How many of you want to deny your child a normal childhood?  I know I didn't and you probably don't either.  But I also know that what was a normal childhood for my son was not necessarily what was normal for other kids. His idea of fun, even when he was a toddler, usually involved learning something.  One of his favorite pretend games was school with him doing homework. 

I tried my very best to give my son a well-rounded, happy childhood, so I was sure to expose him to a wide variety of activities, not all of them academic.  However, when I took him to the library and let him choose books, he more often than not chose non-fiction books.  If I took him to the bookstore and allowed him to pick something out, he quite often on his own chose workbooks -- he loved workbooks -- or flashcards.  One of his favorite toys was 2XL, a robot that played a tape with questions and that allowed kids to push buttons for the correct answer. 

My son wanted to play with other kids, but most kids his age weren't interested in workbooks or flashcards or too much 2XL.  Even though I knew the difference between pushing a kid and nurturing his interests, I'm quite sure that to outsiders, it looked like I was pushing my son to learn, preventing him from having a normal childhood. 

Joyoz has raised this issue in the Gifted kids forum.  While parents of gifted kids are more likely to be pulled by their kids than to push them, they can be guilty of pushing.  See what you think about the situation Joyoz describes.  Is it pushing or nurturing?

About a month ago, I wrote about the Virtual Convention that the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) is offering for people who can't attend the "real" one in St. Louis this year.  This is really a great opportunity, so I don't want anyone to forget about it and miss it!  You still have a few days to register - until noon on November 6th to be exact. 

The virtual conference takes place on November 7th and it's all day long.  You have real-time access to selected sessions for the whole day for only $79 or $99, depending on whether or not you are a member of NAGC.

Don't miss this great opportunity!  For more information and to register, visit the NAGC Virtual Conference Web site.

It's pretty common for gifted kids to become obsessed with one thing or another.  My own son had several obsessions - dinosaurs, space, Pokemon....  Sometimes the kids seem so obsessed that parents worry.

I'm here to tell you that obsessive behavior can have its benefits.  I myself am quite obsessive about some things (obsessive people to tend to be selective about their obsessions; not everything is worthy).  This past weekend, my computer displayed the "blue screen of death" (BSOD). You may have seen that nasty blue screen that informs you that a serious error has occurred.  Usually, the computer boots right back up and all is well.

Unfortunately for me, that didn't happen.  My computer was stuck in an endless loop of boot up - BSOD -  boot up - BSOD.  It was actually worse than that (yes, that is actually possible), but you get the idea.

I was determined to save my computer.  And I did.  After ten straight hours, I managed to resurrect my computer. You might think my behavior was more like perseverance, a more "positive" trait.  But remember I said I worked ten hours straight.  I couldn't do anything else until I solved that computer problem. I was obsessed with fixing it.  I could have taken it in for repairs.  But what fun would that be?

And there is the key.  In an odd way, I enjoyed the challenge of solving my problem.  It was frustrating at times, but it was also gratifying when I solved the problem.  And along the way, I learned a great deal about the problem my computer had and the way to repair it.  I suspect our obsessed kids get a similar kind of gratification and learn much from their various obsessions.

That's not such a bad thing.

Have you heard that Disney is offering people the opportunity to get a refund on Baby Einstein DVDs? It seems that Disney is admitting something that parents of gifted kids already know -- you can't turn a baby into a genius by showing videos -- or really by doing anything else.  This is not to say that all parents shouldn't help their children make the most of their abilities, but is it really possible to turn every child into a genius Into a gifted child?

Let's put the debate over nature versus nature aside, and look at why Disney is really offering this refund.  The concern is not whether it is possible to make a child gifted if he or she isn't to begin with, but whether watching videos is good for babies, and decidedly it is not. Lisa DeLuca, in her article about the Baby Einstein refund, discusses the research that proves that it is not good for babies to watch TV, even videos.

If you bought Baby Einstein video between June 5, 2004, and September 4, 2009, and want a refund, you can go to the Baby Einstein Web site and apply for the refund.

I love Halloween. It was my favorite holiday when I was little. I loved dressing up and going Trick or Treating. When my son was old enough, I had great fun making our costumes. One of my favorites is this one with my son as an M&M and me as a bag of M&Ms. I chose to be a bag of M&M nuts on purpose! It seemed to better describe our fun-loving attitudes.

I have to admit, though, that I wasn't terribly creative back then. I just bought a pattern, some material, and then sewed it all up. Now, though, I've discovered ways to create easy costumes that gifted kids are sure to love -- like the green with envy costume (clothing with green N's and V's pinned on). These costumes are not just clever; most are quite fast and easy to make.

Did you have any favorite Halloween costumes? What were they? Tell us what they were by clicking on the "Comments" link. Or submit your idea on the Share Your Idea for Halloween Costumes page!

According to an article in the Sydney Morning Herald, the answer is no. According to the article, Gifted, talented, but it's no easy ride, gifted kids have special needs. Does that come as a surprise to any parent of a gifted child? Most of us with gifted kids know that pretty early on and those of us who don't, are pretty suspicious.

