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EMOTIONAL EDUCATION is stressed at the Blue School, a private school in Manhattan founded by members of the Blue Man Group in 2006. Now with 200 students in preschool through third grade, according to The New York Times, "the school has become a kind of national laboratory for integrating cognitive neuroscience and cutting-edge educational theory into curriculum, professional development and school design." Making kids aware of emotions supposedly helps the academic education process in the school, which is largely child-centered.  Read the article.
AUTISM AND THE BRAIN. NPR's show "To the Best of Our Knowledge" on Sunday, April 15, focused on autism and the brain, including interviews with a variety of experts. From the program blurb: "We explore the frontiers of brain science, from the neurobiology of emotions to recent discoveries about autism.  Renowned neuroscientists Richard Davidson and V.S. Ramachandran reveal new insights into the brain, and we'll hear the story of one marriage saved by a diagnosis of Asperger Syndrome." Find the program. (The first segment on autism diagnosis is, in the opinion of 2e Newsletter editor L.C. Neumann, perhaps the most relevant to the 2e community. Decide for yourself.)
PREDICTING PSYCHIATRIC TREATMENT. A Finnish longitudinal study has established that that the use of psychiatric treatment or meds as young adults may be predicted by signs and symptoms at age 8. According to Science Daily, "The parents and the teacher completed questionnaires with items concerning family structure, parental education level, conduct problems, hyperactive problems, emotional symptoms, bullying, and victimisation of bullying behaviour. The children themselves completed questions regarding depressive symptoms, bullying, and victimization of bullying behaviour." Find out more. 
HOAGIES' PAGE. Don't forget that webmistress Carolyn K is always updating her ginormous website on all things gifted -- including 2e. What we see on the "What's New" page at the moment is a video of top 10 myths in gifted education; and a list of recently added pages and pointers. Find "what's new."
MIGHT HAVE MISSED THIS. The Dana print newsletter Brain in the News pointed us to an article called "How the Brain Learns," about timing, sensory systems, and neural interconnectivity. Find out about the research -- and about some of the ways the research can apply in the classroom -- at the US News site. 
NAGC ANNUAL AWARDS. Each year at its annual conference NAGC presents a variety of awards. The nomination process for the 2012 awards closes on May 1. Award categories include those for educators, researchers, scholars, advocates, and those who otherwise serve the gifted community. Find out more.
NEW SURVEY. A PhD student at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, is conducting research to find out about theabilities and achievements of twice-exceptional individuals on the autismspectrum and to find ways that strengths and abilities of people on the autismspectrum can be developed. Participantsare sought from the following five groups:
  • Adults with an ASD
  • Parents
  • Teachers
  • Psychologists
  • Mentorsand coaches
According to the researcher, the study involves an online questionnaire(approximately 15 minutes) and an option to take part in interviews conductedby e-mail. Full details of the study can be found in theexplanatory statement by following the link to the online questionnaire http://tinyurl.com/monasheducation.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

ANXIETY is one of the conditions our subscribers are most concerned with when it comes to raising or educating twice-exceptional children. An article in the Vancouver Sun describes a researcher's efforts to develop a "screen" for anxiety in kindergarten, when kids are screened for vision and hearing. According to the article, about ten percent of kindergartners have anxiety at a level sufficient to interfere with school work or friendships. Read more. Separately, other researchers speculate that intelligence may have "co-evolved" with worry, noting that the two traits both correlate with certain brain activity. In subjects with generalized anxiety disorder, the researchers found a positive correlation between intelligence and worry; in "normal" subjects, high IQ had a negative correlation with worry. Find out more.
LD IN COLLEGE. A Chicago Tribune article explores why some college students eligible for special services in college may forgo those, and also looks at the kinds of services available to college students with LDs. Find the article.
AUTISM. Those with a stake in how the DSM-5 handles the diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorders might be interested in an article by a psychiatrist involved in the revision process. He explains the process and explains why the DSM's standards are so important. Find the article. Separately, NPR's Diane Rehm Show on April 11th considered the implications of recent research on our understanding of autism. Find the show. Finally, Harvard University researchers are developing a quick, simple, and supposedly accurate tool for detecting autism in young children. The tool involves a small set of questions and a short home video, and, according to a write-up of the research, "could reduce the time for autism diagnosis by nearly 95 percent, from hours to minutes, and could be easily integrated into routine child screening practices to enable a dramatic increase in reach to the population at risk." Find out more.
INTELLIGENCE MAPPED. A research team based at the University of Illinois has reported mapping the physical architecture of intelligence in the brain. The researchers used patients with brain injuries to infer how specific brain structures are associated with various cognitive tasks. Included in the map are areas associated with general intelligence and executive function; included with the study write-up is a graphic showing where those areas are supposedly located. Read more. 

