I’m told my child is one of the gifted children in her class but she still struggles at school. Can you help her?

Gifted children often have added pressures and expectations put upon them, not just from parents or school but from peer groups and themselves too.

What is a gifted or talented child?

Gifted and talented children are identified as having the potential to excel or develop skills significantly beyond children of a similar age.

  • Gifted children show considerable academic abilities in subjects like English and maths.
  • Talented children excel in more practical areas like art, music or sport

Why do gifted children need extra help?

Several urban myths exist about gifted and talented children. Phrases such as ‘Gifted children don’t need help. They’ll do well anyway’ and ‘Gifted students are happy and well-adjusted in school’ are often heard.

These sweeping generalisations are unhelpful because we are still talking about children who are learning, growing and developing.

  • Gifted children often need more support in learning to socialise and get along with others.
  • They may have heightened emotional sensitivities and moral dilemmas.
  • They can lack confidence and hide their aptitude from peers to avoid being bullied or called names like ‘nerd’ and ‘geek’.
  • Gifted and talented children often require more challenging lessons to avoid boredom and the freedom to learn at their own pace.

How can KipMcGrath help?

It would be very easy for us to say ‘yes, come along and we will help’ and take your money, but we don’t work like that. Your child is the most important person in this question and we need to ensure we all do what’s best for him or her.

However, we do need to identify the root cause of your child’s lack of progress at school. A good starting point may be for you to speak to their teacher, or the school may have a Gifted and Talented Lead or Coordinator. It may be worthwhile speaking to them too, if you have not already done this.

If you feel we can offer help we would also explore the reasons why your child is struggling at school, then we can aim at helping him or her overcome their reasons for struggling. If we can help here at Kip McGrath Gateshead East, we absolutely will.

It may be something that can be resolved quickly and easily at school level or something more complex your daughter has concerns about and needs additional help with. Either way, please come in with your child and talk to us.

We offer supportive activities to address all these types of issues here at Kip McGrath Gateshead East.
Our students work individually, at their own pace in small group settings. We help with confidence building in a positive and supportive environment.

And we help every child who needs help, whether they are gifted, talented, needing exam preparation or suffering the age-old struggle with their reading and maths.

Please call us on 0191 338 9556 or email us at gatesheadeast@kip-mcgrath.com.