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    How to tell if your baby is gifted or not

    posted by Karen Quinn, The Testing Mom - September 18th, 2023

    As parents, we all believe our babies are special and unique. Still, some children exhibit certain traits and behaviors that might indicate they are gifted. ‘Giftedness’ refers to an advanced level of cognitive and intellectual abilities, often evident from an early age. If you’re wondering whether your newborn to two-year-old baby could be gifted, here are some common signs to look out for.

    Top Signs Your Baby May Be Gifted

    1. Exceptional Alertness:

    Even as newborns, gifted children often display a high level of alertness. They are keen observers, attentively absorbing their surroundings and stimuli.

    2. Advanced Motor Skills:

    Gifted babies often reach physical milestones earlier than their peers. This can include holding their head up, rolling over, crawling, or walking. They display better coordination and balance, showcasing advanced motor skills.

    3. Early and Extensive Language Skills:

    Gifted children frequently develop language skills at an accelerated rate. They might start babbling, speaking, and even forming simple sentences earlier than the typical age range. These children often have a larger vocabulary and more complex sentence structure than their peers.

    4. Excellent Memory:

    Gifted babies often exhibit a surprisingly good memory. They remember small details, recognize faces, and can even remember places or routines. They might also be quick to remember and repeat activities they’ve observed.

    5. Curiosity and Fast Learning:

    Gifted babies are typically quick to grasp new concepts and are often visibly curious. They are eager to explore, constantly interacting with their environment, and learning from it. Their ability to rapidly understand cause-and-effect relationships is often notable.

    6. Problem-Solving Skills:

    Gifted children often demonstrate excellent problem-solving skills. Even as babies, they can find innovative ways to reach a toy, open a container, or maneuver obstacles. This showcases their analytical thinking and creativity.

    7. Sensitivity and Intensity:

    Gifted babies can be more sensitive and responsive to their environments, demonstrating strong reactions to sounds, colors, or changes. They might also be intensely focused, exhibiting high levels of concentration for certain activities.

    8. Advanced Social and Emotional Development:

    Gifted babies can often display advanced social and emotional development. They may exhibit empathy or understanding of social cues at an unusually early age. They might show signs of self-awareness and understanding of others’ feelings beyond their age.

    9. Preference for Older Companions:

    Gifted babies often prefer the company of older children or adults over other babies. They enjoy more complex play and conversations, which older companions can provide.

    10. Exceptional Creativity and Imagination:

    Gifted children frequently exhibit heightened creativity and imagination even at an early age. They may engage in complex pretend play or come up with creative solutions to problems.

    It’s important to remember that these signs can vary greatly among gifted children. Just because your baby does not exhibit all these characteristics doesn’t mean they aren’t gifted. Every child develops at their own pace, and it’s essential to celebrate their unique journey.

    If you believe your baby is gifted, consider having a conversation with a pediatrician or a child psychologist for professional guidance. They can help evaluate your child’s abilities accurately and provide recommendations on nurturing their potential.

    Identifying giftedness early can help cater to your child’s unique needs, providing them with an environment that challenges and nurtures their potential. However, whether gifted or not, every child is unique and extraordinary in their own way.

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    Tell us about your experiences

    12 Responses

    Prisca

    My son is 8 months old and he exhibits all the above mentioned traits I’m afraid he’s gifted and I have no fund to seek assistance of a child psychologist.

    TestingMom.com

    You can always ask your pediatrician for their thoughts on this!
    Just follow his lead regarding interests (while still maintaining discipline and some structure- even gifted kids still need loving boundaries). If he loves books, give him lots of books and read a lot. If he loves music, provide lots of exposure to quality music. Make his environment interesting and content rich. Talk to him a lot, show him things, take him places, expose him to lots of people and new experiences.
    I hope this helps!

    Jennifer

    My son is exhibiting all of these expectations

    Ronald

    My baby is a girl 7months now, though she’s not crawling by now. Why

    TestingMom.com

    This is something you can ask your Pediatrician! Children develop at different rates so there is no need to worry!

    SJ

    My boy is 13 months he can say over 30 words make animal noises, follow instructions, been walking since 10 months, can say two/three words sentence like “good boy” …”I did it” count from 1-5 but can also say 13, 16, 18 and 20 but only when I count with him. He can say colours for example “this is blue” he will say blue … he can’t yet identify the colours his self …he can with veg like pea and carrots and apples …for example he will give me a apple and say apple. His childminder says he is sooooo advanced for his age is unbelievable! ……I don’t know if he is gifted or not and I don’t want to go and ask incase I get laughed at or even mum shamed like “oh look at her thinking her kid is special” because we all like to believe are children are ….i mean he rather smart but gifted I don’t know.

    Ava

    13 month old saids Daddy,Mama, I did that, monkey, uncle, Debbie, gold girs( golden girls) vegetables, Santa.

    Jessie

    I have a 3 month old. She is super alert and observes everything. Sometimes I don’t know weather it is normal since she is my first one or if she really is advanced because when others see what she does they are all very surprised and say she is so advanced.

    Examples include.

    1. At 3 weeks she turned over from tummy time. I thought it was a one a time accident and normal because she was so small. But she continued to do it repeatedly.
    2. At one month she began to hold her bottle. Not all the time not the full sitting but long enough and often enough to show intention.
    3. At 6 weeks she started talking the baby talk. Today at 3 months she will be in her playpen talking and playing by herself. If you talk to her she will talk back or she will just be talking bygerself.
    4. At 2 weeks she got a slight fever and stuffy nose. I had to use the baby Frida to clear out her congestion. For the first 2 times she hated it complained after the second time it seems she noticed it was helping her and anytime that I used it in the following days she would just lift her head and let me do it with no fuss. Once I was done she would take a big breath in relief. She only began to complain once she wasn’t as congestion anymore and it got uncomfortable. Same thing with me cleaning out her nose today if it gets boogers.
    5. She takes a binki we give it only when she is very fussy. And if she wants it she will keep it I not she will take your hand and push it away from her mouth and fight your hand from giving it to her. But if she wants it and it’s falling out she will intentionally push it back in. If she is tired of it she will intentionally take it out. (Mind you she is not intentionally picking up toys and brining it to her mouth yet).
    6. Finally she has held her head and become very observant and interacting with her surroundings since 6 weeks.

    Idk if it is too soon to tell but in comparison with other babies we know she definitely seems advanced in these areas

    Cheryl

    My granddaughter was turning over at 2 1/2 months she can say I love you. Hi baby yeah my Mommom at 4 mths old . she watching everybody looks at everything around her .We talk normal to her likeshe can understand what we say she was laughing one morning and I said to her what’s my mom look funny and she said yeah she’s totally amazing now she’s four months and three weeks I can’t believe how smart she is how observant she is and she pays attention to everybody and everything and she’ll sit with us and watch TV what we’re watching do you think she’s gifted?

    TestingMom.com

    Your granddaughter sounds delightful! If you believe your baby is gifted, consider having a conversation with a pediatrician or a child psychologist for professional guidance. They can help evaluate your child’s abilities accurately and provide recommendations on nurturing their potential. We wish you the best!

    Dawn

    My baby girl was advanced like this, at 18 months daycare put her with the 3 yr olds so she fit in & was happier. Our pediatrician was a huge help, she was always 6-12 months ahead, and “play therapy” with a psychologist helped tremendously. Making music instruments and art/craft supplies always available helped when she got frustrated.
    In her case, it turned out she is on the autism spectrum, “high functioning.” Having a child psychologist on my team helped SO much!

    TestingMom.com

    Thank you for sharing this info!

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