APRIL 20th EVENT IN NEW YORK. An all-day event on April 20th at Nassau Community College in New York will focus on how educators can help twice-exceptional students succeed. The event is titled "Unlocking Potential": Cost-free Strategies to Improve Underachieving Students' Performance. Find out more. 
THE GIFTED HOMESCHOOLERS FORUM is now providing online courses for gifted and twice-exceptional students, according to the organization. The first two courses are scheduled to begin in September. Find out more. 
AND FINALLY, THIS. The company Zaner-Bloser, "one of the premier publishers of research-based reading, writing, spelling, vocabulary, and handwriting programs," has held and announced the winners of the 21st Annual National Handwriting Contest, in which over 325,000 students participated. Entries were judged on size, shape, spacing, and slant. This contest is of interest to us because of the sheer number of entrants, because based on our own sons' education experiences we weren't sure that handwriting was actually taught anymore, and also because we thought everyone now keyboarded instead of writing. Find out more about the contest.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

GAME INTELLIGENCE. Howard Gardner posits a bodily-kinesthetic form of intelligence, but a new study from Sweden indicates that at least some successful athletes also have strong executive function skills that allow them to work with information quickly and make decisions. In the study, elite soccer players in Sweden scored in the top two percent on an executive function test, D-KEFS. Furthermore, higher test scores were linked to higher rates of goals and assists among the players. Read more.
AUTISM WARS is the title of an article in The New York Times in reaction to the recent report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control estimating that one in 88 American kids have an ASD. On the one side, those skeptical that the figures really represent a change in ASD incidence. On the other side, those who take placement on the spectrum seriously. From the article: “I don’t care if you have a 150 I.Q., if you have a social problem, that’s a real problem. You’re going to have problems getting along with your boss, with your spouse, with friends." Find the article.
ORAL/WRITTEN EXPRESSION DISCREPANCY: A sign of dyslexia? That's the question asked by a teacher/mom whose own daughter's oral expression strengths weren't rewarded by her teacher. The teacher/mom then reflected on her own practice, and that of her peers, deciding that oral expression in the classroom is definitely undervalued. Read more.
ASD IN COLLEGE. As autism and Asperger's diagnoses become more common, more and more students will enter college with the diagnosis -- and they'll need help in overcoming issues brought about by poor social skills and other characteristics of the disorder. An article in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune highlights some of those problems and tells what schools and students are doing to overcome those problems. Read it.
NEUROEDUCATION IN SANTA BARBARA. We love neuroscience, especially as it applies to education, because much of it is or will be beneficial to twice-exceptional students. And we love Santa Barbara, California. This summer, educators with healthy budgets can attend a four-day, $1975 session on neuroeducation in Santa Barbara presented by Dr. Judy Willis. Titled "Neuroscience and the Classroom: Strategies for Maximizing Students' Engagement, Memory, and Potential," the event is under the auspices of the Learning and the Brain Summer Institute. Find out more, and if you go let us know how it was.
WRIGHTSLAW. The current edition of Special Ed Advocate points out that IDEA requires transition services from school to employment or to post-secondary education, and provides resources to help parents plan for their learning-disabled child's future. Read more.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

