The first few years of our lives is the stage of discovery where our underdeveloped brain is trying to take in as much information as possible to develop itself. Any and every small thing is taken in and stored into our minds at this stage. However, the rate at which the brain takes in and processes information as well as which information it gives priority to differs greatly for each person.
Parents often hire the best tuition teachers to guide their children and find out what they may be interested in or have a knack for. It is best to identify early and teach children to work on their strengths and hone their skills.
Everyone is unique!
Twins who grow through the same scenarios and environment can easily end up drastically different when they grow up as their brains would have processed the same information in different ways. Similarly, a child’s talent is also unique depending on how their brain has processed information around them.
Whether you believe people can be born gifted or not, it will be impossible to differentiate the two as any seemingly insignificant event can have an effect on the talent of the child which is practically impossible to identify. Thus, even if you try to force your child to play the piano from a young age, it is not certain that they will end up being a prodigy in it.
IDENTIFYING THE TALENT
Now we have established that every child innately has certain talents based on skill sets that were formed at a very young age. Why must you as a parent actively try to find out your child’s talent and help them improve on it? Firstly, having a talent for certain things helps to give your child a sense of identity and purpose. Many children have done nothing but study in their life and think that they have no talent, when in fact the truth is that they have yet to figure out their talent.
CONFIDENCE
Many teenagers and even young adults nowadays have concerningly low confidence in themselves which greatly affects them in their day-to-day activities and interactions with others. However, at the same time, it is important for you to make sure your child does not take their success to their head (arrogance is a destructive attitude!). It is important to always emphasise that continuous effort is crucial and that one should never become complacent.
CAREER
Although the majority may go through the traditional education route, some children are not designed for this and will only end up suffering if they continue. It will be obvious as to which subject children show great interest in and perform very well in. When tutors or parents notice this, it is very important to push them to their limit instead of just staying in their comfort zone in school.
Tuition teachers and parents can encourage their children to help them sign up for competitions and Olympiads. However, it is important to keep in mind not to overwork children as the worst thing that could happen is burning them out and making them dislike what they once loved.
HOW CAN A TALENT BE IDENTIFIED?
Here are some points to consider…
- The best and easiest way is to expose your child to as many things as possible and let them try a bit of everything.
- Teach them sports, board games, puzzles, music and anything that you think will be fun for them to do.
- Once your child has lit his/her spark of passion they will automatically be sucked into it and slowly get better and better at it.
- Talk to your child and ask them what they love to do. Communication is very important.
Michael Phelps started swimming at the age of 7 and entered the national team at 14. Roger Federer started playing tennis at the age of 8 and became Switzerland’s junior champion at the age of 14.
Magnus Carlsen started playing chess at 5 years old and attained the title of grandmaster at 13 years old. Without exposing their children to these sports and games at such a young age, these prodigies would never have attained the title of one of the greatest of all time in their respective sports.
However, this does not mean that just because your child is not a prodigy in something by 10 years old that you should give up on them. Keep encouraging them to try out new things and get out of their comfort zone!