Five Facts and Related Resources for Gifted Students and Their Parents
by Joy Corey
Parents around the world are scrambling to meet the educational needs of their children right now. Online learning and home instruction are possibilities that many parents had never considered. Today parents find themselves immersed in facilitating distance learning for their children while juggling job responsibilities and personal responsibilities from home.
The parents of gifted students are no different, in fact they may find themselves at an even greater loss for ways to address the needs of their gifted student during this pandemic for several reasons.
Fact #1: Gifted children learn differently than their age-mates.
Gifted kids process information more rapidly and remember details longer than their age-mates. Not only do they complete work faster than the average student, they process new content and make connections between what they know and new content more quickly. This fact may lead to a child who refuses online activities that they consider meaningless, rote, or too long and tedious.
Check out these links for learning activities that will motivate your student and keep them engaged and learning.
https://www.notsoformulaic.com/resources-gifted-kids/
https://presentlygifted.weebly.com/helpful-websites.html
https://oedb.org/ilibrarian/50-essential-links-for-the-parents-of-gifted-children/
http://www.thekidstory.com/websites-for-gifted-children/
https://www.hoagiesgifted.org/publishers.htm
MENSA offers a gaming experience for students who want to practice memory skills such as state capitals, synonyms, multiplication, division facts, etc.
https://www.mensaforkids.org/play/games/
Fact #2: Gifted kids may be perfectionists.
Your gifted child may set very high, at times even unrealistic, expectations for herself. Unrealistically high expectations plus a fear of failure may result in a child who won’t attempt to learn new skills or won’t try a task that requires intellectual struggle. Developing grit, the willingness to take on a challenge at which you might fail and try again, is a trait that can be practiced and learned. Finally, encouraging a growth mindset are aspects of learning that need to be encouraged and taught in order for gifted kids to reach their full potential. The following links will open up the world of self-awareness and a greater understanding of who we are as humans.
Psychology For Kids Volume 1 & 2 include fun resources to introduce students to understanding themselves and learn about what makes others tick.
Angela Duckworth has done research on the importance of grit related to learning. Watch the Ted Talk.
Learn about Carol Dweck’s research on Mindsets in this Ted Talk.
Take a survey on your mindset.
Fact #3: Gifted students often exhibit greater intensity in how they experience and interact with the world.
This intensity can be expressed in both positive and negative ways. Some children may express that intensity in emotions such as extreme nervousness or shyness in new situations. For others that intensity manifests in fear, anxiety or an exaggerated sense of worry about social issues and current events. Seek out opportunities for community service such as a volunteering at a food bank or community gardens.
Fact #4: Gifted kids are creative thinkers, conceptual thinkers and good problem solvers.
Like anything else, creative thinking can and should be practiced. Creativity includes 1) fluency, flexibility, and originality of thought, 2) being open to new experiences and ideas, 3) being curious, 4) being willing to take risks, and 5) being sensitive to aesthetic characteristics. Creative/productive giftedness and talent is reflected in individuals who tend to be or have the potential to become producers (rather than consumers) of original knowledge, materials, or products and who employ thought processes that tend to be inductive, integrated, and problem oriented. Invite your student to explore these websites.
https://www.lego.com/en-us/ms/default.aspx?site=portal
Check out the Try Engineering website. It features a student game tab with engineering and science activities
Fact #5: Gifted kids may be passionate about a topic of interest.
Encourage your student to pursue those interests at this time. Connecting with an expert in a particular field of interest encourages students to “Think Like an Expert” and delve deeply into their interest. The following websites offer a multitude of content area learning experiences for exploring interests outside those regularly offered in school.
https://kids.nationalgeographic.com
https://www.nasa.gov/stem/forstudents/k-4/index.html
https://www.nasa.gov/kidsclub/index.html