Living With Live Wires

Giftedness is a term that can be a blessing to parents and a challenge when it comes to  navigating social and educational systems.  We want our children to succeed and have their gifts and talents nurtured, but with the current cultural views on giftedness, some parents just want to hide their children’s abilities. These parents may prefer to have a child that is “normal” and just fits in with their peers.

There are several books that describe gifted children and how to parent them.  One of the best books to start with is “A Parent’s Guide to Gifted Children,” by James T. Webb, Ph.D., et. al. (2007).  They state that,

Parent’s uncertainty and ambivalence are often due to confusion as to what “gifted” means.  They may have never heard the term “gifted,” or if they have, they may mistakenly think that a gifted child is necessarily a genius or a child prodigy, or at least a child who is far brighter than others in all areas.

Another confusing factor is that parents often hear statements from teachers or administrators such as, “In our school, we believe that all children are gifted.” . . . Such comments are not only perplexing, they are also inaccurate.

 It (giftedness) can’t be separated out to deal with only when it’s convenient for others.  Giftedness cannot be overlooked or minimized; gifted children are fundamentally different.  

 Here are some of the definitions from various sources.

National Association For Gifted Children (NAGC) www.nagc.org

A gifted person is someone who shows, or has the potential for showing, an exceptional level of performance in one or more areas of expression.

Some of these abilities are very general and can affect a broad spectrum of the person’s life, such as leadership skills or the ability to think creatively. Some are very specific talents and are only evident in particular circumstances, such as a special aptitude in mathematics, science, or music. The term giftedness provides a general reference to this spectrum of abilities without being specific or dependent on a single measure or index. It is generally recognized that approximately five percent of the student population, or three million children, in the United States are considered gifted.

A person’s giftedness should not be confused with the means by which giftedness is observed or assessed. Parent, teacher, or student recommendations, a high mark on an examination, or a high IQ score are not giftedness; they may be a signal that giftedness exists. Some of these indices of giftedness are more sensitive than others to differences in the person’s environment.

It may be more difficult to identify giftedness in areas that can’t be tested easily by paper-and-pencil measures.

Howard Gardner (1983) in Frames of Mind, suggested that there are “multiple intelligences.”  The seven intelligences that he identified include:

Linguistic intelligence  – verbal ability

Musical intelligence - perceive distinctions and patterns of notes and rhythms, musical talent

Logical-Mathematical intelligence – deductive reasoning, abstract patterns

Visual-Spatial intelligence – visualize spatial dimensions, both internally and externally

Bodily-Kinethetic intelligence – physical awareness

Interpersonal intelligence – person-to-person communications and relationships

Intrapersonal intelligence – strong awareness of self, spiritual inner states, awareness

Expanding your ideas about what areas children may display exceptional abilities can help parents look beyond the traditional tests offered by schools to identify the “smarter” children who can perform well on written tests.  And, realizing that there are several areas of individual development can expand your options when designing a well-rounded educational experience for your gifted chid.  I believe it is important to examine the full range of human experience when searching for better ways to develop our potential.  This is the foundation of what I call, an Integral view to education and actualizing potential.

Here is an excerpt from the bio of Dr. James Webb from Great Potential Press: 

James T. Webb, Ph.D., ABPP-CL, has been recognized as one of the 25 most influential psychologists nationally on gifted education, and he consults with schools, programs and individuals about social and emotional needs of gifted and talented children. In 1981, Dr. Webb established SENG (Supporting Emotional Needs of Gifted Children, Inc.), a national nonprofit organization that provides information, training, conferences and workshops, and he remains as Chair of SENG’s Professional Advisory Committee.  Currently, Dr. Webb is President of Great Potential Press, Inc.

Here is a link to SENG (Supporting Emotional Needs of Gifted Children)