Hi °C | Lo °C Two years ago, seven-year-old English schoolboy Kieron Williamson lived in a cramped flat with his parents and sister.
Today, the family lives in a swish, detached home in the Norfolk countryside, purchased by their now nine-year-old son from the proceeds of his artwork.
Kieron's exceptional artistic talents emerged when he was five, and now his rustic rural paintings sell for around £10,000.
He is one of a small percentage of children variously categorised as gifted, talented, exceptionally able or even prodigies.
In Ireland it is estimated that there are around 27,000 children between the ages of six and 16 whose IQ level puts them in the top 5pc of children on the academic scale.
Measuring for specific talents is more complex, according to Dr Colm O'Reilly, who runs the Centre for Talented Youth (CTY) at DCU, although he adds that a child with a exceptional academic ability often has a talent for art or music as well.
"We see around 4,500 children a year in weekend and summer courses around the country in such areas as forensic science, medicine, veterinary science and anything technology based.
"What we find is that kids who have abilities in certain areas are often not getting the opportunity to shine in them in mainstream school and are often left to their own devices.
"Some kids will do fine but others will under achieve and not fulfil their potential. Once you give bright kids an opportunity in an area they are interested in, the progress they make in such a short time is amazing," he said.
Eldest of four, Gráinne Ní Dhomhnaill (8) from Co Donegal was assessed last year and falls among the top 5pc.
To date, she has attended CTY-run courses in film media, and science at DCU and at the Letterkenny Institute of Technology, and is currently doing a correspondence course in maths.
Her parents, Anri and Sinéad reveal that from the age of two, Gráinne was showing exceptional interest in her surroundings and had a wide vocabulary.
'As parents we encourage all of our children. We would never burden them. We just try to encourage their natural talent. The CTY programme is a fantastic resource. It is very exciting and they are learning all the time," said Anri.
He adds that their biggest concern is that Gráinne will not feel stigmatised or set apart by being labelled 'gifted'.
"She is a very down-to- earth, normal child. She just loves learning and she has a special talent in music and song," he said.
County Kildare schoolboy Douglas Oman (11) was five when he displayed a keen talent for intricate drawing. By seven his interest developed into women's fashion design and he was producing a regular 'fashion watch' magazine for his family. He came to prominence when he appeared on the Late Late Toy Show last year and has since become a regular fashion correspondent for the kids' TV show, elev8.
" Alexander McQueen is my favourite designer. I have never really thought of myself as having a major talent. I don't know whether my future lies in presenting fashion television or in fashion design," he said.
His mum, Yvonne, said that her only concern was that Douglas would "get catapulted" into something at too early an age.
"He is excellent at school and always in the top five in his class. He obviously has a talent for drawing and design and if that will help him experience the world and experience life then we are fully behind him," she said.
Gráinne and Douglas are among the lucky children whose exceptional abilities are being nurtured by family, school and extracurricular activities.
But this is not always the case, according to Margaret Keane, who founded the website giftedkids.ie in 2008.
"There is a wide spectrum when it comes to gifted children and we have a huge brain drain happening because often we are not recognising these kids or giving them the support they need."
Margaret believes that more teacher training in the field is crucial.
Parents also need to connect and support each other but, above all else, she believes that the happiness of the child should be at the centre of everything.
"We need to let our kids be kids. All any parent wants is for their children to be happy and these kids love learning," she said.
The Centre for Talented Youth(CTY) provides weekend and Summer courses for primary and secondary students with high academic ability at Dublin City University and at centres around the country including Cork, Limerick, Galway and Letterkenny. CoderDojo, a free not-for-profit computer coding and designing club, runs classes in Dublin, Cork and Limerick.
Irish Independent
