So DS just turned 5 and I have never used the word gifted with him. He is a PG kid and I would assume that he knows he is different in some ways but doesn't know the term gifted. He has asked before about why some people can't do certain things, but it has never been a big deal to him at all. He also knows that he is better at some things than adults. He will ask me to play a game or something and has said before "I know that you aren't that good at this game, but I still really want to play it with you." He doesn't think he is rude, just stating a fact. He is constantly called smart by people (strangers, doctors, people in stores, friends, everywhere). I hate when this happens, but there is not much that can be done about this as he is quite extroverted and reads in public and does math outloud in public, etc. Recently when someone said he was smart he matter of factly said "yeah I know." So a few days ago I asked him if he knows what smart really means. And he said yes, it is when you make good choices and do the right things. I liked his answer. I explained to him that we all have different brains and do things differently, and explained that people will often comment that he is smart when he is doing things that other people aren't always doing...but that it is most important what you do with the things you know, not just what you know. I left it at that. He is skipping K this year, but I am worried that when he is in a class with tons of kids and they are learning basic things that he has known forever, I fear that he will think that something is wrong with him. Also I applied for DYS and if he gets accepted I will at some point probably have to mention something to him about being "gifted." I don't like labels, have no problem using it as an adult, but am not sure about him knowing labels and am not sure how this discussion should go.
So my question, after this whole long thing, is how did you talk with your child about this? When did they realize they were gifted and how did you go about explaining some of this to them?
