How do you know if your child is smart?

1. 59

   wordproposted 16 years ago

   I can't figure out how we determine intelligence.  Does it matter if your parents think you are smart?  Or is it just whatever you are born with? What about teachers? Do teacher make a difference in establishing if a kid is smart or not?

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2. 57

   wrenfrost56posted 16 years ago

   Great question. I guess it all comes down to that old chestnut nature verses nurture, however there is some evidence that you are more likly to be intelligent if your parents are, there is also the issues of influences in the womb, mothers diet during pregnacy, childs diet, sleep ect. Also any encouraging influences help developement. I have a hub called let the children play that touches on this subject. Also if your child grasps concepts and asks more indepth questions then other children of their age thats a pretty significant sign. Then theres emotional intelligents, I.Q I could go on, but I have probably bored you already!

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3. 71

   lrohnerposted 16 years ago

   It depends on what you want for your child, and what your child wants for him/herself. Unfortunately, this is a question that can't be answered until they're adults. You may scoff at a child who wants to be a surfer for a living, until they invent the world's most popular surfboard and are able to do what they want when they want for the rest of their life. I mean, that's success in life, isn't it?

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4. 59

   wordproposted 16 years ago

   I think that's the measure of success! And it means there are a million ways to be smart and probably more ways to measure intelligence.  It's a tough question to answer, or, like lrohner said, "can't be answered". 
   
   I wonder then why we place so much emphasis on it!  Why can't we be happy if our son (or daughter) wants to surf all the time, or sing at night clubs for a living?
   
   Realistically, it comes down to being smart, which I can't figure out. How do we know?  When is it obvious that our child might not be smart?  Maybe that's a better question?  When do parents look at each other and say, "Junior, he ain't so smart, we should be happy if he can learn a trade to support himself, let's not expect much from him in school"?

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5. 60

   Kyaposted 16 years ago

   Children don't need judgments on whether or not we think they are smart - that't for us ambitious mothers.
   Children need to be encouraged in what they do, their motivation, their strengths, and by that they will become smart.
   Check out my hub on "how to teach kids", where I point out how much adults' opinions on how smart a child is can actually kill a child's efforts to learn.
   Appreciate your child for what it is.
   And yes, I am struggling to live up to my words sometimes

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6. 72

   earnestshubposted 16 years ago

   Boy oh boy children are all smart! Just give them heaps of smiles and cuddles, talk to them and listen to every word. You will find that Oscar Wilde was right. "I am not young enough to know everything" is spot on. Kids are amazing!

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