101 Success Secrets for Gifted Kids [Paperback]

Christine Fonseca (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 2011 | Age Range: 8 and up

Pssst! Want to know a secret? 101 Success Secrets for Gifted Kids: The Ultimate Handbook is a must-read for gifted kids ages 8 to 12 who want to find success in school and life. If you know gifted kids, they will love the 101 awesome secrets, tips, and tricks included in this book! 

Chock full of fun suggestions and practical strategies, 101 Success Secrets for Gifted Kids covers topics including bullying, school performance, perfectionism, friendships, and sibling rivalries. Fun quizzes, tip sheets, and practical Q & A sections from other gifted kids and preteens make this book fun to read and give gifted kids insight into everything they've ever wanted to know about being gifted. Proven strategies for dealing with stress management, parents' and teachers' expectations, anxiety, cyber-bullying, friendship troubles, and more make this the must-have guide for every gifted kid!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"All [tips] are incredibly useful. In fact, the advice would be helpful for all kids...As long as our educational system attaches labels to children, this title will serve as a useful tool for those designated as 'gifted'."  - School Library Journal

"This book was written for gifted students, what fun it was to read as an adult...terrific book" - Gifted Education Communicator

About the Author

Christine Fonseca has worked in the field of education for more than a decade. Relying on her expertise as a school psychologist, behavioral consultant, speaker, and parenting expert, she has been a resource for parents and children in understanding the social and emotional needs of gifted children.

Product Details

• Age Range: 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 206 pages
• Publisher: Prufrock Press Inc. (March 15, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593635443
• ISBN-13: 978-1593635442
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,492 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #17 in Books > Children's Books > Social Situations > Special Needs

More About the Author

As an author of both nonfiction and YA novels, I have dedicated my life to helping people of all ages find their voice in a noisy world. In fiction, I craft psychological thrillers and sweeping romances that will take the reader on an emotional roller coaster ride through through the darker aspects of humanity, exploring themes that include sacrifice, love, and madness. My titles include the Gothic romance, Lacrimosa (part of the Requiem Series), and the Phantom of the Opera Inspired psychological thriller, Transcend (part of the Phantom Chronicles).

In nonfiction, I draw on my training as an educational psychologist and address the issues of emotional intensity, resiliency, and giftedness, writing books for children, teens, parents and educators. My titles include Emotional Intensity in Gifted Students and 101 Success Secrets for Gifted Kids and the much awaited The Girl Guide: Finding Your Place in a Mixed-Up World, releasing in April 2013.

I live in Southern California with my husband and daughters. When I am not working with children or hanging out with the family, I can be found sipping too many skinny vanilla lattes at my favorite coffee shop as I write my next book or play around online. For more information at me or my work, visit me at http://christinefonseca.com.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars 101 Success Secrets- A Test Run June 5, 2011

By Julie Butcher

Format:Paperback

This won't be a normal review. It is a record of Ms. Fonesca's book in a trial situation with three of my gifted children. A girl age 11, a boy age 13, and a girl age 14.
On first impression each child liked with the layout of the book and the easy way they found sections turning the book sidewise and thumbing the pages. I asked them to take the book in their backpack to school and to see if it helped when there was a problem or a situation that made them feel frustrated.
Each child had been having problems either with peers or with teachers. There's always something, right? The 11 year-old seemed quickest to grasp the concepts and more accepting that the answers would help. Maybe because of her age, her ideas and the way she sees the world is less set in stone. She found the secrets of test taking and went to town, bringing her test scores up from C's and B's to mostly A's. What I discovered is that as a parent, I can tell them to study for tests until I'm blue in the face and they won't. But if they read it in this book then of course they need to study.
The 13 year-old boy found the secrets about getting along with your peers to be the most helpful. They brought him out of his own head long enough to focus on others and to see them as individuals. He made the friend cards suggested. It made him more agreeable to others and I've noticed that his social circle has grown considerably. He also utilized the suggestions on how to deal with bullying and made a huge difference not only in his own experience, but in that of several classmates.
The 14 year old girl found the most help in the sections that pertained to emotion. She was able to deal with her own intensity in a calmer way and learned more tolerance. By understanding that others did not think in the leaps of the gifted, she learned to explain herself better to peers. This was a huge help working with others in group projects.
All in all, this book was a success with all three children and the results a definite improvement in their interactions with others.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars It's Never Too Early November 1, 2011

By Kara Skye Smith

Format:Paperback

This handbook for the gifted child - and parents of gifted children - is like having a terrific guidebook while visiting Paris. Sure you could get through Paris without it - and obviously have a really great time although randomly. With it, however, you have the ability to make great choices, get the most out of the visit - as well as understand those down moments like knowing when you've gotten 'lost' and finding - more easily - your way back to where it is you want to go. It lessens the burden about having to know by guessing what really you couldn't have guessed because you'd never been there before; and, although lost moments are inevitable, there's less panic - less worry - because your guidebook mentioned this would happen. You know you're okay - or in danger (time to ask for help) - when you can read about what's typical - leading to an even more incredible journey.

