Do you think my baby is "gifted", or am I just being one of those moms who...?

Question

thinks there kid is so special but they are actually just normal? I am annoyed with myself for thinking he is so special, because I have always thought those women were so annoying. I don't say anything to anyone about it ... but i seen other kids at the park his same age and and they just say barely anything. He has been talking full sentences since 12 months old, and sings tons of songs and dances...and makes up his own songs that are pretty good. Also, his vocabulary is better than some adults I know. He also vert articulate and logical... for instance, yesterday, he called his dad "Frank" his first name. I said "why did you call him Frank instead of daddy?" An his reply was "because Frank is his name, daddy is just his title"... well here is a link to a movie of him singing Do-Re-Mi from "The Sound of Music".. He was 28 months old in this video. Let me know what you think? Is this normal for a 2 year old?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Cg1LUOY6BCk

Answer 1

You may be asking yourself this question; How do I know if my child has a gift or talent?

Answer these questions:

1. How old was your child when they began talking?

If the answer to this question is between the ages of five and ten months, your child may be gifted.

2. How old was your child when they used complete sentences?

If the answer is between the ages of eleven and sixteen months, your child may be gifted.

3. At what age did your child first draw recognizable pictures?

If the age is between twenty and twenty-six months, your child may be gifted. This can vary greatly. Check with the local Art Museum, College Art Department, or an art teacher in your area.

4. Has your child ever won an art, dance, writing, or music contest?

This may be his or her talent.

5. At what age was your child able to write his or her own name?

Quick Characteristic List:

Very observant , noticing details other children of the same age would miss, including non-verbal cues
Extremely curious about objects, ideas, situations, or events.
May learn to read early , often before age 5 (whenever they do learn to read, they learn quickly)
Will read rapidly and widely, after learning to read
Large and sophisticated vocabulary - enjoys using new and unusual words
Great intellectual curiosity, wanting to know everything about everything
Absorb information rapidly - often described as being like sponges
Excellent memory - often have a large storehouse of information about a variety of topics, which they can recall quickly
Long attention span compared to other same-age children
Excellent reasoning and problem solving skills
Intense interests
Unusual and/or vivid imagination
Interested in philosophical and social issues -- for example, the nature of the universe, the problem of suffering in the world, environmental issues
Very sensitive, emotionally and even physically - can become upset easily, even over seemingly minor issues (like the feeling of seams in socks), but can be moved almost to tears by the beauty of a sunset or a song. They may also want to quit eating meat out of sympathy for animals.
Concerned about fairness and injustice -- very aware of rights and wrongs
Energetic , sometimes needing less sleep than other same-age children (sometimes high energy level is confused with ADHD)
Asks "what if" questions , showing ability to construct hypotheses
Well-developed sense of humor
Perfectionistic
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More Detailed Traits List:

Learn quickly and with less practice and repetition
Usually intrinsically motivated to learn (star charts and stickers don't work well to motivate them)
Enjoy learning new things, seeking information for its own sake as much as for its usefulness
Enjoy intellectual activity, thriving on intellectual challenge (can get bored with slow instructional pace and repetition)
Relate well to parents, teachers and other adults (often prefer company of older children and adults over same-age peers)
Have well-developed powers of abstraction, conceptualization, and synthesis, (Can understand and handle abstract concepts at younger ages than other children
Display intellectual playfulness, which shows up in a desire to fantasize and imagine
Prefer books and magazines meant for older children (many prefer non-fiction to fiction, including biographies, but like mysteries and detective stories)
Skeptical, critical, and evaluative , making them quick to spot inconsistencies
Asynchronous development (physical, intellectual, emotional, and social development are very uneven -- i.e. a 6 year old child may be like a 10 year old intellectually, an 8 year old socially, and a 6 year old emotionally.)


Love the video, he is so cute and smart!

Answer 2

Your son is absolutely adorable! He's definitely very well above average in the language and social department for his age. It's very hard to say whether or not a child is gifted based on what their status is at age 2. No matter what questions you answer or what someone tells you, what a child is like as a toddler isn't paralleled to what they'll be like when they're older. Every year i have to go to a conference to renew my degrees, i guess that's the easiest way to put it, and i remember about two years ago, one of the speakers showed us a study that they did on students at Harvard. It compared 15 students' developmental levels at ages 12m, 18m, 26ms and 36ms to prove how what a child is like at a young age doesn’t necessarily prove what they’ll be like as a college student. At age 2, some of the students compared were talking and running around just like your son, while other's barely spoke or moved. Some were reading at 3 while others didn’t even know their alphabet yet. It all depends on how much a parent/school works with a child and how well the grasp concepts thrown at them.
Gifted is the wrong word. You can be an average person, lack in common sense and still be in a gifted program in a school if you have terrific study and memorization skills. Naturally smart fits perfectly for your son, someone who grasps and applies concepts very easily. Just watch to make sure that other skills (large motor skills, small motor skills) develop on time. Sometimes a child can be off the charts on some skills while being way below average on others. Motivate him to keep learning new things and make sure he's challenged when he starts school. You're very blessed to have a son like this and the last thing you should be is annoyed. He's a very smart, cute little guy =] Best wishes!

