were you or your DH/P labeled "gifted" as a child?

[meowee]

Just curious-- I was in a gifted program but ended up having serious social and psychological problems in school. DH wasn't in a gifted program unless being a mellon scholar counts?

[2Sweeties1Angel]

I was "gifted" for some unknown reason. Actually, I think it was because I liked to read and we all know freakish that is. :wink I never had social problems but I was pretty much voted class weirdo (not in a bad way). I preferred it that way. I have bipolar disorder, but that has nothing to do with "gifted" status, I don't think. My IQ tested at genius level because I'm good at taking tests, so maybe I'm so smart I'm :bouncy. :rolleyes

[EVC]

I went to a gifted school from 4th-12th grade which, in my opinion, was the best possible place for me.

[Ravin]

I was in a gifted program in elementary, but was still becoming a discipline problem because of boredom in 3rd-4th grade because the program in that school district was really lame (as opposed to the one before we moved when I was in 2nd). We're talking sit around with logic puzzles lame, in a computer lab where we never used the computers because the teacher didn't know how. My parents sent me to a self-paced private school starting in 5th and after 7th I started high school back in PS, honors track (skipped 8th). Then I went to an early college admittance program and washed out for a low GPA (got a social life that year, long story, but also didn't have a clue how to study as I'd never had to in regular PS).

DH was one of those who SHOULD have been in some sort of gifted program or magnet school (as he lived in a big city, such things were available), but was forced to just go to the regular public schools and wound up barely graduating because he (in his words) decided he had better things to do his senior year, such as work. He'd skip class then come in for the exams and make A's on them, allowing him to pass.

We both wound up in the Navy's Nuclear Power Training Program, which is how we met. If it wasn't for public schools' letting down bright kids, I swear they'd never recruit enough for that program!

I don't think either of us were exceptionally gifted, but definitely we were both above average/accelerated, learning to read before school, etc.

[maxmama]

Yes. And both got labeled underachievers!

[LeftField]

No. The schools we attended did not have GATE programs. I didn't know what "gifted" meant until I was an adult. My dh did fine in school. I was a lazy, underachieving kid who didn't work up to her potential which is baffling because she really could do anything if she really applied herself. See? You don't need a label to create guilt and unrealistic expectations. :duck: I have no baggage or issue with the gifted label. It's just a tool, as someone wisely said, that can be used for positive or really negative things. The analogy that was made that you can use a hammer to bash someone's head or build a house. You can also bash someone's head without using a hammer.

[Charles Baudelaire]

I was labeled gifted, but not in a program because my school didn't have one. The closest that it came was admission to Nat'l Honor Society, which was done back then by an IQ test, but it was looking for global giftedness and frankly, I am not a math brain.

It never did me much good.

[eilonwy]

My husband was never formally identified as gifted, and never went to a school that had a gifted program. He just spent a lot of time being bored, reading books, and thinking that school was a waste of time and energy.

I was formally identified (even though I'm not white or wealthy and didn't live in a white and/or wealthy area, ever), but it was all very hit-or-miss (usually miss). My needs were never met in public or private school. For a very long time, I thought that this was my fault. It wasn't until very recently (within the past two years) that I came to understand that in my particular case, there really was nothing that school could have done for me short of radical acceleration, and that my mother had no means of advocating for it, even if she'd understood and accepted the need.

[lasciate]

I was, he wasn't. Both of us had special schooling, him in the form of a higher academic level school followed by a science-specific high school, me in the form of an 'Academically Talented' program for grades 5-8. True to the name, most of the kids I went to school with were academically talented, not gifted. There were a couple of us who were truly gifted, and I was one.

[jkpmomtoboys]

Both dh and I were in a gifted program, though dh dropped out in 5th or 6th grade because it was afterschool only and he couldn't see the point of the extra work...

[USAmma]

Neither of us. Dh was born/raised in India and he is bright but probably not what I would say is gifted.

