Sure he/she is. I am yet to see one who is not ! Real question is, do we know how to identify their talent? While there are traditional or I should say, known methods of IQ tests, benchmarking of exceptional capabilities, all of those come in quite later with schooling. My observation is, gifted kids start showing their abilities quite early, well before the education system around them tries to influence what they should know at their age. The grade system typically comes with expectation of what a child at that age should know or understand. This scale is not of much help to those who are gifted and talented. Kids might be great at certain things and at the same time have very low interest in everything else. It also definitely does not relate to their potential or capabilities, it just means, they do not think of other things as important stuff, for lack of a better word.
Without making any claims of myself being a gifted child, I will share my personal story. I remember my mom telling me about my preschool experience. When teacher asked me to write any alphabet, I always wrote letter “b”, go figure. Teacher informed my parents, obviously, there was something “unlike” rest of the class that was going on. My mom took a very different approach to test me. She asked me to write letter A. Make no mistake, I wrote “b”. She then asked me to read the same letter, I read “b”. My mom told my teacher that, if she would read that letter as “b”, that means she knows it’s a “b”. She informed my teacher that, I show special interest in shapes and drawing. May be I just love that shape and want to repeat it each time. She bought some time for me and eventually I settled my case with rest of the shapes aka alphabets. Phew! Just imagine if she would not know me well. One day I was a child who can not write anything except “b” and next day I was an artist! What parents can see through their child is not visible to anyone else.
My advice to all Moms is to spend quality time with your child. Find out what gets child’s attention instantly? What are they doing when no one is giving instructions? How do they interact in their age group versus among adults? How do they behave outside versus home? How do they … ? You are the key ingredient in their successful future, so help them find what they are looking for. Easy to say, but it’s not that simple. The quest does not always lead to a happy path.
There is another side to this story, now from a parent’s perspective. What we tend to overlook is a concerned parent. They want their child to be successful, self sufficient, independent, etc. Who would not? What is the popular list of Must Have talents? Is it STEM ( Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) or something else? What if your child’s talents are not amongst these? Sometimes I even see parents in denial when they clearly see talent but it’s not what they expect. They instantly react to anyone else praising their child for the less desirable choice of talent. I have seen it happen. As much as gifted kids, their parents need the support too. It takes a lot to go against or adjust with the traditional education path and nurture childs talents at the same time!