GROWING RECOGNITION OF SPD. An article in the Chicago Tribune noted how more and  more parents and therapists are aware of sensory processing disorder. The article profiles several families who have SPD kids and describes approaches to treating the condition. Read the article.
AD/HD. Readers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter know that experts recognize at least three subtypes of AD/HD. Recent research indicates that AD/HD is an entire family of disorders. Further research is needed to better understand the subcategories in terms of both diagnosis and treatment. Read more. Separately, the title of an opinion piece in the Washington Post by Katherine Ellison is "We're not paying enough attention to AD/HD." She notes, "A conservative study in 2007 estimated the annual U.S. costs of AD/HD treatment and other related expenses, including parental work loss and juvenile justice, to be as high as $52.4 billion." And she urges parents, doctors, and schools to all pay more attention to ways to reduce that financial and emotional burden on all involved. Read the article.
DYSLEXIA. Other recent research indicates that visual attention deficits may be predictive of dyslexia even before children learn to read. The researchers tested children's ability to distinguish between relevant and irrelevant visual cues. Read more.
GENDER IN AUTISM. More boys than girls are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders, and a psychiatrist explores that issue at CNN.com, including differences in expression and possible explanations for a lower rate of diagnosis among girls. Read the article.
ATTENTION RESEARCH UPDATE. The March edition of David Rabiner's newsletter has been posted, and in it he examines a study of the over- and mis-diagnosis of AD/HD by clinicians. Find the newsletter.
GREAT POTENTIAL PRESS, publisher of books on gifted topics, is on Facebook. Drop in and "like" them. http://www.facebook.com/GreatPotentialPress,
SENG. On April 19, Terry Friedrichs will present a SENGinar titled "Teaching Academics to Gifted Youth with Asperger's." SENG says that the event is intended to allow attendees to discover "how to improve on the youths' skills in communicating, understanding directions, and predicting consequences in basic academic subjects at the elementary, middle and secondary levels." Find out more. 

PRUFROCK PRESS is offering another free partial download from one of their books, this one School Success for Kids with Autism. Go there.  


From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

AUTISM AWARENESS MONTH is this month, as you're aware if you've been reading any online materials on learning challenges or even the general press. The month-long observation, along with the April 2nd World Autism Awareness Day, was sparked by the efforts of a  variety of organizations but especially Autism Speaks. One article that appeared on April 2 on CNN profiled a highly intelligent man, now 42, whose diagnosis of Asperger's six years ago led him to "reinvent himself as an autism advocate" -- besides explaining a lot of things. From the  article: "I was invisible until I found my inner splendor... My ability to interpret and alter my throughput of judgments, feelings, memories, plans, facts, perceptions, etc., and imprint them all with what I chose to be and chose to do. What I choose to do is change the course of the future for persons with autism..." Find the article. 
2e WEBINARS. NACG has two 2e-focused webinars coming up in April:
  • An overview of 2e learners by Lois Baldwin on April 11. From the blurb: "This session will explore some of the characteristics and learning differences of the twice-exceptional learner, and also provide a fresh perspective and insights into how best to support the individual child at home and at school."
  • Strategies for educators and parents of 2e children, by Beverly Trail and Claire Hughes. From the blurb: "This presentation provides an expert perspective on how children, parents, and educators can develop a comprehensive plan integrating strategies from both gifted and special education to meet diverse cognitive, academic, social, and emotional needs of twice-exceptional children." 

GIFTED RESOURCE NEWSLETTER. Don't forget Jo Freitag's monthly source of information for:
  • Gifted- and 2e-related happenings in Australia
  • Pointers to gifted-related events and conferences all over the world
  • A multi-page listing of articles and resources under the unassuming title of "Some Interesting Websites."
Jo Freitag's postal address has changed recently; if you correspond the old-fashioned way, check her home page for the new address. Email and website are the same. 
WRIGHTSLAW, in its current edition of Special Ed Advocate, addresses U.S. issues of privacy in education, confidentiality, and FERPA -- the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act. Sample questions addressed: Can you see your children's test results? Can you observe in the classroom? What privacy rights do parents and children have? Find the newsletter.
AND FINALLY, THIS. Fast food leads to depression. That according to a new study published in the Public Health Nutrition Journal. The net-out: fast-food consumers are 51 percent more likely to develop depression than those who eat little or no fast food. Plus -- the more fast food  you eat, the higher the risk of depression. While the study write-up used the words "linked to" rather than "caused by," draw your own conclusions. Not only should you "Hold the pickle,  hold the lettuce," as the jingle used to go, but also hold the meat and the bun and the condiments and the fries... 
MORE ITEMS COMING SOON. Stop back often.

