Parents and educators are often surprised by the challenges of raising and teaching gifted children. These children often have intense emotions to match their strong abilities. Some are fearful, shy and oversensitive and others are too bold, brash or bragging. Parents and teachers are easily intimidated by their adult-sounding vocabulary, but counselors can give them the tools to parent and teach with confidence.
Sensitivity and intensity may permit children to experience great emotional depth but oversensitivity unfortunately leads children toward perfectionism, avoiding challenge and underachievement. When sensitive adults respond intuitively to oversensitive children they may unintentionally overprotect them and increase their anxiety.
Over-empowered and bold children who talk incessantly, brag and argue soon alienate teachers, siblings and peers. Counterintuitive responses that set boundaries and prevent manipulations can be used to teach skills that allow them achievement and good social relationships.
This presentation will give counselors tools for guiding parents and teachers so that they in turn can help gifted children achieve to their potential and contribute to their communities.
Learning Objectives
After the workshop, participants will
- better understand the social and emotional needs of gifted children
- learn about tools that can be used for guiding highly sensitive, over-empowered or bold gifted children
- be able to better guide parents and teachers toward setting realistic expectations for gifted children
- better understand the place of motivation and pressures in facilitating gifted children’s achievement
Speaker
Dr. Sylvia Rimm is a psychologist who directs the Family Achievement Clinic in Ohio and specializes in working with gifted children and adults. She is also a clinical professor at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and counsels at Menlo Park Academy, a K-8 charter school for gifted children. Dr. Rimm speaks and publishes internationally on parenting, giftedness, creativity and underachievement. Among her many books are Education of the Gifted and Talented, Why Bright Kids Get Poor Grades and What You Can Do About It, How to Parent So Children Will Learn, Keys to Parenting the Gifted Child, See Jane Win®, How Jane Won, Jane Wins Again, and See Jane Win for Girls. See Jane Win® was a New York Times Best Seller and was featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show and in People magazine. Dr. Rimm was a longtime contributor to NBC’s Today Show, hosted Family Talk on public radio nationally, and serves on the Board of Directors of the National Association for Gifted Children. She has received the prestigious Anne F. Isaacs, Robert Rossmiller and Palmarium awards for her lifetime contributions to gifted children.