Is GAT Prep Needed? An ALTERNAITVE WAY of looking at it.

Research has shown that many children often fail to achieve a good IQ score due to temperamental difficulties rather than intellectual failings. Psychologists judged this to be true to a significant extent as they investigated the effect of emotional states on IQ scores.

In one study, kindergarten children were tested on their IQ, and then six months later, retested. There was a considerable improvement in IQ. The researchers concluded that the change had been due to anxiety or strangeness of the problems or both during the original test. Research has shown that practice in solving problems similar to those contained in an IQ test can make a big difference to the results. Thus, suggesting that it is the UNFAMILIARITY of the problems which suddenly confront them which throws them off balance. Henceforth, can an IQ test truly reflect a child's potential? And we should never forget the fact that some children warm very slowly to new tasks. It is then not their mental capabilities we are testing here.

Let's take the above and analogise it to the General Ability Test given to 12-year-old children when they have to apply for the direct school admission. For children who have never seen these questions prior the actual test, is it the anxiety or unfamiliarity that throws them off balance or are they simply unintellectual enough to do the test?

I am not advocating that all children should go for any prep classes. This is NOT my intention. In my opinion, the playing field for this GAT is not level, AND it is never going to be so. Isn't this the same for all kinds of academic pursuits - PSLE, O Level, IB programme, A Level, even in the University? Aren't almost all kids get prepped for all academic pursuits?

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Critical Period of Learning

Two decades ago, it was already widely accepted that our ultimate, adult levels of creative talent, intelligence and social effectiveness are determined long before the start of formal schooling, during the first five to six years of life. Successful development during this critical period of growth will be reflected in the achievements of later childhood, adolescence and adulthood.

BUT it's never too late still if your child is below 9 years old. At Guru Kids Pro, we always advise parents on the gaps that have occurred and the remediation you could take to patch up those gaps so that your child can achieve academically in the many more years to come.

The Gifted Parents™ Workshop is coming your way soon!

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What is Hot Housing?

There was a post on "Is this considered Hot Housing?" which I posted several weeks ago. One main response which I frequently got queried on was - So, can I hot house my child to become a genius attending university at an age several years ahead of his/her peers?

 

Well, I would like to make clear my own stand to this type of ‘hot housing’ approach. The cases we often read about in academic journals, popular books or internet blogs are the success stories. For all attempts that failed, we do not know exactly what happened, nor do we know what price – to parents and child – that failure had brought. I am certainly not criticising the great desire of parents to encourage the development of their child’s full potential. How could I when that is precisely my purpose in crafting my curricula for pre-schoolers and early primary school kids! Neither am I advocating any methods, approaches and procedures which are adopted. Different methods suit the needs of different children. My main concern of the ‘hot housing’ approach for this purpose is that it is unnecessary and cannot possibly work with every child. In many cases, the results might turn out to be exactly the opposite of what was initially intended.

 

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The Gifted Parents™

Is your child gifted? Even if we are not sure of the answer, I am certain that you must have given some thought to the question. There can only be a handful parents who have not hoped that their children possess some special talent or ability which will help them do well in life.

We question the talents of our children but not the parenting skills of parents. I wonder how many of those parents who are so keen to discover if their children are gifted would be equally eager to find out if these children had gifted parents?

The fact is that gifted children begin with gifted parents. By that I do not mean parents who are exceptionally intelligent, highly educated, extremely successful, or even being gifted persons themselves. They may be any or all of these. But take heart, none is an essential component to be gifted parents.

Guru Kids Pro will be holding a series of workshops in the coming months that aim to empower young parents to become gifted parents - The Gifted Parents™ Workshops.

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The End of IQ (and the Dawn of Working Memory) Posted by Dr Tracy Alloway & Dr Ross Alloway (Oct 28 2013)

The following is an extract from the post:

If you are proud of your high IQ, stop reading now. Your IQ is an anachronism, and its reign is coming to an end. IQ, a measure of intelligence dependent on one's knowledge of specific information, has lost its relevance in the age of information. There is far too much information to know in our global society for any test to measure it adequately. Moreover, IQ won't help you in the things that really matter: it won't help you find happiness, it won't help you make better decisions, and it won't help you manage your kids' homework and the accounts at the same time. It isn't even that useful at its raison d'être: predicting success.

We know this because we followed school children over a six-year period and found that their IQ score at 5-years-old wasn't very helpful in determining their grades at 11-years-old. On the one hand, schools that rely on IQ to identify the best students may be missing a lot of them, and on the other hand, students that are rather clever, may be missing out on opportunities only available to those with a higher IQ score. Beyond the classroom, ... read more at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tracy-alloway-phd-and-ross-alloway-phd/iq-tests_b_4168628.html.

There is now a highly affordable way to enhance your child's Working Memory. Simply visit
http://www.gurukidspro.com/jungle-memory-program.htm to find out what other parents have already done!

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Is this considered HOT HOUSING?

Some might say that when high ability children go for learning support such as seeking external help outside of school is ‘hot housing’, especially to get into the local gifted education programme (GEP), I seek to disagree to a certain extent. There are a few good reasons why these high ability children might benefit from additional learning opportunities.

1.          The high ability learner might be significantly ahead of their peers in a subject and may be in danger of being bored unless there is an opportunity for them to stretch their potential outside of school.

2.          The high ability learner could be underachieving at school in one or more subjects and could benefit from extra learning support outside of school.

3.          The high ability learner needs access to alternative forms of support which the school is unable to offer.

4.          Just as star athletes train with skilled coaches, high ability learners need guidance from well-trained teachers who are able to challenge and support them in order to help develop their intellectual abilities as early as possible.

5.          There is no strong provision for young high ability learners.

Don't measure yourself by what you have accomplished, but by what you should have accomplished with your ability. ~ John Wooden

At Guru Kids Pro, we believe that continuous effort is the key to unlocking your child’s potential. Thus, our stimulating and fun curricula are developed to bring out the full potential of each and every individual child.

Positive Thinking For Your Kids

Positive Thinking

 

Partly due to the simplicity of the concept and partly under the perception that positive thinking is only a surface action, positive thinking is often underrated by many people. However, many gurus have told us that positive thinking one of the main hallmarks of self-improvement. Anyone who is serious in improving themselves should and must practise positive thinking.

 

At Guru Kids Pro, our students are taught positive thinking through our communication with them as well as the many positive quotes we put up at our studio and classrooms. Over a period of time, our students internalise them through their verbal expressions and thoughts, and we also see a manifestation of positive thoughts in their work.

 

The use of positive thinking quotes when you communicate with your child can have a huge impact on their level of positivity. Teaching and encouraging positive thinking in and for children is gaining importance due to the realisation of having the right mindsets for achieving success in life.

 

Subscribe to our Positive E-cards to encourage positive thinking in your child. It’s FREE with no terms and conditions attached! Cheers to everyone with positive thoughts! Find out more at http://gurukidspro.com/positive-cards.htm.