Our next guest blogger is Dr. Jessica Stone who dives into the world of working with gifted children.
I have quite a few gifted clients. I am unsure how they find me; is it word of mouth within the community? Is it my listing on the Hoagies’ Gifted Education Page, https://www.hoagiesgifted.org/ ? May be the presentations I have given on gifted children? Is it the advocation I provide for gifted students in my school district? I am really not certain. What I do know is that I am immensely interested in helping gifted individuals and I have personal and professional experience in this arena.
There are a lot of different topics to cover when speaking about gifted people. The wonderful thing about a blog is that information can be imparted in a quick, informal manner which will hopefully spark thought, share important information, and provide avenues to pursue further explorations. A limitation is that a blog is short with around 1,000 words. Apparently, I am quite verbose, because I could really go on, and on, and on… What I will do to make sure we cover a few topics adequately is to break it up into a series. If you have topics you would like to be covered, please leave a comment and I will work to include it in a future blog.
A little about my belief system
Fundamentally, philosophically, and theoretically I believe strongly in using a client’s language and interests in our therapeutic sessions. This language can include the actual spoken language, vernacular, cadence, etc., but can also include their interests such as music, books, games, and toys. Historically I have spoken with therapists about using songs and Pokémon cards/characters in therapeutic ways. More currently, I speak with therapists about using board games and digital tool interests in therapeutic ways. The language of children is somewhat fluid. It is important that we as play therapists “go with the flow” of the fluidity. When a client has particular types of needs, it is important for therapists to incorporate them into the therapy whether they are strengths or areas which need assistance.
How did I become interested in working with and understanding gifted clients?
Working with gifted clients fits for me in multiple ways. I was designated as gifted as a child. Even writing that makes me cringe a little bit. What did I just divulge? How will it be interpreted? What will people now expect of me? Do they think I am bragging? I went through stages as a child where I was proud of myself, where I was ashamed; stages where I didn’t want to be different, and where I was happy to be different… There are pros and cons associated with being gifted. Ultimately, I have landed in a place where I both like and dislike some aspects of this thing called gifted, but it is who and how I am. The bigger question now is, “how can I help children who might struggle with this gifted ‘thing’?”
When one of my children was about 16 months old I was cooking dinner at the stove and he was building with Duplo Legos behind me. He had one of those buckets of the blocks so there were plenty to choose from. We were chatting periodically while I cooked and he built. Suddenly he said, “look mommy”. When I turned around I almost fell over. He had built a structure which reminded me of the Eiffel Tower and it was perfectly symmetrical in shape and in color. I took pictures. I was fascinated, proud, and frightened… very, very frightened. I thought: “What on earth am I going to do with him? How will I know what his needs will be and how will I assist him in getting them met?” Since then I have had multiple children identified in my family, and each of them are quite different in personality, abilities, and needs.
The older my children became, the more I began to understand the variability, stigmas, and challenges associated with being gifted. I started to think that if I am struggling with this – a person who was classified as gifted, a psychologist, and a mom – then others must be also struggling. How could I use my experience and knowledge to be helpful? I began to research, observe, and listen to people of gifted families. I began to work with gifted children therapeutically. In some ways, it was the same process as with other children. In some ways, it was different. I believe those differences are important for the therapist to understand.
What does it mean to be gifted?: A beginning
It is fascinating that the very word “gifted” sparks a flurry of emotions. Quite a few people in gifted families feel as though they will be negatively judged if the term is used in conjunction with a family member or themselves. Using the term can seem like a person is bragging or that they feel their child is superior in some way. Perhaps this is true in rare circumstances, but overall families are using it to indicate that their child has particular needs.
It is my very strong belief that if we picture the normal bell curve (below) and look at the portions to the left of the -1 and to the right of the 1 standard deviation (SD) delineations, we can see that these are two very important ends of the spectrum. The portion to the left of the -1 SD indicates the portion of the population who have special needs associated with a lower intelligence quotient. The further left you move, the more significantly the difficulties effects the person and support system. I believe the 1SD portion to the 3SD portion to the right of the curve, the gifted population, also indicates those who have special needs and the further one moves to right, the more significantly the IQ level effects the person and the support system. It is simply the other end of the spectrum. The needs are significant and addressing them effects multiple aspects of their academic, emotional, and social development.
I will let you chew on all this for a bit while I write up the next installment… to be continued.
Resources
https://www.nagc.org/resources-publications/resources/what-giftedness
https://www.hoagiesgifted.org/gifted_101.htm
https://sengifted.org/about-seng/
Dr. Jessica Stone
Dr. Stone is a Licensed Psychologist and RPT-S who works in a private practice in Fruita, CO. She has been providing psychological services to children, teens, adults, families, and prospective parents since 1994. Dr. Stone has been involved with the Association for Play Therapy in numerous capacities since 1993, including serving as CALAPT Branch President. She has presented nationally and internationally, and has been published in the fields of psychology and play therapy. She is the co-founder of the Virtual Sandtray App and VR programs.www.jessicastonephd.com www.sandtrayplay.com
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