Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion Weird Comments about GT kids

Someone made a weird comment about Mr W this week.

He is in private academic PreK with kids 1-2 years older. He is pretty big for his age and is not the smallest in class. In all areas - verbal, writing, reading, he is ahead of everyone.

Why then would anyone mention his age and then say, "I don't know why he is in this class?"

I'd go with a couple possible options --

- he hits at a parental insecurity for that parent b/c he is academically more advanced than the parent's child and the parent has bought into the idea that parenting is what makes a child achieve highly or be gifted;

- the parent doesn't know that he is younger and the comment was more directed toward him being underplaced with the assumption that he is older and you are holding him back with younger kids in order to fulfil your own parental ego or something else. (Of course, if they mentioned his age, this is unlikely);

- the parent is unaware that he is advanced and doesn't know why a younger child is in the class.

Either ignorance or parental insecurity.

Your choice.

LOL!!!!

Well Austin,
everyone sees the world through their own filters so you can rely on the idea that what seems obvious to you is probably anything but to others...

If you hear it to your face, you can try - this is where he was felt to be healthiest and happiest.

Everyone wants kids to be health and happy.

((shrugs))
Grinity

Just an update. The person who made the comment is just a little spacey. So it was not a serious observation. And Mr W has charmed her like he has everyone there. I am not sure that its good that people are drinking the Mr W Kool Aid but at least its one less thing to worry about.

I tell my kids to try not to talk about their ages until the other kids get to know them. That way their ages aren't seen as primary thing defining them.

My daughter has been 7 for about two weeks and is in 3rd grade. Even so, she's slightly taller than most of the kids and fits in perfectly. For her, second grade would be the place where she'd stand out like crazy. She'd be a head taller and light years ahead.

My son skipped two grades and so is smaller than most of the kids in his class. But he has good social skills and fits in pretty well. No one has asked him about his age yet, and the school has been wonderful about accepting him. There were no questions or issues whatsoever about his age. Small brag: the kids had to take a math test, and the top 15 scorers were picked for a group that will train for the Math Olympiad. For some reason, they were given the same test that they took last year. DS (who didn't go to that school last year) scored 4th or 5th, in spite of the fact that he was competing with kids who had already taken that test once. I was proud of him. The school is GT friendly, which is really nice.

Fortunately, no comments from parents yet.