Does parenting strictly decide how smart kids turn out or is there some genetic link?

Like I hear people say that ';that kid is just too smart.';





Or is it parenting skills that determine how smart someone becomes. Not just parenting skills but parents being ideal role models like parents who are always reading, always having intellectual conversations, parents who give weekly pep talks, etc. etc.





I'm a nice guy but I'm not the smartest guy in the world and I attribute it to my parents. They are not the smartest people themselves, they're not the most hard working, stuff like that.





What do you think.Does parenting strictly decide how smart kids turn out or is there some genetic link?
I believe firmly that the more a parent teaches the more a child learns(obviously making them smarter). I know reading texbooks, and any kind of litereature I could get my hands on from the time I got pregnant(continues her whole life thus far), has given my daughter a HUGE advantage. At 3 and a half she has a 2nd grade comprehension, over 3000+ word vocab, knows some spanish as well, numbers, letters, shapes, colors, how to read a US map, basic Science, she knows how money works, how to budget ect. She obsorbs everything around her like a sponge...anything that you try to teach her she does well with. I know if I would have not taught her, she wouldn't know what she does because she wouldn't have been exposed to it. I don't think genetics play a huge role. My parents were morons on many levels.(we're estranged by my choice) I think it has a lot more to do with what a parent does with their kids in early childhood, and how they continue in later childhood.





The only downside is that they will have a tough time in school because of being further ahead...so we will likely homeschool, or private school.Does parenting strictly decide how smart kids turn out or is there some genetic link?
Generic, parenting, first training during the first 3 years and whether the child is the first born or not.
You're talking the whole nature vs nurture thing. I think it's both. I think some kids are just born with the a higher intelligence level--some of that may be genetics. I think regardless of genes, some kids will flourish in an environment that encourages learning, etc. But, then you have to look at what you think of as smart. There is more to being smart than just your IQ or your ACT score, if you know what I mean. Some people are geniuses at other things that don't involve academics. So, part of it is how you are measuring intelligence or being smart.





I understand what you mean. But, just because someone doesn't do well in school it doesn't mean they aren't smart or very intelligent. Some people are highly intelligent in one area and not another.


As a homeschooling parent who's very involved in my children's education, I can tell you that school and test scores are not the only indicator of intelligence. In fact, we don't focus on grades very much at all. We focus on what we are learning. I can tell you that all three of my kids have received the same education but in different ways. My first son is a natural scholar--I mean, he's a boy who reads encyclopedias for fun. Did he get that from me? Nope (maybe a little from my husband)! But, he was born with a natural desire for knowledge. My second son hates school time at our house--so I have to work constantly to find way to keep him engaged and learning. My third son is completely different than the other two. He has a very abstract view of things and is really quite profound in the way he learns things. This takes me back to my original statement of it being both nature and nuture. Parents can push their children all they want, but without what nature gave them, they won't get far.