I did very poorly in school due to social and emotional problems related to my family situation at the time and my poor health. Missed a lot of school and was behind. I am sure they never thought to test me. But funny thing is, later I was given IQ tests, I think around age 10, as part of an eval for a custody battle between my parents. I scored very high both times I was given the test. Everyone was very surprised and after that test dad started homeschooling me during summers and vacations and I started to do way better in school. My early teachers would have been surprised to see me in honors classes and NHS since I was barely passing in the early grades and a daydreamer. I'm pretty sure I'm not gifted. ;)

[Katana]

I was labeled gifted in second grade. They started urging my mom to skip me ahead in K, but didn't actually test me till second grade.

I was sent to a special school from third-seventh grade. It was a lot of homework, a lot of pressure, and no fun.

Once I hit eigth grade, I said forget it. No more "gifted" classes. I was in accelerated or AP ones, but just did enough to be on the honor roll.

I put all my energy into sports, as they were something that challenged me.

Dh was never labeled gifted, in fact, he was an underacheiver, and did horrible in school. He was a behavior problem, too.

He's much more gifted than I am, in my opinion.

[Mama2Bug]

I was in the gifted program, but was also labeled as having a learning disability called Dyscalculia (difficulties with math, amongst other things). It was kind of weird, because I would be in the "gifted" classes all day, but have to go to the special "LD" room for math. I really hated it because the "normal" kids hated me for being "gifted" but the "gifted" kids hated me for being "stupid." :(

I had no self-confidence until high school, when everybody blended together based on what you chose to take. Switching schools helped too.

[Shiloh]

Yes. And both got labeled underachievers!
HERE TOO!!!
Except dh had 3 college diplomas before graduating highschool (he did one in the morning one in the afternoon) but still underachieving.....WTF?
me I was truly underachieving or rather achieving enough to get where I want with not that much effort for the teachers trying to carrot me to get me to show my brilliance sorry but I got better things to do....

[meowee]

I have to say I'm a bit amazed by the results... I watched a documentary once about gifted children and there was a statistic cited that gifted children tend to have "average" parents. According to this, that is not correct.

[Ruthla]

I know that my girls' dad and my son's bio-dad both have above average IQs, but I'm not sure what kinds of school programs they were in as children. I was in the gifted program in elementary school (as well as special ed for emotional issues!) and in several honors classes in jr high and high school.

[eilonwy]

I have to say I'm a bit amazed by the results... I watched a documentary once about gifted children and there was a statistic cited that gifted children tend to have "average" parents. According to this, that is not correct.

:eyesroll They also claim that gifted children are so rare that you're likely to only have one in a family, usually the oldest. If you're talking about profound giftedness (IQ 160+ on the WISC-IV, 180+ on the SB-LM) that *might* be true, but it hasn't been true of most of the people I've heard of/met in real life.

[boongirl]

I was in a gifted program in elementary school, a regular program in junior high, and the advanced/AP program in high school. My education did not contribute much to my general screwedupness as an adolescent. That would be due to my parents drunkennes and complete and total (attempt) at controlling me. :(

[SunRayeMomi]

I have to say I'm a bit amazed by the results... I watched a documentary once about gifted children and there was a statistic cited that gifted children tend to have "average" parents. According to this, that is not correct.
It's also interesting to see how many gifted people end up marrying each other. No sense marrying an idiot, huh:lol Unless you enjoy being the smarter in the group, that is. Neither I nor my DP were formally identified. I don't think it occurred to my parents that I was anything other than a precocious smartypants with biting wit :p

[LynnS6]

I was labelled as 'gifted' but they didn't have a separate gifted program. What they did have was mixed age classes, so I essentially did 3rd grade twice at my K-3 school, then moved up to the 4-6 grade school, did 5th grade once, 6th grade twice and then on to Jr. High (which I remember being mostly a waste of time). My parents then switched me to a Catholic school for High School - which didn't have a gifted program at all, but did a good job of keeping me mostly interested in the 'core' classes, and some of the more interesting ones like ethics.

Dh went to a very small religious school and they didn't have a gifted program. He got an OK education but was underprepared for college. In addition, because it was so small and narrow, they didn't foster his true gifts -- which are an amazing visual memory, andn an ability to think outside the box (he tried in high school to write an editorial arguing that the pulpit ought not to be used to promote a political agenda and another that abortion should be legal -- let's just say that didn't go over well with his school, though I think his parents were tickled.). He got a lousy math education, but I doubt he's gifted there. He just doesn't care. On the other hand, he can do great computer programming (self taught), so who knows?

