Giftedness
Resources for parenting and learning with intellectually gifted children
Hoagies' Gifted Education Page. The marvelous Carolyn K. has maintained this comprehensive site for many years. See especially the section, Homeschooling Gifted Children.
“Is it a Cheetah?” is a favorite essay by Stephanie Tolan — essential reading for parents of gifted children and the reason Hoagies’ Gifted (above) has a cheetah logo.
Deborah Ruf, Ph.D.. See especially her book, The Five Levels of Gifted, and her blog on Medium or Substack.
Academic Talent Organizations
- The Davidson Young Scholars program “provides free services designed to nurture the intellectual, social, emotional, and academic development of profoundly intelligent young people between the ages of 5 and 18.” There is a local community of families whose children participate in this program.
- The CTY Talent Search program at Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Talented Youth gives students an opportunity to qualify for gifted programs by taking above-level tests at young ages.
Social and Emotional Support
- SENG, Supporting Emotional Needs of the Gifted, “is dedicated to fostering environments in which gifted adults and children, in all their diversity, understand and accept themselves and are understood, valued, nurtured, and supported by their families, schools, workplaces and communities.” There are local “SENG Model Parent Groups” that can offer families helpful in-person support. There is an annual national conference as well as articles and books on the unique experiences of gifted children.
Some Special Gifted Communities
- San Francisco Regional Mensa has activities for kids and families.
- PG Retreat is a national community of families with profoundly gifted children.
- Gifted Homeschoolers Forum has resources for giftedness and homeschooling.
Books
- The Five Levels of Gifted, by Deborah Ruf.
- Living with Intensity: Emotional development of gifted children, adolescents, and adults, edited by Susan Daniels and Michael M. Piechowski.
- Off the Charts: Asynchrony and the Gifted Child, edited by Christine S. Neville, Michael M. Piechowski, and Stephanie S. Tolan. This page at Royal Fireworks Press has a complete description of the book and you can download a pdf of the Table of Contents and first 11 pages of the book.
- Guiding the Gifted Child: A practical source for parents and teachers, by James T. Webb, Elizabeth A. Meckstroth, and Stephanie S. Tolan
- Gifted and Distractible: Understanding, Supporting, and Advocating for Your Twice Exceptional Child, by Julie F. Skolnick
- Helping Gifted Children Soar: A Practical Guide for Parents and Teachers, by Carol Ann Strip and Gretchen Hirsch
- Upside-Down Brilliance: The Visual-Spatial Learner, by Linda Kreger Silverman
- High IQ Kids, edited by Kiesa Kay, Deborah Robson, and Judy Fort Brenneman
- Exceptionally Gifted Children, by Miraca U.M. Gross
- Talented Teenagers: The Roots of Success and Failure, by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Kevin Rathunde, and Samuel Whalen
- Cradles of Eminence: Childhoods of more than 700 famous men and women, by Victor Goertzel and Mildred George Gertzel
- Stand Up for Your Gifted Child, by Joan Franklin Smutny
- Perfectionism: What’s Bad About Being Too Good? by Miriam Adderholt and Jan Goldberg