Interesting discussion. I would agree with Val and HK that gifted kids DON'T always pull towards an academic goal. DD has learned quite well in her short life that she doesn't NEED to give it her all to do well in school, and I am currently trying to remedy that and find greater challenge for her. Otherwise, I worry she won't develop EF skills, learn to study, or really ever give most tasks more than a tiny portion of her effort. When SHE wants to learn something she is spongelike, intense, and super-motivated...but she will not always have the luxury of choosing her schoolwork (nor should she, quite frankly, or she'd have a very odd development at this point). She might not always have the luxury of choosing her WORK at a job for that matter, so I see this as a necessary life skill that needs to be developed.
While I certainly loathe the idea of pushing a kid into super-stress as described in the article...some gifted kiddos need a nudge to develop a work-ethic. Because SO MANY things come very easily to them.
