<p>On another note, even though I have a higher SAT score at 8th grade than my high school senior friend who’s applying to Duke, as well as a perfect ACT score in two categories, my IQ is only in the mildly/slightly gifted category. I suppose that I’m stronger academically, but I am far from an ideal student and am definetely not a “star” at my school. Am I gifted? To some, such as the tiger parents at the talent search awards ceremony, I am. They bombard me with questions about my study habits. But to the 6th graders at my school, I’m just another 8th grader who can’t do long division.</p>
<p>In our district the students are looked at in third grade, with entry into the gifted program happening in 4th grade. It is based on many factors- tests administered in 3rd grade specifically for this purpose, teacher rec, parent interviews, personality, etc. Gifted students have certain personality traits ie high intensity ( these are the kids that not only do a great presentation, but they videotape, memorize, and critique for two weeks as well), perfectionist, and hypersensitive. These are the kids that cry at commercials that other kids ignore, these are the kids that need special socks and want their tags removed from clothing. They tend to view the world through a microscope and notice every detail. These kids understand humor much earlier than their peers, and may react to tragedy on a different level. One can be an A+ student and not be gifted. One can fail every test and be gifted. Gifted kids do well on tests but they also have that " out of the box" thinking. A gifted child with an IQ of 140 is quite different than a gifted student with an IQ of 160. Some kids are gifted musicians or artists. Gifted kids typically have an imbalance between emotional maturity and academics, which explains the outbursts and tantrums that many have due to the inability to handle certain frustrations. And congrats to you on you standardized tests!!</p>
<p>The older I get, the less I think intelligence matters. I do believe a strong intelligence is necessary to succeed in most things, but it is not in itself a guarantee of success. I think for any two intelligent people, it comes down to luck and drive more than any difference in IQ</p>
<p>@Twogirls, thanks for your input. Some of your descriptions would actually fit my mildly autistic brother more than me, and I am certainly no perfectionist. Shyness can also be another characteristic. I can be quite extroverted around close friends or my academic peers, but can also be uncomfortable around others of my age. Although like emeraldkity noted, there are different types of giftedness and some people may actually be talented at working with people (think: politicians or world leaders). Thanks for the congralations too, but once I graduate, being talented at taking the SAT will be like being talented at building Legos. Cool, but of a time past.</p>
<p>I too think you would find the concept of multiple intelligences interesting. You have a journey ahead of you into high school, into college and beyond in the workforce. All your strengths…and your weakness come into play as you pass along. Some of your “gifted” peers will fall back as their “giftedness” was simply precociousness and some of the people that you, at this point, never give a thought about will excel beyond dreams. While it’s common for people to compare themselves to others, in the end you have only to answer to yourself where you take yourself.</p>
<p>I don’t think I have thought about “giftedness” since my kids were in elementary school. I kind of forgot about the concept and certainly forgot about caring about it.</p>
<p>Which is a relief because people get way to hung up on the idea and it creates a weird vibe with younger kids. It’s nice if your kids can go to a school where capable kids can accelerate where they need to and it doesn’t require IQ testing and labels.</p>
<p>I don’t understand why middle schools are taking SATs/ACTs and why the pressures on young kids are so great now that middle school is now high school and high school kids take college classes but I don’t think it has made the world a better place or kids any smarter, healthier or happier.</p>
<p>Yep, there are degrees of giftedness and then there is ambition, drive, sociability, emotional IQ, all go into the equation.</p>
<p>My oldest was always clearly gifted, taught himself to read at two, figured out multiplication and fractions in pre-school. Yada, yada. He was always incredibly curious and needed to know how everything worked. Eventually he focussed in on computer programming. Never had his IQ formally tested because everyone knew he was gifted. He got into the school’s gifted program easily - though they don’t use what I consider valid metrics at all. </p>
<p>Younger son was completely different. Couldn’t remember how to turn on the VCR, learned to read at 8, was the slowest in his class at multiplication tables, and I’m still not convinced he actually knows them all. He turned out to be gifted according to IQ tests, when we started wondering about LDs, though his scores were all over the map in various subsections. He’s very much a people person and always wondering why people were behaving in particular ways. He turned into a gifted writer, turns out to be very good at math, but very lousy at arithmetic. Ultimately he may do more to save the world than his older brother, who fits the classical definition of gifted much better. </p>
<p>I think Gardener’s approach is useful, but also incomplete.</p>
<p>Jamie you bring up an interesting point. My daughter was one of those kids who took the SAT in 7th grade. I did not push- it was her choice. She did not continue with the program because things got too busy and she had enough to do already. It’s really not necessary for a 12 yo to take the SAT. To this day she still refuses to tell me what the essay was because she signed an agreement. It’s been 3 years…</p>
<p>@twogirls,
You should be proud, your daughter’s word apparently is very important to her. That will serve her well, as will being intelligent enough to take SAT in 7th grade.</p>
<p>I agree with the outside the box thinking as part of the definition.</p>
<p>In preschool they had to bring in something for show and tell that began with the letter of the week (went A-Z during the school year). It was always amusing to see what my kid came up with - dust bunnies for D, toenails for T, etc. </p>
<p>In first grade she was tired of having 100’s on all her tests, so she decided to get a 0. Teacher gave her an A, telling her that she knew the kid had to know all of the correct answers in order to choose a wrong one!</p>
<p>In middle school every one of the gifted kids in her class bombed part of the state proficiency exam. It was later determined that they were reading too much into the questions and so no answer seemed right to them.</p>
<p>Well, just based on this post I would say your pretty gifted in writing as far as 8th graders go. Or maybe I’m just remembering the extremely low standards my middle school had when it came to writing… I think it’s way to hard to define gifted because literally EVERYONE is gifted in something. Being defined as academically “gifted” pretty much stops after middle school though because in high school you just go into AP and college classes and people just start considering you “very smart.” Idk, I feel like gifted is just a word parents like to use to make themselves feel special.</p>
<p>We NEED the gifted label- but properly applied. The highly gifted are just as different from the average person as the severely ■■■■■■■■ are. Bright is not the same. There is a continuum- think of the Bell curve. People have peaks and valleys in their relative abilities. A lot of research was done in recent decades that has helped students. Many problems come with deciding where to draw lines- when do you call a person slow versus ■■■■■■■■, bright versus gifted? This topic periodically comes up on CC. People need to read the gifted literature, visit gifted websites such as Hoagies and the Davison Institute. I’ve already posted in past years on the subject, one I was passionate about when son was growing up. Achievement, accomplishments et al are not the same as ability. btw- you can tell in little, everyday things how intelligent a person is- ability to solve problems and go beyond the routine. Asking, not answering the questions- I like that.</p>
<p>@kommatmebro and @wis75 Your points are interesting. We have passed the “Self-Esteem Movement” of the 1980s, but many adults of this generation continue the trend’s mindset. Psychologists theorize that participation awards and the like have actually hurt youths by robbing them of resilience. When I was in first grade, my parents taught me cursive, but my public school teacher did not allow me to use it in front of my peers. I actually had to put up a privacy shield that we normally used during tests. I understand that I had, in a way, an advantage over my peers that I certainly did not earn myself. But I also know that right now, I wouldn’t be hurt if one of my classmates earned a higher SAT score than I did. Competition is healthy. Applying the “gifted” label very freely is not necessarily best for the kids.</p>
I think it’s way to hard to define gifted because literally EVERYONE is gifted in something. Being defined as academically “gifted” pretty much stops after middle school though because in high school you just go into AP and college classes and people just start considering you “very smart.” Idk, I feel like gifted is just a word parents like to use to make themselves feel special.</p>