"My son is 10 and obsessed over things - ESPECIALLY dinosaurs. Once, when we brought him to a history museum showcasing dinosaurs, he even managed to correct one model of a dinosaur that had been labelled incorrectly. I didn't take much notice at first, but a few days after the museum sent us a letter thanking him for being so observant. They told him to continue pursuing his keen interest in paleontology! I am so proud of him!"
Does this sound familiar?
This is actually what happened to Charlie, a 10-year-old UK boy. Like him, numerous children all over the world also have a keen passion for dinosaurs. Most children are so keen on gaining knowledge on certain topics that they've become experts in that field on their own. For example a child keen on dinosaurs can easily name over 10 species accurately, list their diet, how their life was like and the time they died. Us adults, on the other hand, can barely name two dinosaurs, if we're lucky.
Psychology has given a name to this natural behaviour responsible for in-depth knowledge kids have of, for instance, dinosaurs. It's called "intense interests": a powerful, driving force to learn everything there is to know about a certain topic. Researchers once investigated these intense interests at the University of Indiana and Wisconsin. They confirmed that they were very beneficial to the child's intellectual development.
Vocabulary/Expressions:
1. observant - good or quick at noticing things.
2. paleontology - the scientific study of organisms that lived on earth before there were written records, esp. by examining fossils.
3. passino for something - an extreme interest in or wish for doing something, such as a hobby, activity, etc.
4. keen - very interested, eager, or wanting (to do) something very much.
5. driving force - a thing that is most important in making something happen.
Questions:
1. How come being obsessed with things can improve children's intelligence?
2. What is intense interests?
3.In your opinion, how does intense interest help in young people's intellectual development?
4. Do you think that intelligence is only based on genetics or can things in a child’s environment boost intelligence?.
5. If scientists could put a chip in your head that would make you twice as intelligent, would you have the surgery done?
