Vivid imagination; large capacity for invention and fantasy; use of rich language in speech and writing; may have an imaginary friend and create imaginary worlds;
May tell tall tales; may not know where fantasy ends and reality begins; may have difficulty focusing in a classroom where academic rigor rather than imagination take priority; may choose to sketch or write rather than do seat work; may getdistracted by ideas and possibilities
Provide opportunities for creative problem solving, creative writing and invention
Help students apply thier imagination to productive endeavors
Allow new approaches to organizing and solving problems
Involve your child in creative extracurricular activities such as theater, dance or art classes
Help your child to distinguish between fact and fantacy by talking through the facts of a situation
Allow storytelling and embellishment while acknowledging that it is an act of creativity
Emotional Intensity
Social awareness, love of truth, equity, and fair play beyond age level.
Difficulty managing strong emotions; physical manifestations such as headaches, nausea and anxiety; easily overwhelmed by rigid expectations and sensory overload of the classroom.
Provide opportunities for students to process feelings in journals or discussions
Acknowledge emotions and avoid judging students
Work with parents to identify triggers for meltdowns and share strategies for preventing them and debriefing when they do occur
*
Help your child recognize when they are starting to "spin"so that they can take time away from the situation
Accept all emotions as legitimate even if they don't make sense to you
Discuss the cause of a meltdown after everyone is calm but before too much time has passed--plan for how to handle things differently next time
Large voca
bulary and verbal proficiency; broad information in advanced areas.
May use words to escape or avoid situations; becomes bored with school and age-peers; seen by others as a "know it all." May not be motivated by grades.
Analytical Thinker
Acquires and retains information quickly.
Impatient with slowness of others; dislikes routine and drill; may resist mastering foundational skills; may make concepts unduly complex.
Is easily bored, can become disruptive in class, shows strong resistance to repetitive activities and memorization, completes work quickly but sloppily
Allow students to make several mistakes and take risks
Allow students to articipate in non-graded or judged activities
Create an environment where students are free and comfortable to take risks.
Allow students to try something new
Allow students to relish their accomplishments
Allow your child to make mistakes without criticism
Create an environment where your child feels free and comfortable to take risks.
Allow your child to try something new and out of their comfort zone
Relish in your child's accomplishments
Ability to conceptualize, abstract, synthesize; enjoys problem-solving and intellectual activity.
Rejects or omits details; resists practice or drill; questions teaching procedures.Tends to be absent-minded regarding practical details or forgets homework assignments
Take the role of encouragement v. pressure.
Model self-care
Can see cause--effect relations, an awareness of relationships, using metaphors or analogies
Difficulty accepting the illogical-such as feelings, traditions, or matters to be taken on faith. Deeper knowledge can lead to emotional intensity and worry.
Thinks critically; has high expectancies; is self-critical and evaluates others.
Critical or intolerant toward others; may become discouraged or depressed; perfectionistic. Sometimes perceived as a "know-it-all" by peers, is sometimes "bossy" to peers in group situations
Coping for Capable Kids, by authors LeoNora M. Cohen, Ph.D. and Erica Frydenberg, Ph.D.
The authors define giftedness and discuss its aspects at length, as well as common problems that gifted children may encounter. Cohen and Frydenberg include a section specific for teachers detailing how they can help capable students cope in their classrooms that prefaces a chapter on family functioning and coping.
Allow yourself to make several mistakes a day
Participate in non- judged activities
Take risks
Try something new
Relish your accomplishments
Ponders with depth and from different perspectives.
Is creative in new ideas, seeing associations, pursuing innovations
May resist working on activities apart from areas of interest, leaves projects unfinished, takes on too much and becomes overwhelmed
Teaching Gifted Kids in the Regular Classroom: Strategies and Techniques by author Susan WinebrennerGuide to meeting the learning needs of gifted students in the mixed-abilities classroom.
Inquisitive attitude; intellectual curiosity; intrinsic motivation; detailed planning; searching for significance;
avid reader; long periods of sustainted attention; concern with moral and ethical issues; enjoyment in thinking about their thinking; advanced vocabulary and large storehouse of knowledge.
Asks embarrassing questions; strong-willed; may challenge authority and require logical thinking; resists direction; seems excessive in interests; may become impatient with others who don't have their intellectual pace; may not have emotional development to deal with adult issues that concern them.
Give them opportunities to investigate topics of interest
Assure that they are sufficiently challenged
Try to find an intellectual match with whom they can sometimes work
Allow them to explain their thinking
Assist them in finding a cause to which they can contribute
Help them to see how their criticism of others may be hurtful, even if it is warranted
Assure that they have plenty of reading materials at their level
Is resourceful - solving problems by ingenious methods
Strong sense of humor reflecting advanced understaning
Sees absurdities of situations; humor may not be understood by peers; may become "class clown" to gain attention.
Easily gets carried away with a joke, has a tendency to become the "class clown"
Keen observer; willing to consider the unusual; open to new experiences.
Overly intense focus; occasional gullibility.
Creative and inventive; likes new ways of doing things.
May disrupt plans or reject what is already known; seen by others as different and out of step.
Highly Motivated
Enjoys organizing things and people into structure and order; seeks to systematize; leads
Constructs complicated rules or systems; may be seen as bossy, rude, or domineering.
Intense concentration; long attention span in areas of interest; goal-directed behavior; persistence.