[Freeman]

Interesting thread! I was in a gifted program in grade school (K-8). I remember taking lots of fun field trips to museums, etc., with other members of the group. Eventually this entailed being what the school called "individualized". . . which meant that I learned math by myself by reading math books and doing exercises and periodically checking in with the teacher. I didn't enjoy that and felt rather freakish, actually. I think there were only 2 of us in the whole grade level working by ourselves, and we didn't work together. This same math teacher didn't let people go outside for recess if they hadn't scored successfully on timed tests. For weeks it seemed like I was the only one outside on recess. :( I was a social person who wanted to "fit in," so I don't remember the whole thing as a good experience. It felt more like punishment than reward being on recess by myself. Both DH and I were in honors/AP classes in high school and did well in college and grad school, etc. I wouldn't necessarily call us a pair of geniuses, though. I would say we have different "intelligences." DH is a "math person" while I am a "language person." We already think that DS will be way smarter than we are!

[treemom2]

I was labeled gifted in both elementary and middle schools. Then I went to a boarding school for highschool that did not have a gifted program because the classes were all college prep and very small with a lot of individualized attention. I was always labeled by peers as a teacher's pet. I didn't really mind. I love to read and I love to learn new stuff. Honestly, in most cases I think the "gifted" program is a joke (I used to be a school guidance counselor and DS is a special ed teacher. My brother was a gate teacher for years).

[jkpmomtoboys]

It's also interesting to see how many gifted people end up marrying each other.

Well and in terms of "formally" being id'd as gifted, a lot of this comes down to tracking and GATE programs. My dh and I were both tracked as "gifted", so we did the GATE programs (well, he at least for awhile), took all the honors courses, went to a competitive college and met there. I would venture a guess that 80% of our friends were id'd as "gifted", due to the same tracking.

Sure, I wanted to marry someone smart, but when that's all you're surrounded by, "dumb" just isn't really an option anymore. :lol

[DoulaClara]

Well, I don't know what to say. Due to IQ results in 3rd and then 7th grades, I was "stalked" by teachers and guidance counselors all through school (the guidance office called me down in middle school to inform me that I had a gifted IQ, and they were "following my progress." Talk about a major weird-out!) While my tiny shoebox of a school district didn't have a gifted program, I was chosen to go to a math and science program at a nearby college the summers between 6th and 8th grade.

To be honest, it made me very uncomfortable, and I think caused some of the issues I had when I first went to college (ex: I thought I never had to study, since I never had to in high school, etc.)

Clara

[Robin926]

Both DH and I were in the gifted program, and that's actually how we knew each other in high school.

[Village Mama]

I was labeled as gifted in early elementary school. I too think that it was because I was a proficiant early reader. I was in a gifted program. In grade 6 I think, I was tested at another local school... I obviouslyfailed that test because all of my gifted friends were in a different class for that year! How sucky is that?! I wouldnt classify myself as gifted. I have an IQ that is higher than average , but I am really awful at certain things like math. I excell in things that involve spacial ability though. I would have failed in high school if I hadnt done so well on my provincial exams. I would have been a homeschooler ideally. I had the same problems in university because I actually had to do 4 hours of homework a night... I had never done homework in my life.

[eilonwy]

My husband and I met at a LARP; a lot of gifted folks of all stripes end up playing RPGs, though; the groups tend to skew way above average. :lol

[Terabith]

I was labeled as gifted in elementary school, but the gifted program was a once a week class taught by the librarian, usually on really stupid things that she was interested in (salt dough maps of TN, models of Statue of Liberty). I hated it. There were honors classes in jr high/ high school, and I was in those, but they weren't often all that challenging. We moved when I was a jr in high school, to a school that didn't believe in honors programs, etc. It was awful. They did do a Stanford Binet on me, where they discovered a 70 pt spread between verbal and nonverbal (esp block design) and said if i were younger they would treat my nonverbal learning disability (horrible sense of direction, really painfully awful; block design and construction activities not really a strength) but that I was too old to bother with. I basically dropped out and took some classes at a local college. I qualified for the Duke Univ Talent Program based on the 7th grade SAT's but the classes were very expensive. I was not profoundly gifted or anything like that, I don't think. But more than slightly. I always said that i tried to get an education despite going to school.

