AboutCarol Bainbridge Expertise I can answer most questions on parenting gifted children, from infants on. Questions can be about parenting, advocacy, and support and I can provide suggestions for toys and books gifted children love. I can even help you determine whether your child is gifted or bright, and I can point you to more information you might need. I can answer some questions about programs for gifted children, but can`t help much with information on colleges. Visitors wanting to know if their children are gifted might want to read the article "Is My Child Gifted?" before asking a question.
Experience I am the parent of a gifted child and have been working with other parents of gifted children for 13 years, helping them find support and providing them with information. I founded a local gifted organization and helped organize a parent day for a national gifted conference. I have been an active member of my state's gifted association since 1999 and created and maintain their Web site. In addition, I have created a website for parents of gifted children who are looking for toys and books for their children: www.giftsforlearning.com.
I am also the Guide About.com Gifted Children Site.
Organizations National Association for Gifted Children. Board member of state gifted association.
Expert: Carol Bainbridge Date: 5/28/2008 Subject: Gifted 15 month old
Question In reading many of the postings here, seems quite likely my 15 month old daughter is gifted - she is speaking in near-sentences, singing full songs, knows colors and shapes, counts to 20, even memorized ~10 state capitals, etc. So, my question is really whether it matters how early we have this confirmed? Would we be doing anything different in the 18 mo to 3 years age range based on the info that she is indeed gifted? Or, is this something that becomes more important with school related decisions? My wife and I are both committed to working with her closely (we are science geeks by trade ourselves) but curious to know how much the actual "diagnosis" of gifted matters at this point.
Thanks and great site.
Answer Hi Johnny,
Excellent question! Most parents just ask whether they should have their child tested or not, but you have asked the question that really matters and is actually how I begin answering such questions: how much does the diagnosis really matter at this age and would you be doing anything different based on the information that she is gifted? Indeed!
My guess is that you are probably already doing just what you should be doing, which is providing her the opportunities to explore the world and nurture her abilities. Getting an evaluation shouldn't make any difference. In addition to that, though, test scores aren't stable until a child is at least five years old, four for some gifted kids. That means that the results wouldn't really mean much at this point and if you wouldn't parent any differently, why bother?
Yes, testing is usually done more for school-related decisions. Good testing is done by someone who has knowledge of and experience with testing gifted kids. And thorough testing by such an expert will provide you with a good deal of information about your daughter's abilities and learning style. It's good to know that information to know if a school or program is a good match for the child.
Before school, though, parents can easily tell what interests a child and what doesn't and a child learns at his or her own pace, not like school where all children are expected to learn at about the same rate. By the time your daughter is old enough for school, you can easily tell, even without a test, whether the school will provide her with what she needs. My guess is that if she is already able to count to twenty, she will not get what she needs in school.
You might want to explore the idea of early admittance into kindergarten.
