Characteristics of Gifted Children and Gifted Adults
A couple of comments on a friend’s post last week got me thinking about Gifted Children.
“she says that [child] is the smartest child she has ever taught, (she has been identified as gifted) and that the behavioral issues are part of her gifted-ness (apparently gifted children have little things they do, that they frequently aren't even aware that they are doing) and if you tried to force her to conform, we might crush the part of her that is creative and special. (not that [child] can be forced, she is very much like [your child] in the sense that she WILL NOT be compelled, she wouldn't read until she wanted to, wouldn't speak until she wanted to, and to this day won't do something for you just because you want her to. Not rudely, she won't sass, she just won't.)”
And then another comment later, “And what is it with stubbornness and gifted kids? Geesh.”
This opened up a whole other explanation for that defiant childhood behavior my mother had recently been talking about. Up until I read those comments I’d been pondering the possibility that as a kid I had Oppositional Defiant disorder (because hey, we have to label every behavior in kids these days, don’t we?). But those comments got me thinking that maybe I was being stubborn/a problem child because I was probably a gifted child? My childhood was so long ago that I don’t think that any of the schools I attended had “gifted” programs yet (Yeah, I’m that old). However I do know that my high school SAT scores qualified me for membership in Mensa (people who score in the top 2% on standardized intelligence tests).
This weekend I started doing some reading on Gifted Children on the Internet, because I was curious about associated behavior problems. But first I had to answer for myself the question, was I gifted, or just a smart kid? This Page answered that question for me. It’s got a big table of “Bright Child” compared to “Gifted Child” statements.
Comparing bright and gifted learners (chart)
Bright child
Gifted child
Knows the answers
Asks the questions
Interested
Extremely curious
Pays attention
Gets involved physically and mentally
Works hard
Plays around; still gets good test scores
Answers questions
Questions the answers
Enjoys same-age children
Prefers adults or older peers
Good at memorization
Good at guessing
Learns easily
Bored -- already knew the answers
Listens well
Shows strong feelings and opinions
Self-satisfied
Highly critical of self (perfectionistic)
Learns with ease
Is mentally/physically involved
6-8 repetitions for mastery
Has wild, silly ideas
Understands ideas
Discusses in detail; elaborates
Enjoys peers
Beyond the group
Grasps the meaning
1-2 repetitions for mastery
Completes assignments
Constructs abstractions
Is receptive
Initiates projects
Copies accurately
Is intense
Enjoys school
Creates a new design
Absorbs information
Enjoys learning
Technician
Manipulates information
Good memorizer
Inventor
Enjoys straight-forward,
Good guesser
Sequential presentation
Thrives on complexity
Is alert
Is keenly observant
http://www.tagfam.org/whoisgifted.html
Janice Szabos, Challenge, 1989, Good Apple, Inc., Issue 34
And then I found some grad student’s rough research notes that they planned to turn into a paper later. It included the following list:
Most Prevalent Characteristics of Giftedness
99.4% learn rapidly - check
99.4% have extensive vocabulary - check, I love words
99.3% have excellent memory - for some things, it gets a little crowded in here
99.3% reason well - Very well
97.9% are curious - about most everything
96.1% are mature for their age at times - check
95.9% have an excellent sense of humor - Hee!
93.8% have a keen sense of observation - check
93.5% have compassion for others - check
93.4% have a vivid imagination - a little too vivid, there’s a reason why I can’t watch horror movies
93.4% have a long attention span - when I’m not bored by what I’m working on
92.9% have ability with numbers - not so much, I’ve got some dyslexia around strings of numbers
90.3% are concerned with justice and fairness - check
89.4% have facility with puzzles and Legos - check, I’m really good with puzzles
88.4% have a high energy level - Not so much, but then again I’m 100 pounds overweight and have had recent issues with depression…
88.3% are perfectionistic - check, OMG check
85.9% are perseverant in their areas of interest - check
84.1% question authority - check
80.3% are avid readers - check
And all that Web research on gifted children led to me wondering what happens when those gifted adults grow up? There really was very little on the Web about former gifted children as adults. Some people seem to think that giftedness is just about developing early, but that it all evens out once we’re all grown up. I have a theory that some of those kids end up being underachievers, and some end up throttling down so that they fit in with everyone else. I did finally find one pretty good page about Gifted Adults, but it was a single page. However their description of Gifted Adults does an eerily good job of describing me:
Gifted adults have a complex intellect and a burning desire for information. They have high levels of energy, intensity and sensitivity, set exceptionally high standards for themselves and others and are extremely hard on themselves. They are very independent and perceptive, like to be in control, are frequently driven, full of self doubt and often feel they must be self sufficient.
