Date: 17th July 2026
Time: 1:00 PM to 4:30 PM
A session on “Emotional Needs of Gifted Students” was conducted for the Class XII gifted students with the aim of drawing attention to an often-overlooked aspect of giftedness—their emotional experiences. While gifted students are frequently recognized for their cognitive abilities, their feelings and emotional needs often receive less attention. Keeping this in view, the session was designed to help students identify, understand, and express their emotions in a healthy manner.
The session commenced with an engaging icebreaker conducted by Dr. Megha Deuskar, which helped establish rapport and created a comfortable environment for participation.
The first activity involved dividing the students into small groups. Each group was provided with a situation depicting common characteristics associated with gifted individuals, such as perfectionism, heightened sensitivity, overthinking, fear of failure, and similar traits. The groups prepared and presented short skits portraying the assigned situations. Following each performance, the other groups were invited to identify the gifted characteristic being depicted and discuss the emotions experienced by the character. This activity encouraged students to recognize the connection between behaviours and underlying emotions while fostering empathy and perspective-taking.
The session then moved to a debate on the topic: “Are emotions good guides to actions?” Students were divided into two groups representing the ‘For’ and ‘Against’ viewpoints. They actively participated, presenting thoughtful arguments, counterarguments, and examples. The debate served as a platform for students to critically examine the role of emotions in decision-making and appreciate the importance of balancing emotional awareness with rational thinking.
Building upon the insights from the activities, a discussion was facilitated on emotional regulation and healthy ways of managing emotions. The following strategies were highlighted:
- Acknowledge and accept emotions – Students were encouraged to recognize and accept their feelings without self-judgment. The importance of a buddy system was emphasized, as peers with similar experiences are often better able to understand and support one another.
- Express emotions appropriately – Students were guided to become aware of bodily signs associated with emotions, acknowledge what they are feeling, and express these emotions constructively through methods such as journaling or reflective writing instead of suppressing them.
- Give emotions time – It was explained that once emotions are acknowledged and expressed, their intensity naturally reduces over time, allowing individuals to respond more thoughtfully rather than react impulsively.
To reinforce the importance of emotional support, a paired active listening exercise was conducted. One student spoke about a personal experience for 4 minutes while the partner listened attentively without offering advice, opinions, or comments. The roles were then reversed. This activity helped students experience the value of being heard with empathy and without judgment, highlighting that supportive listening itself can be emotionally comforting.
The session concluded with a reflection, during which students shared their experiences and feedback. Participants described the session as insightful, relieving, reassuring, nostalgic, satisfactory, and eye-opening. They appreciated the opportunity to openly discuss emotions, recognize shared experiences, and learn practical strategies for emotional awareness and regulation.
Overall, the session successfully met its objective of enhancing emotional awareness among gifted students by providing an interactive, reflective, and supportive platform for understanding, expressing, and managing emotions effectively.