From the Publisher of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

THIS ALIEN PLANET CALLED SCHOOL. A mom and college teacher writes about what school must be like for her son, who has Asperger's. In "Learning with Asperger's: A Parent's Perspective," published in Education Week, she describes the challenges faced by Aspies and some of the consequences -- and offers a plea for change. Find the article.
12TH-GRADE 2e STUDENT REFLECTS. "The system has failed me," says a young man about to graduate from high school. In a familiar story, he relates how attention and learning issues compromised his Mensa-level abilities. Interestingly, he rails against an over-emphasis on accommodations; along with that, he says, his strengths were un- or under-recognized. You must read this. (Note: the author was previously published in 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter.)
AUTISM DIAGNOSIS RATE RISES. The figure used to be 1 in 110. Now it's 1 in 88, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. At that rate, about one million children and teens in the United States are affected by ASD. Wider screening and better diagnosis may be the reason. Find out more.
DAVIDSON INSTITUTE. This organization's eNews-Update for March is out, with information about the Intel Science Talent Search, the Khan Academy, NSGT scholarships for gifted students, and more. Find  the newsletter.
THE GIFTED DEVELOPMENT CENTER has published its March communique, noting that GDC now offers all of their articles as free downloads from their website. Also in the newsletter: Anne Beneventi writes on the Annemarie Roeper method of qualitative assessment. Read more. 
UNWRAPPING THE GIFTED. Tamara Fisher notes how the advent of RTI has displaced gifted programs in some schools. She is not enthusiastic about the movement, and asked current and former students to tell her what they got from GT programs that they didn't get anywhere else. She got lots of answers; find them. 
JUDY WILLIS. If you're a fan of Dr. Willis, be advised that her current RAD Newsletter previews her free upcoming webinar on the teen brain, and also points to other Willis resources, such as her February 1 TEDx talk "From Neuroscience Lab to the Classroom." Find the newsletter.
PRUFROCK PRESS is offering a free PDF download of two chapters from the book Emotional Intensity in Gifted Students, by Christine Fonesca. Find it at the Prufrock website.
AD/HD AND LEARNING TO DRIVE. When one of our kids had a learner's permit, he would sometimes scare the devil out of whichever parent was riding with him by apparently failing to notice relatively important road cues such as stop signs. The New York Times recently examined the issue of learning to drive with AD/HD and listed many, many factors affecting a young person's likely success -- or failure -- in the process. Find the article. Our young person did not get his license for several years after he was eligible, but increased maturity and better judgement have -- so far -- precluded tickets and accidents.
LABELING. The Minneapolis Star-Tribune ran an article about labeling kids, something all parents and educators of 2e kids have to grapple with. The main point of the article was: don't use a label as the child's defining characteristic. Read more.
PANDAS TO PANS. An expansion of the definition of Pediatric Acute-onset Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorderr Associated with Streptococcus (PANDAS) is called simply PANS -- Pediatric Acute-onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome. It involves the sudden onset of OCD symptoms without a known cause. Find out more.
AND FINALLY, THIS. Via press release, we've learned that "moms are not afraid to hire a hot sitter." From the release: "Shattering the old cliche that moms don't hire beautiful sitters, a new survey reveals that today's moms would hire a good looking sitter. A survey commissioned by Sittercity found that only 7 percent of respondents stated they would not hire a beautiful babysitter or nanny. In fact the most important attribute when looking for a childcare provider is that they engage, educate and enhance their children's lives." Interestingly, sitter gender is not mentioned in the press release.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

