Characteristics of Gifted and Talented Children

Children gain opportunity class placement on the basis of academic merit. The main criteria for determining academic merit are Opportunity Class Placement Test results combined with school assessments. Comments made by parents and principals may be considered at the discretion of the selection committee.

Some general characteristics of gifted and talented children are listed below. It is important to note that academically gifted and talented children will not necessarily demonstrate all of these characteristics.

A gifted student:

• learns rapidly and quickly grasps new concepts
• has an excellent memory
• is creative or imaginative, e.g. produces many ideas or is highly original
• is independent - may prefer to work alone
• has a keen sense of humour
• may be highly motivated, particularly in self-selected tasks
• has unusual or advanced interests
• demonstrates exceptional critical thinking skills or problem-solving ability
• may have superior leadership and interpersonal skills
• frequently asks in-depth, probing questions
• may demonstrate a high degree of social responsibility or moral reasoning
• possesses a large, advanced vocabulary
• has superior insight and the ability to draw inferences or is intuitive
• is an advanced reader either in English or in the home language.