10 Signs Your Child May Be Gifted

You know how it is. You check your email and then you see a news story that is interesting and then you Google something from that story and before long, you are way off topic and have spent a lot of time at the old computer.

Today I glanced at a story about Gifted Children and their characteristics. If you spend a lot of time with a lot of children, it should become clear to you that some do seem to have lots going for them. Some of the characteristics include:

Retain Information
Wide Spectrum of Interests
Is Musically or Artistically Talented
Has an Advanced Vocabulary
Acts as His Own Critic

I don't know who the original writer of the story is. You can Google it and find the same story in a lot of different places. (Search for "10 Signs Your Child May Be Gifted") The first thing I noticed was in the part about Wide Spectrum of Interests. It said this:

"Gifted kiddos display an interest in a wide variety of topics. They may like dinosaurs one month, space the next month, and so fourth."

Oops, not so gifted in spelling. And the word "fourth" was spelled that same way in all the sources I looked at. In this day and age of instant everything, it seems jokes and misspellings travel around the world in the blink of an aye, oops, eye.

But this all brings up a very important point. I looked again at those characteristics and do you know who I immediately thought of? I think you do. Can we all agree that most likely when Stephen was a little kiddo in school, his teachers all thought he was gifted?

Think about it.

Retain Information - Stephen is a storehouse of information. And if he doesn't know something, he can easily make it up.

Wide Spectrum of Interests - Just think of all the guests he has on, all the places he visits, all the interests he demonstrates. From speed skating at the Olympics, to running for President of the United States, to wrestling with Jason Chaffetz, to writing poetry about Paul Revere, to learning proper etiquette when meeting the Queen, to sailing the Atlantic Ocean... the list is endless.

Is Musically or Artistically Talented - Hello!?!? Have you ever listened to him sing? Have you ever watched him dance? Have you seen how well he can draw Snoopy?

Has an Advanced Vocabulary - One word: Truthiness

Acts as His Own Critic - Stephen constantly is evaluating himself. Just think back on how many times he told us about his many awards.

So, yes. I think we can all agree. Stephen was most likely a Gifted Child in his younger years and he hasn't lost any of his gifts.

And if by chance you are looking for more information about Gifted Children, you can go the the National Association for Gifted Children website.