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4 Tips to Help Parents and Teachers Become Resources for Gifted Students

Are you the parent or teacher of a gifted child? If so, you know that being gifted comes with special social, emotional, and intellectual needs. It can be a source of joy to have a gifted child, but it can also be difficult to find specialized resources for gifted students, to understand and manage their complexities, and to make sure they have access to the right education. 

Finding resources for gifted students, as well as resources to support you in your role nurturing them, is crucial for everyone’s success.

In this blog post, we’ll give you some advice to aid in your gifted child’s development. We’ll also point out some great resource books that can help you understand your child’s needs so you can offer appropriate guidance and support. 

Tip #1: Understand Your Child's Giftedness

The first step in supporting your gifted child’s development is to understand what giftedness means and how it affects your child. Giftedness isn’t just about being smart or getting good grades. It’s of a complex mix of emotional, social, and intellectual factors. Understanding and supporting these unique factors is crucial to a gifted child’s success. The Essential Guidebook for Parents of Gifted Children explores the unique challenges and opportunities that gifted children face and provides practical advice for parents (and educators!).

Tip #2: Provide Opportunities for Intellectual Challenge

Gifted children thrive on intellectual challenge. They need opportunities to explore their interests and pursue their passions in a way that engages their minds and expands their knowledge. To provide your child with these opportunities, you may want to explore programs, curricula, and courses that have been designed specifically with gifted children in mind.

Understanding why gifted kids often don’t reach their fullest potential in conventional settings is crucial if we don’t want to keep seeing those outcomes.

Books like Off the Charts and The Inconvenient Student can help parents and educators understand the complexities of educating children who have advanced abilities but who struggle with school for a variety of reasons. 

Tip #3: Support Your Child's Social-Emotional Needs

Gifted children can be prone to feelings of isolation, boredom, and anxiety. They may struggle to connect with peers and to find meaning in their lives. To support your child’s social-emotional needs, you may want to read Embracing the Whole Gifted Self. This book provides practical advice for dealing with issues such as underachievement, perfectionism, and emotional intensity. For this reason, it can help you support your child’s emotional well-being. 

Also consider From Stress to Success. In this book, adults can learn about the circumstances that can trigger stress in gifted children and can work to help these children deal with anxiety and find a sense of calm.

Tip #4: Encourage Creativity and Self-Expression

Gifted children often have a strong sense of creativity and a need for self-expression. They may enjoy exploring their artistic or literary talents, and they may be drawn to unconventional or innovative ideas. To encourage your child’s creativity and self-expression, you may want to check out the Artistic Ways of Knowing books. Although this is an arts curriculum, it can also be a resource for gifted students, as it is intellectually stimulating enough for the gifted crowd. This series provides exercises and guidance for young visual artists, musicians, dancers, and actors who want to explore their creativity and hone their talents. 

Explore More Resources for Gifted Students

Nurturing your gifted child’s development requires a combination of understanding, guidance, and support. By learning about the characteristics of giftedness and following the strategies in these resource books, you can help gifted children reach their full potential and achieve their goals. To learn more about giftedness and explore all of our specialized offerings, be sure to check out the full selection of curricula and resources for gifted children from Royal Fireworks Press. These books provide expert guidance, practical advice, and challenging learning opportunities that can help your child thrive. 

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