曾在纽约上州的学校周末义务教书了几年，孩子们都很聪明，常有孩子父母问轻舟，“我的孩子有天分吗？要不要跳级？”每个孩子都有不同的天赋，但我基本不主张跳级。孩子也许在某一两门学科上突出，但在其它方面未必早慧。

今天读到的一篇关于“天才孩子”的文章，简单翻译下来，分享给养儿育女的父母：

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许多自豪的爸爸妈妈们以为他们的孩子早慧，而大多数婴儿也只是他们父母眼里的天才。但是，有些孩子的确是很有天分。你的孩子是吗？一些成长指南显示孩子的天分，以下10个信号可以表明你的孩子是天才。

- 留存信息：“左耳进，右耳出”的孩子多数。能够保存多样资讯，并在能够调用的孩子显示其天赋。
- 兴趣广泛：有天分的孩子兴趣广泛，这个月可能对恐龙感兴趣，下个月可能对宇宙感兴趣。
- 很早读写：若你的孩子天分高，可能很早能读能写，而不需要正式的教习。
- 是否有音乐或艺术的天赋：若孩子能很早透视绘画，或唱出标准的高音等常常归于天赋高的一类。
- 注意力高度集中：天赋高的孩子能够较长时间注意力高度集中。
- 记忆力好：有天分的孩子记忆力极好，能够记忆起很小时候的事。比如，两岁的孩子在没有提醒的情况下，能够记起18个月的事情。
- 词汇量丰富：若孩子能够很早说话，未必有天分；但幼儿能够用复杂的词语或句子表达，往往有天赋。比如，两岁的孩子通常说，“有一条狗。”但有天赋的两岁孩子可能说：“后院有条狗，它在嗅闻我们的花儿。”
- 注重细节：有天分的大孩子想了解事情是如何运作的，而有天分的幼儿能够将玩具放回原处，或注意到玩具被转移到别处。
- 自我评判：天分高的孩子较会为他人考虑，也最能审视自己。
- 理解复杂的概念：天分极高的孩子能够理解复杂的概念、察觉关系、抽象地想问题。他们能够从深层次理解问题、解决问题。

英文原文：
来源：http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/parenting/10-signs-your-child-may-be-gifted-2500544/

Many a proud mama and papa have deemed their tot advanced or ahead of the game, but most babes are only geniuses in their parents' eyes. However, some tots actually are branded as gifted. Is yours? There are a few developmental guidelines that often indicate giftedness in children, so here are ten signs that your child may be headed to the head of the class.

• Retains Information: The term "in one ear and out the other" seems to apply to most children. Those who are a cut above when it comes to intelligence actually retain a wide variety of information and are able to recall it at a later time. An example from the National Association of Gifted Children (NAGC) is: "One six-year-old returned from a trip to the space museum and reproduced an accurate drawing of a space rocket he had seen."
• Wide Spectrum of Interests: Gifted kiddos display an interest in a wide variety of topics. They may like dinosaurs one month, space the next month, and so fourth.
• Writes and Reads Early: If your tot is a smarty pants, she may be able to read and write very early on and without having had any real formal teaching.
• Is Musically or Artistically Talented: Children who display an unusual talent for music and/or art are often considered gifted. Tots who can draw things to perspective, have perfect pitch, or display any other higher perception of forms of art usually fall into the gifted category.
• Shows Periods of Intense Concentration: Children are not known for their long attention span, but gifted wee ones are able to have longer periods of intense concentration.
• Has a Good Memory: Some gifted tots are able to remember things from when they were smaller. For example, a two-year-old may remember and bring up (unprovoked) an occurrence from when he was 18-months.
• Has an Advanced Vocabulary: A tot who's early to speak is not a sign of giftedness alone, but if your lil talker is using advanced vocabulary and sentences, then he or she may be as bright as you think. According to the NAGC, "Children at age two make sentences like: 'There's a doggie.' A two-year-old who is gifted might say, 'There's a brown doggie in the backyard and he's sniffing our flower.' "
• Pays Attention to Details: A gifted child has a keen eye for details. An older child may want to know specific details about how things work, while a younger child will be able to put away toys exactly where he got them from or notice if something has been moved from its usual spot.
• Acts as His Own Critic: In general kids are not too worried about themselves or others, unless their friend has something they want. Gifted kids are the opposite and are concerned with others, but are most critical of themselves.
• Understands Complex Concepts: Tots who are highly intelligent have the ability to understand complex concepts, perceive relationships, and think abstractly. They are able to understand problems in depth and think about solutions.