Resources for parents of gifted students:

 

 

For parents working with all ages of gifted students:

 

 

Whitney, Carol Strip, and Gretchen Hirsch. A love for learning: motivation and the gifted child. Scottsdale, AZ: Great Potential Press, 2007. Print.

 

This book is for parents and teachers in order to suggest ways to keep gifted students motivated. While gifted students are susceptible to many de-motivating factors, which can lead to depression and underachievement, we can change this. The authors present concepts and techniques to counteract those factors and gain motivation. This book includes information on the four C’s of motivation: creating challenge, creating control, creating commitment, and creating compassion.

 

 

Cross, Tracy L.. "Competing with Myths about the Social and Emotional Development of Gifted Students « SENG." SENG. N.p., 1 June 2002. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/competing-with-myths-about-the-social-and-emotional-development-of-gifted-students>.

 

This article includes information on some common myths about gifted students. This would be an informative read for teachers and parents alike.

 

 

Fonseca, C. (2011). Emotional intensity in gifted students: helping kids cope with explosive feelings. Waco, Tex.: Prufrock Press.

 

This book is a recommended guide to teachers and parents working with gifted children. It is a resource for parents and teachers not only to help them understand why gifted children can be so extreme in their behavior but also to learn specific strategies to teach gifted children how to live with their intensity. This book is written in an easy-to-read, conversational style using real-world examples and case studies to show parents and teachers how to interact with gifted children. Resources such as worksheets, tip sheets, and checklists are included to help parents, teachers, and students cope with explosive feelings that can accompany giftedness. Strategies for stress management, underperformance in school, perfectionism, and social anxiety are also addressed.

 

 

 

 

 

Early Childhood Resources

 

Books/Articles:

 

Davidson, Jan, Bob Davidson, and Laura Vanderkam. Genius denied: how to stop wasting our brightest young minds. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004. Print.

 

This book discusses gifted children in today’s school systems. It tells how gifted students may be forced into a “one size fits all” approach to schooling and become bored or frustrated. It discusses the need for sufficient challenges and resources in order to help students meet their full potential. The Davidsons – founders of a nonprofit institute that provides assistance to gifted children – offer hope and practical advice to parents and students. They discuss personal experiences and show how to find appropriate education for your gifted child of any age.

 

 

 

Fertig, Carol. Raising a gifted child: a parenting success handbook. Waco, Tex.: Prufrock Press, 2009. Print.

 

This is a “How-to” handbook for parents of gifted children. It tells how while it isn’t easy to raise a gifted child, with the right tools parents can nourish their bright student and lead them to success in school and beyond. This book offers a large amount of strategies, resources, organizations, tips and suggestions for finding the optimal learning opportunities for your child. The focus is on empowering parents by giving them the tools needed to ensure that their gifted kids are happy and successful in and out of school.

 

 

 

Websites/Videos

 

Young Bright Children

 

http://www.nagc.org/resources-publications/resources-parents/young-bright-children 

 

This website provides a little information to parents about early detection of giftedness in their child. It also tells about struggles to decipher giftedness at the age of 8 or under. Finally, it includes tips to continuing motivation as students grow.  

 

 

Top 5 ways to nurture gifted children

 

http://giftedkids.about.com/od/nurturinggiftsandtalents/tp/simplenurture.htm

 

This website gives details on how to nurture you gifted child. The top 5 ways listed are: follow the child’s leads, expand your child’s interests, be creative, look for outside activities, and keep a variety of resources at home. It tells more in detail as to how to do each of these things in order to encourage your gifted student and help them to grow socially and intellectually.

 

 

 

Middle Childhood Resources:

 

Books/articles:

 

Kay, Kiesa, Deborah Robson, and Judy Fort Brenneman. High-IQ kids: collected insights, information, and personal stories from the experts. Minneapolis, MN: Free Spirit Pub., 2007. Print.

 

This book is a very practical guide to parents of gifted students as well as teachers. Organized by IQ range, this book includes personal stories and practical strategies for using with a student. It includes scholarly articles and entertaining essays from parents, educators, authors, researchers, and other experts who have an understanding of exceptionally gifted kids of all ages.  This book is recommended to adults who want to know more about high-IQ students and how to support them, advocate for them, and meet their social, emotional, and learning needs.

 

 

 

Ruf, Deborah L.. Losing our minds: gifted children left behind. Scottsdale, AZ: Great Potential Press, 2005. Print.

 

This book tells how highly and profoundly gifted children can have very typical behaviors in early childhood and therefore be missed or underestimated by tests of ability. It includes pieces from 50 different families with highly intelligent children, classified into 5 levels of intelligence. Parents and teachers will be able to analyze child’s behavior and developmental milestones as well as look at testing, test scores, and interpretations of scores in a new way.  This book also discusses how gifted students think in different ways which may make a test complicated for them, even when they clearly know the material.