Even though this book is geared toward younger kids and their school experience, with many quotes from children ages 9 to 14, I plan to read some parts of this book with my high school age gifted child as sort of a pat on the back that he made it through the 'lost' parts, alone, on his own, having grown from his achievements, nonetheless. If you are a gifted child, or the parent of a gifted child, buy this book and read it for the emotionally supportive information, at least. It would not be ridiculous to have read this book as early as a child's sixth month in age, even though most parents are not aware their child is gifted until the educational system 'labels' the child through academics. I guess its impossible to have exactly the 'right' guidebook at all times, and the lost moments in life are sometimes necessary. Sometimes 'lost' moments can even be fun in which we find those truly 'all our own' spots - maybe even our favorite - to return to someday or remember all our lives. However, with gifted children all our own isn't alienating when we become aware that others - also labeled gifted - experience similar traits as part of our 'gift'edness.

The drawbacks to this book are that some of the tips - as they are called in the book - might be too intimidating for younger children to carry out. To get the most out of this handbook, both parent and child should read it and discuss the child's opinions about which tips they like and those they just would not do at school; AND, the parent should listen. Accept that this is where parents can help out; or, accept that its just not who your child is to respond in such a grown up manner, yet.

Overall, this book gives a gifted child an entire set of useful, relevant tools to help with the not-so-easy aspects of being gifted. After reading this book, the child, the child's parents, and even a close friend or two, can incorporate even just a few of these tools to make school, home life, and social life more enjoyable and less stressful - at both its cause and its effect on the child and on the group dynamic. The author, Christine Fonseca, has written this book in easy-to-read chapters. Each topic is a numbered 'Success Secret' with tips for reaching the topic's goal, quizzes to encourage introspection, and sections for writing out thoughts about the topics. I know with my high school-er there will be groans about having to 'do all this', yet the value in receiving these messages: 'I'm not crazy, I'm just smart', 'Gifted and intense go hand in hand', and 'If I were gifted this wouldn't be so hard' is worth the effort - sort of a spa day for the soul with returning visits. This book feels like a relief - just like a trusty guidebook right before you both might have gotten 'lost' on an otherwise terrific journey either way.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Recommend May 13, 2011

By Danyelle Leafty

Format:Paperback

Okay. How to put into words the awesomeness that is this book.

First off, while the target audience is kids that have been identified as gifted, this book is applicable to so many more people--both kids and adults.

The format is fun and highly interactive. There are words of wisdom from gifted kids sprinkled through out, and the sections are short and snappy. At the end of every chapter is a Parents Sound Off section that gives parents the opportunity to show kids where they're coming from. There are also What Do You Think? sections following the Parents Sounding Off where the reader can crystalize what they've learned. This section contains questions the readers can ask themselves for even better understanding of the section and themselves. There are also tip sheets, quizzes, and questions and answers.

So why do I love this book? Because I'm a highly intense person with highly intense, children who are incredibly smart. This books speaks to the kids--to, not down--on how to manage the traits that come with being gifted, high intensity being a hallmark trait. The book points out that their brains are wired differently, so while some of the traits can be hard to manage at times, there's nothing wrong with this.

As the book says, it's filled with 101 secrets to succeeding, and one of the first steps is understanding what it means to be gifted and embracing it. And that's really what the success secrets all boil down to: understanding yourself, accepting yourself, and embracing yourself.

Kids need more books like this. :)

But 101SS isn't simply a feel good book. Many of the sections give ideas and suggestions on how the reader can change their perceptions and actions so the intensity and giftedness works for them, not against them. And doing this takes work. 101SS deals with the reader on a personal level, as well as hitting topics dealing with school life, friends, and family.

101SS is geared toward gifted kids, but I believe it can benefit adults and highly intense people as well. I would definitely recommend this to anyone regardless of age.

I did receive a review copy from the publisher, but plan on purchasing a copy.