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    Joined: Mar 2008
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    I am not really sure where I am going with this inquiry...

    Since my son was born he has always been different. He is now 2 � years old and is still seems very different when compared to his peers. We are having suspicions now that he may be showing some signs of giftedness. The past couple of weeks he has done things at home and at daycare that have just blown us away and made us look again at the things he does.

    I rarely talk about this with others, because most of the time people will say, "oh we all think our children are smart." I will not disagree with that, I do think we all hold our children up, as well we should! I also feel like I am bragging when I tell people this stuff, please do not take it as such. But the time has come that I feel like I need to speak up and get some further resources for my son. I frequent another "mommy board" and inquired the mothers there, but was not able to get any response from anyone!!

    So here goes...

    My son has hit every milestone (except for sleeping) well ahead of the "normal rage." He was very alert to the world from the moment he was born. In the hospital he kept breaking his little arms out of his swaddle. He hated to be swaddled because he liked to hold things and feel things. He held his head up at a very young age. There were several occasions where I went to pick him up and someone would freak out because I wasn't holding his head. He always wanted to know what was going on, therefore he developed his neck muscles very quickly. He could roll in both directions by the time he was 2.5 months. He had mastered crawling by 4.5 months and was walking confidently by 8 months. He started saying several words at about 8 months and was pairing 2-3 words together by his first birthday.

    Today, at 2 � years old, he is a very inquisitive little boy. He asks lots of questions and just gets things when you tell him. When we went to his 2 year well check the pediatrician (she was a new one as we had recently moved) asked if he was making sentences yet. We just laughed and told her that he speaks in paragraphs. He knows his alphabet and recognizes most of the letters, he knows his numbers, he does puzzles labeled for 3 and 4 year olds, he is VERY mechanical, he knows his colors and shapes (including semicircle and oblong wink ), I could go on and on. The daycare lady often comments that in her 23 years of daycare she has never met a kid quite like my son. He is the first kid in all her years that figured out there is a small place where you can escape the backyard. He figured this out last summer, and then proceeded to show the 3 and 4 year old kids how to get out.

    The two episodes that really stand out and have made us question things are this.

    The first one happened last Saturday. As we sat at the table and ate breakfast, my son went into a whole monologue about the lunar eclipse. We had watched the event on the 20th and talked about it a little that night and a week and a half later he tells me a whole story about the lunar eclipse. He said "The moon had a lunar eclipse. The moon was not coming apart, it was getting covered. We can not see the moon when it is getting eclipsed. It is getting covered like this (makes a motion) and then it is not bright anymore." All of this was without prompting. We then talked for probably 5-7 more minutes about the lunar eclipse. When we were done eating breakfast he spent the next half hour "eclipsing" everything. He told his daycare lady a similar story on Monday and she was also very taken aback.

    The second episode happened last night when we were reading bedtime stories. He is currently very into all things trains, so we were reading a Thomas book. The book has a page that says, "The sun is yellow, the sun is round. The sun makes shadows on the ground." He asked, "what is round?" I took his finger and outlined the sun picture to show him what round was. He then said, "oh the sun is round, and the moon is round?"
    I said, "yes."
    "and Thomas's eyes are round?"
    yes again!
    "and a ball is round?"
    I said, "yes a ball is round, and do you know the sun is round like a ball?"
    He answers, "oh the sun is round like and ball. and the moon is round like a ball too?"
    I said, "yes the moon is round like a ball too!"
    Without skipping a beat, he finishes by saying, "The moon is round like a ball and Thomas's wheels are round like a circle."
    This was the point at which my jaw drops and I am astounded.

    I have know for a long time that he is a special little boy, but lately he has done so many things that have made me realize he is not a normal 2 � year old. I guess what I am wondering is if anyone has any good resources or can give me advice about how to work with this. I was considered "gifted" in school and remember being bored a lot of the time. I don't want to push my son, I just want to keep him learning and enjoying the world. On the other hand I want to make sure that he is not bored. I also am looking for resources on what to look for and how to work with the talents he has. He currently goes to a home daycare as both my husband and I work full time. Should I be finding enriching activities outside of daycare at this age? I don't even know where to began, all I know is he is not normal and I need help!! Thanks for reading this long post. I could go on for pages about all the different things my son does, but I will stop now.

