Genius Toddler Joins Mensa

My baby knows that T is for Taryn :) And that's good enough for me! Now is the time for her to be a kid. She can become a super genius later... when the chubby cheeks are gone...  because you can't pinch a genius just because they're cute:)

Wow that would be an incredible challenge to parent that child!

 my question would be how many hours does this poor child get grilled at doing these things?  i'm sure the parents spend endless hours teaching her.. that concerns me.

The psychologist said that this little girls gift is rote memory.  What people don't understand is intellegence has various forms.  Some is memory, some is reasoning, some is perception.  IQ tests tend to emphasize memory.  Only time will tell what she developes into.

As far as the "my baby can read" type programs, those are simply rote memory they use simple verbs, nouns and adjectives and drill over and over.  I'm not opposed to enriching a child's environment, but when it comes at the cost of allowing them to be kids and exploring and learning naturally then it is exploitation.  Why do we put the pressure on parents and kids to excel as babies.  Let them be and love them as they are.

My oldest daughter started reading at 2 1/2, really reading including sounding out words she didn't know, and counting to 10 in Spanish and knew all her colors and numbers to 10 and some various other words in sign. By 3 1/2 she was doing first grade math. Now in first grade she is in advanced reading classes and carrying straight At's. She's a very smart girl and I do feel that she should probably be tested.

And I never pushed for her to do any of that, my mother and I just helped with the basics and she pretty much did it on her own from there.

My son PLAYS for hours a day and watches at least 2 hrs. of movies.  We school 1-2 hrs. 4-5 days. He can read 75 words (hooked on phonics).  Learned phonics right after his 3rd. birthday. Can count and read numbers to 100.  Count by 10's to 100, count to 20 by two's. Can spell and write his name Zachariah. Can take letters mixed up of all 3 of his names (long last name too) and put most of it in order. Can do simple addition. Very advanced in language. Before 3 yrs. he resited Pledge of Allegence alone after hearing in like 8 times. We weren't trying to teach it to him just hearing in Bible school and I said it walking passed a flag. He can play 2 lines of piano using 2 fingers. He knew color spainish words and signing at the same time at 2 years. Knows many signs and spanish to 20 at one time. He know most all his Bible stories in detait for his age.  We can almost swim alone. We do storytime, swimming lots of PLAY time. Would you have him tested if so where?  We are going to do homeschool at least for several yrs. He learns thing like after 3-4 times. He asks for school on days we don't.

I know my mother said I was able to read simple books by the time I was 2.  I don't know how much of that is true, but I do remember reading alice in wonderland and through the looking glass and comprehend enough of it to ace a comprehension test on it when I was 4-5.

My ds is going to be 3 at the end of July.  He is working on learning his numbers.  He can count up to 3 things so far, then will count 5, and 8.  At bedtime, the only way I can get him settled is to read to him.  Not little picture books, but in the past month we have read despereaux, the first harry potter book, and now we are 50 pages into the chamber of secrets.

I think all kids start with genius potential.  I've known a lot of people who's "advanced" kids are "average" later in life, and kids who were late talkers/walkers/readers to grow up to become Dr's. 

I wouldn't wish this on anyone.  The three adults I am very close to who were tested and labeled "genius" are the least successful, most unhappy misfits I have ever met.  One of them is my SO, who was a self-taught reader by three and placed in the gifted and talented program, skipped two grades, and never fit in with his peers.  The others are pretty much the same.  It is very hard on children to grow up different and when too much emphasis is placed on how special and smart they are, it alienates their peers and they grow up with gaping holes in their social development and skills.  One of the "gifted" people I grew up with has attempted suicide and is very lonely and unhappy.  It's very similar to the child stars who grow up and are no longer cute and special.  It's very sad and I am pleased with my bright, healthy, normal children.