Tuesday 22 July 2008

Having A Gifted Child

I received notification from the school yesterday that Joshua's been identified within his peer group as a Talented and Gifted Young Learner. They've directed us to a website for him to join to get support and to encourage him in the areas he's advanced on. There's also a forum for parents offering support in parenting a gifted child as their needs are different to a child on the average spectrum.

It hasn't suprised me. He's shown the signs of this for a couple of years now. For the last year he's been complaining that maths is too easy and that science just starts to get interesting and the lesson ends. He needs more. He's not satisfied with knowing the basics. It's starting to sink in that my son, given the right support and encouragement, shows the potential to do extremely well in the future.

I'm scheduling a meeting with his teachers and headteacher at the beginning of next term as I'm not really sure how to deal with all this. I'm proud, but also incredibly nervous that he's not set too apart within his peer group. I'm also keen to ensure the school have a dedicated professional qualified to deal with gifted children as from my experience the children with learning difficulties get far more help and support than those who are advanced.

I want him to be successful but not at the expense of still being a nine year old child. I need help with this and I need to get the balance right.

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