What are the characteristics of giftedness in children?
Intellectually gifted children markedly exceed the average expected for their age on IQ tests. They usually have a more advanced, precocious language, and their speech is so complete, articulate and organized that one sometimes has the impression of talking to young adults.
They may also experience social difficulties and oppositional behavior.
To go further, have your child undergo a neuropsychological evaluation.
Why assess your child's giftedness?
Assessing your child's giftedness helps us to better understand his or her intellectual potential and to provide appropriate support throughout his or her school career.
Intellectually gifted children often present a profile where their potential may be far greater than that of their peers, but with a gap between their emotional and social development that remains in line with the norms of their age.
By identifying giftedness early on, you can promote harmonious cognitive development and prevent emotional and behavioral problems.
The difficulties of a gifted child
Children with high intellectual potential (HPI) often face specific challenges due to their unique profile. For example, they may have difficulty adapting to school or have complex social relationships. Their ability to adapt can be challenged by these differences, which manifest themselves in the way they express themselves, as well as in their play interests.
Because of this intellectual peculiarity, they can find themselves isolated and sometimes even rejected by other children of the same age. The problem? In the medium to long term, this rejection can have a profound effect on the individual, leading to the development of an anxiety disorder.
An assessment enables you to adapt educational and support strategies to meet your child's specific needs. By assessing your child's emotional, social and academic needs, you can give him or her the best chances for the future.
In addition, a giftedness examination often includes an analysis of the child's creativity, intuitive and analogical thinking. Skills that are essential to the development of a child's full potential.
Is giftedness a disorder?
No! Giftedness is not a disorder, but an asset, a factor that facilitates success.
Contrary to popular belief, intellectual giftedness often favors learning and academic success.
It can also improve social relations, enabling the individual to quickly understand his or her interlocutor, decode unspoken words and grasp social codes in a variety of contexts.
School exemption
The Quebec Ministry ofEducation has established that, to enter kindergarten, children must reach the age of five between October 1 of the year preceding their entry to school and September 30 of the year of their entry.
Similarly, to enter first grade, the child must be six years old between these same dates.
Parents whose children are born after October 1 may be tempted to ask for an exemption so that their son or daughter can start school a year earlier. The Ordre des Psychologues du Québec has established very clear guidelines on this subject.
When examining the child's giftedness, the psychologist must then prove that delaying his or her entry into kindergarten or first grade could be harmful.
To grant an exemption, it's not enough to say that the child is awake, knows his letters and numbers, or can already write and read a few words.
The psychologist must demonstrate that the child has a significantly higher level of development in the following three areas:
- Intelligence (IQ)
- Socio-affective development
- Motor skills
At CERC, we consider two other aspects that we know are essential for school entry:
- Attention span / concentration, self-control and impulsivity management.
- The level of development of phonological awareness (which is a precursor to learning to read and write).
Ourevaluation servicesfor school exemptions are carried out in one morning. The first half-hour is spent with parents or caregivers. The rest is spent with the child only.
Questionnaires will also be given to parents, some of which will be completed by a childcare educator.
IQ assessment
Some specialized schools require that an intelligence test (IQ) be administered to the child and that the results be forwarded to them.
We carry out this type of test, which lasts around two hours.