But here's something interesting in the article. Have you ever heard that "all parents think their kids are gifted"?  Dr. Miraca Gross, an expert on highly and profoundly gifted children, says that's a myth.  I always knew it was a myth, but it's good to have my suspicions confirmed by an expert.  Also, Dr Karen Grubb, who recently completed a thesis on An Examination of the Experiences of Gifted Preschool and Primary Age Children says that a family's understanding of their child's giftedness and interactions with schools were the keys to success.

What Grubb says is right.  Parents need to under their child's giftedness. However, while I agree that interaction with the school is important, I have to say that interaction is a two-way street.  That is, how do parents interact with schools that aren't willing to interact with them?

What do you think?  Share your thoughts by clicking on the "comments" link.

I'm not referring to the guilt you might feel at not doing enough to help your gifted child.  No, I'm talking about something else altogether. A while back bjtao posted this question over in the giftedkids forum. What she feels guilty about is that fact that her son has to deal with being guilty. I've been thinking about what she said since I first read it and I decided that I should write a blog about it to see what everyone else thinks. Here's some of what she said: "For a person that is mildly gifted or moderately gifted..., life is full of dissatisfaction, an unrestful mind, disappointments in people and a minority view of the world that surrounds us." I know it used to break my heart when I'd see my son have problems that I knew were the result of his classmates not understanding him or when he had trouble understanding his classmates. Visit the discussion over this guilt in the gifted kids forum and share your views. Take the poll, too!

Last week, I told you that the Conference of the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) was going virtual. I am really excited about this wonderful opportunity.

But there is more, this time for teachers.  We know that teachers who have some training in gifted education are often better able to understand gifted kids and their needs and be better prepared to provide the most appropriate educational services for them.

Parent and teachers are both able to attend the virtual conference, but now NAGC is offering teachers the opportunity to earn CEU (Continuing Education Unit) credits!  This means that teachers can sit at home or in their office and attend the live conference (virtually) and earn credits!  If you think your child's teacher might be interested, be sure to pass the information along.  Even if you aren't sure that your child's teacher would be interested, be sure to let her know.  In fact, let everyone at school know!  Tell the superintendent! 

Additional details can be found on the NAGC Virtual Conference Web site.

Do you have a creative kid at home? A budding inventor? If so, you might be interested in the latest competition from By Kids for Kids (BKFK). The competition, called Invention Dimension, is sponsored by Toys R Us and JAKKS Pacific, Inc., and is open to kids ages six through nineteen. So what is the competition all about? It's about finding innovative new toys, games, and sporting goods.

If you're the parent of a gifted kid, you know how easily gifted kids can become bored with the typical toys and games. Ask your kids what kind of toys and games they'd like to play with. And I'll bet you get some great ideas. If you have a sports-oriented kid, you can bet he or she will have some ideas for sporting goods!

Aside from the pleasure and pride at having come up with a great idea, what can your child win with this competition? How about a JAKKS Pacific prize pack with at $1000 value and a trip to JAKKS Pacific headquarters in Malibu, California? Why the trip to the headquarters? To give the winner a change to "pitch" his or her invention to the JAKKS' development team. What a great opportunity for a young entrepreneur!

But there's more! The winner also participates in a special celebration event at the Toys "R" Us store in Times Square. There the winner will be awarded with a $1,000 gift card for a "toy lover's shopping spree."

The competition began on October 1 and runs until noon on January 29, 2010. Details of the competition rules can be found on the Eligibility page of BKFK's Web site. Kids can submit their ideas by going to the competition submission page.

I'm always interested in mind development, so when I saw the article on 100 Ways to Develop Your Mind, I was intrigued. Now this list is meant for adults, but I couldn't help thinking how much fun and useful it would be for gifted kids, too.  Consider the first three on the list:

1. Do the thing you fear the most
2. Stand up for yourself
3. Stop talking

Some gifted kids, especially the perfectionists, don't like taking risks.  I don't mean risks like jumping out of an airplane, which is actually more like thrill-seeking. I mean intellectual, social, or even emotional risks. Maybe a gifted girl chooses a less challenging task in school because she's afraid choosing the more challenging one would get him a low grade. Or maybe a gifted boy is afraid to talk to a girl he likes because he fears rejection. If your son or daughter is like either of these hypothetical children, you could encourage him or her to face those fears!

Encouraging your child to stand up for herself is another great idea. Whether it's for the right to more appropriate assignments or fair treatment, it's good for kids to learn to speak for themselves and not always depend on mom or dad.

If you have an introvert at home, you won't have to encourage silence.  If you have an extrovert, however, encouraging silence is a good idea -- and the introverts will appreciate the effort.

There are some, like #13 and #60, I would hide from the kids, and some, like #71 (ditch the credit card) and #77 ( drink coffee and tea) but the majority of items on the list will work for the kids.  Some of them, like #56 -- sing your heart out -- can be fun, not just for the kids, but for the whole family.

And even if you don't see how any of the items on the list could apply to kids, try them out for yourself. After all, we don't want to stop developing our brains just because we want to help our kids develop theirs!

Comments are welcome.

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