Giftedness is often defined as an intellectual ability linked to an IQ score of 130 or more. However, not all gifted children excel in an academic area. Signs of a gifted child also include a high creative, artistic, musical and/or leadership ability relative to same-age peers.
Most gifted kids can learn and process information faster than kids their age and comprehend material several grade levels above their peers. But they are not always well-behaved, high-achieving students. In fact, neuroscience experts say that giftedness looks different in each child.
Therefore, the following four levels of performance were considered for each of the Wechsler scale scores: (1) Gifted, if the score was greater than or equal to 130; (2) Moderately Gifted, if the score was between 120 and 129; (3) Above average, if the score was between 110 and 119; (4) Average, if the score was below ...
There is a distinction between a gifted child and a smart child. All gifted children may be viewed as smart, but not all smart children are gifted. To put it briefly, a smart child can answer a question correctly.
Gifted is more than just "smart"
Giftedness is about more than simply being “really smart” or prodigiously creative; it is having an alternative way of thinking that comes with a unique set of intellectual and interpersonal skills, as well as sometimes having challenging sensory issues.
Traditionally, children described as gifted have an intelligence quotient (IQ) in the very superior range of intelligence. This means their thinking and reasoning skills are well above their same-aged peers.
Gifted children often set very high standards for themselves and get frustrated when they can't meet them. This can sometimes result in tantrums and other difficult behaviour. It's great for your child to work towards high standards. But your child needs to understand that they can't have high standards for everything.
While we like to think everyone is special, some people have extraordinary abilities — intellectual, artistic, social, or athletic. Many experts believe only 3 to 5 percent of the population is gifted, though some estimates reach 20 percent.
Ability to see things from a variety of perspectives
Gifted students often find unique ways to view a situation or problem. They use their creativity and abstract thinking skills to find unique perspectives and solutions to problems, even when there is an easier way to go about solving.
Giftedness is averaged to make up well less than 5% of the general population, and within that small number, there are subclassifications: mild, moderate, high, exceptional and profound giftedness. The latter three types make up only a very small portion of that less than 5%.
Genetics do play a large part in being gifted, definitely. It has been thought that the brain of a gifted person can actually process information faster. However, one's surroundings are equally important. Nature and nurture are at work as some traits are genetic and others are learned.
Gifted children are more prone to depression, self-harm, overexcitability, and learning deficits. A gifted student might be so paralyzed by her own perfectionism, say, that she refuses to hand in any assignments.
Giftedness can create problems and conflicts; being a gifted child can also mean difficulty socializing with age peers, thinking styles that don't always mesh well with the demands from the environment, even children who see themselves as little adults, challenging teachers and parents.
The gifted child can often recall information more quickly than other peers. Typically, there are three types of memory: long-term memory, short-term memory and working memory. Long-term memory is the ability to recall facts or information presented from a time more than a few minutes in the past.
Gifted, talented and creative adults face unique challenges, problems and difficulties while living their lives because of their high intelligence, overexcitabilities and multiple abilities. Gifted, Talented & Creative Adults need: multiple sources of stimulation for their curiosity, talents and abilities.
In her work with more than 6,500 gifted children, she has found that there is a correlation between giftedness and sensitivity, with highly gifted individuals often exhibiting the traits of a sensitive person.
Gifted children are born with natural abilities well above the average for their age. If your child is gifted, you might notice these natural abilities in the way they're learning and developing. Children can be gifted in any area of ability, and they can also be gifted in more than one area.
When do signs of giftedness appear? Signs of giftedness can appear as early as infancy and continue during the toddler and preschool years. Testing for giftedness and high IQ, however, usually takes place around age 5.
Research reflects that giftedness does “run in families”: for a gifted child, their genetically-related relatives — siblings and/or parents — are likely to also be gifted, though there are plenty of exceptions.
Busy Brains
Gifted kids seem to be able to function quite well with less sleep than their age mates, but they can sometimes have a difficult time getting to sleep. Many kids describe it as being unable to shut off their brains.
Negative Characteristics of a Gifted Child
Neglects some of their responsibilities: They may become overly focused on their current desires and ignore their seemingly simple responsibilities. Bullyrags or plays cruel jokes: They can quickly say anything that seems witty to them and make offensive jokes about people.