by Sande Waybill

Created on: April 23, 2008   Last Updated: November 13, 2011

A gifted child remains a child, student, and a growing member of society; however, they will often have special needs within regular schooling to ensure their maximum potential is reached. If ignored or forced into the average pigeonhole with all others, their abilities are often faded or dampened down. Some may simply blend in, refusing to use their talents, whilst others tend to stand out and fight the system. Either way, the gifted child's struggle in the regular classroom can become a problem.

Most schools have some form of recognition for gifted students, but it varies between special entry science contests to week-long special classes. In some education systems, gifted children are given special lessons in a class selected for talented students. This may be for just one morning a week, or it may occur throughout the full school week. At other establishments, extra curricular activities may be provided for the gifted students, whilst they remain in the regular class at usual times.

Different establishments also have different rulings to ascertain which students are or are not gifted. For example, in NSW Australia, children are usually assessed in year four, but only considered if both English and math areas are showing above average results. In some American states, an IQ test is offered to ascertain which students should benefit from special classes or consideration. Both methods fail to provide for students with talents in the arts, sciences, and humanities. Gifted children within the regular class structure may therefore be pressured into achieving heights in the specified fields in order to be eligible.

Some gifted students may just find ordinary lessons boring, a waste of time that has to be gotten through, rather than a stimulating environment to maximize their educational expertise. Some rebel and act as though they have no talent whatsoever, scribbling rather than writing neatly, playing around or daydreaming instead of bothering to participate in lessons. If you feel that your son or daughter may be gifted, but that the school is not taking this into proper consideration, you can try talking to the teachers or principal about the situation. If this fails to produce the results you were hoping for, you might decide to get an independent opinion. Taking an IQ test, getting a psychologist's report, or providing samples of home-projects advanced from the classroom activity are all possible ways to get the school to notice that your child is gifted.

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