Researchers say that four out of ten reported psychic experiences involve some seeming awareness of the future. The term premonition is in general use,while the clinical word precognition, ('before knowing'), tends to be used by parapsychologists.
Not all people with psychic abilities experience this nor do all parapsychologists study it.
Some people at any age may have the ability to "see" things others do not.This may apply to the past,present or future it may involve images through dreams, any activity or by touch of a person or object,This person is a clarvoyant.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Clairvoyance (from 17th century French clair meaning "clear" and voyant meaning "seeing") is the purported ability to gain information about an object, location or physical event through means other than the known human senses,[1][2] a form of extra-sensory perception. A person said to have the ability of clairvoyance is referred to as a clairvoyant
Claims for the existence of paranormal psychic abilities such as clairvoyance are highly controversial. Parapsychology explores this possibility, but no evidence for such paranormal phenomena is accepted by the scientific community."

Not all clairvoyants have this ability.But all who have precognitive dreams are clairvoyant.

Ideas vary considerably among dream researchers about how many people in general have precognitive dreams.Some believe it is a common factor with three or four of any ten have had one or more,They encourage people to keep a diary of their dreams to explore the possibility for themselves.

Many may be of mundane occurrences like where or what you are going to eat while others may involve friends or family.
Some more notable precognitive dreams involve illness,accidents or death of either someone they know or strangers.One is likely to remember those.

Two memorable accounts you may have heard about are good examples:

Abraham Lincoln dreamed that he awakened to noise and walked in his carpet slippers downstairs in The White House.He saw a number of men and women he knew gathered around a casket weeping.He asked a White House Aide there "Who has died?" "Why,it is the President,sir" was the answer.
He walked over and looked upon himself lying in the casket. Some weeks later it was just as he described from his dream.

Mark Twain told a friend that he dreamed of his brother lying in a coffin.Described the store around the area and several other things. Two or three weeks later (I do not remember for sure) his brother was killed in a boat explosion.When he arrived to claim the body, the town which he had never visited and the coffin were just as he had seen in the dream.

Several researchers classify the precognitive dreams into two catagories those like the above in which the general nature of the dream the when,where,how aspects are not specified would be one in which altering the future is not possible.Other more specific precognitive dreams may allow an alteration to avoid the event such as The people who dream of a plane crash and cancel their trip.You have read of those instances no doubt and of the three people who canceled their booking on the Titanic.
Has this happened to you?
Recently in a forum discussion of the subject on Etsy.com where artists show and sell their handmade products twenty five people reported their experiences of having Precognitive Dreams:
2 had dreamed of 9/11 before it happened,1 had dreamed of the Malibu fires before they occurred.7 dreamed of the pregnancy of themselves ,friends or family with 2 having told the couple before they knew themselves and one sure of the sex of her expected baby although it was doubted by others,also 2 dreamed of deaths of family members.Interesting, isn't it?Additionally one showed other indications of clairvoyancy.
There were 2 who had verified dreams of events one of having a bike accidrnt which her mother also had dreamed of.It did happen with the UPS truck as in the dreams.Neither were overly surprised.Fortunately it was not a serious injury. When the Paramedics called the mother she immedeitly knew what had happened.
The other dreamed of her grandfather's death one year to the date in advance.She was quite upset as the details of where he was and what he was doing at the time and the flustered behavior of her grandmother were quite detailed.As she sobbed her mother comforted her with reassurance it was just a dream.Her younger brother was without their knowledge working on a school journal at the time and included the account,One year later it happened just as in her dream and recorded in his journal.

Unfortunately one other Etsy artist had only tragic and frightening dreams of this sort while a second did not dream but had a physical reaction as a premonition in the fore of such occasions.Do you think Creative people are more inclined toward these experiences?

When dreams of death such as above are natural consequences, it is not thought that the future is changeable.Which you no doubt had considered.

So if you want to take note of your dreams take out a journal and pen and leave it by the bedside.Enter those dreams as soon as you awake.Look over them and see if any show who is coming, where you will be going or what is for dinner.Note of course those with more impact as well.Although it is not know why some people do this or where it comes from,there are believers that dreams of the future do occur.Sometimes people may be hesitant to discuss them.
I will tell a story told to me as the first time told outside her family by a nationally and internationally known Nursing leader.

As a young nurse working in the hospital, she dreamed of a raging fire and death of Zoe Fitzgerald wife of F.Scott Fitzgerald who was a patient at the Psychiatric Hospital in NC .A fire destroyed the hospital the following day and several patients were killed.
So what are your thoughts?Where do you stand on the issue of Precognitive Dreams?

The illustration is an original creation bu an Etsy Artist which may be seen in the shop there along with other work http://artbyraber.etsy.com
Thank you for the use of this picture.Note neither artist whose work is featured are among those experiencing precognitive dreams.