LD MISCONCEPTIONS. PBS Newshour focused on LDs recently and offered a primer in the issue, noting that kids with LDs drop out of school at a rate 2.5 times their non-LD peers. Listed and explained were five beliefs, including "Learning disabilities usually correspond with a low IQ." Find out how the writers dispel that and other misconceptions. One of the broadcasts in the series focused on LDs and the arts, how the arts can allow students to show strengths and build confidence; find a write-up of the show.
TEACHING KIDS WITH LDs. A Scientific American article notes that lots of private schools will  help kids with LDs succeed, but that such opportunities are usually lacking in public schools. The article profiles a Canadian elementary school program called THRIVE where one teacher helps 15 kids that "normal classrooms have left behind, defeated, and, too often, deflated." The article explains how the teacher plays to strengths which may include spatial aptitudes. Read more about techniques that can apply to most 2e kids.
JONATHAN MOONEY. To get a glimpse of how this author and lecturer engages with his audiences, take a look at a piece he wrote for ADDitude Magazine titled "How I Channeled My Energy Into Success." Read how he couldn't sit still, and how, as he says, his advocates saved him. Find the article.
RTI AND 2e. This Wednesday the 28th NAGC offers a webinar on RTI that will cover the use of RTI with gifted and 2e learners. From the NAGC blurb: "RTI identification criteria and gifted students may elude detection solely through classroom achievement measures, RTI approaches need to be adapted for gifted children and supplemented." Find out more. 
DYSLEXIC ADVANTAGE NEWSLETTER. At their website, the Drs. Eide offer a chance to sign up for their newsletter. The March edition points to a variety of resources on the topic.
AUTISTIC ADVANTAGE. A man with Asperger's who graduated from college with a 4.0 grade average but whose success in finding a fulfilling job was not good finally founded AutVantage, according to the Jackson, Mississippi, Clarion Ledger, "a startup information technology company focused on employment opportunities for autistic professionals." Read the story. Separately, a study indicates that people with autism "have a greater than normal capacity for processing information even from rapid presentations and are better able to detect information defined as 'critical.'" Read more.
ESSAY CONTEST. Rand McNally is sponsoring an essay contest for kids in grades 7-12 asking them to respond to the question, "What's the one place in the U.S. that truly inspires you?" The contest organizers offer a $10,000 scholarship to winners, so get that gifted writer you know to this site to find out more.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

FIGHT OVER GT, LD SERVICES. A mom and a school district in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, have been locked in a struggle for over a decade over services for her two sons, one of whom is evidently both gifted and LD. Services for both exceptionalities are part of the dispute. The mom wanted services and requested a number of due process hearings. According to an account of the dispute, the school district called the mom's behavior "vexatious." Read the account and form your own opinions...
FANTASY MOVIES FOSTER CREATIVITY? Researchers at Lancaster University in the UK say that watching fantasy movies such as Harry Potter films may improve their imagination and creativity. The subjects, aged four to six, reportedly performed "significantly better" on creativity tests after watching 15-minute clips from a Potter film. Read more.Separately, The New York Times reports that fiction can "stimulate the brain and even change how we act in life" -- this according to research involving brain scans. Read the article.
GIFTED TESTING IN THE UK. Gifted eleven-year-olds in the UK will be administered special "SATs," or national curriculum assessments, the results of which will be part of a school's performance. The rationale for the testing: to "encourage teachers to devote more time to high ability children," according to the Telegraph. NAGC in the UK supports the move. Read more.
DSM-V AND AUTISM. If you're following the debate over autism diagnosis in the upcoming DSM-V, you might be interested in an opinion piece/debate in New Scientist. Find it.
JACK KENT COOKE SCHOLARSHIPS. The application for 2012 scholarships through the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation is April 15. Eligible candidates come from low- to medium-income families and will start 8th grade this fall. Find out more. 

AD/HD AND FISH OIL An ADDitude online feature covers fish oil and other supplements as possible treatments for AD/HD. Find the feature.
WRIGHTSLAW. Special Ed Advocate takes on the issue of what to do when services specified in an IEP are not provided. Read more.
OCD WORKSHOP IN MANHATTAN. The Child Mind Institute has scheduled a family workshop on OCD on April 3 in the evening. Find out more.
ANXIETY IN DC. On April 17, Dr. Daniel Pine is scheduled to present "Current Thinking about Anxiety: The State of the Science." Read more.
EDUCATION WEEK is currently offering free downloads of some of its "Spotlight" sponsored white papers. They cover topics such as bullying, STEM, and personalized learning. Find them.
MORE AD/HD -- 66 percent more diagnosis in the past 10 years, as a matter of fact. An article at ScienceDaily attributes the change to increased awareness of the condition. Read it.