 

 

 

Websites/videos: 

 

Motivation and Learning

 

http://www.nagc.org/resources-publications/resources-parents/motivation-and-learning

 

This link provides advice to parents about motivating their students and keeping them excited about learning. Underachievement is common in gifted students who are not challenged and encouraged by their parents and teachers. The National Association of Gifted Children suggests discovering your student’s interests, developing positive values for learning, and linking interests to school as ways to motivate your child.  

 

 

Social and emotional problems affecting gifted children

 

http://giftedkids.about.com/od/socialemotionalissues/a/gtproblems.htm

 

This website tells about issues gifted students may have socially and emotionally so that parents can be aware and know how to deal with these issues if they arise in their child. This includes: Problems Resulting From Advanced Verbal and Reasoning Ability, Problems Resulting From Asynchronous Development, and Problems Resulting From Perfectionism and Emotional Sensitivities. 

 

 

Adolescent resources:

 

Books/articles:

 

Silverman, Linda Kreger. Upside-down brilliance: the visual-spatial learner. Denver, Colo.: DeLeon Pub., 2002. Print.

 

This book tells about different learning styles which may pertain to your gifted student. This would be a great book for parents and educators alike to read and learn more about differences in learning. It specifically focuses on visual-spatial learners. The book specifically tells of practical ways to recognize, reach and develop visual-spatial abilities such as imagination, visualization, intuitive knowledge, invention, discovery, spirituality, three-dimensional perception, artistic express, scientific & technological proficiency, emotional responsiveness, holistic & whole-part thinking, and holographic understanding.

 

 

Webb, James T.. A parent's guide to gifted children. Scottsdale, Ariz.: Great Potential Press, 2007. Print.

 

This is a recommended book for parents of gifted children of any age. It discusses the joys and challenges of raising a gifted child. It provides practical guidance in areas such as: characteristics of gifted children, peer relations, sibling issues, motivation & underachievement, discipline issues, intensity and stress, depression and unhappiness, educational planning, parenting concerns, finding professional help & much more.

 

 

 

Websites/videos:

 

Gifted Students Go Dumb to Fit In 

 

http://www.theage.com.au/national/education/gifted-students-go-dumb-to-fit-in-20120620-20ogw.html

 

This article is about gifted students in today's education system. This is a cautionary writing piece for parents and teachers alike. Encouraging the adults in these students lives to challenge them and encourage them so that they don't feel the need to "dumb down" to fit in. 

 

 

 

A Parent's Guide to Understanding the Needs of Gifted Students

 

http://www.highschoolcube.com/event/a-parent-s-guide-to-understanding-the-needs-of-gif-303035

 

This is a link to a video that was a prerecorded training session geared toward parents of gifted students. It discusses the social emotional issues that gifted students may experience during adolescence as well as academic issues.

 

 

Organizations

 

National Association for Gifted Children – Supporting the needs of high potential learners

 

www.nagc.org

 

The National Association for Gifted Children support and develop policies and practices that encourage and respond to the diverse expressions of gifts and talents in children and youth from all cultures, racial and ethnic backgrounds, and socioeconomic groups. NAGC supports and engages in research and development, staff development, advocacy, communication, and collaboration with other organizations to strive to improve the quality of education for all students.

 

See more at: http://www.nagc.org/about-nagc/who-we-are#sthash.DZtz3RtY.dpuf

 

 

 

Gifted Journey

 

http://www.giftedjourney.com/teaching.html

 

The Gifted Journey provides ideas for parents and teachers in working with their gifted students. “Teaching gifted students in the regular classroom can be rewarding and challenging for those who are open-minded and willing to try new things.” The website then contains types for motivating your student as well as working with their possible challenging behaviors.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gifted Child Society

 

http://giftedchildsociety.com/index.php

 

The Gifted Child Society is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1957 by parents of New Jersey to further the cause of gifted children. Its mission goals are:

• Educational enrichment and support services specifically designed for gifted children.

• Assistance to parents in raising gifted children to full and productive adulthood.

• Professional training to encourage educators to meet the special needs of these youngsters.

• A greater effort to win public recognition and acceptance of these special needs.

Since 1957, the Society has served over 60,000 children and their families. In 1975, the U.S. Department of Education named it a national demonstration model.

 

 

 

 

 

National Society for the Gifted and Talented

 

http://www.nsgt.org/

 

The National Society for the Gifted & Talented (NSGT) is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization created to honor and encourage gifted and talented (G&T) children and youth. It is committed to acknowledging and supporting the needs of G&T children and youth by providing recognition of their significant academic and artistic accomplishments and access to educational resources and advanced learning opportunities directly related to their interests and talent areas..

 

The vision of NSGT is to enable and empower gifted, talented, and high potential youth, in the United States and abroad, to celebrate and maximize their unique potential through membership in the National Society for the Gifted and Talented.

 

The mission of NSGT is to advance the development of gifted, talented, and high potential youth, in the United States and abroad, through opportunities, advocacy, and exemplary programs and practices.

 

Last updated July 26, 2014