    Joined: Nov 2007
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    Welcome. You'll soon see you've come to the right place. Yes, many of us have had similar experiences. I'm late to the party with plenty of questions myself, so I'll leave others to answer your questions.

    Joined: May 2006
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    Yes, WELCOME! Mamabird!

    Trust your instincts at this point. As far as enrichment--my personal opinion is read, read, read to him. One suggestion is to read him stories a little above his chronological age. I used to visit the library every week and check out 50 story books--you shoulda seen the fines if I was a couple days late!(fables, myths, culturally diverse folk tales). I didn't have the patience for stories that were not interesting to me. If he has very specific interests, nurture them. For instance, if he loves dinosaurs, take out a lot of books on them and learn all about them together and go see a natural history museum. If he likes fighter jets, research them and see if you can go to an air show. That's another suggestion--expose him to whatever's available nearby, museums, music, children's theater. Since you work, use your car-time to recite nursery rhymes, sing songs, play games like naming things that start with "T" or the "ttt" sound, then "S", etc. I personally don't think classes are as valuable at this age as one-on-one interaction. Bingo, shape matching, etc.

    Is your home daycare provider doing any activities with the kids? I used to bring art supplies to ours or educational games/videos. If he's already interested in letters, numbers, shapes, you might get a couple pre-K workbooks from the grocery store or teacher's store to help him learn. I don't consider it "pushing" or "hothousing" (see that thread on this board) as much as following his lead. If he's not interested or able to do that, wait.

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    Hi - I'm new to this too, but I can try to give you a couple of resources that might be useful. Since you've already found this site, you're ahead of the game already. My dear son (DS) just turned 4, and he displayed many of the same behaviors as your son. We have decided to get him formally tested to see if early K is a good option, and to learn more about how best to educate the wee-un. It's interesting about the neck muscles as a newborn - my DS4 was the same way (his neck muscles were strong at birth).

    I would say since your son is just 2 1/2 you don't really need to to anything special except follow his lead in terms of what he's interested in. Going to different places is fun - zoos, childrens museums, science museums. It sounds like you are doing a great job by just listening and answering all the questions your son has. Buy your son toys you think he'd be interested in and don't worry so much about the age requirements (unless your son likes to put stuff in his mouth). Gifted kids can enjoy toys meant for older kids.

    I read Deborah Ruf's book "Losing our Minds: Gifted Children Left Behind" and found it very helpful in identifying our son as gifted. There are excellent descriptions about what how gifted kids act when they were infants/toddlers and as they get older. This book also describes the different levels of giftedness (moderately to profoundly). I definitely could see my kid in many of the stories from this book. Since your son has hit many of these early milestones, this book may be useful to you. Not all gifted kids will fit into the categories listed by Ruf.

    I also liked "A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children" by James T. Webb, a good comprehensive overview.

    Hoagiesgifted.org is a good resource for all things gifted. Look under Parents to find articles and more.

    There are many others on this website with lots more experience who will be able to give you more info. Your son sounds delightful. Good luck!

    Last edited by st pauli girl; 03/06/08 09:12 AM.
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    Welcome Mamabird,
    I am pretty new here also but this forum is so great at getting information. My DD is almost 3.5. And I could have written many things you wrote.

    I am lucky since I live in NYC and there are gifted educational options. In fact, there is a gifted preschool, for which we had DD tested last year but she missed the age cut off by one month and they wouldn't consider her. But the testing then identified her as highly gifted. We did the test again this past January to see if it was an abberation and/or how she was developing. The tester remembered her and her results were even better.

    Because sometimes you think you are mistaken. If you are questioning it, chances are your child is really gifted.

