Who thinks it is ridiculous when someone says his/her child is bored in school?

[Anonymous]

It's nonsense to suggest anything about "truly gifted" not becoming bored. Gifted children are not born with an instruction manual, development plan, or some mystical universal secret of staying entertained wired into their heads. Like any kid they too need to be nurtured and guided in constructive directions as they develop. Anyone who does not understand that knows nothing about child development.

[Anonymous]

12:01, it is simply not true that "3-5% of kids have IQs of 140+" as you say. See this page from a well-regarded site for gifted kids: www.hoagiesgifted.org/underserved.html.

Scroll down to the table. The table shows that IQs of 130-144, which is the range for "moderately gifted," occur in about 1 of every 44-1000 kids. So IQs of 130 occur in about 2.3% (1/44) of kids. IQs of 144 occur in about 0.1% (1/1000) of kids. That's not 1%, that's 0.1% of kids. The categories of "highly," "exceptionally" and "profoundly" gifted kids are even rarer. There aren't as many cheetahs and ferraris as you think.

Let's take this further. Wikipedia says DC public schools have 44,000 kids. So multiply this by 2.3% and you get a total of 1,013 kids with IQs of 130 or above in the system. Spread over 13 grades K-12, this comes out to 78 kids per grade with IQs of 130 or higher. You can start to see how this isn't a huge priority for DC with so many other needs.

I agree completely with you that govt should spend more on education and less on defense et cetera. But wishing and picking fights on DCUM won't make it true.

[Anonymous]

NP here, with my two cents. Regardless of giftedness or not (a red herring, in my opinion), the key to not being bored in class is having access to engaging and adequately challenging material, whether it's provided for you or you provide it yourself.

My elementary school and high school classes, by and large, provided enough opportunities; many of my junior high school classes didn't. My outlet was exchanging notes with my friends. I recall many, many notes being passed back and forth, most of them starting with some variation of "I am soooooooo bored!!!"

I asked my husband (who is much smarter than me) if he was bored in school. I expected him to say he was bored all the time. To my surprise, he said no; he said he read ahead in textbooks and worked out advanced math challenges in his head or in notebooks.

Either way, the ideal answer is for teachers to engage all of the students effectively. Second-best is to give them license to disengage and do their own thing, as long as they're not being disruptive. Taking it a step further, my high school sociology teacher didn't report students for skipping class, if they could still manage to do well on the tests!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's nonsense to suggest anything about "truly gifted" not becoming bored. Gifted children are not born with an instruction manual, development plan, or some mystical universal secret of staying entertained wired into their heads. Like any kid they too need to be nurtured and guided in constructive directions as they develop. Anyone who does not understand that knows nothing about child development.

I know plenty about child development. Have a PhD in early childhood education, actually.

Being gifted does not present with boredom. Gifted children generally don't settle for boredom. They find something to do.

So, please, spare me the condescension about what I know and what I don't know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's nonsense to suggest anything about "truly gifted" not becoming bored. Gifted children are not born with an instruction manual, development plan, or some mystical universal secret of staying entertained wired into their heads. Like any kid they too need to be nurtured and guided in constructive directions as they develop. Anyone who does not understand that knows nothing about child development.

I know plenty about child development. Have a PhD in early childhood education, actually.

Being gifted does not present with boredom. Gifted children generally don't settle for boredom. They find something to do.

So, please, spare me the condescension about what I know and what I don't know.

Troll.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's nonsense to suggest anything about "truly gifted" not becoming bored. Gifted children are not born with an instruction manual, development plan, or some mystical universal secret of staying entertained wired into their heads. Like any kid they too need to be nurtured and guided in constructive directions as they develop. Anyone who does not understand that knows nothing about child development.

I know plenty about child development. Have a PhD in early childhood education, actually.

Being gifted does not present with boredom. Gifted children generally don't settle for boredom. They find something to do.

So, please, spare me the condescension about what I know and what I don't know.

So you're here to defend the system, rather than address the fact that the system doesn't meet the needs of many gifted kdis?

Got it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's nonsense to suggest anything about "truly gifted" not becoming bored. Gifted children are not born with an instruction manual, development plan, or some mystical universal secret of staying entertained wired into their heads. Like any kid they too need to be nurtured and guided in constructive directions as they develop. Anyone who does not understand that knows nothing about child development.

I know plenty about child development. Have a PhD in early childhood education, actually.

Being gifted does not present with boredom. Gifted children generally don't settle for boredom. They find something to do.

So, please, spare me the condescension about what I know and what I don't know.

So you're here to defend the system, rather than address the fact that the system doesn't meet the needs of many gifted kdis?

Got it.

Where did you read all that into her post? She was addressing your narrow question about the link between gifted ness and boredom.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why is my belief offensive to anyone? If you think you have a gifted kid who is bored because of his giftedness, I do NOT agree with that. I also think I have gifted kids and don't believe either is bored because of their giftedness. I don't think your views are offensive, so take your judgments elsewhere.

Why? It is offensive. Your kids are not the ultimate guideline.