BRAIN AWARENESS WEEK is this week, March 12-18. So take a few minutes to ponder the brain in your head or in the head of that twice-exceptional child you raise or educate. Maybe visit the site of the Dana Foundation, which co-founded Brain Awareness Week. Or find brain resources at the site of The Society for Neuroscience. Separately and possibly in observation of BAW, the Diane Rehm show on March 14 featured the topic of "The Emotional Life of Your Brain," about the interaction of chemistry, thought, and emotion; find the show.
AD/HD DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT. A pediatrician writing for the Boston Globe describes what are apparently common but sketchy approaches for diagnosing AD/HD in children, and the tendency to treat symptoms rather than the underlying causes. She also notes that current practice makes it possible to diagnose and treat AD/HD without ever learning about family history or stressors in the child's life. In response to all this, she offers changes to the process of diagnosis and treatment of AD/HD. One recommendation: having a minimum of two 50-minute visits [!] in order to evaluate the child's issues. Read more.
IT'S OKAY TO BE NOT NORMAL is the message from a psychiatrist writing at a Fox News site. He bemoans the increase in rates of diagnosis of AD/HD. He suggests that Huckleberry Finn would today be on Adderall. He says, "We must empower individuals to think it's ok to be 'not normal' and change the mindset that everything can be 'fixed' with a pill or a few therapy sessions." Read more. 
SENG. The March issue of the SENGVine Newsletter is out, with articles focusing on the topic of diversity within SENG initiatives. Find the newsletter. 
ASK DR. JUDY. Judy Willis is presenting a free webinar on April 5 (rescheduled) titled "What Makes the Adolescent and Teen Brain So Different and What Should Educators Do about these Differences?" Find out more. 
AND FINALLY, THIS. Got a crabby kid? (Or a crabby spouse?) It could be trans fatty acids, which according to a new study are linked to irritability and aggression "in men and women of all ages." Find out more.


From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

REDUCE THE PRESSURE. Research published by the American Psychological Association indicates that students have less fear of failure -- and learn better -- when  they're told that failure is a normal part of learning. A researcher pointed out that "teachers and parents may be able to help students succeed just by changing the way in which the material is presented.” Find out more about helping your 2e child succeed in school.
GOT AN ANXIOUS KID? Lots of 2e kids are anxious, according to the parents we communicate with. A brief article in the Kansas City Star by Julia Cook offers tips for recognizing anxiety and ameliorating it. Find them.
IEP. The Wilmington, North Carolina, Star News Online provides an overview of the IEP process, including getting started, following up, and putting the IEP into practice. Read more.
RITALIN DOSAGES. Twice-exceptional kids with AD/HD may be affected differently by different doses of methylphenidate (Ritalin). A study using monkeys recently found that low doses boost cognitive performance, but that while higher doses can reduce hyperactivity they may also impair memory. Find a writeup of the study.
RESIDENTIAL SUMMER APPRENTICESHIPS. The Institute for Educational Advancement offers gifted students the opportunity to participate in residential apprenticeships. IEA calls them "an invaluable and intensive learning opportunity working with teams of professionals in medicine, industrial design, science, law and business at some of the nation's leading universities, corporations, and research facilities." Find out more. (IEA is a non-profit organization that also puts on the Yunasa Summer Camp for the Gifted.)
IN MANHATTAN, at the Quad Manhattan, on the evening of April 9, The Quad will sponsor a workshop on neurofeedback. According to a blurb for the workshop, neurofeedback may be of use to children "with various diagnoses and presenting conditions by allowing them to regulate their behavior and in turn, become more available for learning and other activities." Find out more. 
YOUTUBE is now available through a special portal for schools that limits student access to certain content and allows schools to use only the videos they want. A New York Times article says that YouTube contains many educational videos which can benefit teachers and students when brought into the classroom. Find out more.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

