A Child Of Genius

We all want our child to be the best they can be, but how can we discover and encourage their natural talents? Clinical psychologist Andrew Fuller believes that every child has an innate sense of inquisitiveness, creativity and lateral thinking that forms the basis of genius. However, social conditioning and school life can lead to a desire to conform and fit in which can squash their curiosity. For parents and grandparents, Andrew Fuller’s new book holds the way to unlock their child’s genius. No the answer is not homework, more after school tutoring or blaming the school. Yes the answer is thinking, talking and listening, and delightfully making mistakes together. Covering the age range of 2 to 18, Andrew draws on the latest research and his own extensive work with thousands of children in private practice. He shows parents how to recognise the qualities in their child that predict genius – creativity, motivation, determination, imagination and the willingness – and build on these essential foundations regardless of which field their talents lie in.

As many as 2% of children could potentially fall into the category of’ gifted’ so quite a few families can find themselves in the situation of having such a child to rear. This can raise a number of questions and issues to deal with – andthey are not always positive. Everyone likes to think their children are specially talented, above average intelligence, gifted in some respect. Often they might be right - but are they wishing something on themselves and the child that it is better not to have? The history of child prodigies is mainly a story of difficulties, pressures, unfulfilled potential and often mental health and social problems that manifest themselves later in life. How the child develops might depend on the atmosphere and environment they are brought up in, the type of nurturing and encouragement they get and how their parents and institutions handle the stresses and challenges of dealing with what can often be a difficult young person. Some child geniuses do grow up to be successful adults in useful occupations – though often they still fail in being rounded individuals. Others struggle with the expectations of being a prodigy or the social, emotional or personal pressures it brings and might drop out or end up working in McDonalds or in an office job (like Albert Einstein initially). Many children identified as prodigies turn out to be very one-dimensional in their genius, perhaps having a flair for numbers or memorising lists, playing a musical instrument or learning languages, but lacking in other skills that make their talents useful or usable. There is a feeling that the standard education system fails these type of children. (There is probably a general feeling that education is letting most children down in our society today.) This compilation looks at gifted children; what makes them gifted, how they can be nurtured and what eventually happens to them. It also recounts some specific histories of young genius and the problems and outcomes for some of the individuals endowed with these qualities. We won’t all have gifted children – and maybe that is not such a bad thing. Equally, if we, as parents, applied some of the nurture principles that are recommended for prodigies, perhaps the average child would benefit also and become a more successful, complete individual due to going through the process. The parents are, undoubtedly, important factors in the ultimate outcome. Perhaps some of the information here can help you determine what type

With contributions from a multi-disciplinary group of expert contributors, this is the first handbook to discuss all aspects of genius, a topic that endlessly provokes and fascinates. The first handbook to discuss all aspects of genius with contributions from a multi-disciplinary group of experts Covers the origins, characteristics, careers, and consequences of genius with a focus on cognitive science, individual differences, life-span development, and social context Explores individual genius, creators, leaders, and performers as diverse as Queen Elizabeth I, Simón Bolívar, Mohandas Gandhi, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Leo Tolstoy, John William Coltrane, Georgia O’Keeffe, and Martha Graham. Utilizes a variety of approaches—from genetics, neuroscience, and longitudinal studies to psychometric tests, interviews, and case studies—to provide a comprehensive treatment of the subject

