4 GIFTED ELEMENTARY SCHOOLCHILDREN FROM T HE POINT-OF-VIEW OF COUNSELING PSYCHOLOGY

Theory, research findings and educational models yield insights into t he phenomenon of giftedness und offer guidelines for working with gift ed children. The differentness of such children can cause problems tha t make it difficult for home and school to work together. The main fun ction of a counselling centre for the gifted is to deal with such malf unctions of the system. Potential talents of a child always affect the family too, and cause difficulties for the child, of which it is itse lf partly the cause. In counselling this aspect is of particular impor tance, as counselling involves, after all, a child and not a phenomeno n. The purpose of the four case studies of nine-year-old elementary sc hool children presented hen is: (1) to demonstrate specific aspects in individual families and (2) to work out the interactions involved. Th is approach yields a differentiated picture of the diverging courses o f development of four boys who are very similar in their intellectual ability.