Hard on themselves? Full of self doubt? Control freak? Driven to be self-sufficient? Well, at least I know where all that comes from now.
“she says that [child] is the smartest child she has ever taught, (she has been identified as gifted) and that the behavioral issues are part of her gifted-ness (apparently gifted children have little things they do, that they frequently aren't even aware that they are doing) and if you tried to force her to conform, we might crush the part of her that is creative and special. (not that [child] can be forced, she is very much like [your child] in the sense that she WILL NOT be compelled, she wouldn't read until she wanted to, wouldn't speak until she wanted to, and to this day won't do something for you just because you want her to. Not rudely, she won't sass, she just won't.)”
And then another comment later, “And what is it with stubbornness and gifted kids? Geesh.”
This opened up a whole other explanation for that defiant childhood behavior my mother had recently been talking about. Up until I read those comments I’d been pondering the possibility that as a kid I had Oppositional Defiant disorder (because hey, we have to label every behavior in kids these days, don’t we?). But those comments got me thinking that maybe I was being stubborn/a problem child because I was probably a gifted child? My childhood was so long ago that I don’t think that any of the schools I attended had “gifted” programs yet (Yeah, I’m that old). However I do know that my high school SAT scores qualified me for membership in Mensa (people who score in the top 2% on standardized intelligence tests).
This weekend I started doing some reading on Gifted Children on the Internet, because I was curious about associated behavior problems. But first I had to answer for myself the question, was I gifted, or just a smart kid? This Page answered that question for me. It’s got a big table of “Bright Child” compared to “Gifted Child” statements.
Comparing bright and gifted learners (chart)
Bright child
Gifted child
Knows the answers
Asks the questions
Interested
Extremely curious
Pays attention
Gets involved physically and mentally
Works hard
Plays around; still gets good test scores
Answers questions
Questions the answers
Enjoys same-age children
Prefers adults or older peers
Good at memorization
Good at guessing
Learns easily
Bored -- already knew the answers
Listens well
Shows strong feelings and opinions
Self-satisfied
Highly critical of self (perfectionistic)
Learns with ease
Is mentally/physically involved
6-8 repetitions for mastery
Has wild, silly ideas
Understands ideas
Discusses in detail; elaborates
Enjoys peers
Beyond the group
Grasps the meaning
1-2 repetitions for mastery
Completes assignments
Constructs abstractions
Is receptive
Initiates projects
Copies accurately
Is intense
Enjoys school
Creates a new design
Absorbs information
Enjoys learning
Technician
Manipulates information
Good memorizer
Inventor
Enjoys straight-forward,
Good guesser
Sequential presentation
Thrives on complexity
Is alert
Is keenly observant
http://www.tagfam.org/whoisgifted.html
Janice Szabos, Challenge, 1989, Good Apple, Inc., Issue 34
And then I found some grad student’s rough research notes that they planned to turn into a paper later. It included the following list:
Most Prevalent Characteristics of Giftedness
99.4% learn rapidly - check
99.4% have extensive vocabulary - check, I love words
99.3% have excellent memory - for some things, it gets a little crowded in here
99.3% reason well - Very well
97.9% are curious - about most everything
96.1% are mature for their age at times - check
95.9% have an excellent sense of humor - Hee!
93.8% have a keen sense of observation - check
93.5% have compassion for others - check
93.4% have a vivid imagination - a little too vivid, there’s a reason why I can’t watch horror movies
93.4% have a long attention span - when I’m not bored by what I’m working on
92.9% have ability with numbers - not so much, I’ve got some dyslexia around strings of numbers
90.3% are concerned with justice and fairness - check
89.4% have facility with puzzles and Legos - check, I’m really good with puzzles
88.4% have a high energy level - Not so much, but then again I’m 100 pounds overweight and have had recent issues with depression…
88.3% are perfectionistic - check, OMG check
85.9% are perseverant in their areas of interest - check
84.1% question authority - check
80.3% are avid readers - check
And all that Web research on gifted children led to me wondering what happens when those gifted adults grow up? There really was very little on the Web about former gifted children as adults. Some people seem to think that giftedness is just about developing early, but that it all evens out once we’re all grown up. I have a theory that some of those kids end up being underachievers, and some end up throttling down so that they fit in with everyone else. I did finally find one pretty good page about Gifted Adults, but it was a single page. However their description of Gifted Adults does an eerily good job of describing me:
Gifted adults have a complex intellect and a burning desire for information. They have high levels of energy, intensity and sensitivity, set exceptionally high standards for themselves and others and are extremely hard on themselves. They are very independent and perceptive, like to be in control, are frequently driven, full of self doubt and often feel they must be self sufficient.
Hard on themselves? Full of self doubt? Control freak? Driven to be self-sufficient? Well, at least I know where all that comes from now.