My husband was the classic gifted underachiever. They thought he was dyslexic or retarded in elementary school and wanted him tested for special ed. He loved the remedial reading class they put him in bc they played games. Then the testing came back with him at a post high school level and the teacher nearly killed him.

We'll see about my kids. I think Anna is likely bright but not gifted, but I'm wondering about Catherine. She's speaking in full sentences at 15 months (and has been coming out with them since about 11 months), phrases at 7 months....She's something else. She might be gifted, tho it's too early to tell really.

[Jennisee]

DH was never labeled as gifted and probably isn't. Bright guy, hard worker, but not gifted.

I was labeled as gifted in early elementary school, but as it was a VERY small school (less than 20 people per grade), so the gifted programs were limited. In first grade, I was one of two people sent to the sixth grade to learn about computers. In second grade, I was one of about six people who were asked to enroll in the school's gifted summer school, which I loved. By fourth grade, I was the class nerd/overachiever/teacher's pet/whatever.

I don't remember a lot about what classes I excelled in in elementary school, but in junior high and high school, I excelled in all classes, from science and math to social studies and English. Interestingly, in high school, my strongest classes were social studies and English and I felt weaker in math (even though I got high A's in everything), but in college that switched. On the ACT, I got a 26 on the math section and 33 on the English section, but on the GRE, I got 740 on the quantitative sectiom and 500 on the verbal section. :lol I'm fairly artistic (I was in the Gifted Art program in high school), but I have zero musical ability. I'm also weak at mechanical and spatial like 3-D puzzles and assembling things. I was poor at athletics in elementary school, but lettered in three sports in high school.

I don't think they had gifted programs when my dad was a child, but I think he would probably qualify as gifted.

[RedWine]

I was in "gifted and talented" classes at the public high school. I always had social problems -- felt like a misfit from day one. I finally felt like it fit in somewhere in life when I went to Harvard.

My husband got Cs and Ds in high school. He wasn't interested in academics at that time in life, he was very into climbing. He always fit in wherever he was, socially. Later, after high school, he taught himself higher math and physics. He then went to MIT and Harvard (for MA and Ph.D., respectively). He's now a Professor at MIT.

[Brazilianmommy]

Well I didn't even do 2nd grade they passed me to 4th immediately and I was taking 6th grade Math that year to The samething with my DH he was only 1
year ahead though.
In my school in Sao Paulo we didn't had a gifted program so it was easier for them to send us to another grades ahead...
I had social problems to even in College when I did it in Netherlands luckily I meet my man in the first Year he was not a student though:wink

Well Renata looks really bright for her age she can says more words than I 14 month old can i have started to teach her Portuguese just..a day ago and she can manage some words very well.. But she's very young we have to wait..

[earthmama369]

I was put in the TAG program in 2nd grade, bumped into a jr. high reading/English program in 5th grade, and FPS and honors classes through jr. high and high school. That was all fine except that the TAG program rotated through your schedule so you wouldn't miss the same class consecutively. Well, in 6th grade there was some kind of snafu that wasn't caught and I ended up missing 2 or 3 math classes a week for the whole year. We were learning a lot of the basic building blocks for algebra and geometry and I really struggled in math for years after that, not having thoroughly learned those basic skills.

DH's IQ is off the wall and he thinks constantly. But his school district didn't have a TAG program so even though we went to the same regional jr. high and high school, he wasn't officially recognized as needing extra stimulation. Individual teachers did their best and finally he ended up with one art teacher writing him a yearlong pass for both her class and a study hall so he could go do whatever he wanted, as long as he didn't leave school grounds or abuse her trust. He thrived with that setup, but outside that, he was either bored or multitasking like crazy during his classes, depending on how flexible his teachers were.

I see DD heading in the same direction. I think she'll be able to handle the system and learn to work it if she goes to public school, but I think she'll be bored, so we're looking at other options as well.

[lisac77]

I was labeled gifted in the 2nd grade. My talent was/is for logic games... even at such a young age I was as good as most of the older kids. My parents pulled me out of the gifted program in elementary school because it was a pull-out program and I was expected to "make up" the work after school. Little did they know... I did not do homework. My parents got tired of the battles and pulled me out. I did take AP courses all through high school and I breezed through college as well.