Genius is not just about intelligence and aptitude, it's also a word that embodies our inner soul, nature, or character. In this illuminating book, a former principal and father shares heartwarming stories and wise advice that offers a rare insight into children and the process of education. The Genius in Every Child celebrates the moments in the lives of children, their parents, and their teachers. The stories of unique characters in action illustrate some of the principles of education and the disciplines we need to be good stewards of our children’s character and intellect. The vignettes provide both delight and enjoyment in the miracle of it all, and perspective and solace in the difficulty of it all, encouraging parents and teachers to work hand-in-hand. This book urges parents to focus on the long run, entrusting the trials, struggles, and sufferings of the short run to the kids. It proposes a shift in focus from test scores to enthusiasm, from perfect behavior to learning from mistakes, from measuring up to making something of yourself, from independence to interdependence, from goodness to integrity, from fear to love. The value of this experience to hundreds of children, parents, and teachers derives from the depth of Rick Ackerly’s perception and the subtlety of his understanding. He offers perspective and guidance on a wide range of challenges faced by parents of today’s school-aged children, including: self-confidence, discipline, boundary-setting, building character, integrity, taking responsibility, facing challenges, handling disappointment, peer pressure, reading, testing, homework, academic achievement, failure, and success. [Excerpt] Mr. Rick's Words of Wisdom Children need teachers at school and parents at home. Failure is at least as powerful an educator as success. Kids need consequences and they need forgiveness We put our kids at risk by trying to engineer their success. Our children need us to have confidence in them. The core of building character is taking responsibility. If we are open to the surprise, we can let them educate us.

Baby-boomer parents with nearly 26 million children and more on the way--are looking for new and creative ways to help their youngsters develop and achieve their full potential. They want practical ideas for activities to do at home and authoritative advice on how to get the most out of their children's schools. Illustrations throughout.

Angeline could read before she was old enough to turn the pages of a book, and she mastered the piano without a single lesson. But being so clever doesn't make life easy for Angeline. This charming book is a quirky celebration of fathers, teachers, being yourself and finding happiness in unexpected places.

With all the talk of failing schools these days, we forget that schools can fail their brightest students, too. We pledge to "leave no child behind," but in American schools today, thousands of gifted and talented students fall short of their potential. In Genius Denied, Jan and Bob Davidson describe the "quiet crisis" in education: gifted students spending their days in classrooms learning little beyond how to cope with boredom as they "relearn" material they've already mastered years before. This lack of challenge leads to frustration, underachievement, and even failure. Some gifted students become severely depressed. At a time when our country needs a deep intellectual talent pool, the squandering of these bright young minds is a national tragedy. There are hundreds of thousands of highly gifted children in the U.S. and millions more whose intelligence is above average, yet few receive the education they deserve. Many school districts have no gifted programs or offer only token enrichment classes. Education of the gifted is in this sorry state, say the Davidsons, because of indifference, lack of funding, and the pernicious notion that education should have a "leveling" effect, a one-size-fits-all concept that deliberately ignores the needs of the gifted. But all children are entitled to an appropriate education, insist the authors, those left behind as well as those who want to surge ahead. The Davidsons show parents and educators how to reach and challenge gifted students. They offer practical advice based on their experience as founders of a nonprofit organization that assists gifted children. They show parents how to become their children's advocates, how to win support for gifted students within the local schools, and when and how to go outside the school system. They discuss everything from acceleration ("skipping" a grade) to homeschooling and finding mentors for children. They tell stories of real parents and students who overcame poor schooling environments to discover the joy of learning. Genius Denied is an inspiring book that provides a beacon of hope for children at risk of losing their valuable gift of intellectual potential.

"Fascinating. . . . As engaging an explanation of how scientists study fossil bones as any I have ever read." --John R. Alden, Philadelphia Inquirer In 1984 a team of paleoanthropologists on a dig in northern Kenya found something extraordinary: a nearly complete skeleton of Homo erectus, a creature that lived 1.5 million years ago and is widely thought to be the missing link between apes and humans. The remains belonged to a tall, rangy adolescent male. The researchers called him "Nariokotome boy." In this immensely lively book, Alan Walker, one of the lead researchers, and his wife and fellow scientist Pat Shipman tell the story of that epochal find and reveal what it tells us about our earliest ancestors. We learn that Nariokotome boy was a highly social predator who walked upright but lacked the capacity for speech. In leading us to these conclusions, The Wisdom of the Bones also offers an engaging chronicle of the hundred-year-long search for a "missing link," a saga of folly, heroic dedication, and inspired science. "Brilliantly captures [an] intellectual odyssey. . . . One of the finest examples of a practicing scientist writing for a popular audience." --Portland Oregonian "A vivid insider's perspective on the global efforts to document our own ancestry." --Richard E. Leakey