Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Age or Ability Specific Forums Pre-school Does the rate of development slow down?

I have finally come to terms with the fact that DS is not like other children his age. For whatever reason I was really resistant to the idea that he is one smart kiddo but I am trying to embrace it and let my son do his thing (which is construction at the moment.)

Can I expect his rate of learning to slow down as he moves closer to PreK age? I often wonder if right now he seems to be learning at such a rapid pace because he is still so young and so many major milestones happen within the first two years or if it's because that's who he is.

At 18 months my son learned the entire upper case alphabet in 2 days without me doing anything. It was the same with numbers 1-9. About 2 weeks later we were out at a store (18.5 months) that had stickers on the window that read: SALE $7.95. We were inside the store so the letters and numbers were backwards to us.

My son declared that he saw letters and numbers and then proceeded to name them all correctly. It seemed to me like a big cognitive leap to be able to see letters and numbers backwards and still know what they are. Am I crazy? Is that as out there as I think it is for a kid that age? It seemed so incredible to me that in a span of 2 weeks he developed the ability to manipulate the image of numbers and letters in his head so that he can correctly identify them even if they are backwards.

I gave him a lower case alphabet puzzle at 19 months and though I really thought I was hallucinating I swear he knew them all after an hour or two. At least he was telling me what they all were so I assume this means mastered them.

He can also recall everything I tell him about a new book after reading it once or twice. (turned 20 months today! Maybe this is normal for that age?) And maybe this is also normal, but if I ask him to point to a bulldozer he points to the picture but if I ask him to point to the word bulldozer he will point to the word and not the object. It's like that for all things construction because he is obsessed! Again, it seems like a rapid acquisition of knowledge to be able to go from recognizing letters, to realizing letters form words, to recognizing the words for his most beloved objects in about 6 weeks.

I spend a lot of time trying to "get" my son. He seems to learn at an incredible pace but I don't know if it's his age or it's him. If it's who he is, what is life going to be like at 3, 4, or 5? Does it slow down?

Sorry for typos. I am on my phone.

For my son, it hasn't remotely slowed down and he is 4 and a half. Enjoy this time. It goes really quickly. :-)

It's all normal for your son. This is who he is.

When you meet another little one, watch to see what is normal for them. Every kid is different, and few will be like your son in the ways you described.

I perceive letters and numbers the same backwards and upside down. I can tell they aren't forwards, but it takes very little more effort for me to read mirror writing or a page someone across the table from me is looking at. Some people are just wired that way. It hasn't caused me any problems, that I know of.

The easy answer IME is no, it doesn't slow down. Buckle up!

My advice is
1. forget about normal (whatever that is anyway). Most kids I seem to know have their own version. Often ahead of what the experts say, sometimes behind. Asynchronous to the extreme seems to be the common theme in my little bubble, of course YMMV.

2. follow his lead. My goal was to try to encourage a love of discovery and learning wherever my kid's passions took us (of course this would be my goal regardless of their IQ). Sometimes this meant a lot of google searches, sometimes it meant going into topics far earlier than I would have chosen (existential angst in a toddler/preschooler is fun, so is actually answering "where do babies come from, no like exactly how? show me how!" after my vague high level answers weren't enough (although I did managed to avoid the show me part....)).

3. be prepared for other parents and kids to notice and be ready for it to not necessarily bring out the best in them.

4. enjoy

Nope.

What you describe is quite normal - around here! But definitely not an age-typical thing. Your DS does not sound like a child who will grow out of it. There may be periods of consolidation. He may even seem behind age peers at some times and in some ways over the years. But these kids who learn by "developmental leaps" rather than smooth growth seem to just keep on doing it.

I taught DS10 some algebra this year, and I am newly stunned on an almost weekly basis at the directions and leaps he has taken with that little bit of info at hand, from number theory to particle physics to speculations on the multi-dimensional nature of an infinite universe.... Honestly, I think he's just gathering momentum.

Not in my experience; it just changes course and proceeds in a more stepwise fashion, with larger, discrete appearances of content apparently mastered. For instance, DS hasn't been exposed to much math other than basic counting and numbers. We showed him a 5 minute Brain Pop Jr video on place value last week and he completely internalized it. (I know this because he was talking about it fluently in his sleep.)

What you may see over the next few months is a shift in gears from learning basic literacy/numeracy to content areas of interest. I found the 2-3 year coincided with DS' burgeoning interest in life sciences (esp. immunology and hematology) and philosophy. For this reason, I'd urge you to get out and get active in your community and read widely together, to offer him a wide array of interests to choose from.

Good luck! That age can be exhausting but also tremendously enjoyable.

Gifted kids can plateau, and can also grow in leaps.

Some learning environments can thwart a gifted child's growth by lack of appropriate curriculum and pacing.

The challenge as parents may be to keep a gifted child's intensity channeled into positive activities.

Every kid is different.

For, my DD10 the curve has flattened she still makes impressive leaps at times and the gradient is still steeper than most kids even years older than her.

The curve is more of an arc with some bumps (steps) in it from what I have observed in my DD.

I think that the curve apparently flattens as they learn more and more about the world and develop broader and more varied interests. Sort of like the way that a river meanders as it reaches its floodplain.

But, as others have succinctly put it, when you have seen one gifted kid you have seen one gifted kid...

I also think that development can go stealth as our kids age. My kids were much less interested in talking to me about all their amazing non-stop questions once they hit late elementary school - so I kinda miss all the early developmental explosions.

OTOH, we still have absolutely fascinating discussions - I just have to start them much more of the time now

polarbear

Developmental leap was the term I was looking for in my brain! My Mom was an early childhood educator (3rd grade, 1st grade, then PreK) so I spent my entire life surrounded by the way kids generally learn and it always seemed gradual but steady and my son is not like that in any way. I am a gatherer of information by nature and there is very little information for me to gather on young toddlers that pertain to my son. I'll read a parenting article or part of a book and none of it describes what I'm living! I live in the Twilight Toddler Zone.

When he wants to learn something he does so instantly. If he does not want to learn it he won't. I claim that stubbornness comes from my husband but I am the same way.

I guess in some ways I'm still second guessing what I am seeing in my son though it seems ridiculous to do so when I think about it rationally.