Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment where do i start?

i have a 7yo that attends a montessori type school and he is in love with math. i have got a couple of compliments from another parents that have noticed that he's "advanced" for 1st grade but i really don't know. I've been told that he does lessons from a 3rd grade. when he was little i was concerned about him having a speech delay. he didn't talk until he was 28months old. However he was able to understand everything, he has always been in a bilingual environment. He has been great at doing puzzles, still loves to collect stones and he challenges authority. he learnt to play chess at 5.5yo and picked up piano fairly quickly due to his good memory, dropped the lessons because he couldn't stay seated practicing. In a montessori type environment kids are encouraged to go at their own pace therefore i'm not sure if he's gifted, he's never being bored at school because he's allowed to pursue his own interests, however all he wants to do and expresses is his love for math. I would like to have him either tested but don't know where to start or to be able to enroll him somewhere else besides school to fulfill his math interests. Any recommendations?I appreciate your comments/suggestions

Welcome!

I agree with Portia in starting with the question, "Is my child happy?"

That said, there is a lot of information which may be considered "Gifted 101" or a great starting point in learning about giftedness, which may help you support and understand your child.

If you are looking for IQ testing, there is info on Hoagies Gifted Education Page, including inventory of tests, lists of Psychologists and test administrators.

If you are looking for information on possible ADHD because he couldn't stay seated practicing piano, then the website of Understood.org and wrightslaw and/or 2e newsletter may be of interest, along with this SENG youtube video on Misdiagnosis and Dual Diagnoses.

If you are looking for math resources to use at home, Beast Academy may be of interest.

That's a good question Portia/Indigo.
i beleive he's happy, i guess i've just noticed great excitment with the math subject. He comes home after school asking to practice operations and give him math excercises instead of playing outside or with toys. i guess my concern is that at school he has been asked to work on another topics as well, therefore not sure how good or bad is that approach.
however you are correct, i need to focus on making sure he's happy.
Thanks for the resources, i'll start reviewing the links provided.

Hi Adric -

My recommendation is the same, if he is happy, great - you are okay for now. Some good advice I got on these boards was to basically "feed the beast" - if he's happy with other stuff but needs more math, give him more math. You might also enjoy reading a book called "The Einstein Syndrome." Also, Khan Academy is a great free resource for math. It shouldn't be the only resource since kids can game the system, but it's a great way to let him go as far as he wants with math.