TEENAGE WEIRDNESS. One of our favorite writers on the brain, Alison Gopnik, recently had a piece in the Wall Street Journal called "What's Wrong with the Teenage Mind?" She notes that early puberty and late adulthood can lead to "a good deal of teenage weirdness." In the article, she highlights two neural systems that may account for some of the weirdness: one dealing with emotion and motivation and one dealing with control. She also offers suggestions for dealing with the overall causes of teen weirdness. Find the article.
WEBINAR ON RTI FOR GIFTED/2e STUDENTS. On March 28th NAGC will present a webinar titled "What Parents and Educators Should Know about RTI." From the blurb: "Because twice-exceptional students are increasingly missed by RTI identification criteria and gifted students may elude detection solely through classroom achievement measures, RTI approaches need to be adapted for gifted children and supplemented." Find more information. (A week later is a webinar on the same topic -- RTI for the 2e students -- from a different point of view. Information is on that same NAGC page.) 
ATTENTION RESEARCH UPDATE. David Rabiner has posted the February edition of his newsletter, titled, "Does Coaching Help College Students with AD/HD." Rabiner describes how the method of coaching used in the study led college students to feel that the coaching was helpful, even if it didn't make a difference in GPA. Find the review. 
HOW MANY STUDENTS WITH 504's? Education Week reports on U.S. Department of Education data gathering that indicates that 433,980 students in the U.S. have 504 plans. Got a kid with a 504? You're not alone. Read more.  
GARDNER INTELLIGENCES ILLUSTRATED. In an edition of a magazine from a Pennsylvania cyber charter school, an article profiles eight of its students as fitting the various types of Gardner intelligences -- spatial intelligence, musical intelligence, etc. Find an article about the article with a synopsis of the profiles... or look on the school's website to find the Link magazine containing the original 11-page article.

From the Publishers of 2e Newsletter

NEW BLOG ABOUT 2e LEARNERS. Pat Sciortino, educational director at the Quad Manhattan, has started a blog called "Out of the 2e Classroom." Her first posting is about developing social thinking in 2e learners by using improvisational play. Check out the blog.
MIND INSTITUTE LECTURE. The UC Davis Mind Institute is offering a free lecture about AD/HD on March 14, 4:30-6pm, in Sacramento, California. Titled "AD/HD Causes and Mechanisms," the lecture, part of the Institute's Distinguished Lecturer Series, will be presented by Joel. T. Nigg, of the Oregon Health and Sciences University. From an announcement of the event: "Over the past decade, the view of ADHD as the outcome of a single dysfunction shared by everyone who has the diagnosis is migrating to a new perspective that highlights a wide variety of causes -- a theory known as causal heterogeneity -- and recognizes diverse symptom clusters. The implications and challenges of this change in thinking are potentially profound, and this presentation will consider evidence in support of the importance of the heterogeneity problem in ADHD while also considering the potential role of genetic factors." Find out more. (The lecture will later be available online, as previous lectures are.) 
GIFTED AT 3? A blogger at Education Week reacted to the Maryland State Board of Education's adoption of regulations to implement differentiated services to gifted students as young as pre-K. Anti-labeling groups oppose the measures. Read more. 
OVEREXCITABILITIES. NAGC's Parenting for High Potential has published a chat summary on the topic of overexcitabilities and positive disintegration  highlighted by Kazimierz Dabrowski. The summary includes a table characterizing the five kinds of overexcitabilities. Find out more. 
AD/HD RESOURCE. David Rabiner pointed us to a free report on alternative treatment options for AD/HD from Additude Magazine. The options include behavior therapy, neurofeedback, exercise, green time, and brain-building computer games. Get a copy. Separately, a study reported by HealthDay indicates that boys and girls born in December are 30 to 70 percent more likely to be diagnosed with AD/HD than kids born in January. Read about the study.
SLEEP-DISORDERED BREATHING in children may lead to behavior problems such as hyperactivity and aggressiveness, according to a new study. Sleep disorders include snoring, mouth breathing, and apnea. Read more. 
AND FINALLY, THIS. It's Sleep Awareness Week in the U.S. Not by coincidence, daylight savings time begins this coming Sunday. Sleep specialists at the University of Loyola Health System are offering tips on making the transition in an article titled "Daylight Savings Can Be Hazardous to Your Health." Find out what you can do to make it easier on  you and your kids.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

