144: Supporting Your Gifted Child

Is your child gifted?   Do you wonder if they're gifted but aren't quite sure?   Do you want to know how to support your gifted child's learning in a way that doesn't pressure them or make them resist working with you?   If so, this episode will help.   I have to say, I wasn't sure where this one was going to end up.  I was really uneasy about the concept of giftedness from the outset, perhaps because the way I had previously come into contact with it was through our conversation with Dr. Allison Roda, from whom we learned how some parents manipulate the Gifted & Talented program in New York City to perpetuate segregated education.   But even so, I tried to go into the research with an open mind.  What if it's just the G&T programs as they're set up in New York City that are the problem, not the entire concept of giftedness itself?   The good news is that there's a good deal of evidence on what kinds of programs benefit gifted children.  And in this episode I end up arguing that we shouldn't just put gifted children in them, but that all children would benefit from learning using these methods.   Ready to transform how you support your child's curiosity? While we're all trying to figure out what's really behind rising teen anxiety and whether phones are the problem, there's something we can do right now that helps nurture our children's natural curiosity and intrinsic motivation to learn.   The You Are Your Child's Best Teacher masterclass shows you how to do exactly that without adding pressure or creating elaborate activities that exhaust you.   When children feel competent and engaged in learning that matters to them, they develop resilience that serves them well, whether they're facing social media pressures, academic stress, or the general challenges of growing up in today's world.   Click the banner to learn more!     Learning Membership Do you want to turn your child’s interests into learning opportunities? The Learning Membership is here to help you. Make learning a fun adventure that not only strengthens your bond, but also nurtures your child’s intrinsic love of learning—an essential foundation for success in an AI-driven world.   Get tools and strategies to support your child’s love of learning and future-proof their success in navigating whatever comes their way. No special skills needed—just a willingness to explore alongside them.   Click the banner to learn more!     References Adair, J.K., Colegrove, K. S-S., & McManus, M.E. (2017). How the word gap argument negatively impacts young children of Latinx immigrants’ conceptualizations of learning. Harvard Educational Review 87(3), 309-334. Aiegler, A., Balestrini, D.P., & Stoeger, H. (2018). An international view on gifted education: incorporating the macro-systemic perspective. In Pfeiffer, S.I. (Ed.), Handbook of giftedness in children: Psychoeducational theory, research, and best practices (p.15-28). Cham, Switizerland. Begay, H. & Maker, CJ. (2007). When geniuses fail: Na8Dene’ (Navajo) conception of giftedness in the eyes of the holy deities. In S.N. Phillipson & M. McCann (Eds.), Conceptions of giftedness. Sociocultural perspectives (pp. 1278168). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Berry, K. S. (2004). Multiple intelligences are not what they seem to be. In J. L. Kincheloe (Ed.), Multiple intelligences reconsidered. (pp. 236-250). New York, NY: Peter Lang. Carrillo, J.F. (2013). I always knew I was gifted: Latino males and the Mestiz@ Theory of Intelligences (MTI). Berkeley Review of Education 4(1), 69-95. Chandler, P. (2011). Prodigy or problem child? Challenges with identifying Aboriginal giftedness. In Vialle, W. (Ed.), Giftedness from an Indigenous perspective (p.1-9). Australian Association for the Education of the Gifted and Talented Ltd. Retrieved from https://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1016&context=uowbooks Christie, M. (n.d.). Some Aboriginal perspectives on gifted and talented children and their schooling. Charles Darwin University. Retrieved from https://www.cdu.edu.au/centres/yaci/docs/Aboriginal-Perspectives-On-Gifted-Children%20190910.pdf Ford, D. Y., Orantham T. C. & Whiting, G. W. (2008). Culturally and linguistically diverse students in gifted education: Recruitment and retention issues. Exceptional Children, 74, 3, 289Q306. Jiuliani, A.J. (2013, June 25). Why “20% time” is good for schools. Edutopia. Retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/20-percent-time-a-j-juliani Kanevsky, L., & Keighley, T. (2003). To produce or not to produce? Understanding boredom and the honor in underachievement. Roeper Review, 26, 20–28. Mayes, R.D., & Moore III, J.L. (2016). The intersection of race, disability, and giftedness: Understanding the education needs of twice-exceptional African American students. Gifted Child Today 39(2), 98-104. Miller, E.M., & Cohen, L.M. (2012). Engendering talent in others: Expanding domains of giftedness and creativity. Roeper Review 34, 104-113. Novak, A.M. (2021, February 5). Black (Gifted) Joy: A critical race theory perspective. https://doi.org/10.35542/osf.io/xdpwr Peterson, J. S. (2001). Successful adults who were once adolescent underachievers. Gifted Child Quarterly, 45, 236–250. Pfeiffer, S.I., & Prado, R.M. (2018). Counseling the gifted: Current status and future prospects. In Pfeiffer, S.I. (Ed.), Handbook of giftedness in children: Psychoeducational theory, research, and best practices (p.299-313). Cham, Switizerland. Reis, S.M. (2005). Feminist perspectives on talent development: A research-based conception of giftedness in women. In R.J. Sternberg & J.E. Davidson (Eds)., Conceptions of Giftedness (2nd Ed.) (p.217-246). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Rinn, A.N., & Majority, K.L. (2018). The social and emotional world of the gifted. In Pfeiffer, S.I. (Ed.), Handbook of giftedness in children: Psychoeducational theory, research, and best practices (p.49-64). Cham, Switizerland. Silverman, L.K. (2018). Assessment of giftedness. In Pfeiffer, S.I. (Ed.), Handbook of giftedness in children: Psychoeducational theory, research, and best practices (p.183-207). Cham, Switizerland. Sternberg, R.J., & Kaufman, S.B. (2018). Theories and conceptions of giftedness. In Pfeiffer, S.I. (Ed.), Handbook of giftedness in children: Psychoeducational theory, research, and best practices (p.29-48). Cham, Switizerland. Ziegler, A., Balestrini, D.P., & Stoeger, H. (2018). An international view on gifted education: incorporating the macro-systemic perspective. In Pfeiffer, S.I. (Ed.), Handbook of giftedness in children: Psychoeducational theory, research, and best practices (p.15-28). Cham, Switizerland.