Parents dealing with strong willed children

robertw486

yayamom3 wrote: »

Have you asked to have her tested for the school's gifted program? I am a teacher and mother of gifted students. I've had several students over the years who refused to do homework because they already knew the concepts and viewed it as a waste of their time. I also agree with having her tested for ADHD/ADD.

This x10

A very valid point to look into.

Our local school system starts gifted testing at a very young age, as well as holding seminars and meetings for the parents of gifted students, along with gifted resource teachers that challenge them on different and more individual levels.

Having also researched this on my own in addition to our local resources, I give huge appreciation for the above post. During one of the seminars they presented research that showed that many kids that are either highly gifted or ADHD/ADD diagnosed have many very similar traits, one of them being somewhat strong willed. The research showed that often the difference between the kids that excelled and those that became attention disordered wasn't the kids themselves, but the lack of challenge presented to the kids that eventually often were diagnosed ADHD.

There are long lists of common traits to both groups. Sensitivity to world social issues and news media, an often reserved nature, and a number of others on the list have led people to think that some of these potentially very bright kids are in fact easily distracted with attention problems. The reality is that many of those kids are thinking on a more adult level at a young age, and that is the reason they stand out from other kids. Often the course they take is much more influenced by the parents than the abilities of the child.


In my case, it opened my eyes to the fact that even at a very young age, our daughter responded much more favorably to being treated as an adult. Though she is sensitive and often somewhat disturbed by the reality of the "adult world", it directs her actions in a more positive way to be more open about adult level actions and consequences of those actions.

Great post @yayamom3 I'm glad our local schools gave me guidance in the thought you provided, and that we have such great resources for gifted students. Thanks for what you do. I know that myself, my wife, and my daughter will remember some of our daughters gifted resource teachers for the rest of our lives.

Brimixed

I work in the special education field. Did you know there are some countries that don't even recognize adhd as a medical diagnosis? Instead of looking at drugging her, try talking to her teachers or even looking at a behavior consultant for some different strategies. The last thing I would do is put your 6 year old on medication.

anncook158

Corporal punishment is one of the most quick and effective ways to discipline a child who is acting up. Children who are misbehaving become a quick distraction to the entire learning environment and corporal punishment allows this to be dealt with in a quick and swift way.