Raise a happier, healthier gifted child—practical tools and advice for parents Gifted children can be identified as perplexing or troublesome long before they're identified as gifted. Many of the traits that characterize challenging gifted behaviors—such as intensity, sensitivity, and perfectionism—are simply shadows cast by a bright light within.
Raising Gifted Children is filled with insights, guidance, up-to-date research, and practical advice to help parents better understand the inner world of their gifted child so they can help them flourish at home, school, and beyond.
You'll start by learning the fundamentals of giftedness, from its characteristics to its strengths and challenges. Then, discover how to put your child's social-emotional and mental wellbeing at the center of resolving issues with conflict, procrastination, and motivation. You'll find information on how to navigate schooling to help find the best fit for your child, as well as advice for encouraging them to develop meaningful friendships.
Raising Gifted Children includes:
- Understanding giftedness—Learn what defines giftedness, how it's expressed, and helpful info about twice- and multi-exceptionality.
- Parenting tools—Develop strategies for addressing your gifted child's emotional intensity, communicating effectively, and reflecting to find calm.
- Schooling strategies—Explore advice for school choice for your child, including homeschool, as well as tips for successful teacher meetings and creating educational plans.
Be a strong, supportive parent to your gifted child with the essential guidance in this book.
Catherine Zakoian, MA, NCC, LPC, is a national-board certified and licensed professional counselor, in private practice in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. For 20 years, she has specialized in counseling gifted, profoundly gifted, and twice-exceptional (2e) children, adolescents, teens, adults and families. Visit her online at CatherineZakoian.com.
“I have been lucky enough to experience Catherine Zakoian’s brilliance and true giftedness in her work with gifted families firsthand for many years. It has always warmed my heart. In her book, readers will feel her beautiful light touch with families, that supports both parents and children on their path to wholeness.”
—Kathy Hegberg, M.A., L.P.C., Founder and Executive Director of FocusedKids.org“This book is wonderfully practical and skillfully concise—it will be of immense help to parents of gifted children. Catherine Zakoian, more pointedly than other sources, discusses gifted families—‘the house of mirrors’—and gives guidance on the typical challenges that come with intensity, perfectionism, sensitivity, and much, much more.”
—Michael M. Piechowski, PhD, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Educational Advancement and Author of Mellow Out: Intensity and Sensitivity of the Young and Bright“Your child is gifted. Now what? Catherine Zakoian couples a broad range of knowledge and experience with an insightful approach in creating an engaging guide for parents to understand their children’s intensities, sensitivities, complexities, and asynchronous development.
Raising Gifted Children provides practical advice and valuable strategies for parents who hold a commitment to nurturing their children through an authentic inside-out perspective.”
—Janneke Frank, PhD, Principal Consultant, Gifted and Beyond“This is a fantastic resource by a very knowledgeable author who knows firsthand the life and psyche of a gifted child. It is an extremely helpful guide for parents raising a gifted child and should be on the list of recommended readings. The book not only gives excellent information and guidelines but also hope. It is an easy to read, clearly presented reference for any parents, teacher, therapists or physician working with gifted children.”
—Jill A. Vidas, M.D. Board Certified Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist“I found
Raising Gifted Children highly readable and engaging. Catherine’s insights are simultaneously profound and practical. Parents of the gifted will find answers to the thorny problems that vex them, such as emotional outbursts, procrastination, challenging relationships, lack of motivation, etc. Catherine guides parents in developing healthy patterns of communication and teaching children to ask for what they need. I appreciate Catherine’s dedication to child-centeredness—a breath of fresh air. All of her suggestions are founded in kindness and respect for the authenticity of the child. I highly recommend this book to parents of gifted children of all ages.”
—Linda Kreger Silverman, Ph.D., Licensed Psychologist, Founder and Director of Institute for the Study of Advanced Development and Gifted Development Center and Author of Upside-Down Brilliance: The Visual-Spatial Learner, Counseling the Gifted and Talented and Giftedness 101
