When Your Child’s Exceptionality is Emotional: Looking Beyond Psychiatric Diagnosis
This article explores how gifted children’s intense traits—Dabrowski’s overexcitabilities and temperament features like intensity, sensitivity, and perfectionism—can be mistaken for psychiatric disorders. It discusses misdiagnosis risks, how environmental factors interact with traits, and practical strategies parents can use to reduce distress and support their children’s needs.
Using Books to Meet the Social and Emotional Needs of Gifted Students
The post recommends using children’s books to address gifted students’ social and emotional needs. Reading shared stories lets adults and children discuss issues like feeling different, introversion, perfectionism, and relationships. It guides selecting suitable books, developing thought-provoking questions, and facilitating open-ended discussions in school or home settings.
Affective Development of Gifted Students with Nontraditional Talents
Discusses underachievement among gifted students with nontraditional talents, exploring affective development, identification challenges, and risks. Through case studies of Rachel and Tim it shows how mentoring, affective interventions, and opportunities to develop strengths can reverse underachievement and argues schools must recognize and support diverse talents.
Asynchronous Development and Sensory Integration Intervention in the Gifted and Talented Population
This article reviews sensory integration theory and its application to gifted and twice-exceptional children. It describes sensory integrative dysfunctions (dyspraxia, sensory modulation disorders), discusses limited research on interventions, and recommends education, sensory diets, and cautious occupational therapy tailored to gifted children.
Life with a Challenging Child: What to do when your gifted but difficult child is driving you crazy
This article advises parents of gifted but challenging children to view behavior in context, nurture strengths, and change parental responses. Practical strategies include modifying environments, offering backup plans, empowering children with choices and concrete tools, and teaching parents to be helpful leaders, illustrated by a case study of Diana.
Exploring Social and Emotional Aspects of Giftedness in Children
This article outlines five social and emotional traits common among gifted children — divergent thinking, excitability, sensitivity, perceptiveness and entelechy — describing associated vulnerabilities, behavioral manifestations, and parental interventions to support development, self-regulation, empathy, creativity, and healthy social adjustment across childhood and adolescence.
Transitioning Your Gifted Child from School Year to Summer Vacation
A parent describes her gifted child’s difficulty with transitions and outlines coping strategies for moving from school to summer, including minimizing errands, preparing routines, and allowing occasional turbulence. Adjusting family routines helped the child develop emotional balance and improved ability to manage transitions.
Finding a School that Fits
This article guides parents of twice-exceptional (2e) children in finding suitable schools. It advises listing a child’s traits, prioritizing needs, researching public and private options, considering obstacles like cost and location, and seeking help from educational consultants to identify programs that nurture strengths while addressing challenges.
Gifted Adults in Work
This article discusses challenges gifted adults face at work, describing characteristics such as rapid thinking, sensitivity, introversion, perfectionism, and learning differences. Case studies illustrate how recognition, appropriate job adjustments, psychological assessment and career guidance can restore motivation and help gifted employees contribute effectively.
An interview with James Webb, Ph.D. Grandparents and Gifted Children
An interview highlights grandparents vital role for gifted children: recognizing potential, providing time, mentoring, emotional perspective, school advocacy and financial support. It addresses grandparents as parents, effects of divorce and remarriage, and urges active, supportive grandparenting to nurture development and opportunities.