IQ 143: won't work?!

[Dutchje]

Hi,

My daughter of 6.5 yrs has an IQ of 143 & is currently in a 'normal' school here in the Netherlands. She's bilingual and doing very well in that area.

However, she's not being challenged enough in her class. Her teachers & my husband & I have come up with several more challenging exercises for her to do once or twice a week, but even though she likes the idea of them, she's really slow at getting on and doing them. Example: draw a picture in your exercise book & then write about it (sort of a 'news' story). If you literally hang over her shoulder the whole time there's no problem, but obviously the teacher can't do that the whole day, every day.

I'm getting a bit anxious about her ability to work independently. She seems constantly distracted by others in the class, always more interested in what's going on around her, but it just wouldn't be fair to her to have her sitting on her own in a corner every single day. We all see so much potential in her, want her to get more out of her day at school (she's constantly complaining that she spends every day doing the same sort of - easy- work), but she doesn't seem to want to cooperate when we set her a challenge!

There's a school for gifted children like her not far from us. We're wondering whether that might be the answer but don't really want to take her away from the school she's in now. She's so happy there.

The question is, I suppose, would more challenging work all day every day help her improve her concentration or not? If not, we can continue occasionally offering her more challenging work where she is now and help her with her concentration in her current class. If the problem's simply not enough challenging work spread out over every single day, maybe she should change schools.

Any advice would be welcome!

[specialmom]

I just wanted to add something.  Many kids that are highly intelligent have a lot of difficulty with friends.  They can be a bit odd sometimes from their peers.  They stay after to take Russian and their classmates stay after to do karate.  Make sure she is doing main stream activities that other kids her age do to keep her socially in the know and with people.  In this school and if she changes schools.  Kids with intelligence don't want to feel different because of it and often do.  I was tested as a child, both my sister and I, and we had very high IQ's (like your daughter's and higher) and I'll tell ya, my favorite thing to do at the age around when I was tested?  Play Barbies.  So mother to mother, I just worry that the keeping her stimulated is going to isolate her from normal kid stuff that ALL kids need to experience.  good luck

[specialmom]

Sounds like a good plan but I do also recommend that you put her in soccer, gymnastics, ballet, girl scouts, and let her play with play doh.  Don't make her grow up too fast just because she is gifted.  That is the mistake many make and their children then have even more trouble with their peers and often become insecure in ways that are hard to overcome.  Keep lots of play dates and social time for her that have absolutely NOTHING to do with academics.  Cater to her as a little girl as much as you do her intelligence.  good luck

[Dutchje]

Thanks all very much for your advice.

Her current school has offered us lots and lots of opportunities to keep her (educationally) occupied: chess lessons, learning languages online such as Chinese, Russian, Japanese, Spanish,...

We're going to leave her at this school (for now) and keep a very close eye on her both academically and emotionally. At the first sign that something's really not right, we're taking her straight to the school for gifted children in the next town.

Thanks once again!

[LyakGarcia]

you should try the gifted school for a day, I'm sure they will let her visit for a day to get to know the place, if she likes it transfer her, if she doesn't go back to the challenging homework, good luck

[AnnieBrooke]

I was thinking today of my nephew, who is by all measures gifted, and his favorite thing when younger was birds.  He memorized the entire bird book.  His mom was OK with him doing it, figuring that it was good enough for enrichment even if he was just doing it for fun.  

[specialmom]

Hm.  Well, we have several gifted children in our family----  I'd consider the other school but also----------  make plenty of time for free time.  Just because one is highly intelligent, at 6----  that does not equate to their having a strong desire to sit and do math problems.  The gifted children in our family enjoy activites such as playing instruments, playing sports (yes, they need as much of a physical outlet as other children if not more), and frankly, just hanging out.  I would never speak in front of her about her being bored.  It becomes a catch phrase that kids do learn and will  use themselves for behavior issues.  
I would look for other ways to add learning into her life------  museum programs, zoo programs, and things like that which are enriching without being tedious, more challenging school work.  
If the school is affordable though and fits into your lifestyle, then why not?  You can judge if it is massive homework with little benefit beyond her constantly being challenged then.  

Just my thoughts on it. Gifted kids still need to have lots of fun!!

[AnnieBrooke]

It definitely sounds like she's bored, and unfortunately it sounds like your little make-work assignments at home are kind of dull too.  Is there anything real she can do that is challenging to her brain?  A volunteer opportunity, or reading to younger kids at the library, or something like that?  I agree with the others that the school for gifted kids would be great.

[Sandman2]

    I agree with margy.  It is very difficult to challange a intelligent child in a normal class setting.  It can be done, but is certainly more difficult to do at this age given the lack of independence of the other students.
    I'd try the gifted school.  But there is no reason to make the switch now.  Wait till the new school year.  See if you can introduce her to other kids over the summer or if the school has summer activities.  
    There is a good chance her "lack of concentration" is simply that she has found more interesting things to do in her own head or in what others are doing around her.

[margypops]

Yes I think it would help her, she is not getting the daily input she needs it should be more consistent .As she is smart and gifted she should be at a school who will challenge her .good luck