Transcript Survival Tactics for Parents of Gifted Children

Working in Partnership With the Schools for
Your Child: Ten Things to Round Out the
School Program
Professor Karen B. Rogers
GERRIC/ The University of New South Wales
Sydney, Australia
[email protected]
What to Ask of the Schools
• Meet the needs of all gifted children through
– Daily challenge in areas of strength (>50%)
– Consistent remediation in areas of weakness (<25%)
– Regular attention to socialization/affective issues (25%)
• Large blocks of time with intellectual/academic peers
• Mixed ability peer time for open-ended, higher level activities only
(PBL, Inquiry Learning, etc.)
• Sessions on perfectionism, social skills instruction (fending off the
intolerant)
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Fast-paced acquisition of new content & skills (academic)
Compacting of regular curriculum to make room for challenge
Subject acceleration/ individualisation
Opportunities for competition, benchmarks of progress
Things You Must Do Outside of School
1. Provide opportunities, regardless of child’s age,
in the specific area(s) in which your child’s talent
and interests lie
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Regional and local newsletters (also check out Hoagies.com)
Regional/ School/Community Resource Centre
Talent Search programs
Museums
Camps
Educational Opportunity Guide (919/683/1400)
Special Schools/Instructors - coaching, tutoring
Parent magazines - Gifted Child Today OR Parenting High
Potential Children
Things You Must Do Outside of School
2. Provide opportunities for socialization with others of like
ability or interests
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Newsletters and Yearly Conference for Gifted Parents NSW)
Interest Clubs or Competitions
Talent Search Courses
Gifted Association/university/school district classes, experiences
3. Provide opportunities for socialization with mix of adults
and children of varying abilities, ages
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Community Projects (B. Lewis,“A Child’s Guide to Social Action”
Scouts
Nature Center experiences/classes
Church Projects and Socials
Things You Must Do Outside of School
4. Provide ways for child to understand own identity and
uniqueness
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Home projects instead of television
Private lessons
Direct moral/ethical dilemma discussions
Bibliotherapy reading (Halsted, Baskin & Harris)
Benchmarks of Progress through contests, competitions
5. Provide child with the “classics” of literature, philosophy,
art, music, theater
– Great Books Foundation, Classics to Read Aloud, Great Books,
Philosophy for Children, Child’s History of the World,...
– DBAE - Getty Museum
– Performances
Things You Must Do Outside of School
6. Provide a variety of experiences that build fine motor
skills, dexterity, and spatial visualization
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Musical instruments (non-blowing!)
Keyboarding speed
Painting and drawing lessons
Orienteering
Books on tape
7. Provide experiences that require memorization and
improving the ability to remember (visual, auditory,
episodic, geographic)
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“Committed to Memory”
Historical dates, facts
Scientific dates, facts
Geography
Things You Must Do Outside of School
8. Help your child learn to communicate precisely
and expressively
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Books on tape
Book discussions
Writing outlets (poetry, short stories, novelettes)
Practice in giving directions, describing pictures in detail
Theatre classes
Communication web sites (Voices of Youth, Deja News, Peace
Pals)
– Current events, social/moral dilemma discussions at dinner
Things You Must Do Outside of School
9. Teach child a variety of problem solving
strategies to help in social, real world, and
academic situations
– Repertoire of jokes, ripostes, phrases for negative
social situations
– Evaluation grids (Creative Problem Solving)
– Activities from “What Do You Stand For?” by Barbara
Lewis, “What Would You Do: A Kids’ Guide to Tricky
and Sticky Situations” by Linda Schwartz
– Scavenger hunts, Treasure hunts
Things You Must Do Outside of School
10..Help your child feel comfortable in and
knowledgeable about the world
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Backyard search
Behind the scenes tours of local companies, etc.
Travel books
Stamp, coin collecting
Map making
Travel
The ‘Deep Web” on the Internet
Final Survival Tactics
• Don’t wait for the school to get things in place. Go ahead
and start what you have asked for on your own (tutoring
by an honor student, etc.)
