For Parents of Gifted Children
Upon hearing the word "myth," one may think of Zeus on Mount Olympus or King Arthur at Camelot. However, not all myths come from history; modern myths exist as well. Some of the most prevalent modern myths in education...
Praise is a powerful tool that parents and teachers can use to motivate their children. Furthermore, children appear to thrive on praise. Yet both the research on the effects of praise and advice about praise can be confusing. Praise...
Students will tell you that plagiarism is everywhere and, perhaps, even irrelevant. To make their case, they point to recent examples of high-profile authors, politicians, musicians, and even clergy who have used the work of others without acknowledgment. Although...
Abilock, Debbie Educational Strategies Volume 9 / Issue 1 / Fall 2008 Social-Emotional Issues
Egalitarianism versus Elitism Do gifted students warrant special attention in the public schools in the United States? Rhetoric and heated political discourse surround the question of identification and education of gifted students with the philosophical positions of egalitarianism and elitism...
Brown, Elissa F. Volume 8 / Issue 4 / Summer 2008 Legislation/Law
True or false? Some people are born gifted, and others are not. You can tell who will be gifted from early on. Gifted children should be labeled and praised for their brains and talent. All of these statements are...
Dweck, Carol S. Educational Strategies Volume 8 / Issue 3 / Spring 2008 Talent Development
Parenting gifted children socially and emotionally presents a challenge and causes sane and balanced adults to squirm, wonder, pace, and otherwise exhibit anxiety. No one tells unsuspecting parents of gifted children that in order to raise their children there is...
Volume 8 / Issue 2 Winter 2008 Social-Emotional Issues Troxclair, Debra
Imagine the thoughts of fifth-grade students preparing to enter middle school. What sorts of questions are forming in their minds? What fears make their hearts race and palms sweat? Plenty! The student may be asking: What is middle school like?...
Educational Strategies Volume 8 / Issue 1 / Fall 2007 Kozak, Richard A.
More than a half century ago I began my first serious venture in studying gifted students. We identified students with Stanford Binet IQ test scores over 150 in the elementary schools of a university-town school system. The goal was...
Gallagher, James J. Volume 7 / Issue 4 / Summer 2007 Research and Theory
I was browsing the children’s section at my local Borders when I heard, “Not this—you’re too advanced for these,” and watched an earnest young mother close an oversized picture book and point her preadolescent daughter toward the teen section. As...
Abilock, Debbie Educational Strategies Volume 7 / Issue 3 / Spring 2007
The majority of programs for gifted learners were developed for suburban and urban schools. Rural schools can be quite different and may need to modify these programs to meet the educational needs of their gifted learners. For example, very...
Hafer, Cherry Volume 7 / Issue 2 / Winter 2007 Lewis, Joan D. Special Populations
Have you ever wondered why some children easily manage a complex life including friends, schoolwork, and sports, while others drift through their school years confused and scattered? Or why two students can enter a math class with equivalent ability and...
Volume 7 / Issue 1 / Fall 2006 Moon, Sidney M. Talent Development
Critical thinking is a buzzword among educators, but parents may wonder what it means. Critical thinking has been described as nonlinear, open-ended, and complex thinking; it allows for multiple responses, unspecified answers, various perspectives and interpretations, and recognition of order...
Educational Strategies Volume 6 / Issue 4 / Summer 2006 Shaunessy, Elizabeth
For the rare gifted student whose educational needs have been met, individual assessment may not be a priority. However, for the vast majority who remain in inadequate programs, testing can be a potent ally. It can address parental concerns and...
Gilman, Barbara Jackson Volume 6 / Issue 3 / Spring 2006 Parenting/Advocacy Tests & Testing
America's school system keeps bright students in line by forcing them to learn in a lock-step manner with their classmates. Teachers and principals disregard students’ desires to learn more—much more—than they are being taught. Instead of praise and encouragement, these...
Educational Strategies Volume 6 / Issue 2 / Winter 2006 Robinson, Nancy M. Special Issue / Fall 2009
Preparing gifted children for adulthood includes career planning; however, merely finding a job match should not be the goal. Likewise, focusing narrowly on academic ability and achievement is not adequate for making career decisions. The ultimate objective should be to...
College Planning Greene, Meredith J. Volume 6 / Issue 1 / Fall 2005 Social-Emotional Issues
In his latest book, Status Anxiety, Alain de Botton, the best-selling author and philosopher, graphically chronicles the universal anxiety, often unspoken, about what others think of us and whether they judge us successes or failures by our achievements. De...
Frydenberg, Erica Volume 9 / Issue 3 / Spring 2009 Special Issue Volume 5 / Issue 4 / Summer 2005 Social-Emotional Issues
The phone call came in May, just days after my niece had completed the eighth grade. The spunky preteen who had begged to copilot a small plane at age 12 said, “I just don’t want to go to high...
Educational Strategies Volume 5 / Issue 3 / Spring 2005 Patterson, Frances
Have you ever heard the following comment by your child’s teacher? “Johnny is so structured. His desk is neat, his assignments are color coded in a three-ring binder, and his homework is always ready on time.” Or do you...
