Advice for parent of incoming kindergartener with genius IQ

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Advice for parent of incoming kindergartener with genius IQ

by Aunt Allie

Apr 1, 2012

Hello,

My nephew will start kinder this fall... he began reading at 3, has an encyclopedia for a brain, he's beyond kindergarten and his parents have not introduced him to the internet yet. He will be in GT. He's ahead of where my youngest was at his age and she is in GT.

Most kids his age know as much about the internet as most people. They resist my urging them to introduce him to it, so I thought I would ask for some advice from GT teachers to see what they suggest. I think that if they knew what you all were using or suggest, that would really help them.

He's so beyond Starfall and a lot of the products out there.

All ideas appreciated. Allie

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GT Teacher On 4/01/12, Aunt Allie wrote: > Hello, > > My nephew will start kinder this fall... he began reading > at 3, has an encyclopedia for a brain, he's beyond > kindergarten and his parents have not introduced him to the > internet yet. He will be in GT. He's ahead of where my > youngest was at his age and she is in GT. > > Mo...See MoreOn 4/01/12, Aunt Allie wrote: > Hello, > > My nephew will start kinder this fall... he began reading > at 3, has an encyclopedia for a brain, he's beyond > kindergarten and his parents have not introduced him to the > internet yet. He will be in GT. He's ahead of where my > youngest was at his age and she is in GT. > > Most kids his age know as much about the internet as most > people. They resist my urging them to introduce him to it, > so I thought I would ask for some advice from GT teachers > to see what they suggest. I think that if they knew what > you all were using or suggest, that would really help them. > > He's so beyond Starfall and a lot of the products out > there. > > All ideas appreciated. > Allie

Gifted children such as your nephew are not in danger of losing their giftedness - despite popular belief to the contrary. Think back to the gifted children of the past - like Einstein or Thomas Jefferson or John Stuart Mills or any of them and know they retained their 'giftedness' despite the fact that they did not have parents or an aunt who were interested in helping them realize their potential.

But yet they did realize their potential and without the Internet too. I raised and taught gifted children both before and after the Internet and my post-Internet gifted students were not ultimately more gifted than my pre-Internet gifted students. My post-Internet students were more skilled with the Internet and with computers in general.

That many 5 year olds know a lot about the Internet - I'm not sure what they know unless they're allowed to peruse it at will without any adult supervision. In that case, they certainly will know a lot and a lot sooner than might be healthy for them.

I'm not sure what you have in mind exactly - the many websites for math games etc? Do you see your nephew looking up string theory on Wickipedia? Or reading up on competing theories of the origins of human civilization?

In my experience, most kids -including gifted kids and especially young kids - use the Internet as a source of entertainment. They become quite skilled at finding pictures of funny cats and the old Hamster Dance website and laughing uproariously. As they get a bit older, they become equally skilled at finding other kinds of pictures... They love games and computer-based video games.

But they really don't use the Internet as a source of information or go on any journeys of intellectual exploration. Even gifted children are yet children. The children I know who use the Internet as a place to explore are often exploring the things they otherwise can't access - the dark side of things... the spy sites and the hackers' havens.

So I'd say I'd understand your nephew's parents hesitating to seemingly encourage a young child to open the Pandora's box and mixed bag that is the Internet. They could certainly show him how they do when they download their latest car registration form or buy airline tickets or look up any information they might need but if you're suggesting that he be allowed or encouraged to use the Internet as a source of entertainment, I'd say -whatever happened to playing outside? Or building with blocks or climbing trees?

And rest assured it's only a matter of a little bit of time before some teacher is giving him a list of facts he needs to look up on the Internet and another teacher is showing youtube videos every day in class because that's all modern kids will sit still for.

Apr 4, 2012

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