Afrikan children are naturally precocious and gifted. They begin life with a "natural head start". However, their natural genius is too frequently underdeveloped and misdirected. In this volume, the author surveys the daily routines, child-rearing practices, parent-child interactions, games and play materials, parent-training and pre-school programs which have made demonstrably outstanding and lasting differences in the intellectual, academic and social performance of Black children.

Baby-boomer parents with nearly 26 million children and more on the way--are looking for new and creative ways to help their youngsters develop and achieve their full potential. They want practical ideas for activities to do at home and authoritative advice on how to get the most out of their children's schools. Illustrations throughout.

Provides the first practical, hands-on resource to help early childhood educators create learning environments in which black children thrive.

Suggestions, activities, and resources for parents to help their children realize their true gifts.

These words are the thoughts and offerings inspired by a man´s communication and interaction with his community. A Listener´s voice reflecting the challenges encountered on the journey of self-knowledge. A fiery truth that beckons to all African people to celebrate their ancestry while continuing the tradition of building upon the foundation for the benefit of unborn generations. Awaken the Mind: Communion with Sean Liburd the Sharing of Thoughts and Emotions, an Intimate Communication Between a People is a revealing collection of experiences and lessons that stimulate critical thinking.

Challenging misconceptions related to Black academic achievement, this volume provides original perspectives on the policies, initiatives, and factors that facilitate the success of students of color as they progress along the educational pipeline. Grounded in an anti-deficit framework, this book offers personal narratives of Black educational leaders and professionals who discuss aspects of their educational experiences and pathways to success. With takeaways for research and practice, the individual narratives that comprise this book add to the conversation and advance important lessons gained from personal stories about achieving success for Blacks and other minority students.

“An important and powerful book” that radically reframes the debates swirling around the academic achievement of African-American students (Boston Review) “The solutions offered by each essay are creative, inspirational, and good old common sense." —Los Angeles Times In 3 separate but allied essays, African-American scholars Theresa Perry, Claude Steele, and Asa Hilliard examine the alleged ‘achievement gap’ between Black and white students. Each author addresses how the unique social and cultural position Black students occupy—in a society which often devalues and stereotypes African-American identity—fundamentally shapes students’ experience of school and sets up unique obstacles. Young, Gifted and Black provides an understanding of how these forces work, opening the door to practical, powerful methods for promoting high achievement at all levels. In the first piece, Theresa Perry argues that the dilemmas African-American students face are rooted in the experience of race and ethnicity in America, making the task of achievement distinctive and difficult. Claude Steele follows up with stunningly clear empirical psychological evidence that when Black students believe they are being judged as members of a stereotyped group—rather than as individuals—they do worse on tests. Finally, Asa Hilliard argues against a variety of false theories and misguided views of African-American achievement, sharing examples of real schools, programs, and teachers around the country that allow African-American students to achieve at high levels. Now more than ever, Young, Gifted and Black is an eye-opening work that has the power to not only change how we talk and think about African-American student achievement but how we view the African-American experience as a whole.