Instead of starting threads taking the piss out of G&T children why don't you all just...

[PhantomOfTheChocolateCakeAvena]

stop it. It's pathetic.

Thanks.

One child I know took part in an international maths challenge and came 42nd in the world out of 100,000 entered. He is more 'normal' than some of the others I know who are on the G&T programme but just brighter than average.

Avena, I have two sons who are in the Australian version of G&T (which is significantly different to the system in England).

DS1 has ongoing social difficulties yet DS2 doesn't.

I think if I only had one child who has been classified G&T and has social issues I would have presumed there was a link. When we've focused on helping DS1 with his social issues we've taken his academic ability into account, but only in respect to taking the whole child into account.

Some G&T children will have social difficulties, some will not. By focusing on the G&T aspect there's a danger of compounding the problem because we're not necessarily addressing the right issues, just the obvious ones.

I was bullied because my parents lived in a council house and I wore hand me down clothes. I was free from the bullying for being bright as long as I kept quiet and let others copy off my work.

It's anything that makes you stik out IMO.

I don't need it Kerrymum thanks [rofl]

Ah but Mabanana we are back at the chicken and egg thing - they are bullied beacuse they are odd; why are they odd because they are so exceptionally clever they don't have a clue in the playground.

But I am now going to bed since DS2 has give up trying to escape from his room and either got back into bed or is sleeping in his wardrobe again. Yes really .

Interesting Lorem. Social skills is either easy to pick up or a child needs some support in this.

Er, Obama got a degree from Columbia University in New York and subsequently went to Harvard Law School. (next bit is from Wiki) At the end of his first year, he was selected, based on his grades and a writing competition, as an editor of the Harvard Law Review. In February 1990, in his second year, he was elected president of the Law Review, a full-time volunteer position functioning as editor-in-chief and supervising the Law Review's staff of eighty editors.[30] Obama's election as the first black president of the Law Review was widely reported and followed by several long, detailed profiles.[30] During his summers, he returned to Chicago where he worked as a summer associate at the law firms of Sidley & Austin in 1989 and Hopkins & Sutter in 1990.[31] After graduating with a Juris Doctor (J.D.) magna cum laude[32][33] from Harvard in 1991, he returned to Chicago.[29]

The publicity from his election as the first black president of the Harvard Law Review led to a publishing contract and advance for a book about race relations.[34] In an effort to recruit him to their faculty, the University of Chicago Law School provided Obama with a fellowship and an office to work on.....

I would say that counted as more than averagely intelligent, wouldn't you? I think he might just about scrape into that top 5%...

Have skim read the thread and wanted to add my two penn'orth.

This topic isn't called 'the very occasional child who is truly gifted/talented and has associated problems'.

It is called Education;Gifted and Talented. This is clearly referring to the Gifted and Talented programme used in UK School, which many people (myself included) find fairly ridiculous, as there is no correlation between schools (so a child can be average, move school and suddenly become gifted). Some parents of children on the register can see their child's presence on the register as 'validating themselves as parents' and congratulate themselves both on their fantastic parenting and on their superior genes. Many others just accept it for what it is and get on with life (many on MN who don't broadcast their child's G&Tness).

Some parents of babies aspire to have children who are G&T and post silly threads on here, to try and ascertain whether their baby is truly brilliant (eg - I'm worried about where to send ds - he lifted his head up 2 weeks earlier than average - a real thread). Or 'What do you do with a gifted 3 year old? - she is always asking me questions like 'why do flowers bloom?'.

Couple that with a hint that being G&T is as much a SN as autism for example and it's no wonder the board becomes used for joke threads. No-one is mocking the children - rather the whole concept prevalent in our schools that 10% of children are G&T and 'need' to be labelled as such.

They won't take it seriously, Kerry!

You stretch them sideways KerryMum. ds will never do philosophy at school so we chat about philosophy. He does spend alot of time repeating things at school but for a quiet life he gets on with it. It's not as bad now though.

my clever, clever child may be profoudly gifted, we don't know as it wasn't important, she has a photographic memory (made a brilliant satnav at 3, never forgot any journey) and had a reading age of 12 at 5. Her emotional wellbeing was more important to me. she didn't do nursery but went to a very play focused playgroup. I taught her nothing before school, even tho our GP said we should help her to read at her 2 year check as she had the speech of a 5 year old. I wanted her to fit with her peers. She learnt to read and was on chapter books within 6 weeks of starting primary

We encouraged a love of books, she was happy reading board books or chapter books. and very happy reading reference books. If she wanted more kowledge, she went and found it, I have never heard her say she is bored

She sailed through her exams

Her IQ is 160 (I think, I know she beat me)

I never focused on her academia, it is one tiny part of her. Neither has she

I think sometimes, making an issue out of it, makes it an issue

One of my brother's friends was apparently pretty thick (un-pc I know) at primary school but ended up working on the space shuttle programme and is now a Professor at the University of Texas. It's sometimes hard to tap into the vein of talent.

KerryMum: "mabanana - you don't get it. In some kids it IS the cleverness that causes the social ineptness. If a child doesn't SEE things like his age peers or has comprehension and intellect far beyond his age peers he\she IS different because of it."

The cleverness doesn't cause the social ineptness but the social ineptness does cause the rift. By assuming that a child's non-connection with his peers is an innate part of cleverness there's a tendency not to tackle the real issue; the child's lack of social skills.

Mabanana I don't think he would. I have many, many friends who have far greater academic achivements than those; and others who have been hugly successful in their chosen field.

MN is (was) full of enormously clever woman.

I have got a First in Maths, an MBA, a professional qualification, am in the 2nd year of an accelerated LLB (having won best 1st year student) and I am in no way even nearly exceptionally bright.

And clearly can't spell for toffee....

With my own son, we learn all the time and it often has little to do with what he's doing at school. What are atoms made of? Erm....let's look at this science website.. How are fossils made? Um, let's get a book out of the library...and so on and so on. YOu seek out good teachers, mentors, good schools, let them educate themselves and encourage their interests without making a big deal about it and certainly without the pressure of a label.

Gomez, sorry, but if you have a first in maths etc etc, then yes, you are exceptionally clever. Much, much more intelligent than most of the kids on the G&T register, yet you think you are perfectly average!
Obama's academic record is exceptional. Only a tiny, tiny proportion of the will come anywhere close.

But Mabanana what if your 5 year old is telling you what atoms are? And then asking you to explain some quantum physics? Or is insanely interested in chaos theory/proving Fermatt last theorem or whatever. That is oddly clever, not bright not engaged but exceptional.

They don't use the G&T label (sp?) at ds's school. I'm not sure if it's just a state school thing. It's alot better, there's pressure on them to work well but not to excell. I hate to see parents push their children. They only get one childhood. I find that I can answer/discuss most of his questions at the moment. I'm just happy I can keep up.

Not average no - fairly intelligent, well educated yes but not exceptional.

I think you would be surprised at the number of posters on MN with far, far superior academic qualifications than. And others who are more intelligent but perhaps less educated.