    Although a lot of people here favor Ruf's book, I think she just wrote the book so upper middle class white people would buy her services. Yes, there is some very good material in her book but it is unscientific, a very small sample size and totally subjective in its findings. AFter reading it, I know my child is at least a level 3. How does that help me. Saying my child is at least a level 3, probably a level 4 gets me no where with the school or what she needs for education. Ruf claims that she could finish the elementary curriculum in one year.

    Sorry, I am going off now.

    I agree that you try and take your child to many interesting outings. Zoos, museums, read, read, read. And there are a lot of interesting shows. Curious George, Between the Lions, that feeds their curiousity. Library is a great place to explore different topics and see what he is interested in.

    I put my child in a playschool last year (totally non academic) and it worked for socialization at 2. She doesn't like to play alone much. This year she is in a really good Montessori with 3-5 year olds and she is doing math there, spelling and reading. She needs the socialization and they are also very active. Usually going out to Central Park every day. They also go on field trips to Carnegie Hall and the fire station and the zoo. They listen to different composers and things like Peter and the Wolf and have it explained. Preschools can be amazing places.

    Good luck and remember you don't have to do it all at once.

    Ren

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    Quick blurb on Ruf - for me, her book helped me to know that my child probably would not do well in an ordinary school setting, and we would have to seek out more information about how to best educate him. (Basically, helped me along the road to recovery from gifted denial.) Also, I think it's important to recognize that there are different levels of giftedness, and that kids may learn differently depending on the range. It was the first book I read on giftedness, and I don't hold it up as the holy grail. It's certainly not for everybody.

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    I'd like to echo Cym and St Pauli Girl (i.e. nurture his interests). We have a family membership to the children's museum of nature and science. DS2 goes every Saturday morning. Last Sunday we took him to a model train expo.

    You're in good company on this site. The camaraderie is palpable. smile

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    Hi, Mamabird! laugh

    I wish I'd figured out as early as you that my child was unusual. I had a serious case of GT denial, and he was 6 before I realized he was more than "just a little gifted."

    As others have noted, following your child's interests is really the best thing you can do.

    We've also found that using big ideas and big words and explaining/defining them for our child has been really good for him. He learns so much more when we talk to him as we would talk to a much older child (or perhaps even an adult, depending upon the topic). If we go too in-depth for him, he makes it clear that his interest has waned and we stop. But I've often been amazed by his interest in and grasp of highly complex ideas and his proper use of a varied and complex vocabulary. (I know you're seeing some of that with your DS already...) Anything else seems like talking down to our DS, and it bores him.

    Other than that, just give him the opportunities that come your way. Keep your eyes open for games and experiences that would interest your son. Keep being a loving parent. smile

    Oh, and I recommend praising effort rather than result even now. I really believe that keeps perfectionism at bay, at least a little bit. It matters more as time goes on, but I think it's never too early to start.

    Keep coming back! This is a great place for help and info!


    Kriston
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    Note to Wren:

    Originally Posted by Wren
    Although a lot of people here favor Ruf's book, I think she just wrote the book so upper middle class white people would buy her services.


    Youch.

    Maybe you could say that you don't like her methods or her sample size--both valid criticisms--without being quite so insulting about it? Insulting both to those of us who found her book helpful and to Ruf herself, since she is one of those leading the fight for GT education.

    Sincerely,

    A less-than-upper-middle-class white person who has never used Ruf's services and who doesn't plan to, but who found the LOGs discussed in Ruf's book to be pivotal to her understanding of her son.


    Kriston
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    WOW!! Thanks so much for all of the good information. It makes me more confident that we are already doing a lot of the things we "should be." We are very happy with the at home daycare he attends. The daycare lady runs a curriculum based program, so he is getting a lot of good exposure already. Socially, he actually does very well. Last week his daycare lady was on vacation so he was at a different home daycare for the week. Everyday he would tell me he missed his best friend Jacob. Jacob is almost 5. I mentioned this to his regular daycare lady this week when he returned and she told me that him and Jacob have been playing a lot together lately. I am guessing he is more on par with Jacob than the two other boys that are close to his age. I am so glad I asked questions and put this out there. I really doubted myself, but it sounds like my mother intuition was right again!!

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