Answer 3

My daughter will be 2 next Tuesday and she is learning a lot quicker than other kids her age that I've seen. I'm not quick to say that she's gifted because I don't want to sound conceded either, but ever since she was born I've been totally amazed by what she learns and how quickly she learns them. Anyone that sees her in action is just as amazed as I am. She's been talking in complete sentences for almost a full year now and ever since she started talking, it's always been amazingly clear. Right now, she's to the point where she doesn't want anyone to do anything for her. She wants to do it all herself. And just this weekend, she started counting all by herself and we weren't even talking about numbers at the time. She started counting from 1 to 5 over and over and then she started counting to 10 (only she leaves out the number 7). My husband and I were just in complete shock when we heard her do that all on her own without anyone's help. I did manage to get her on video also! But anyway, to answer your question, is your son gifted..... I don't know, but if he is, then my daughter is also! He sure is adorable though!

Answer 4

Well my three year old started talking earlier than most kids his age and was potty trained by 28 months and can write his name and draw pictures of animals, mama, daddy etc. But I don't think of him as gifted because i don't think he is. It just depends on the amount of adult interaction that your child has. HOw much do you readto him, how much do you talk to him, etc. etc. I have a 3 year old nephew that is so far behind my 3 year old son and even my 23 month old daughter {who was 6 weeks early and is a little slower on picking up things than kids her age} but my nephew don't have any interaction with adults. They just put him in a room with a tv and toys and thats his babysitter most days. So don't start thinking of him as gifted until he can start doing trig calculations without even thinking about it LOL

Answer 5

That's pretty clever--now you should teach him how to snap his onesie and ask yourself why he's not potty trained already. Just kidding, sort of. The point is--your child does seem advanced verbally for a 2 year old, but that doesn't make him 'gifted'. I'd be wary of labels like that, especially at such a young age.
Appreciate his talents, but remember, he's 2!!! Both of you should enjoy this time in his life....he'll be 17 before you know it.

Answer 6

Your child is certainly bright. I think all parents think their children are special, and I think all children are special somehow. Just be careful not to push your dear son too much. Encourage him, but don't make him. If he is indeed "gifted" (which it sounds like he very well could be at least with vocabulary) be sure to nurture that. I am assuming that you are a major factor in his rapidly advancing vocabulary...good for you!

Answer 7

While it seems he is quite bright for his age (no doubt there), you will probably see a little less difference between him and other children around age three, when the others start catching up. However, he does seem very smart. Be sure to tap into that so it does not dissipate when he gets to school age like often happens.

Answer 8

Watch out if you're teaching him through TV how to do these things, as that can cause his attention span to quickly vanish, and school will be the dullest thing for him as he's used to fast moving TV.

That said, if it's your doing, encourage it all the way. Gifted kids in my opinion are those that have parents that encourage them to learn and help them along the way. It's nurture, not nature basically so keep at it.

Answer 9

conceptualization, and synthesis, (Can understand and handle abstract concepts at younger ages than other children
Display intellectual playfulness, which shows up in a desire to fantasize and imagine
Prefer books and magazines meant for older children (many prefer non-fiction to fiction, including biographies, but like mysteries and detective stories)
Skeptical, critical, and evaluative , making them quick to spot inconsistencies
Asynchronous development (physical, intellectual, emotional, and social development are very uneven -- i.e. a 6 year old child may be like a 10 year old intellectually, an 8 year old socially, and a 6 year old emotionally.)

Answer 10

He's advanced and I'd say gifted..my son was the same way, although if he ever called me or his dad by our first name he'd have been in time out. So be proud of him, but let him move at his own pace. Don't push him. Mom to 3...one a gifted little snot..lol..lol

Answer 11

awww hes so cute...My daughter was talkin really good at 2 also and loved to sing too.
There is nothing wrong with being proud of ur kids just don't obsess of it. When u put him in school they will test him then maybe u can find out if hes a smart one.