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Hello, I have a 4th grader who is exceptional. We have been lucky so far to have a great support system.Our school is working hard to help him meet his academic needs although I know my son holds himself back because he does not want to be in a group all by himself.We have him paired with 5th grade on differnt projects and enjoys that. Still He has expressed that he is bored with his life and becomes emotional. He even asks me why isnt he ordinary. Socially he is very accepted he has a wonderful personality and he is a magnet. People and children easly are attracted to him. He has close friends. He plays baseball, piano, chess. and yet he still craves more. He told me not to long ago that he feels that there is something in the world that needs his attention but he just cant figure it out. I see him starting to out grow his friends and even his teachers but he so badly wants to be a part of the crowd. I am concerned and not sure what to do or how to guide him. For now I just listen and we talk. gladly he's very vocal and gladly he does share his emotions.I'm just not sure how to respond. Any advice.

Hi-
I have a fourth grader also... She is HG, and was tested when she was a second grader. She is accelerated 1 year for math, and receives gifted programming for everything else. Even among other gifted students, she seems to stick out socially and she feels different, even though she does have friends... I think once you get into the upper ranges of gifted, it gets even harder to find peers who care about the same things you do. She also is a big thinker, and feels like she always needs to be doing something. It seems like she always is looking for a cause.

She liked the book "The Gifted Kid's Survival Guide." Galbraith is the author. She also joined a Mensa children's group, which has given her access to a group of intellectual peers. You might look into similar programs in your area. Mensa varies from state to state, but they might have a children's group or family group.

I have a second grader, but one of the things I started to stress last year is being friends with everyone. Even though she is in a gifted class, all gifted are not equal. And I find that if DD hangs with different kids, all the time, it helps. I think it helps all the other kids because they seem to all now say "today, I want to play with so and so, or sit with so and so at lunch, tomorrow I will sit (or play) with you". No feelings are hurt and getting rid of the cliques in our class.

So socially, it works better and also she is less bored as new, even if new just for a few days works better than same old, same old. Maybe this strategy only works for younger kids.

I think feeling different is just part of being HG. Being a part of a crowd, or every crowd and no crowd at the same time. I remind DD that her brain works differently and tell her about some of my experiences.

my DD8 really LOVES her Girl Scout time. For her, she has told me before that she really prefers that all girl environment and I know when she goes off to camp, no one expects her to sit still and be bored. The girls plan their days there with the help of the counselors.
Even in our scout meetings...our troop is mixed (our school is K-12) levels and ages so there are lots of opportunites to mingle with different ages and explore her own interests. Everyone gets a chance to plan a meeting, share their intrests, be heard...basically all the things I think our kids are looking for.
I think it sounds like he would benefit from some kind of mentor to help him find "that thing"...have you considered sending him to a talent search? Or camp for gifted kids? It's hard to find someone like yourself even if you are non-gifted...maybe exposure to a higher concentration of kids more likely to be more like him