What we’re about
This meetup group is a parent based support group for parents of gifted children in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs. We meet to discuss the challenges, questions, complexities, and exhilarations of parenting our gifted children. We also have various child centered events such as park days. Our group is member driven. Members are encouraged to suggest and to plan meetups that would be of interest to themselves and/or their children.
Our message board contains discussions about parenting gifted kids, enrichment opportunities for gifted kids in the Chicago area, discussions and planning about and for meetups and other gifted parenting seminars, and home schooling of gifted children. Please feel free to post questions, comments, and events that are of interest to you as a parent of a gifted child.
For those wondering whether their children are gifted, here is a good overview definition that is borrowed from Hoagies Gifted, an online resource for parents and gifted children concerning many facets of gifted life. "Giftedness is asynchronous development in which advanced cognitive abilities and heightened intensity combine to create inner experiences and awareness that are qualitatively different from the norm. This asynchrony increases with higher intellectual capacity. The uniqueness of the gifted renders them particularly vulnerable and requires modifications in parenting, teaching and counseling in order for them to develop optimally." The Columbus Group, 1991, cited by Martha Morelock, "Giftedness: The View from Within", in Understanding Our Gifted, January 1992