In recent years, the concept of "gifted" has broadened in two basic ways. First, the definition has changed. The focus used to be solely on the child who was exceptionally bright, the child who could understand abstract concepts, had a very good memory, good reasoning skills, and/or advanced verbal skills.

Now, we also speak of the creatively gifted, the child who frequently comes up with many, different, unusual, original or detailed solutions to conventional tasks; the specific academically gifted, the child who is exceptionally capable in specific academic areas, such as reading or maths; the gifted reader, the child who not only assumes leadership roles, but is also accepted by others as a leader; the gifted in visual and performing arts, the child who demonstrates consistent outstanding performance in one or more of the arts.

Second, identification of the gifted changed. Experts now recognize the limits of standardized testing and no longer believe that an IQ test with an inflexible cutoff score should be the exclusive tool for identifying students who will benefit from gifted programs. Rather, we now use a "multiple criteria" approach, which emphasizes the need for gathering as much information as is possible about the child from a variety of sources. This approach relies not only on the results of ability and achievement tests, but also on information gathered form teachers, parents, classmates and playmates, as well as the student's everyday work and activities.

It is often heard in conversations about gifted children, "They're the lucky ones. They've got what it takes. they don't need extra help at home or in school, because they will naturally succeed without interference."

In fact, many gifted students will not succeed unless they receive extra help. A significant percentage of underachievers and high school dropouts are gifted students.

Giftedness can be likened to a precious seed planted in the earth. Just as the seed needs sun and water in order to grow, so gifted children need nurturing from home and school in order to realize their maximum potential. And "maximum" is the key word here. Without help, gifted children may only do enough to "get by". With help, they may grow to become the George Pattons, Eleanor Roosevelts, and Martin Luther Kings of tomorrow. Without help, they may become capable, conforming followers. But with help, they could become leaders, inventors, and risk takers who will benefit not only those close to them, but society as well.

Since, as mentioned above, the definition of giftedness has broadened in recent years, the parents of pre-school gifted youngsters should keep this in mind when working with their youngsters. The following four groups of activities are certainly not meant to be complete in their coverage. However, they should serve as models of "fun" tasks that young gifted children might enjoy and learn from. There is, of course, some overlap. Many of the activities in one section are appropriate for other sections as well. Many could become starting points for your own ideas.

The child who has a good understanding of abstract concepts and has a strong reasoning ability needs the challenge of activities that incorporate "higher level" thinking skills. Rather than simply asking the child to recite or repeat what she has learned, ask her to compare and contrast, classify, summarize, hypothesise, or make assumptions. These key questions will demand more complex, higher level, thinking.

Ask your child what is the same or what is different about

• the characters in a story
• songs she knows
• seasons of the year
• a butterfly and a bird
• people she knows
• holidays
• words

Say to your child, "Let's find a way to group..."

• your toys
• your friends
• your clothes
• food
• books
• your feelings

Here the child is learning to separate relevant from irrelevant information.

• After watching a short TV show or reading a short story, ask, "What happened first? What happened in the middle? What happened in the end?
• Ask your child for a title to a story she has written or a picture in a magazine.
• Help your child retell the most important events from a trip she took, a party she attended, or any activity that had a variety of experiences.

To practice this thinking skill, you would ask your child "What would happen if..."

• we put this toy block in this full glass of water?
• we put a jar over this candle?
• we put this spoonful of sugar into warm water?
• we crack this egg into this frying pan?
• we press this button on the television?
• Or, "How many tennis balls would fit into this shoe box?"

The child then verifies the hypothesis by completing the experiment. This skill can be extended into the realm of fantasy and imagination, for example, "What would happen if..",

• it snowed ice cream?
• nobody ever needed to sleep?
• you were ten feet tall?
• people could fly?

In this case you are asking your child, "Based on existing information, what else can you tell me about the situation?" For example,

• Look at these pictures of people in uniforms. What jobs might they do?
• Look at this small and large box. Which is heavier?
• Look at these faces. What are these people feeling?
• What will happen next in this picture?
• What happened before?

Many of these strategies can be incorporated into your child's beginning reading experiences. Open-ended stories are an excellent way for children to learn to hypothesise and make predictions. For example, tell this beginning of a story about two animals to your child:

A dog was looking for something to eat and he became very thirsty. He passed by an open well and seeing the cool water below, he jumped into it to get a drink. A cat passed by and heard the dog calling for help and jumped in, also. How did the two animals get out?"

Ask your child how she would help the animals get out. Exceptionally bright children have insight into cause and effect relationships and like to try to discover the how and why of things. Present questions like, "Why do you think that happened and how did it happen?" Assumptions can be made by your child if you ask questions such as, "What do you think took place before this happened? Children enjoy looking for similarities and difference among people, places, and objects. Comparisons can be made by asking, "Where have you seen something like this happen?" and "How is this the same or different from another story?"

Another time to practice questioning strategies would be while reading your child's favourite stories to her.

The "Gingerbread Man" is a well-known story that most young children seem to enjoy. To show how to ask questions of a high level of reasoning, we have composed several which could be used from this story:

• Factual information: What happened in the story? Your child may be able to tell the events in proper order, but if not you may help guide her with the following questions?
• What did the Gingerbread man do?
• Whom did he meet first? Second? Third? Last?
• What happened at the end of the story?
• Cause and Effect: Why do you think the Gingerbread Man could jump out of the oven, walk, talk, and run away?
• Make Comparisons: Is the Gingerbread Man like anybody you ever knew? How is this story like "Pinocchio?'" (or another book that has similarities)
• Make Assumptions: What do you think happened before the old lady baked the Gingerbread Man? Why do you think she baked him? Do you think this type of thing (food becoming a living thing) ever happened before to the old man and the old lady?
• Make Predictions: Suppose the Gingerbread Man had never met the fox. What do you suppose would have happened to him then? Give a new ending to the story
• Make Judgments: Was the Gingerbread Man good or bad? If you were he, would you have acted differently? What would you have done and why?

Reprinted from Gifted Child Today January/February 1983