How to raise intelligent children

[wowsers6]

I've got a DS1 and I'm really keen to give him the best chance of using as much of his potential as possible to become intelligent and get ahead educationally.

It makes a big difference to things like how much they enjoy school to be smarter younger so I'm wondering what tips people have to raise smart kids?

He's shown an early interest in reading letters and numbers and counting so I want to do as much as I can to nurture it.

Any tips?

You’ve confused intelligence with being academic but they are too different things. Intelligence is 100% taught and nurture over nature and involves analysing the environment around you (including people) when making a decision - its as much eq as iq. Being Academic is a personality trait and it’s why super geniuses with photographic memories or who find memorisation / academics easy but true intelligence difficult don’t tend to do well in life.

Read, talk, let him explore lots of activities to find the one he loves. Encourage but don't push. Teach him how to evaluate both sides of an issue, and how to make good decisions. Above all, listen to everything and don't ever be shocked, even when you are ( and you will be!). Keep listening!

@JustAMinutePleass sorry I disagree - intelligence is innate, although can be nurtured. It can't be taught. Enthusiasm, curiosity, confidence can also be encouraged.

Intelligence is pretty much set at birth however you can nurture a love of learning and try to get them to make the most of their intelligence. Limit screen time, read and show them that you read. Read to them even after they learn to read. Go places and have conversations. My older child loved reading and writing so we did get some things to teach her at home as she desperately wanted to read and write. My younger child is happy scribbling and looking at picture books and being read to so we won't be teaching her to read early.

Intelligence is 100% taught

^

Nope. Why aren't we all geniuses then??

Our parents just didn't love us as much as some PPs love their children

Surely there’s got to be the innate intelligence there? Is it possible through sheer force of Will and flash cards to turn your child into an academic success when they are not that bright?

Thank you for all the great advice. It seems that talking them a lot, reading, answering questions and getting out and about outdoors and to see things are the main tips.

I can understand people saying isn't intelligence innate and yes the potential might be, but I can certainly see that circumstances make a difference and that's the bit I'm trying to influence. I think most parents do.

Yes circs do count. But relax. Give Time. A warm well fed child. Parent or care giver who talks and listens. Books books books (library) . Sing rhymes together. Get to their level and count dead leaves and talk about the colours you see outside. Allow creativity. Play ball games. Let them take risks within reason eg at a playground. Dont be uptight if they mark a wall. Jump in puddles with suitable clothing.

Then If the child does not have SEN it will all come naturally.

He jumps in puddles even with completely unsuitable clothing! If he wants to do something, like stand and stare at a puddle on the way to the park and that uses up most of the time we were going to spend at the park, we just do that. I let him dawdle and investigate what he wants (within reason, I'm talking investigating a daisy on the ground not a car park or something dangerous).

So far so good, he is very talkative and interested in the world around him.

My 4 year old does this.

He is a strong willed, experiental learner. So it’s often just better for him to do what he wants and face the consequences. He decided to run around in the mud at school last month, wouldn’t listen to me to stop and come to the car, then he slipped, fell, got covered in mud from head to toe and he hated it. He hasn’t done it since.

Yes, this.

I seem to remember research decades ago when I was doing a Dip Ed saying the prime correlation for high academic achievement was simply whether you ate meals together as a family.