What does “gifted and talented” mean?

While no two gifted people are the same, the National Association of the Gifted defines giftedness as persons who “show, or have the potential for showing”, an exceptional level of performance in one or more of the following areas:

  • General intellectual ability
  • Specific academic aptitude
  • Creative thinking
  • Leadership ability
  • Visual or performing arts

Sometimes gifted people experience an existential depression, as they can be extremely reflective and sensitive to hypocrisy, disappointment and frustration. Someone may be gifted in one area but not others and so they may not be identified, especially if a learning disorder co-exists (“Twice-exceptional”). If kids are bored, they may be underachieving and not identified by adults as gifted. Also, measuring creativity and leadership skills are more difficult than an IQ test. Even then, an IQ test is just a snapshot of a certain moment in time and can be influenced by many variables.  Finally, many people do not like or identify with the term “gifted” due to stereotypes or assumptions that can be associated with it.

While the above is only a brief introduction to the world of giftedness there are great books and websites that provide more in-depth discussions of these and other issues. Please view the “Resources” page.