I'd like to start by saying that I'm not sure if my daughter is bright or gifted. After reading through some of the threads, I'm leaning towards bright. But, I am a very hands on parent and I love doing activities with my daughter and trying to stimulate her as I know birth to 5 is the time of the most growth and frankly, sometimes it can be difficult to keep up with giving her learning materials as she learns so quickly-which is something some of you all may also struggle with?
So from 12 months to 18 months I planned activities daily for her (I work from home). Trying to expose her to as much as possible. Then my husband left me and we moved in with my parents (was supposed to be just a month, but it's been 6 and possibly looking at 6 more months till my house is ready. Baby girl is 26 months. But:
-at 6 months the milestone list the doctor said was way benign her abilities and at the 12 month appointment she had met nearly all the milestones when we were at the 6 month apt. If that makes sense?
-we start signing around 11-12 months and she really took off at 14 months when we started baby signing time. I have ambitions to turn it into a second language once I start taking my asl classes. Atm I feel like I'm holding her back. Because she just absorbs signs. And I don't know all the signs.
-language wise she is doing 2-3 word sentences. She picks up on English very quickly. And patterns and routines. Label something roughly once and she knows it (pot pie, chocolate milk, anything I eat or do-she learns it. Getting her to try it is another story).
-she clans up her toys when asked
-she has her ideas about clean and will find anything out of place. A single thread on a clean floor? She'll find it. As well as helping feed the dogs, or folding laundry. She's on it.
-testers her foot of her pajamas got wet. She blew me away when she first got a towel. When that didn't work, she took her clothes off and put them over the heat vent. Not even kidding.
-she learned to work the DVD player by watching us
-she has a tablet she learned to use fully by herself. I download learning games and she figures out the games and concepts in a flash. She sorts, plays memory, 2 step games (wash the fruit and match the profile. If you pick your finger up you start over). I noticed she didn't get match/memory games right away. I got some mickey match cards in target dollar isle, and we used those and she picked it up that day.
Right now she is struggling with tracing, but improving daily.
-she could count to 10, with help by age 2, which she learned room a disney learning adventure dvd. Now at 26 months she goes to 7 by herself. Counts objects like magnets, m&ms unprompted.
-she is VERY sensitive. In the sense that she gets MAD and in the sense that she gets embarrassed very easily and runs to a corner and hides if corrected.
-and her attention span. Wow. I spent 40 mingus reading bed time stories last night. And we stopped, not because she didn't have the attention span for more, but rather because I couldn't keep my eyes open. Similarly at Disney on ice she was glued the whole first hour. Lost attention after the intermission when they did toy Story and Mulan-2 movies she wasn't familiar with.
But I don't think she is a full year, or years ahead or anything. My friend babysits a boy turning 3 in March, and he knows more words and speaks in longer sentences, so while she is ahead of kids her own age that we meet, I think it is more of her being bright than gifted.
I'm sorry this past got so long. I think I just don't feel like I have a safe place in my real life to sorry all this out. Naturally grandma (my mom) thinks she is gifted, and I can't sort it out with other moms less they feel I am comparing her to their child or saying their child is behind.
I don't think I really expect any responses, I just needed to get my story out there whet I won't be judged and I'm hoping this is that place.
(Unless of course anyone has ideas to keep her simulated during the day. Activities we aren't doing our the like)
