Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Gifted Vs Bright

That's because emotional adjustment or maladjustment often depends on the social-emotional environment.

And the issue is really the individual's developmental arc over a lifetime across various domains.

Exactly.

Having an IQ > 150 wouldn't be a big problem if it weren't for the fact that human beings are inherently social animals, and that such a cognitive state of being is rare by definition. Being an outlier is hard, and when life is hard, most individuals respond with maladaptive coping strategies of one kind or another.

So no-- maladjustment isn't about being gifted. It's about being out of step with the rest of the world.

Thanks puffin. I did miss a 9.

Basically while a lot of folks on the forum seem to see dissatisfaction/adjustment of high potential kids in standard class what I am hearing is that it is not necessary. Kid can be perfectly happy but still have the high potential.

Ds is 158 and while I think he is starting to get frustrated it has taken nearly 2 years. Some kids are fine all the way - you need a good school, a self starting and social child though.

There are lists of traits of gifted kids, and parents are often relieved to find that the "quirks" or behaviors which their kids exhibit, while not typical, are "normal" characteristics among gifted kids.

One example may be a child's dissatisfaction with the classroom arising from correctly observing that s/he is significantly different than his/her classmates in their interests, accumulated knowledge, sense of humor, ability to converse, and/or needing scant exposure to new concepts and information to retain them and make connections. These kids may be at risk.

While some boredom or dissatisfaction with not learning new material in school may be one characteristic common among the gifted, kids will not necessarily exhibit all characteristics, the characteristics they exhibit may change somewhat over time, and no one characteristic is definitive. Gifted kids who do not grow restless with school may be at risk in a different way: risk of "hiding" and underachievement.

Some links which may be of interest - http://tip.duke.edu/node/99, http://www.davidsongifted.org/db/Articles_id_10114.aspx

Indigo second link is an excellent link articulaing the types of gifted kids. Especially showing that 90% plus kids are well adjusted externally. One always get the impression from reading forums that all gifted kids have adjustment issues :-)

Agreed. Discussion on forums may tend to focus on problems, inconsistencies, etc... little time on banality or that which does not need a solution.

Reading gifted forum topics may tend to give the uninitiated a distorted, fun-house-mirror view of things... from which they may develop misconceptions about students, parents, and teachers. Some may miss the dedication, creativity, and solution-oriented flow of most threads.

May I add... a world that too often does not want to see the gifted at peace or happy, but rather feels a need to bring the gifted down a notch. Being happy or contented, accepting the differences which make us outliers... may be seen as exclusivity or bragging... punishable offenses!