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Eleven-year-old Racheal Wa Ikonya is a ballerina dancer and loves knitting and writing. Her mother, Kigera Ngendo Marie shares how she has supported her artistic daughter. 

Parenting is the most adventurous journey that one gets to walk. You get to bring another human into the world, watch closely, guide and help them become their best selves and the most responsible humans.

That’s the goal. It is beautiful to watch the very sparks of the talents God has put in them and understand them from a tender age, but just how do you handle it all when your child is multi talented? 

As a parent, just how much time are you required to spare to be a part and parcel of this growth? Does it become overwhelming? 

Racheal Wa Ikonya is a multi-talented 11-year-old third born in a family of four.

As her mother Marie shares, her talents started manifesting when she was two years old. She would watch ballerina dancers and practice after them.

“I kept looking for a place or class she could join in vain, so we trained by watching TV.

When she joined school, she was amongst the first beneficiaries of Competency based Curriculum (CBC) system; she loved the new concept and adored it.

She easily gravitated to all the practical subjects. This has also played a great role in nurturing all her talents, knitting, writing and ballet dance,” shares Rachael’s mum, Kigera Ng’endo Marie, who is also a sales executive. 

And since she is still discovering more as she grows, she hopes to be either an actress or model when she grows up.

Mum’s support

“My favourite thing about dancing is flexing my body—and all the moves help me to stretch my muscles really well.

When it comes to knitting, I started because I wanted to help my parents out financially.

I made small purses and scarves and now I can do bigger bags. Some of my customers include mum’s colleagues. I like that I am able to make a few coins and save,” she says. 

Being a working mum makes it a bit hard to manage and participate in cultivating all these talents.

But  Marie shares that she tries to create time to nurture and encourage her while also teaching her other house chores;  and it is exceedingly beyond expectations.

She also has been able to create a market space for her knitting within her network. 

According to psychological research, a multi-talented child expresses multiple interests. It is hence important for a parent to try as much as possible to create an environment that supports those interests.

“In this case, I can see that Racheal loves ballet. Using TV and Internet to train and expound on her skills is a good way to go for now.

There are times when as a parent you are not able to support your child’s talents, but if she can be getting the basics, let her do that through the channels that she is already using,” shares child Psychologist Faith Mutegi. 

Going about it

The expert advises that instead of doing it alone, the parent should try to find out if there are other children within her networks or community where she lives or relatives‘ children who love ballet or have similar interests.

That way there will be a group of children doing the same thing and this in turn will make it easier to get a coach to take them through.

One can make the best of social media networks to get a trainer or tutor at an affordable fee.

“With the other skills such as knitting, there are a few things to put into consideration. For instance is she able to be placed under an apprentice? 

Is there someone who loves knitting that the girl can visit or can be taught on some basics? This can be coupled with financial management.

The mother needs to learn and teach the child how to record the cost of materials, labour, so as she grows up, she will understand that it’s not a matter of giving it out for free. She needs to know the costs.

When it comes to writing, there are certain clubs that encourage young writers.

There are many platforms that encourage children to send in articles. This will help her to grow her skills. 

Also, we learn best by teaching. In a way of nurturing her talent, Faith advises that the parent look into having her daughter’s friends over so they can teach each other. 

“Get children who can come together and exchange the different talents that they all have instead of playing just cha mama and baba. With guidance from a parent or teacher.

Create an environment where the child can realise her potential and understand that there is room for improvement. They can do a few hours every week,” advises the child psychologist.  

Her parting shot is that every child is unique with their own ambitions, desires, and goals.