Right, but your are. Oh...I'm a FCPS teacher.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's nonsense to suggest anything about "truly gifted" not becoming bored. Gifted children are not born with an instruction manual, development plan, or some mystical universal secret of staying entertained wired into their heads. Like any kid they too need to be nurtured and guided in constructive directions as they develop. Anyone who does not understand that knows nothing about child development.

I know plenty about child development. Have a PhD in early childhood education, actually.

Being gifted does not present with boredom. Gifted children generally don't settle for boredom. They find something to do.

So, please, spare me the condescension about what I know and what I don't know.

I do not beleive that for a moment. Nice try, though.

[Anonymous]

I think this thread should win some win of award. Most...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's nonsense to suggest anything about "truly gifted" not becoming bored. Gifted children are not born with an instruction manual, development plan, or some mystical universal secret of staying entertained wired into their heads. Like any kid they too need to be nurtured and guided in constructive directions as they develop. Anyone who does not understand that knows nothing about child development.

I know plenty about child development. Have a PhD in early childhood education, actually.

Being gifted does not present with boredom. Gifted children generally don't settle for boredom. They find something to do.

So, please, spare me the condescension about what I know and what I don't know.

Really, sitting there in school with pile of paperwork in front of them repeating, repeating, repeating. "present with boredom" right.
I have a doctorate from Harvard Medical School.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think this thread should win some win of award. Most...

1. Misunderstandings
2. Immature posters (I'm talking to you, 18:11)
3. Posters who think their kids are brilliant
4. Attempts by a troll to stir the pot, but which were ignored
5. Repetitions of basic points like "talk to your child's teachers"
6. People talking past each other
7. People accusing others of "hating" gifted kids
8. Per #7, People flinging accusations around on the grounds of ... Well, without any basis, rhyme or reason,, really

What have I missed?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's nonsense to suggest anything about "truly gifted" not becoming bored. Gifted children are not born with an instruction manual, development plan, or some mystical universal secret of staying entertained wired into their heads. Like any kid they too need to be nurtured and guided in constructive directions as they develop. Anyone who does not understand that knows nothing about child development.

I know plenty about child development. Have a PhD in early childhood education, actually.

Being gifted does not present with boredom. Gifted children generally don't settle for boredom. They find something to do.

So, please, spare me the condescension about what I know and what I don't know.

Really, sitting there in school with pile of paperwork in front of them repeating, repeating, repeating. "present with boredom" right.
I have a doctorate from Harvard Medical School.

At least the early childhood PhD writes coherently, unlike you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:12:01, it is simply not true that "3-5% of kids have IQs of 140+" as you say. See this page from a well-regarded site for gifted kids: www.hoagiesgifted.org/underserved.html.

Scroll down to the table. The table shows that IQs of 130-144, which is the range for "moderately gifted," occur in about 1 of every 44-1000 kids. So IQs of 130 occur in about 2.3% (1/44) of kids. IQs of 144 occur in about 0.1% (1/1000) of kids. That's not 1%, that's 0.1% of kids. The categories of "highly," "exceptionally" and "profoundly" gifted kids are even rarer. There aren't as many cheetahs and ferraris as you think.

Let's take this further. Wikipedia says DC public schools have 44,000 kids. So multiply this by 2.3% and you get a total of 1,013 kids with IQs of 130 or above in the system. Spread over 13 grades K-12, this comes out to 78 kids per grade with IQs of 130 or higher. You can start to see how this isn't a huge priority for DC with so many other needs.

I agree completely with you that govt should spend more on education and less on defense et cetera. But wishing and picking fights on DCUM won't make it true.

That's one study, there are others that show higher percentages. Consider also that the DC metro area happens to attract many of the best and brightest professionals from around the country, as well as internationally - it stands to reason that DC's potential population of G&T could potentially be higher. But even so, 78 kids per grade is nothing to sneeze at. You do realize that DCPS manages to justify keeping schools open that have FEWER kids per grade than that? Those numbers basically could justify an entire DCPS school devoted solely to G&T.

And meanwhile, what's your proposal for meeting their needs? Basically all you've done is throw up complaints and objections, as opposed to solutions. If you are so concerned about clarifying things here, then clarify for us all whether you are part of the solution or just part of the problem - because to most of us it seems you are part of the problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's nonsense to suggest anything about "truly gifted" not becoming bored. Gifted children are not born with an instruction manual, development plan, or some mystical universal secret of staying entertained wired into their heads. Like any kid they too need to be nurtured and guided in constructive directions as they develop. Anyone who does not understand that knows nothing about child development.

I know plenty about child development. Have a PhD in early childhood education, actually.

Being gifted does not present with boredom. Gifted children generally don't settle for boredom. They find something to do.

So, please, spare me the condescension about what I know and what I don't know.

So you're here to defend the system, rather than address the fact that the system doesn't meet the needs of many gifted kdis?

Got it.

Where did you read all that into her post? She was addressing your narrow question about the link between gifted ness and boredom.

The statements I bolded are what suggests a hidden agenda. The research on giftedness doesn't back up her statements. She's flatly wrong.. Anyone fighting that hard with what the research shows is nursing an agenda.