Golden Boy was standing up in his cot with his arms outstretched towards me and he had a big smile on his face as he said the word “cuddle” again in that cute little voice of his. Life doesn’t get much better than that.

I’m amazed by how quickly my son is learning to speak. He’s only 13 months old but already his vocabulary has stretched to possibly 50 words and is increasing all the time. As well as Daddy, he can say book, ball, bird, door, spoon, bath, flower – and much more. 

He can also say things he probably shouldn’t, such as “fart pants” (one of his innumerable nicknames – he is quite a windy child) and “boobies”. I suppose my lax standards in this department will come back to haunt me later.

“He’s a genius,” my friend Kirsty declared after having watched him for a few hours. “I’ve never heard a baby that young say so much ever.”

I was curious to know if Golden Boy was advanced beyond his age, so I got in touch with the National Association for Gifted Children to find out if he really is a budding Einstein.

What I learned from Denise Yates, chief executive of the NAGC, is that the plight of a truly gifted child – and we won’t know for several years if Golden Boy falls under this label – is often not pleasant.

She said: “There’s a general misconception that ‘clever’ children and young people will do well in school, but many underachieve and some may become disruptive or give up on school altogether. Their needs are often misunderstood or misdiagnosed.”

She said many schools and teachers are not equipped to deal with gifted children and that, in some cases, the children feel ashamed for standing out.

So, this Friday, her charity is sponsoring “It’s Alright To Be Bright” awareness day to highlight the challenges faced by high-ability children, young people and their families.

To show children it really is alright to be bright, the NAGC is asking pupils and teachers across the country to turn up for school in their brightest outfit.

It seems to me that having a child genius in the house is hard work for the parents and would mean the falsehoods I often peddle would be rumbled pretty quick. I certainly hope that Golden Boy is intelligent but not unusually so. I don’t know how well I’d cope.

Email New Age Dad at paul.rhodes@express.co.uk