• When requesting services from the school, go with a
group of other parents who want this service too
• Insist on services within the school day. After school
options send a message that this service is not important
enough to be taught during the school day
• Start saving your money now for university. Your child may
need to go early and there just aren’t many breaks
(scholarships, etc.) for bright children anymore (except for
sports and music)
A Quote to Live By
• “The family is the single most important
determinant in the ultimate development of a
child’s gift or talent.” (Sato, 1998)
• What that means is, the dynamics, expectations, hopes,
access, etc. that a family possesses can either hinder or
enhance the child’s development. (Not to put too much
pressure on you or anything!)
So, How Far Are You Willing to
Go As a Parent?
Are the Ten Options Expecting too Much
of You?
Do You Want Your Child to Be “Eminent”
At Some Point in His/Her Life?
Cradles of Eminence: Childhoods of More Than 700
Famous Men and Women
Ted Goertzel & Ariel Hansen (2004)
• First edition written by Ted’s parents, Victor and Mildred in
1962 about 400 outstanding persons of the 20th century.
To be “outstanding” there had to be at least two
biographies about the person in their Montclair, New
Jersey library.
• Second edition reproduced the first edition with updates
and included an additional 300 outstanding persons culled
from the Montclair library and Life magazine’s “100 Most
Influential Americans” and Time magazine’s (and book)
“Great People of the Twentieth Century”
Categories of Eminence
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Activists
Actors
Architects
Artists
Athletes
Business Leaders
Criminals, Assassins, Spies
Dancers, Choreographers
Diplomats
Editors and Publishers
Explorers and Adventurers
Categories of Eminence
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Film Makers
Journalists
Judges and Lawyers
Labor Leaders
Law Enforcement
Military Leaders
Musicians and Composers
Photographers
Physicians
Pilots
Political Leaders
Categories of Eminence
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Psychics and Hypnotists
Scientists, Scholars, and Educators
Famous Wives, Family Members, Socialites
Writers
Summary of the Findings About Those Who
Became Eminent
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All had a desire to be “great”.
Almost all of them had a parent or another person who helped them identify
their strengths and natural abilities.
60% expressed dissatisfaction with schools and teachers, although 80%
showed exceptional talent while in school.
None had an easy time of it in childhood.
Almost all possessed superior ability to reason and recognise relationships,
had strong intellectual curiosity, wide-ranging interests, and were effective at
working independently.
Most had their greatest superiority in reading and were early readers (with a
few notable exceptions).
Most had capable brothers and sisters.
Homes That Respected Learning and
Achievement, But Not Necessarily School
• There was personal involvement with ideas in the home.
• The child showed great intensity in following his/ her own passions
and was encouraged to do so by one parent.
• Often there was a strong family value system, a parent who was
willing to sacrifice for greatness.
• Children (90%) were removed from school for long periods of time or
never sent at all.
• CASALS
Opinionated Parent(s)
• 50% of the families had strong political attitudes, religious views, or
espoused unpopular causes, working for reform and expressing or
acting out controversial views publicly.
• Child tended to adopt parental views, did not rebel against parents,
only teachers. (Only 11 did rebel against parents).
• Those who tended to emulate their fathers became social rebels,
revolutionists, or philosophers.
• Those who emulated their mothers tended to become artists.
Conclusions to be Drawn
• Most of these children had exceptional talents that could have
qualified them for programs for the gifted and talented, but they also
had a drive or set of goals that set them apart from the “crowd” of
gifted children.
• Most of these children were “allowed” to take a risk to develop their
talent rather than pursue the traditional-university-world of work
career path.
• Being in the right place at the right time accounts for some of the fame
and eminence, but those who “cashed in” on this were well
prepared,open to what they were offered, and persistent as well.
Conclusions to be Drawn --For Good or Bad!
• Most of the families supported the child’s exceptional talent and
alternative goals or were benignly neglectful so that the child was free
to pursue personal goals.
• Many of the most creative in the sample suffered unresolved
emotional problems, economic, health, or safety problems. What they
did have in abundance was being “hooked” on being challenged or on
solving problems. Often their response was rooted in anger or
frustration about their misfortune or mistreatment.
Conclusions to be Drawn
• “The freedom to follow paths that are nontraditional is important if one is to learn to be
independent in thought and action. Parents and
educators can perhaps help best by encouraging
young people to explore their options and make
the most of available resources as they follow
their own muse-- wherever it leads them.”
• (Goertzel & Hansen, 2004, p. 347).
And Does That Bring Us Back to
Our Ten Options for Rounding
Out What Schools Can Provide?
You Decide…
Thank You