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Recommended Reading

A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children

Raising a gifted child is both a joy and a challenge, yet parents of gifted children have few resources for reliable parenting information. The four authors, who have decades of professional experience with gifted children and their families, provide practical guidance in areas such as: characteristics of gifted children, peer relations, sibling issues, motivation and underachievement, discipline issues, intensity and stress, depression and unhappiness, educational planning, parenting concerns, finding professional help, and much more.

Bright not Broken

 

The future of our society depends on our gifted children--the population in which we'll find our next Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, or Virginia Woolf.  Yet the gifts and talents of some of our most brilliant kids may never be recognized because these children fall into a group known as twice exceptional, or "2e." Twice exceptional kids are both gifted and diagnosed with a disability--often ADHD or an Autism Spectrum Disorder--leading teachers and parents to overlook the child's talents and focus solely on his weaknesses. Too often, these children get lost in an endless cycle of chasing diagnostic labels and are never given the tools to fully realize their own potential.

Bright Not Broken sheds new light on this vibrant population by identifying who twice exceptional children are and taking an unflinching look at why they're stuck.  The first work to boldly examine the widespread misdiagnosis and controversies that arise from our current diagnostic system, it serves as a wake-up call for parents and professionals to question why our mental health and education systems are failing our brightest children.

Emotional Intensity in Gifted Students

Teaching children how to manage their intense emotions is one of the most difficult aspects of parenting or educating gifted children. Emotional Intensity in Gifted Students: Helping Kids Cope With Explosive Feelings provides a much-needed resource for parents and educators for understanding of why gifted children are so extreme in their behavior and how to manage the highs and lows that accompany emotional intensity. Presented in an easy-to-read, conversational style, this revised and updated second edition contains additional chapters addressing temperament and personality development, as well as expanded role-plays and strategies designed to show parents and teachers how to interact and guide gifted children in a way that teaches them how to recognize, monitor, and adjust their behavior. Updated resources and worksheets make this practical resource a must-read for anyone wishing to make a positive and lasting impact on the lives of gifted children.

Mindset

In this brilliant book, Dweck shows how success in school, work, sports, the arts, and almost every area of human endeavor can be dramatically influenced by how we approach our goals. People with a fixed mindset—those who believe that abilities are fixed—are far less likely to flourish than those with a growth mindset—those who believe that abilities can be developed through hard work, good strategies, and mentorship. Mindset reveals how great parents, teachers, managers, and athletes can put this idea to use to foster outstanding accomplishment.

Parenting for High Potential

Parenting for High Potential is the quarterly magazine designed for parents and others working to support and guide their gifted children at home and at school.

Raising Gifted Kids: Everything You Need to Know to Help Your Exceptional Child Thrive

While it can be rewarding to raise an extremely bright child -- quick, curious, sensitive, and introspective -- it's also a daunting challenge. Parents need insight into their own motivations (as well as those of their children), and the courage and ability to make tough decisions about their child's development. Raising Gifted Kids will help parents understand and cope with the obstacles they face in raising a gifted child, and help them make the best choices for their son's or daughter's growth and happiness. This upbeat and practical book reveals how parents can: * help develop their child's potential and self-esteem without pressuring them * plan their child's education * work optimally with schools and teachers * recognize and prevent problems * solve family conflicts over parenting issues * avoid the dangers of living vicariously through their child's accomplishments * and much more Filled with proven solutions to the unique challenges of raising gifted kids, this book is the powerful yet accessible resource parents have long wished for.

Smart But Scattered

There's nothing more frustrating than watching your bright, talented son or daughter struggle with everyday tasks like finishing homework, putting away toys, or following instructions at school. Your "smart but scattered" 4- to 13-year-old might also have trouble coping with disappointment or managing anger. Drs. Peg Dawson and Richard Guare have great news: there's a lot you can do to help. The latest research in child development shows that many kids who have the brain and heart to succeed lack or lag behind in crucial "executive skills"--the fundamental habits of mind required for getting organized, staying focused, and controlling impulses and emotions. Learn easy-to-follow steps to identify your child's strengths and weaknesses, use activities and techniques proven to boost specific skills, and problem-solve daily routines. Helpful worksheets and forms can be downloaded and printed in a convenient 8 1/2" x 11" size. Small changes can add up to big improvements--this empowering book shows how.

The Survival Guide for Parents of Gifted Kids: How to Understand, Live With, and Stick Up for Your Gifted Child

What does it mean to be “gifted”? What’s good—and not so good—about being identified as gifted? How can parents make sure their gifted children get the learning opportunities they need? How can parents cope with the unique challenges gifted kids present?

 

When Gifted Kids Don't Have All the Answers: How to Meet Their Social and Emotional Needs

This book offers proven, practical suggestions for encouraging social and emotional growth among gifted, talented, and creative children and youth. The authors explain what giftedness means, how gifted kids are identified, and how we might improve the identification process. Then they take a close-up look at gifted kids from the inside out (their self-image and self-esteem) and the outside in (challenges to their well-being from their family, school, peers, and society in general).

When Perfect Isn't Good Enough

It's only natural to want to avoid making mistakes, but imperfection is a part of being human. And while perfectionists are often praised for their abilities, being constantly anxious about details can hold you back and keep you from reaching your full potential.
In this fully revised and updated second edition of When Perfect Isn't Good Enough, you'll discover the root cause of your perfectionism, explore the impact of perfectionism on your life, and find new, proven-effective coping skills to help you overcome your anxiety about making mistakes. 

Why Bright Kids Get Poor Grades And What You Can Do About It: A Six-Step Program for Parents and Teachers

Millions of gifted children are failing to reach their potential something Dr. Sylvia Rimm calls underachievement syndrome. Drawing on both clinical research and years of experience counseling families, Dr. Rimm has developed a Trifocal Model to help parents and teachers work together to get students back on track. It is effective for a wide range of students, from preschool through college. Dr. Rimm s practical, six-step program provides everything you need to know to turn your child or student s underachievement into success.

Why Smart Kids Worry: And What Parents Can Do to Help

Being the parent of a smart child is great—until your son or daughter starts asking whether global warming is real, if you are going to die, and what will happen if they don't get into college. Kids who are advanced intellectually often let their imaginations ruin wild and experience fears beyond their years. So what can you do to help?

In Why Smart Kids Worry, Allison Edwards guides you through the mental and emotional process of where your child's fears come from and why they are so hard to move past. Edwards focuses on how to parent a child who is both smart andanxious and brings her years of experience as a therapist to give you the answers to questions such as:

•How do smart kids think differently?
•Should I let my child watch the nightly news on TV?
•How do I answer questions about terrorists, hurricanes, and other scary subjects?

Edwards's fifteen specially designed tools for helping smart kids manage their fears will help you and your child work together to help him or her to become more relaxed and worry-free.

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