Resists interruption; neglects duties or people during period of focused interests; stubbornness.
Highly Sensitive
Perceives the differences between what is said and done, empathy for others; desire to be accepted by others; notices small changes in the environment and moods of others.
Sensitivity to criticism or peer rejection; expects others to have similar values; need for success and recognition; may feel different and alienated; may be perceived as shy or aloof; may have difficulty with constant stimulation during the school day.
High energy, alertness, eagerness and enthusiasm; periods of intense efforts and drive to succeed; desire for taking action; may need less sleep.
Frustration with inactivity; eagerness may disrupt others' schedules; needs continual stimulation; may be seen as hyperactive; may talk compulsively and have nervous habits.
If the child needs to exert energy to process thoughts, provide a space for this that will not disturb others
Provide hands-on activities and opportunities for discussing ideas
Provide times of freewheeling creativity and open-ended activities
Help your child to understand how their energy may sometimes overwhelm others
Provide lots of physical outlets and opportunities to move freely
Introversion
Independent; prefers individualized work; reliant on self; spends energy being around people and needs time alone to reenergize; become absorbed in ideas; communicate best one on one.
May reject parent or peer input; non-conformity; may be unconventional; introversion, may not handle criticism well; may have difficulty working in groups; may be perceived as shy or aloof; may be unwilling to take risks or perform publicly.
Resources
Strategies
Dabrowski's Overexcitabilities:
http://giftedkids.about.com/od/gifted101/a/overexcite.htm
Dabrowski's Overexcitabilities:
http://giftedkids.about.com/od/gifted101/a/overexcite.htm
7 Strategies to Help Kids Cope:
http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/gt-kids-and-behavior-seven-strategies-to-help-kids-and-parents-cope
Dabrowski's Overexcitabilities:
http://giftedkids.about.com/od/gifted101/a/overexcite.htm
7 Strategies to Help Kids Cope:
http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/gt-kids-and-behavior-seven-strategies-to-help-kids-and-parents-cope
Dabrowski's Overexcitabilities:
http://giftedkids.about.com/od/gifted101/a/overexcite.htm
- Provide opportunities for students to process feelings in journals or discussions
- Acknowledge emotions and avoid judging students
- Work with parents to identify triggers for meltdowns and share strategies for preventing them and debriefing when they do occur
*bulary and verbal proficiency; broad information in advanced areas.
Is easily bored, can become disruptive in class, shows strong resistance to repetitive activities and memorization, completes work quickly but sloppily
http://mensaforkids.org/school_template.cfm?showPage=school_lesson_plan.cfm
Recommended Reading for Parents of Gifted Children from American MENSA:
http://www.us.mensa.org/learn/gifted-youth/recommended-reading/
Other Resources from MENSA:
http://www.us.mensa.org/learn/gifted-youth/other-resources/
The authors define giftedness and discuss its aspects at length, as well as common problems that gifted children may encounter. Cohen and Frydenberg include a section specific for teachers detailing how they can help capable students cope in their classrooms that prefaces a chapter on family functioning and coping.
http://www.exquisite-minds.com/best-links-for-parents/
avid reader; long periods of sustainted attention; concern with moral and ethical issues; enjoyment in thinking about their thinking; advanced vocabulary and large storehouse of knowledge.
http://giftedkids.about.com/od/gifted101/a/overexcite.htm
Dabrowski in Layman's Terms:
http://www.stephanietolan.com/dabrowskis.htm
http://giftedkids.about.com/od/gifted101/a/overexcite.htm
Dabrowski in Layman's Terms:
http://www.stephanietolan.com/dabrowskis.htm
Easily gets carried away with a joke, has a tendency to become the "class clown"
7 Strategies to Help Kids Cope:
http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/gt-kids-and-behavior-seven-strategies-to-help-kids-and-parents-cope
Dabrowski's Overexcitabilities:
http://giftedkids.about.com/od/gifted101/a/overexcite.htm
Dabrowski in Layman's Terms:
http://www.stephanietolan.com/dabrowskis.htm
7 Strategies to Help Kids Cope:
http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/gt-kids-and-behavior-seven-strategies-to-help-kids-and-parents-cope
Dabrowski's Overexcitabilities:
http://giftedkids.about.com/od/gifted101/a/overexcite.htm
Dabrowski in Layman's Terms:
http://www.stephanietolan.com/dabrowskis.htm
- Provide support in making transitions
- Avoid sarcasm and sharp criticism
*http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/exploring-social-and-emotional-aspects-of-giftedness-in-children
Dabrowski's Overexcitabilities:
http://giftedkids.about.com/od/gifted101/a/overexcite.htm
Dabrowski in Layman's Terms:
http://www.stephanietolan.com/dabrowskis.htm
Dabrowski's Overexcitabilities:
http://giftedkids.about.com/od/gifted101/a/overexcite.htm
Dabrowski in Layman's Terms:
http://www.stephanietolan.com/dabrowskis.htm
Introversion and the Gifted:
http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/introversion-the-often-forgotten-factor-impacting-the-gifted
Introversion and the Gifted:
http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/introversion-the-often-forgotten-factor-impacting-the-gifted
Supporting the Emotional Needs of the Gifted:
http://www.sengifted.org/about-seng
When Counseling is Necessary, Guidelines for Selecting a Counselor:
http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/tips-for-selecting-the-right-counselor-or-therapist-for-your-gifted-child