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Unfortunately, we can't create a gifted child even though most parents try. They are born that way, but any parent would agree that it would be great to hear their child's teacher say, "Hey, I think your child is gifted." Still, there are draw backs to having an advanced child and behavioral issues could be one of them.

Like all children, gifted children are unique. It could be that your particular gifted child is nice, sweet and at peace in the home, school or with his peers in the neighborhood. Still, it could also be that the gifted child won't be the one who makes straight A's or always behaves appropriately. It could be that the first sign of a gifted child will be the fidgety, distracted, inappropriate classroom behavior the teacher will note is excessively heard and seen.

This article will address identifying the gifted child and what this identification can do to the child's behavioral and emotional development, with tips on how to resolve any behavior problems that might arise with a gifted child.

* What qualifies a child as being considered gifted?

The definition can be confusing, as what may seem to be a gifted ability might not be seen as gifted within the public school system. A child might be gifted in only one area and have a learning disability in others. That's why teachers are trained to identify the gifted child even from those children with language or learning disabilities.

Intelligence is made up of several different aspects of ability and a child can be gifted but still below the developmental level of his peers in certain areas of learning. The key is what and where he exceeds his peers in performance, ability and achievement. The book, "Gifted Children," by Ellen Winner, describes three atypical characteristics of gifted children.

1. Precocity: The child begins mastery of some domain at an earlier age than average and seem to be more curious than other children are.

2. Independence: They work and learn independently and don't need much guidance with instruction. In fact, they are so independently based that it's difficult for them to pay attention in class.

3. A rage to master a concept: They are intrinsically motivated to make sense of the domain in which they show precocity and can be intolerant of the classroom teacher's need for order and routine.

It's the combination of an obsessive interest in a certain area along with an ability to learn easily in that area which results in the high achievement level these children demonstrate.

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