Rewards and punishments as educational infl uences of parents of gifted children

Rewards and punishments are an integral element of upbringing in a family. They shape attitudes educatively desirable and limit those undesirable. The presented article shows what kind of role rewards and punishments play in upbringing gifted children. On the basis of the narrative of parents recognizing their children as gifted, an analysis of parents’ educational strategies related to rewarding and punishment has been made. The results of the research have shown that parents of gifted children most often use rewards and punishments in domestic situations when they want to shape a specific attitude, achieve a specific effect in action or appreciate the efforts and achievements of children. It has turned out that parents do not use punishments to strengthen the development of children’s abilities. Rewards, especially praise and approval, are used when a parent feels proud of the effort or successes of his/her child.