The emotional needs of gifted children often come as a surprise to parents. In some instances, it is a child’s emotional or social struggles that first bring a child’s giftedness to their attention. When you consider the effects of being able to think well beyond your years while still balancing the expectations of being a child, it is no wonder that your gifted child may experience frustration along with social isolation from their peers. The good news is that your gifted child will thrive and successfully transition into adulthood when you use these strategies to provide them with emotional support throughout their school age years.
Acknowledge Their Feelings and Find Healthy Outlets for Expression
Gifted children tend to experience emotions intensely. This is due to their high levels of empathy that can make them feel both sides of a conflict. Due to their desire to perform to the best of their abilities, they may also experience a deep sense of guilt or disappoint when they do not succeed at a task. Your role as a parent is to acknowledge these emotions but also help your child find positive ways to express them. For example, a child who throws away their musical instrument after a mistake during a performance needs you to let them know they are still talented as you steer them toward continuing to practice.
Encourage Volunteering in the Community
Despite being in the middle of a beautiful childhood, your child has an awareness of the world that goes well beyond their years. For this reason, gifted children tend to have strong reactions to local and community issues such as hunger and homelessness. While your first instinct may be to shield them from the news, it is more effective to let them become part of the solution. Encourage them to write letters to your local government about issues they feel are wrong, and find kid-friendly volunteer opportunities nearby such as packing lunches for the homeless families in your community.
Teach Your Child Positive Stress Relief Strategies
Pent up stress is often at the heart of a gifted child’s emotional outbursts since they often get frustrated with trying to meet their own high expectations. In many gifted programs, children are taught stress relief strategies such as yoga and deep breathing. Your child may also choose a creative outlet for their stress such as journaling or painting. Ideally, there should be several ways that your child can quickly use to relax depending upon the situation, and you can help them remember their strategy if they have an outburst.
Choose a Program That Supports Your Gifted Child’s Learning Style
Schools today have come along way toward supporting gifted learners academically, but many fall short of meeting their emotional needs. Look for a program that allows students to work at their own pace and that is willing to explore alternative teaching methods that are based upon research. For example, providing your child with narrative feedback describing their strengths and areas to work on is less stressful and more effective that the traditional pass or fail letter grade system. Self-paced programs with opportunities for individual study will also help your child not feel hemmed in by following a program that does not meet their needs.
In addition to supporting your child at home, it is important to make sure your child also spends time with other gifted children who understand what it is like being different in the classroom. By making sure your child has outlets for stress along with support and understanding from your family, other educators and their peers, you can ease your child’s emotional burdens so they can focus on reaching their full potential.