The vast majority of children are not gifted. Only 2 to 5 percent of kids fit the bill, by various estimates. Of those, only one in 100 is considered highly gifted. Prodigies (those wunderkinds who read at 2 and go to college at 10) are rarer still — like one to two in a million.

130 to 144: Moderately gifted. 145 to 159: Highly gifted. 160 to 179: Exceptionally gifted. 180 and up: Profoundly gifted.

“The term ‘gifted and talented,’ when used with respect to students, children or youth, means students, children or youth who give evidence of high achievement capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic, or leadership capacity, or in specific academic fields, and who need services or activities not …

The potential for giftedness or a high level of intellectual development begins very early in a child’s life. Studies since the early 1970s consistently show that such development is the result of an interaction between the child’s genetic endowment and a rich and appropriate environment in which the child grows.

It is likely that people inherit genetic predispositions toward giftedness, and factors in their environments either encourage or inhibit the development of giftedness. Prior studies have found that intelligence is linked to heredity.

Top Ten Ways to Nurture Your Gifted Child at Home

1. Feed your child’s voracious appetite for knowledge.
2. Use community resources.
3. Help your child develop and practice social skills.
4. Encourage questioning.
5. Support your sensitive child.
6. Help your perfectionist child.
7. Keep track of your child’s school performance and progress.
8. Go Outside and Play!

Galton, who inaugurated the systematic study of genius, formulated the theory that genius is a very extreme degree of three combined traits—intellect, zeal, and power of working—that are shared by all persons in various “grades.” In his Hereditary Genius (1869), he put forth the idea that genius, as measured by …