Parents and Families Questions

Talent Development and Giftedness are often approached on an individual basis—someone is identified as talented or gifted and they then become the focus of attention by others. But, this common approach ignores the complex (and important) connections these gifted individuals have with their family and parents.

Some very common questions we're asked at Learning Latitudes about parenting or living with gifted individuals include the following:

Why do I as a parent have to argue and negotiate everything with my gifted child? Why can't (s)he just do as (s)he's told?

Is it okay for a gifted child to have lots of imaginary friends (including pets and pests)?

Why doesn't my child (or spouse) need as much sleep as others her/his age?

The questions never stop! When will (s)he outgrow this stage?

My child (or spouse) doesn't have many friends. Is this a problem?

We're so stressed as a family trying to balance so many activities. What can we do to relieve some of the stress, but still help our kids be active? They seem to relish in overscheduling.

If any of these questions (or a bunch of others!) seem to resonate with your family life, then this is the place for you to share some of your thoughts and ideas. Buttons below link you to sets of questions about living with or raising gifted individuals that you can answer to your heart's content. We'll post some of the responses here on the open forum of this web page to give other parents and families some insights to consider (many parenting/family experiences are common to giftedness, but not the more "general" populations of raising children); but don't worry, we won't identify you or your family other than like the samples below:

Forum

When did you notice your child was different from others his/her age?

We used to go to play groups in our neighborhood when [she] was two. As first-time parents, we wanted to help our daughter learn to socialize with others. The kids would play with toys, while our daughter read books. The other mothers thought this was cute. They shared they wished they had the time to read to their children more often and it was so cute to see [our daugher] parroting back stories. I never really said anything in response, but was pretty astounded. Didn't all two year olds know how to read? Family from Indiana

Joe never enjoyed taking part in an activity unless he knew the expectations or rules. We first noticed this at 18 months when we visited Santa at the local mall. Joe screamed bloody murder while we were in line. We were embarrassed and left the line. Joe calmed down, watched what was happening for a few minutes, took his father's hand and got in line with the other children. Family from Idaho

In first grade our son acted like an animal released from a cage at the end of the school day. He had to run around for 30 minutes or more before we could even get him to sit down. We thought he was just getting used to a full day of school, but as the weeks went on, the behavior worsened. The structure and slow pace were constraining him to the point of explosion. He would blow up every afternoon both physically and emotionally when released from the school building. Family from Ohio

When Tinker asked as a three-year old where the giant catapault was that launched people who died into heaven, we knew we were in for it as parents! Family from Florida

Does your family story need to be here?

Click on one (or more) of the links below to take a survey. We've tried to provide categories for you to consider, but we know your story might not fit any of our categories neatly. So, there's also space to write up and submit your personal anecdotes at the end of each of the on-line surveys.

If you'd rather, you can submit your family's story and/or experiences directly to us via email attachment by clicking here. We will respond in kind with additional information.

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The Project is an international research study currently in progress with the goal of giving parents an active voice in the scholarly literature associated with giftedness.

Encourage your friends and other families or family members to put in their "two cents" as well. Balance and understanding comes from having different opinions and experiences to compare.

On the homepage, there is an opportunity for kids and teens to include their personal insights about being gifted.

Click here to travel back and look for the Kids and Teens Questions link

New!

This project began based on input from parents whose children took part in the Kids and Teens project. They wanted opportunities to give their insights and raise awareness about giftedness and raising (or living with) gifted individuals. The first round surveys are currently active. We invite you to contact us with your thoughts, questions, concerns. Please check back for updates.