Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Age or Ability Specific Forums When did your gifted child talk/walk as baby???

I can't remember everything my son did but I recall wondering from a very early age whether there was something different about him.

He smiled at 2 weeks old (within the range of normal as far as I was aware)and was very very alert. We were in the emergency room when he was 2 weeks old and the nurse didn't believe me that he was that young and had to check our files. He was never a relaxed, cuddly baby (except when breastfeeding) and wanted to observe everything going on around him.

His first verbal communication happened at 5 months old (no one believed me) and by 12 months he had more words than I could count.

At 16 months he knew all primary and second colours, basic shapes, letters (but not phonics at that point) and numbers up to 10.

He recognised his written name by 20 months (when he started child care). And at this point he was speaking in full sentences, which delighted his carers because he also didn't sleep so they this hilarious little child to chat to while the other kids napped.

He has always been extremely social. From 10 months he would complain and often sob if any one he'd engaged with left the room. This could be a stranger in a lift who'd smiled at him or a friend at the park.

All his physical milestones were within the range of normal, which was very frustrating to him. He desperately wanted to write and draw at 2 but his fine motor skills were way behind his head so he didn't really start happily drawing until 3 or so. We have long periods of zero drawn or written output even now for the same reason, however it doesn't seem to stop his ability from progressing and now he is writing sentences unassisted from time to time.

Reading happened at 5 when he when he saw how useful a skill it was for my partner's child (who read at 3 but is the same age as my son). He's now just six and has gone from reading fairly basic Dr Suess to Harry Potter in 2 months without any instruction from me beyond answering his questions. He's played on a few reading programs on the internet, but he mostly practised his read on environmental print.

What an interesting thread. I've never been one to compare my child to others as a general rule, but somehow it is comforting to read of similar children to mine.

My two were/are late doing everything... crawling, walking, talking, etc. No early reading for the first (but she was half-blind before she got glasses at 4.5 so who knows what she would have done). I will say that she NEVER stops talking or asking questions now. Little man (almost 2) only says about 20 words but knows quite a few letters and all of his colours. He recognizes his name and can spell it with magnetic letters. His fine motor skills are insane. He does 30 piece puzzles. Did I mention that he can barely talk?

I find I watch DS much differently than I did DD. I completely missed any signs with her. Maybe I am watching too closely with him and looking for something that isn't there. Who knows?

OMG, mine too!

Do we have the same kid?!?

Most of the time, we can�t understand what DS21mo says, but he can do puzzles for ages 5+ without help.

New to the board, and am starting to see tons of similarities from your posts in my little guy.
He uses 2-3 word sentences at 12 months, and is always on Que. when asked a question. His timing is amazing. He is very sociable and wants strangers to notice him.. if they don't he stares at them smiling until the do... He really won't leave them alone until they show him some kind of attention. He laughs to himself a lot, and seems to get things that other kids his age wouldn't understand.
He's very aware of everyone around him. Has a fascination for putting tiny ipod speaker cables ends into the little jack. The tinier the better...

So is speaking in 2-3 word sentences early a sign of giftedness?????

Hitting milestones early can be a sign of giftedness, especially early verbal ability. Welcome!

Welcome SLB.

I would suggest getting a copy of Dr. Deborah Ruf's book 'Losing our Minds'. She has changed the title recently but it is the same book. She does a solid job of identifying specific characteristics of the gifted in the young group (infants and toddlers). It is definitely a start in trying to figure out if your little guy is gifted or not and to some extent what level of gifted.

My fairly average daughter hit almost every milestone early. My twice exceptional son was late at everything except walking. Neither crawled.

I assumed my daughter was very bright because of her early skill acquisition. But in about 4th or 5th grade her peers began to catch up and now she is only in the top 25% of her class. Her IQ scores range from average to high average.

Milestones can be an indication of giftedness, but it is not a slam dunk.

Thank you! I will def check out this book

Older son who is 2E:

Smiled responsively: 6 weeks
Sat: 6mo
Crawled: 7mo
Pulled to stand: 7mo
Walked: 13mo
Talked: 18mo with the exception of 1 word
Read: 5 years
Read well: 9 years

Younger son:

Put pacifier in own mouth: 1 week
Smiled: 6 weeks
Sat: 6 mo
Crawled: 7mo
Talked: 10mo
Walked: 13mo
Read: 2 years
Read well: 3 years