I highly recommend Parenting.com's article, Is Your Child Gifted?. In the nutshell, the article says that the term "gifted" is misused and overused. Although many want to believe their child is special, every child is not gifted. The article goes on to list what parents can do to help every child.
In the homeschooling world, I tend to gravitate toward the gifted homeschooler groups, because we are secular homeschoolers primarily concerned with the quality of our sons' education. Therefore, the conversations in the gifted circles tend to be more pertinent to me.
To be honest, I don't know whether my sons are gifted or just very bright. Others think our sons may be the former, but we have no desire to pursue that further.
Our reasoning is simple: a determination would change nothing. Our goal is to meet our sons' needs, whatever they may be. So far, their needs are primarily for more challenging materials and experiences, and we attempt to provide that. I also see certain personality traits that could be associated with the gifted. Whether they are in this case is irrelevant for me. My task remains the same: to help my sons understand and work with those traits so they can lead happy, full lives.
That is why I liked the Parenting.com article. Essentially, the artcle advises to stop worrying about labels and just be there for your child. I suppose that advice works for us because we can tailor to meet the boys' needs in a homeschooling setting. The same may not be true for those in other settings. Still, I believe that the article goes a long way in the right direction in any setting.
In the homeschooling world, I tend to gravitate toward the gifted homeschooler groups, because we are secular homeschoolers primarily concerned with the quality of our sons' education. Therefore, the conversations in the gifted circles tend to be more pertinent to me.
To be honest, I don't know whether my sons are gifted or just very bright. Others think our sons may be the former, but we have no desire to pursue that further.
Our reasoning is simple: a determination would change nothing. Our goal is to meet our sons' needs, whatever they may be. So far, their needs are primarily for more challenging materials and experiences, and we attempt to provide that. I also see certain personality traits that could be associated with the gifted. Whether they are in this case is irrelevant for me. My task remains the same: to help my sons understand and work with those traits so they can lead happy, full lives.
That is why I liked the Parenting.com article. Essentially, the artcle advises to stop worrying about labels and just be there for your child. I suppose that advice works for us because we can tailor to meet the boys' needs in a homeschooling setting. The same may not be true for those in other settings. Still, I believe that the article goes a long way in the right direction in any setting.
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