Volume 5 / Issue 2 / Winter 2005 Parenting/Advocacy Social-Emotional Issues Stamps, Lisa
"Mom, you know how the meteorologist on TV talks about the different computer models that predict where a hurricane is going to hit? Well, I asked my teacher about it, but he said I should probably wait to learn more...
Educational Strategies Volume 5 / Issue 1 / Fall 2004 Milam, Cheryl P.
Stephen is a 13-year-old math whiz. He’s also a good all-around student, energetic, and curious. He sometimes drives his parents to distraction with his questions and ideas, and he has alienated more than one neighborhood friend with his information...
Greenspon, Thomas S. Volume 4 / Issue 3 / Spring 2004 Social-Emotional Issues
I’m smart, and smart people don’t have to study or work hard.” Does this sound familiar? How unexpected and frustrating to discover that your child who has been identified as gifted is underachieving academically! Twenty percent or more of students...
Ford, Donna Y. Volume 4 / Issue 2 / Winter 2004 Parenting/Advocacy Trotman, Michelle Frazier
The friendships of gifted children often challenge parents, because they differ from those of average-ability children in several ways. First, because gifted children are similar in cognitive and social development to children who are two to four years older, they...
Volume 4 / Issue 1 / Fall 2003 Neihart, Maureen Social-Emotional Issues
Most gifted children enjoy relatively good overall psychological health. Research supports the view that intellectually and athletically gifted youth have better-than-average social adjustment. However, we know less about the social adjustment of gifted children with talents in music, drama,...
Volume 3 / Issue 4 / Summer 2003 Parenting/Advocacy Pfeiffer, Steven I. Social-Emotional Issues
Of course you’d like your gifted daughter to have a fulfilling career that combines creativity, challenge, and the opportunity to contribute, and you want her to establish a satisfactory family life and relationships. However, glass ceilings and sticky floors continue...
Volume 3 / Issue 3 / Spring 2003 Parenting/Advocacy Rimm, Sylvia B. Social-Emotional Issues
When parents think of their children as gifted, they usually think of high IQ scores, high SATs, high ACTs, high grades, and the like. But research shows that there is much more to giftedness than the academic ability and achievement...
Volume 3 / Issue 2 / Winter 2003 Research and Theory Sternberg, Robert J.
Most parents know that school administrators use intelligence tests to identify gifted children. What most parents do not know is that the content of these tests can have a powerful influence on who is identified as gifted and who...
Volume 3 / Issue 1 / Fall 2002 Naglieri, Jack A. Special Populations Tests & Testing
Several months ago the parents of a highly gifted fourth grader, Trent, called me for advice about his development. They expressed considerable concern about his increasing unwillingness, as they put it, “to shine.” Having always performed academic tasks superbly...
Volume 2 / Issue 4 / Summer 2002 Olenchak, F. Richard Social-Emotional Issues
I t is commonly believed that leaders are born, not made. In fact, leadership is nurtured and developed. It does not “happen.” So, don’t wait for your child to emerge as a leader. Develop leadership capacity in your child...
Educational Strategies Volume 2 / Issue 3 / Spring 2002 Roberts, Julia Link Talent Development
Emotional intelligence is the ability to perceive, understand, and manage feelings. Because it is a relatively new area of study in psychology, we know less about it than about more traditional types of intelligence. However, what we are learning is...
Volume 2 / Issue 2 / Winter 2002 Moon, Sidney M. Social-Emotional Issues
A child came home from school one day and said, “I’m bored.” “What’s the matter? What do you mean?” his parents implored What does this child mean when he says that he is bored? Is he bored at school?...
Deal, Linda Volume 4 / Issue 4 / Summer 2004 Social-Emotional Issues
During the elementary years a close connection between home and school can result in positive interpersonal, emotional, and intellectual development for the child. Parents and school personnel are dedicated to the educational well-being of children, but they represent different perspectives....
Volume 2 / Issue 1 / Fall 2001 Parenting/Advocacy Stocking, Vicki
The youngest artist-in-the-making I ever met was six years old. Carson Rutter arrived at my office carrying a folder of his work in one hand and holding his mother’s hand with the other. Drawings of cowboys dominated his portfolio....
Creativity Volume 1 / Issue 4 / Summer 2001 Kay, Sandra Talent Development
Gifted youth need to start planning for college before the eighth grade. Why so early, when most teens don’t start until their junior or senior year? Because they need to develop an academic plan for course selection in middle school...
College Planning Volume 1 / Issue 3 / Spring 2001 VonGruben, Jill F.
The next time you see your child engrossed in a video game, watch carefully. Notice the look of intense concentration. Except for the occasional gasp of excitement or exasperation, he or she is silent and may remain that way for...
Educational Strategies Volume 1 / Issue 2 / Winter 2001 Knicklebine, Mark
In 1983, Harvard psychologist Dr. Howard Gardner introduced a theory that expanded the boundaries of what constitutes intelligence. Critical of the way intelligence was measured, Gardner sought to redefine the concept by incorporating recent findings from neuropsychology. He put forth...
Volume 1 / Issue 1 / Fall 2000 Research and Theory Snopek, Roxanne