milestones for children at each month so you can ...

Let him explore with supervision. Having a special unlocked drawer in the kitchen (assuming the whole kitchen isn't off limits to him) filled with unbreakable things like measuring cups, spoons, a dish cloth, and cups will let him learn more about the world and what adults do. This fall, let him pick up leaves outside and crush them. He'll enjoy the sound ...

Based upon justkt's response, unless your child is doing something extremely advanced as an infant, you're not going to be able to determine if your child is truly "gifted" until he is much older. According to this article on infant development from the Mayo Clinic, things like separation anxiety are an expected development anywhere from 10-12 months. ...

If your child is going to be attending public school in the US, many of them have "gifted and talented" (or similarly named) programs that can provide an outlet for advanced students to express themselves outside the normal classroom setting. In some schools this is an entirely separate classroom for the entire day (which I personally wouldn't like; I think ...

You make sure to praise hard work rather than natural gifts. "You got a good score on that test! Well done! We know how hard you worked for that, and we're so proud!" is good, where as "Clever girl! You're so bright!" is not so good. EDIT: Young children learn lists: pokemon, dinosaurs, etc. This is cool, but perhaps learning about the relationships ...

Have you just wandering around your local library? I've found quite a few books in ours with some pictures mixed with more complex text. Greek mythology works well - the stories are reasonably complex. We also used our library to get our daughter out of her comfort zone (in terms of themes). If she was stuck on Hardy Boys for too long, we'd try ...

Here's my advice, and it's coming directly from personal experience: Do nothing. I was that kid. I was there. I was slamming down books like The Phantom Toolbooth in my first grade year, I was better at math than anyone else, and I was pretty well-adjusted. The teacher had myself and another student enlisted in a support role as an aide during the ...

Great question. This is not my area of expertise, but I contacted someone through my network that specializes in gifted and talented children and this is what she said: Some of my best friends are books by Halsted is a good book for the parents to have on their shelf. The parents can also go to shop.scholastic.com and look at books by reading level. I ...

I had to struggle with this question for my own child quite a bit a little over a year ago now. As a former teacher in the US, I knew the over-all consequences for skipping and didn't like them. I spoke with the administrators about their gifted program, I learned it was not available until third and upon further research learned this was true for many ...

My son had the same problem as a 5 yr. old entering kindergarten. It was his teacher's first class. When he finished his assignment (very quickly) he then took the role of "teaching" his table mates whatever crossed his mind at the time. Of course, his teacher was unhappy and used the accepted behavior modification program with him. He got his name put on ...

Child development is amazing to witness, but the sense of awe doesn't depend on competitiveness. It's natural to be proud of skills that your child develops, but it's unnecessary to compare with other children. Books and articles on child development categorize milestones into areas like physical growth, gross motor skills, fine motor skills, language ...

This paper indicates that it is possible that children can show giftedness shortly after birth by: early alertness, response to caretakers, advanced motor control, early development of intentionality or unusual attention span In that same paper is a summary of a study where parents of gifted children were asked to retroactively identify early signs ...

According to Raising Happiness, identifying your child as "gifted" early in life is not a recipe for success or happiness. Children who develop a growth mindset are happier and more successful than children who develop a goal oriented mindset. The issue is that children who are praised for their accomplishments rather than their effort develop fear of ...

I suggest looking to offer up as many resources regarding his interests as you can. With Alice, we made sure she was surrounded by books and games about words and letters (because she loves reading and decided she was going to learn when she was three). Depending on the specific interests of your child you can play games that will help build upon his ...

My view of the situation is this: On the strength of an IQ test, your child may or may not be able to take a foreign language program at an early age. Now, lets make a number of assumptions: That there is some merit in the IQ test. That the foreign language program is relatively hard. Ok, so all tests, to some degree, can be gamed. Lets say that there ...

I have appreciated all of the answers. The only addition I think is important is to look at yourselves. Be gentle. Children with such high expectations for themselves often are like one or both of their parents. If this applies it is useful to acknowledge this and think about what worked for you and what didn't. As the child gets more and more able to deal, ...

I know this is kind of an old question that was recently edited, but I had something I thought was worth adding: My mom teaches kindergarten, which isn't first grade, but close, and they have a huge range of ability, students who don't even know their letters to ones who are fluent readers at the beginning of the year. In her classroom they handle the huge ...

Well you could always try for after school classes or tutoring, like Kumon or some such thing, that would provide the extra challenge over school while still giving your child some social interaction. I'm not all that much in favor of the Tiger Mother approach either, though my wife does some of that anyway since she is Chinese and pushes the education, but ...

I have taught and met many, many homeschooled children. Many of them I have found to be incredibly intelligent, polite, and socially well-rounded. I have met a few who are lacking in one or more of these areas, though I have found this to be due to negligence on the part of the parent. Should you decide to homeschool, I believe that you have to make ...