Goodness of Fit: The Challenge of Parenting Gifted Children

Goodness of Fit: The Challenge of Parenting Gifted Children
photo by: Arwen Abendstern
By Andrew Mahoney
National Association for Gifted Children

As a counselor and family therapist who has spent more than 20 years working with gifted and talented children and their families, I was excited when asked to discuss the challenge of parenting the gifted. I was reintroduced to how complex and substantial the challenge is of parenting the gifted child. In my practice I provide counsel and support to parents daily. What the parent brings is a host of differentiated needs, issues, and struggles that can’t quite be solved with marginal everyday solutions or a quick fix. Parenting a gifted child requires the same level of differentiation as we can hope to find educating or counseling the gifted.

I have found that defining and understanding the challenge of parenting the gifted is a daunting charge. With such an array of issues, where a parent begins can itself be a challenge. Sometimes parents want to let go and hope for the best, while others may cling to their fears and overmanage their child’s life. Reaching a balance for the parent of the gifted is complex. The parents in this case may benefit from a differentiated model tailored to their child.

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