they can often self-select and self-moderate more accurately to their needs.
Agreed! Some kiddos may ask, research, obsess and pester until their curiosity is satisfied. Parental help is needed for managing resources, which may range from frequent trips to the library, to visiting museums, to computer usage, to lengthy discussions, to hands-on activities and experiments/exploration. Parents may find it challenging to keep up with a gifted child as the child's voracious appetite for learning and for discussion/processing of what has been learned may tend to outpace what a parent is able to provide.
As one example, a child may talk non-stop about comparing animals which walk on two legs, and those which walk on four. This provides a parent with an opportunity to brainstorm on resources which may help a child absorb whatever it is the child is looking for. Providing opportunity for the child to choose books about animals, classification of animals, and/or books showing anatomy including the skeletal shapes of different animals... a visit to the zoo, looking at taxidermy specimens at a local museum, may appeal to the child. Building a puppet with jointed limbs or constructing a realistic model of an animal from kit, or an imaginary animal from legos or craft supplies may be fun. Looking at animal and nature websites may appeal to other children. Endangered animals? Mythical animals? Robots? It may be different for every child.
Many parents become aware there is a difference between affirming, nurturing, and supporting a child's interests and curiosity -vs- pushing/hot-housing. For some families, this is a bright line... for others, a fine or fuzzy line. Some questions to consider: Is the activity child-led and/or child-requested? Are resources offered for the child to choose among? Is the child free to stop and/or change direction when their interest wanes, it is no longer fun, or their curiosity is focused on another topic?
While some may see this type of learning without performance goals or outcomes as indulgent, it may help a child to build a sense of internal locus of control or owning one's own education.
