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The Joys and Challenges of Gifted Children

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Recently, I was reading a blog post on Gifted Children. This Mom had a unique perspective on just what it takes to raise a gifted child (being that all 3 of hers were). To her, having a gifted child, was not much different than having a special needs child. In a way, I can see her point. There are definitely challenges in motivating the exceptionally smart children.

Jennifer, the author of the blog I was reading says, “In my observation, there are Really Smart Kids, and there are Gifted Kids – and the parents of the Really Smart Kids have the better end of the deal. True giftedness not only involves intelligence, but thinking so outside the box that the box is not even recognizable. Gifted kids think differently, learn differently, relate to people differently. They are often misunderstood by teachers and peers, and they often struggle with fitting in and feeling accepted. There is a lovely little term called “asynchronous development” that makes life oh-so-interesting: the gifted child may have the intelligence of one many years older, but his body, his maturity and his emotions are still at his biological age – or younger.”

Grace
Grace was a child with a huge vocabulary before most of the children her age were even talking in sentences. People commented all the time on how grown up she sounded because of this fact. When she was 3, she started reading. I didn’t feel like I had done anything special to get her to that point. She just came to me one day and said, “Mommy, I want to read this book to you.” I was blown away that she was able to read me the entire book, only needing help with one or two words!

I also knew at a very early age that she had a real talent for music. As an infant, I worked at a child care center almost an hour away. She came with me every day. On our commutes, she would sit in her car seat, trying to match pitches that I would sing to her. In her toddler years, she could hear a song one or two times, and know every word to the song. Before she was even walking, she’d be standing at the coffee table, tapping her feet to the rhythm of music. I knew I was going to have a very smart little girl with some huge talents!

We had always joked that we were NOT going to teach her to tie her shoes. After all, she needed to be able to learn SOMETHING in Kindergarten! Surprisingly, tying ended up being something she struggled with. In Kindergarten, she was already reading at about a 2nd grade reading level. She was identified as “Gifted”, and put into a special program with other advanced readers. I was so glad she was put into that program. Up until that point, I wondered why I even bothered to send her to Kindergarten. Sure, she benefited socially, but academically, she was bored. The gifted teacher she worked with did a great job in challenging her to read more carefully, and gave her tips to push learning to the next level. She has continued to work with this teacher several times a year for the past several years. Now that she is a 4th grader, she is preparing for the statewide Battle of the Books. She is having a hard time getting motivated to read the books because, as she says, the books on the list are too easy.

While she is a very smart girl, she lacks some (OK, a lot) in the area of self-motivation. Things come so easy to her, that she doesn’t want to take the time to work at them. The idea of doing extra, just ’cause? Not in her line of thinking! Here’s an example: Grace has been in dance since she was 3. This year, she was invited to join the competition dance group. I’m so proud of her! At the same time, I get so frustrated watching her. I know she can do the moves, and I know she has room for improvement. She just doesn’t push herself!

Sadly, I can’t get too upset with her, because I was the same way! When I was in 5th or 6th grade, I was identified as gifted. I was in a program called “High Potential.” I was pulled out with some other children. I may have been a bit advanced in some areas, but I never quite felt like I belonged in that group. I was terrible at math, and because I struggled in that one area, I didn’t think I was as smart as the other kids in the group. Like my daughter, I didn’t push myself. I didn’t try at anything quite as hard as I could have. I went through school in advanced classes, and most of it was easy (though, history had a lot of numbers, so it wasn’t my strongest area). I couldn’t understand kids who struggled to read. Also, I played the flute. It came fairly easy to me (granted, if I had practiced, I probably would have been much better). I got by on my ability alone. I was in dance classes from 2nd grade through 10th grade. I danced at the competitive level for a couple of years, until I hurt my knee in 9th or 10th grade. Looking back, I wish I would have pushed myself harder. Instead of just getting by all those years, I wish I would have taken everything to the next level and just TRIED. I can only imagine where my music, dance, and even academics might have gone!

Michael
Michael is a Kindergartner. He began reading last spring. I was so excited, I tried to push him. He shut down and decided to quit reading altogether. His interest is back in reading these days. His teacher informed me just today that he is among the Top 10 Readers in all the kindergarten classes at his school. Problem is, he won’t read for anyone else except me. He refused to read for the teacher who wanted to “test” his ability in order to pull him out for a special guided reading group. His teacher opted not to force him, for fear he would shut down. I think that was a good choice – for now. My challenge now is to figure out how to build his confidence so that he can realize his true ability.

