Growing Up Gifted: Developing the Potential of Children at Home and at School (6th Edition)

Rating:
Summary: Among the best books on early education among dozens I read
Review: I have a baby and recently started planning her early education. I searched the internet, Amazon and library shelves of Yale University for information. I think I have done a pretty good research. Among the dozens of books that I have read or browsed, this one is clearly among the best (a must-have) for my style of parenting. I don't just listen to "experts" and do what they say, I do my own reasoning and make my own decision.

This is more than the "xxx for the Dummies" type of book. This book not only suggests you what to do, but also explains the reason behind it. It has theories and cites research data. It is academic and you do need to read it carefully and critically think about its statements. Even if you disagree with the author, you will still find that this book is worth every second you spend on it. On the other hand, this book is also practical as it gives you many suggestions that you can follow.

In addition, this book is "misnamed" that it is suitable to all babies, not just the "gifted". I would change the name if I were the author.

If you care about your baby's intellectual development, read this book BEFORE you read others. There are an overwhelming number of books on this subject that you probably won't read them all, and frankly the majority of them are just not worth reading. This one is clearly worth reading and you child will benefit from your time spent on this book.

Rating:
Summary: This is THE book on the subject
Review: I suspect this is mainly used as a textbook for teachers or counselors and the like...but I bouoght it as a parent and I highly recommend this book.
I first saw a 1985 edition on our library shelves, read it and got so much useful information from it I took a chance on the newer version. I was not disappointed.
I have quoted and used this book at length in trying to educate the teachers and other staff involved in my son's education. I showed or told them what she wrote and quoted her, which lent some authority to my assertions.
She helped explain why my son is the way he is, in so many of his complexities. At last I understood why he reacts to things in such puzzling ways!
There might be other books on gifted kids out there, but I'm not sure they could beat her patient, highly educated, helpful tone.
Take notes as you go, there'll be a lot of things you'll want to find later to share with others interested in the same issues. Such as, one of the most important keys in finding an effective teacher for any student is the teacher's own self-image. Or, there IS a model of education that is shown to be effective for all levels of intelligence at once--the hands-on or whole topic curriculum (also called project-based). Or that the level of intelligence we now call gifted IS possible for all people to reach, if only they were raised in the "right" way--and that it is largely learned, not inherited. Or that teachers are a fairly poor identifier of the gifted kids; other kids are better at it!
These are my recollections only--but just as a sample of the kinds of things she says.
There's so much there you'll probably need to skip the parts that don't apply, or read more than once.

Rating:
Summary: This is THE book on the subject
Review: I suspect this is mainly used as a textbook for teachers or counselors and the like...but I bouoght it as a parent and I highly recommend this book.
I first saw a 1985 edition on our library shelves, read it and got so much useful information from it I took a chance on the newer version. I was not disappointed.
I have quoted and used this book at length in trying to educate the teachers and other staff involved in my son's education. I showed or told them what she wrote and quoted her, which lent some authority to my assertions.
She helped explain why my son is the way he is, in so many of his complexities. At last I understood why he reacts to things in such puzzling ways!
There might be other books on gifted kids out there, but I'm not sure they could beat her patient, highly educated, helpful tone.
Take notes as you go, there'll be a lot of things you'll want to find later to share with others interested in the same issues. Such as, one of the most important keys in finding an effective teacher for any student is the teacher's own self-image. Or, there IS a model of education that is shown to be effective for all levels of intelligence at once--the hands-on or whole topic curriculum (also called project-based). Or that the level of intelligence we now call gifted IS possible for all people to reach, if only they were raised in the "right" way--and that it is largely learned, not inherited. Or that teachers are a fairly poor identifier of the gifted kids; other kids are better at it!
These are my recollections only--but just as a sample of the kinds of things she says.
There's so much there you'll probably need to skip the parts that don't apply, or read more than once.

Rating:
Summary: I never knew what gifted was...
Review: Last year I stumbled across an older edition of this book completely by accident while researching a paper on inclusion/mainstreaming of severely LD/BD/ED kids. My parents have hidden (or tried to hide) my giftedness from me since they found out when I was three. This book sent my head spinning, but I'm glad I found it. I devoured it in about a day, and it left me hungry for more. Growing Up Gifted is a great book for parents, teachers, counselors, and the gifted alike. I learned a lot about myself. Ms. Clark touches on pretty much every aspect of giftedness more than well enough to give an ignorant, undereducated GT girl an excellent foothold in the climb to discovering what "this gifted stuff" is all about.