Many more boys than girls are recognised as "gifted" by their teachers, and, as parents, we're more likely to recognise that we have a "gifted" son than a "gifted" daughter. Boys usually let their peers and classmates know of their gifts, even at the risk of social isolation, while gifted girls tend to become chameleons, blending in with the other girls. They hide their talents at the cost of inhibiting the development of their abilities, says Dr Linda Kreger Silverman, of the Gifted Development Centre in Denver, Colorado.

There are exceptions - notably, the many cases where giftedness exists alongside a learning disability (such as a problem with reading) which may mask a child's true intelligence. "When we compare the developmental patterns of gifted girls to those of gifted boys, we begin to wonder if the boys in general are socially deficient or if the girls are socially talented," Silverman says.

On the first day of pre-school, the developmentally advanced boy - aged four, going on seven - will burst into the room ready to master this new frontier. He wants to share what he knows with his new friends. So he tells them all about planets, asteroids, meteorites and mysterious black holes. One by one, his friends disappear since, obviously, they don't know what he's talking about.

as he watches the other children play, he wonders why they play such silly games, and remarks: "That's stupid. What are you doing that for?" This doesn't make him popular.

If the teacher pushes him into engaging with other children in their activities, he may find ingenious ways to annoy his classmates until he is forced to withdraw and play by himself.

Helen Dewitt portrays such a boy, in the character of Ludo, in her novel, The Last Samurai (Chatto & Windus, £22.10). At six, Ludo knows six languages and can do algebra, while his classmates are still learning simple addition and basic English. Ludo's genius and constant questioning challenge his classmates to the extent that it upsets them so much that his teacher keeps encouraging him to blend in. So he leaves school.

Girls operate in the opposite way: faced with a classroom of peers, gifted girls tend to become invisible. "Imagine what it is like to be a fourth-grader placed in a firstgrade class," asks Silverman.

"How would you have related to the other children or to the curriculum? You would have to figure out how to play with children whose games were not interesting and play by rules that seemed crude and unfair. You would have to learn how to explain your ideas in simpler terms that others could understand. You would have to wait patiently while others struggle with concepts you have known from some time. You would have to refrain from answering all the teacher's questions so that others can have an opportunity to participate. You'd have to be very careful not to reveal what you really know," she says.

Adults have no appreciation of the complexity of this task and it is a wonder that anyone manages to achieve it. "We never recognise the amazing social feat gifted girls perform daily," says Silverman.

A gifted girl who can draw well, will "perform" a scribble if that's what her classmates are doing. All her classwork becomes a performance designed to win approval.

But the habit of seeming less capable than they really are becomes a lifelong pattern and a self-fufilling prophecy for these girls. If junior/national school is too easy, these girls cannot cope with more demanding coursework later on in secondary school and may avoid challenging career courses in university.

This is why so many talented girls under-achieve. They are outperformed by less capable classmates who have one "gift" that "gifted" girls lack: the ability to conform to the system intellectually as well as socially.

Parents of gifted children may be interested in a lecture being presented by The Irish Association for Gifted Children at Carmichael House, North Brunswick Street, Dublin, on Tuesday, April 24th at 7.30 p.m. Katherine Gavin, professor of Mathematics Education at Central Connecticut State University, will give a talk on identifying and developing mathematical talent in children.