I guess my biggest problem is that it makes it sound like the parents of that 2-5% are nutty -- this article says, basically, "since most children aren't gifted, you can just forget the possibility that *yours* is."
This, for example:
True giftedness may be as rare as Einsteins and Mozarts ...
That's just not true. They just said a few paragraphs above that true giftedness occurs in 2-5% of the population. So that's really not all that rare -- 1 in 20 kids, 1 in 50 kids, whatever. Not all *that* unusual. I think it's very possible that a parent of a gifted kid could read that article and say, "Oh, I guess I am that doting mother" and discount the idea that his child may need sometime extra educationally.
There is also this quote, which doesn't make much sense to me:
Many parents of kids under 5 look to IQ tests for a number that will "prove" their child's ability. In truth, IQ testing doesn't tell you much before the school years and even then is generally considered unreliable. Why? Because "giftedness" is typically concentrated in one area and doesn't refer to overall intelligence, the focus of an IQ test.
Erm, that's why you don't just get FSIQ. It's perfectly possible to identify a gifted child before 5 who is gifted in just one area.
And then there's this:
Many parents want their kids to start kindergarten being able to read Dr. Seuss, write their names and count to 100.
But a kid who can do all that is actually going to have a harder time than his peers in school if he can't also sit still and listen, take turns, share and follow directions. Those are the real skills teachers expect kindergartners to have.
Herein lies our problem. Many of our kids *did* enter K reading Dr. Seuss, writing their names, counting to 100. And they're right -- these kids do have a problem in K, but not because they necessarily can't take turns or follow directions! This article makes it sound like all kids entering K with these skills were hot-housed. And if I were newer to the gifted scene and I read this article, I'd be much more reluctant to approach my child's school asking for accommodation -- I'd feel like my kid were destined to be a weirdo.
Of course, the parenting advice there is perfectly sound. But I think that it underscores the prevailing attitude we saw from posters in that other article -- that giftedness is either all in our heads, or it's far rarer than it really is, or that our kids don't have the right to an appropriate education and stimulation too -- even if it's not the norm for agemates.
I'd love to see a flip article about the emotional needs of gifted kids. *That* would be good journalism -- investigating both sides of the issue.
