Have you ever asked yourself if your kid is gifted?
This topic is worth exploring, as you might want to understand how to become a better parent and nourish the talents of your children.
Some signs drawing your attention might be that the child talks endlessly, asks numerous questions or reads a lot. They might have a unique sense of humor or be wiser than other children of their age.
It should be noted that kids are not gifted in the same way. For example, some of them may excel in all areas, while others could have extraordinary abilities only in Math and Science and be average in other areas.
Although children demonstrate their giftedness differently, there are some characteristics that they might share, including the passion for learning, the ability to pursue many interests or being independent and persistent in their studies.
The Talented and Gifted app
Before enrolling your kid in a formal gifted program, you will need to keep their young mind busy. Kids Academy has designed an application with gifted and talented children in mind. The Talented and Gifted app lets pre-schoolers and elementary school children explore their potential and learn new things.
It follows a structured curriculum and allows children aged 2-10 to increase their knowledge of Math, English and Science. In addition, the arts and crafts course allows them to explore their creative side. The Talented and Gifted program from Kids Academy includes educational videos, interactive worksheets and quizzes, as well as learning games.
What are gifted programs?
If parents decide to enroll their child in a gifted and talented program, they should first of all research the available programming and ensure that it is appropriate for their child’s needs.
Then they must have their child pass state or district-approved tests before they can join a gifted program.
After that, they need to consider the options normally offered by gifted programs. One option may be that your child stays in their regular class but receives special accommodations, such as enrichment activities or extensions. These programs allow gifted kids to stay in their regular classes, but get deeper and more challenging learning opportunities.
Alternatively, if your child is capable of accelerating and excelling at an advanced level, it might be possible for them to “skip” a grade.
Another option is to be full-time with gifted students. This will allow your child to get the best of both the worlds: enrichment and acceleration.
Why it might be beneficial to enroll your child in a gifted class
Gifted children who are not challenged enough can get bored and will sometimes misbehave because of frustration, so your child might need an accelerated program. However, there are some things to consider, for example, being one or two grades ahead of children of the same age can lead to social-emotional challenges. On the other hand, lack of intellectual peers in a class might not allow your child to fit in.
All in all, it is up to you to make a decision and to find the right program to help your gifted child realize their full potential.
