Gifted Children and Early Reading
Monday September 25, 2006
Early reading often appears on lists of characteristics of gifted children. Certainly those children who read early are gifted, particularly those who are self-taught readers. However, not all gifted children read early. In fact, only about half of all gifted children read before the age of four. Even fewer gifted children read before the age of three. Those gifted kids who weren't reading before they started school usually learn to read quickly and easily.
Poll: Was your child an early reader?
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Poll: Was your child an early reader?
- Yes, before age five
- Yes, before age four
- Yes, before age three
- No, but learned quickly in school
- No, and didn't seem to learn any faster than other kids
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Comments
I clicked “No, and didn’t seem to learn any faster than other kids” But my son, now a junior in HS has always been very bright, is 1st in his class and they are saying his PSAT scores may the highest ever at his school. I’m not convinced of a correlation b/w early reading and smarts.
Not all gifted children are early readers, nor are children who learn to read when other children do necessarily not gifted. In other words, it is perfectly possible for a child who did not learn to read either early or quickly to be a gifted child. There is definitely a correlation between early and quick learning to read and giftedness. It’s just not a 100% correlation. Few things are.