Raising Gifted Children - Free Essay Sample

Gifted children are defined as children whose creative, artistic, intellectual, academic, and leadership capacity is higher than that of typical children. To fully develop these capabilities, such children often require services not offered in ordinary schools. Biologically, gifted children exhibit a higher cell production, which, in turn, enhances their synaptic activity. Their neurons are biochemically more abundant, and hence the thought process of gifted children is enhanced. Studies have also shown that their prefrontal cortex activity is higher, a factor that contributes to their greater intuitive and insightful thinking (Sole-Casals et al., 2019). Common characteristics exhibited by gifted children include high memory, independence, resistance to group pressure, higher tolerance for discomfort and ambiguity, and zany sense of humor, among others. Gifted children also exhibit various behavioral issues that make it challenging to parent them. At school, it has been shown that gifted children are more susceptible to bullying (Espelage & King, 2018). As such, there is a need to create conducive environments, both at home and in school, to ensure that gifted children lead normal lives and achieve their full potential. This paper seeks to discuss the challenges associated with raising gifted children and how to overcome them.

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Behavioral Issues Associated with Gifted Children

Gifted children are associated with various behavioral issues that affect the quality of their lives, as well as their interactions with others, both at home and in school (Peyre et al., 2016). As stated earlier, gifted children show high levels of independence. Resultantly, they have difficulties following directions and instructions. For instance, they may not see the point of completing certain assignments or could choose to follow a different approach from that recommended in class. Such behaviors could lead to poor grades and problems with the teachers.

Often, gifted children exhibit various anti-social tendencies. As a result, they find it difficult to make friends or sustain social interactions with their peers. Such anti-social behaviors may lead to bullying, a major challenge that gifted students face in schools. According to studies, students with compromised emotional and social development are most vulnerable to bullying (Espelage & King, 2018). Their self-esteem and emotional maturity may also be low (Eren et al., 2018). These deficiencies may subsequently lead to inappropriate behavior which places teachers and parents under further strain. Owing to their higher capabilities, they may also feel different from their peers, a factor that may, in turn, lead to unhappiness and depression. Besides, the children may have attention issues such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which compounds their struggles both at home and school. Other than making it challenging to raise gifted children, behavioral problems also predispose them to different mental illnesses (Eren et al., 2018).

Challenges in Raising Gifted Children

Parenting is a difficult task. It gets more complicated when raising children with special needs. According to studies, raising gifted children is not only challenging to their parents but also their siblings (Renati et al., 2017). While there are established ways of raising children with different needs, parents of gifted children often find themselves in highly challenging situations. For instance, while dyslexic children require help with their homework and those with cerebral palsy need help with fine motor coordination, there exists no model for dealing with gifted children. Owing to their differences, these children might often be unhappy and miserable, even from a young age, a factor that challenges parents. Dealing with their behavioral issues is also difficult for their parents and families.

Owing to their higher capabilities, gifted children need special environments to thrive. They often get bored and unhappy in normal schools, and the situation might lead to depression. Parents, therefore, are faced with the task of finding and creating conducive environments for these children. Generally, while the education system gives adequate support for children with disabilities, little attention is given to children on the other side of the spectrum (Parr & Stevens, 2019). As such, the parents might be forced to make extra demands to ensure that the system adequately takes care of the children. Lack of programs for gifted children is more pronounced in remote areas.

How to Overcome the Challenges

From the above discussion, it is clear that raising a gifted child is challenging. Parents, therefore, should employ ways that allow children to lead as normal and happy lives as possible. First, parents should let the children be themselves and not try to make them fit into certain categories. The expectations held by parents regarding gifted children must also be realistic since all gifted children are different. They should also try to spend more quality time together and get involved in their children’s interests (Peyre et al., 2016). As mentioned earlier, resources for raising children, especially in schools, may be limited in some places. In such instances, parents must be the advocates for the provision of such resources. Parents should also consistently seek opportunities to enrich the lives of their children. Since gifted children have poor social skills, parents should help sharpen them, and even seek professional help where necessary. Finally, schools should establish programs that are tailor-made for this group of students to ensure that their capabilities fully develop.

Conclusion

Gifted children are a special needs category that presents unique challenges both at home and in school. These children have various behavioral issues that hamper their interaction with peers and hence affect the quality of their lives. Getting the required programs for them is also a daunting task for parents. Moreover, this group of children are more vulnerable to bullying in schools. To overcome these challenges, parents should seek to understand their children more by spending more time with them. Parents should also find opportunities to develop their various skills. On the side of the education system, programs tailor-made for gifted children should be established.

References

Eren, F., Cete, A. O., Avcil, S., & Baykara, B. (2018). Emotional and behavioral characteristics of gifted children and their families. Archives of Neuropsychiatry, 55(2), 105. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6060660/

Espelage, D. L., & King, M. T. (2018). Bullying and the gifted. Retrieved from https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2017-32525-043Parr, J., & Stevens, T. (2019). Challenges of Equity and Discrimination in the Education of Gifted Children. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jamie_Parr/publication/334688832_Challenges_of_Equity_and_Discrimination_in_the_Education_of_Gifted_Children/links/5d3e6921299bf1995b53d0f6/Challenges-of-Equity-and-Discrimination-in-the-Education-of-Gifted-Children.pd

Peyre, H., Ramus, F., Melchior, M., Firhan, A., Heude, B., Gauvrit, N., & EDEN Mother-Child Cohort Study Group. (2016). Emotional, behavioral and social difficulties among high-IQ children during the preschool period: Results of the EDEN mother–child cohort. Personality and Individual Differences, 94, 366-371. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886916300691

Renati, R., Bonfiglio, N. S., & Pfeiffer, S. (2017). Challenges raising a gifted child: Stress and resilience factors within the family. Gifted Education International, 33(2), 145-162. Retrieved from https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0261429416650948

Sole-Casals, J., Serra-Grabulosa, J. M., Romero-Garcia, R., Vilaseca, G., Adan, A., Vilaro, N., . . . Bullmore, E. T. (2019). Structural brain network of gifted children has a more integrated and versatile topology. Brain Structure and Function, 224(7), 2373-2383. Retrieved from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00429-019-01914-9