Advanced Psychology Services Resources for Parents
of Gifted Children
How To Tell Whether Your Child is Gifted
The school contacts you to tell that your child is misbehaving. They suggest that he may have ADHD. This is devastating for any parent, especially when the behaviour they describe doesn't sound like something your kid would do.
Understanding Emotional Complexity
of a Gifted Child
We know about the intellectual side of giftedness, but we often overlook the emotional side. Gifted children are prone to having intense bursts of emotion, and this can be quite overwhelming!
Asynchronous Development:
an Alternative View of Giftedness
When we think of a gifted child, we often focus on his intellect and academic skills but forget that his emotional or social skills might not progress at the same pace. This is what cognitive scientists call "asynchronous development".
Recommendations on Raising
Gifted Children
If you are raising a gifted child, there are days when you want to pull your hair out. Your child's superior intellect often makes him think he knows everything better than most adults, but don't let that fool you.
Helping Gifted Students
with Learning Disability
The term "Twice Exceptional" is used to describe a gifted child who also has a learning disability. This is a possibility that few parents are aware of. The combination of giftedness and learning disability occurs quite often and typically goes unnoticed for an extended period of time.
Awakening Your Child’s Full Potential
Every parent wants his child to be successful and happy. In today's world, success requires more than just academic achievement. An essential component is creativity and innovation. How do you cultivate these traits in your child?
How To Develop Creativity
Creativity is behind all of the inventions we enjoy today. When we think about it, most scientific discoveries stem from an individual's ability to see the world differently , to look at the things around them and rearrange them into something completely new, revolutionary, and useful. Can creativity be taught or developed? Most experts say "yes". Creativity can be taught by parents and educators by fostering independent thinking, by encouraging high ambitions and competition, by switching from fact-based learning to developing logic, hands-on exploration, and collaborative problem solving, by asking open-ended questions, and by teaching children to refrain from making assumptions and check their facts. This process takes time but will lead toward developing a child's creativity.
When Aspergers Syndrome
goes Undiagnosed
Strictly speaking, Asperger's Syndrome is no longer a diagnosis, it is now considered the high end of the Autism spectrum (see DSM-5). With increased awareness of Asperger's Syndrome due to popular media, many experts claim that it is now over-diagnosed. However, in some cases, it is undiagnosed. This is often the case for gifted children. Gifted students and children with Asperger's Syndrome share similar social-emotional traits such as oversensitivity, difficulties making friendships, and having little interest in their peers. Yet, there are some specific Asperger's symptoms that are not typical for gifted children such as difficulty maintaining a conversation, being too trusting of strangers or appearing uncoordinated when walking or running.
The Imaginative Mind:
Testing Children for Creativity
Giftedness and creativity may not always go hand in hand. While most children are born with natural imagination and creativity, from a very early age they are pressured to fit in and conform, which is detrimental to creativity.
How to Support Gifts and Challenges
of Our Children
We all have strengths and weaknesses, and so do our children. As parents, it is our responsibility to nurture a child's talents to ensure they reach their full potential and have what it takes to persevere through life's challenges.