DH grew up in Iran but was put into school a year early because he could read well. He stayed in an accelerated program throughout school and ended up qualifying for scholarships to college and so forth.

I would say that DH is amazingly gifted, but very misunderstood. His English is dismal, but it is his FOURTH language, so I tend to forgive him. His mechanical and engineering abilities (cars, plumbing, A/C, electrical stuff in general) are amazing, especially considering the fact that he has had no formal training.

I still have gifted tendencies... I learn extremely quickly, read constantly... but most of my academic gifts have been lost over the last few years since I've been out of school. I am still an underachiever.

Is DS gifted? Honestly I have no idea. My mother thinks he will at least be academically advanced ("Just look at his parents!") but I'm on the fence over whether or not "being gifted" is a good thing.

[LiamnEmma]

I was. DH wasn't, but that's only because he was not school in the U.S. until high school and when he entered schools here he did not speak English and attended a private school.

[meemee]

my exh and all his 4 bros were either in gifted programs or skipped grades. school was such a nightmare along with other issues that only 2 of them made it to college and the other 3 self taught themselves what their majors would have been and never went to college.

i come from asia so no identifying scheme there. but i think i am bright - not gifted.

but going back on generations on both sides on my exh's family tree there were consistent generations of gifted. on my side mixed. mix of PG, 2e, mixed gifted and just bright siblings (going by what i would call gifted, not tested) and some generations not gifted but sheer hard workers.

[Nora'sMama]

I was labeled "gifted" but there wasn't a real program for gifted students in elementary school. They made various "accommodations" for me that were almost wholly inappropriate and unhelpful. In junior high and high school I took accelerated, honors and GATE/AP classes, although I had that "math phobia" that girls seem to develop :irked: and I pulled MYSELF out of the gifted math track in 9th grade. :dizzy: I really enjoyed my AP classes in high school and I did well on the AP tests, allowing me to earn a full semester of college credit. I also had the unusual good fortune of moving to a small town with a highly-ranked private liberal arts college when I was a senior in high school, and I started college a year early, taking a full load of college credits while taking the bare bones needed to graduate at the local high school. It was a really fun year, straddling both worlds. College was like the most awesome "gifted" program I could imagine. :thumb

My DH grew up in Greece and they do not have "gifted" programs or labeling there. Everyone takes the same courses and they are either good students or poor students. It's probably a really bad system for people with learning disabilities. However, everyone has the same opportunities to learn, and the same high expectations placed on them - it can be a good thing for many students, and school is a lot more challenging there. Arithmetic is dispensed with in the first 3 grades and then algebra is introduced; everyone who graduates from high school has done a decent amount of higher math. Ancient Greek is compulsory as is English and many students also take other foreign languages, from a much younger age than is customary in the U.S. My DH is not a literature person but like everyone in Greece he had to read lots of classics of world literature as well as Greek literature. He had to learn Greek and World History, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, :blah and the requirements for these subjects were much more stringent than most non-AP U.S. course equivalents. So, he wasn't identified as gifted, but his classes were the equivalent of many programs for moderately gifted students in the U.S., and he was considered a "good student" which is the closest thing to "gifted" in Greece. :lol However he had never heard of the term "gifted" until I explained it to him.

[BinahYeteirah]

I voted, but I am not, afaik, the parent of a gifted child.

I was in the GAT program as a child. Dh was not, however, both of our fathers (and a bunch of other relatives) are gifted.

[vamp127]

I was tagged in 3rd grade and continued on the track through college. I an a font of information--mostly useless, though! :lol

DH was always categorized as LD, but as an adult has found he has AD/HD. He is extremely smart, talented and curious. BTW, MIL gave me all of his report cards and progress reports as an engagement gift and said, "Are you sure you want to marry someone like this?"

DD#1 has had trouble at school. Teachers think she is ADD but she doesn't get a formal diagnosis when pursued. She is gifted for all intents and purposes in my eyes. Not a year has gone by that a teacher has not asked me to confirm something she told them. Like in kindergarten when she crushed a classmate by informing her that "you don't hear the ocean in a seashell, it's just the bloodflow in your ear echoing." Teacher asked me if this was true.