Gifted Child Resource Guide
Your child may be ridiculously smart, but also... not too bright. To parent this child, you'll need skills! (And possibly medication.)
Raising a gifted child can be challenging. And while there are a lot of resources out there, I find many of them to be impersonal and a little too serious. There's a broad spectrum of giftedness and a lot of the information out there seems to be geared to the very highly gifted. I am the mother of a gifted child. He scores incredibly high on standardized tests, IQ tests, and he clearly thinks differently than some other people. However, he's not going off to MIT when he turns twelve either. Here I offer you my collection of gifted child resources for the rest of us.
How to Know if Your Child is Gifted - Sometimes it's difficult to discern whether a child is truly gifted, and therefore in need of special services in order to thrive, or simply very bright and well-served by the traditional classroom setting. Remember, a gifted child is not necessarily a model student.
Battling Perfectionism in Children - There are many reasons for perfectionism. It may be that you have those tendencies and are passing them on to your children through your expectations and your behavior. However, some children are simply born with an uncontrollable urge to strive for perfection. Either way, there's no sense blaming yourself, just get some information and move on.
How to Approach the Endless Questions of a Gifted Child - If you live with a gift child, one of the things you will constantly contend with are her endless questions. Curiosity is a prominent characteristic of gifted children and you may as well get used to it. Gifted children are driven to explore their world, to know it and categorize it. Relax and enjoy the ride.
All About Duke TIP - If you dream about your child walking across the lawn at the ivy leagues, Duke TIP may be the ticket. TIP (Talent Identification Program) is a program that identifies gifted children based on standardized test scores and provides resources to assist in nurturing their development. Being part of TIP means that the gifted child has access to programs and services that may not be available at school.
Indigo Children 101 - This is a different take on gifted. You may or may not buy into the whole concept, but many of the traits identified as Indigo are similar to those of gifted children, including difficulty with authority, frustration with rigid systems, and the possibility of social awkwardness.
All About SIG: Summer Institute For the Gifted - SIG, the Summer Institute for the Gifted provides high quality educational and social opportunities, both residential and day camp opportunities, for academically gifted and talented students. The programs are designed to meet gifted children's special abilities and needs. In 2007, SIG served more than 2000 academically gifted students in Kindergarten through 11th grade.
How to Choose a Summer Camp for Gifted Children - Almost every major university now offers some sort of summer program for gifted and talented children. There are many things to consider when choosing a program so spend some time thinking about the kind of experience you want your child to have.
Within each article you will find links to more resources. Please feel free to make suggestions in the comments and I'll periodically update this Hub for new information. I'll also be writing more articles over time.