Going back to the blog that got me on this topic for a second. Jennifer says that it is important for parents to advocate for their children. We need to work with teachers to help our children, and to ensure they are continually challenged. On this point, I agree 100%. It was a struggle for me and it is a struggle for both of my kids who seem to be on the advanced end of the spectrum. Not only is it important to make sure our kids are challenged, it is also important to help them stay motivated (as they may struggle with motivating themselves). Our children who are either truly gifted, or just really smart, may have a hard time fitting in with their “average” peers. We need to not only advocate for them with their teachers, but we also need to support them in their struggles. The same is true with any child. It is part of our duty as parents.

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Ideas to Make Learning Much More Fun

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In a world where our younger generations seem most excited about the newest and coolest computer games and electronic toys they could get their hands on, it’s become increasingly hard to get children to focus on and develop an interest in learning. Innovation has never had a more important place in the classroom.

For teachers this means having to spend more time on activity preparation, and having to force themselves to be much more creative than in the past.

But how do you go about applying changes to your traditional teaching methods, and how do you even come up with new ideas?

Idea Exchanges

Constantly coming up with new ideas for the classroom can be exhausting. With time it’s completely normal to stall and be unable to produce anything worthwhile. So an easy way of getting around this is to schedule an idea exchange.

This could take place both at a school level or regional level, and involve as many teachers as you wish from as many departments as you wish. Essentially, the more the better as you can not only pool together existing ideas, but also generate new ones together.

It could take the form of a one-day conference or seminar, in which teachers share their experiences, and explain how they implemented new methods in their teaching, as well as how the children responded.
Alternatively, it could just be an informal gathering at a cafe or pub after classes have finished for the day. A relaxed and jovial atmosphere is quite likely to be the best for a spot of creative brainstorming and idea sharing.

Educational School Trips

While the idea of learning outside the classroom through educational school trips has been around for a while, there are additional elements you can incorporate in the visit to make it more effective.

First of all, there is now a much vaster pool of opportunities to choose from when it comes to school trips. Museums are a classic example, but nowadays many enterprises will be more than willing to welcome a class and show them around to see how things are made. At your next parent teacher evening, ask the parents if their workplace might be willing to schedule a visit.

This gives kids an insight into how things work, and how companies are run. You could even enquire whether some employees might be willing to give a talk at some point during the day.

Instead of just going on the visit without doing anything other than listening to what the guide is saying, give the children additional assignments. Though it will involve lengthy preparations, a quiz or a Q&A-type challenge for the day will keep the kids occupied and, hopefully, focused. If this can be graded, this will add motivation.

Science Experiments

Science experiments are an age-old way of adding a touch of fun to learning. Not all of these have to involve traditional lab equipment, however. They can be made even more fun by using household objects that you can ask the kids to bring along to class.

For example, did you know you can make a battery out of fruit? You will need a few of the more “hi tech” devices found in a school science lab, but the main “ingredients” are lemons, coins or nails, screws, wires and a small knife.

Other experiments could focus on producing power from running or cycling.

Kids will be so happy to take part in creating something with their bare hands.

The only limits are your creativity, and the ever present health and safety regulations.

Harvey McEwan writes to offer information and advice on a variety of areas, from science experiments to technology to holiday destinations. View Harvey’s other articles to find out more.

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Three Accelerated Learning Techniques That Work for Anyone

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If you’re trying to look for the best and easiest fast learning techniques, well then, I have got you covered. There are many quick learning articles and courses out there but it is hard to find something that is applicable and effective to anyone- no matter where you are, what your background is and even how old you are.

In this article, we will talk about three fast learning techniques: using music, incorporating visuals and finding a mentor. By the end of this article, I’m sure that you would be able to look at quick learning in a whole new light.

Accelerated Learning Music

This learning technique is very effective and the great thing about it is that you can use it anywhere. Just download some baroque or rococo music into your music player and you can start learning new things faster. The way music works is that it helps a person relax and focus better on the task or lesson at hand. But since these types of music are kind of upbeat too, you would be relaxed in just the right amount.

Accelerated Learning Visuals

There are a lot of people who are visual learners. But as fast learning technique, you can be an auditory, spatial or intrapersonal learner and it would still work! When you use photos, flowcharts and other types of visual aids, your brain will be more interested in it and it will help retain that new information longer and faster in your memory bank.

Accelerated Learning Mentor

Of course, there’s no denying that one of the best ways to learn quick learning is through learning from someone who is a guaranteed master in it. The truth is, there are a lot of accelerated learning courses out there today and you could easily take your pick. If you do decide to go with an speed learning mentor, be very cautious with your research and try to know as much as you can about that person. Just remember to be really careful with who you pick and make sure that you will get the best experience and fast learning techniques from your chosen mentor.

Now that we have these very simple and effective quick learning techniques out in the open, go out there and try them yourself. Remember, the best way to see and experience real results from these accelerated learning techniques is through practice. The moment that you know how to perfectly and effectively use music, visuals and mentorship programs to use, you can go out there again and find other accelerated learning techniques that can make your life so much better.

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