ON AD/HD "BACKLASH." A Scientific American blogger responded to recent "backlash" against AD/HD -- questions about its reality, the drugs to treat it, and even those who have it. The blogger notes studies showing that the disorder is not over-diagnosed and studies showing that medication does help. Read the blog. 
RITALIN AND ERROR MONITORING. A study from Australia showed that even one dose of Ritalin can help the brain monitor its own performance, recognizing performance errors that include "failures of impulse control." Being aware of one's mistakes is an important component of the ability to correct behavior, point out the researchers. Read more. 
DER SPIEGEL, a German news magazine, profiled a Danish company founded to help place people with Asperger's in appropriate jobs. The company, Specialisterne ("the specialists"), places people mainly with information technology companies. It was founded by a man whose son has Asperger's. Among the employees is a particle physicist who used to work at CERN. Read more.
LD IN COLLEGE. Notre Dame College in South Euclid, Ohio, is one of 60 colleges and universities in the country offering a fee-based program to help students with LDs succeed, according to an article in the Cleveland Plain Dealer. The article profiles two students in the program and quotes the college president as saying, "These students are bright, they just need to find a learning style. They persist and graduate at a higher rate than other students." Find the article.
IN NEW YORK? On March 13, the Child Mind Institute will present a free workshop titled "AD/HD Brains: What's Under the Hood?" Register here.
IN CALIFORNIA? Summit View School offers a college fair for students with learning differences on March 17 from 10am to 1pm. Get more information from collegefair@summitview.org. 
2e CONFERENCE IN HONG KONG. July 28 to August 1 are the dates for the "First Conference on Twice Exceptional Children," with the theme of "meeting the needs of gifted children with learning disabilities." Find more information here or here.
NEW AD/HD SCHOLARSHIP. The Attention Deficit Disorder Association is offering a new scholarship beginning in 2012, the Moulton-Farnsworth Scholarship. Find out more.
TRACKING EYES IN ASD KIDS. A study using eye-tracking measured differences in the ways ASD children attended to social situations as opposed to typically-developing peers, and also examined differences within the ASD group in the says kids steered their gazes when viewing scenes of social situations. Of the latter research, one researcher said, "These results help us tease apart some of the vast heterogeneity of the autism spectrum. For some children, atypical looking patterns may be serving as a compensatory strategy; but for others, these patterns are clearly associated with maladaptive behaviors." Read more.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

iPADS TO ENGAGE. A Las Vegas charter school provides each of its students with an iPad to help foster the school''s project-based learning approach, according to the Las Vegas Sun. Teachers seem impressed by the kids' rapid pick-up on the technology, by the engagement the technology seems to bring, and by the opportunity for students to learn at their own pace. The article says, "Students use the iPads to access educational websites and applications as well as electronic textbooks. They use the iPad to take notes and the tablet’s camera to photograph whiteboards filled with teacher’s lessons and chemistry formulas. Some even record lectures using the iPad’s digital voice recorder or video camera, referring to them when they review for tests." Find the article. Separately, a 40-year study of the use of technology in the classroom found a small to moderate positive effect on learning and attitude, according to an article about the study. Read more.
REBUTTAL. The Child Mind Institute carried a rebuttal to a New York Times article extolling the distraction of AD/HD and conflating it with creativity. The rebuttal accused the Times' article's author, who has AD/HD, of romanticizing his childhood, and linked the article to two other recent Times pieces, one on Asperger's and one on dyslexia, which you might have read about in this blog. Read more. Separately, the Child Mind Institute also carried an excerpt from a new book called Pride and Joy; the excerpt takes issue with the "dangers of praise," focusing instead on the ill effects of criticism. Read the excerpt.
THE IEP PROCESS. Need an overview of the IEP process? An attorney provides one at SpecialNeeds.com.
DIY DUE PROCESS. Attorney Dorene Philpot, who has written for 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter and who was involved in the case we described in our article "Fighting for FAPE," has written a book titled Do-It-Yourself Special Education Due Process, published this year by Learning Enabled Publications. According to the publisher, the book offers tips on representing yourself and your child at a due process hearing with a school district. Find out more.
GIFTED EDUCATION PRESS QUARTERLY. The Spring edition of this newsletter is out. In it, Maurice Fisher reviews a book by Joan Franklin Smutny and S.E. von Fremd, Teaching Advanced Learners in the General Education Classroom: Doing More with Less. Other articles in the newsletter focus on teaching the arts and humanities (to the gifted, of course). Find the newsletter.
SENG WEBINAR. Paul Beljan will present a webinar (SENG calls it a SENGinar) titled"Giftedness and  Learning Disabilities: Unearthing the Missed Diagnosis." The aim of the event is to empower parents, teachers, and counselors to spot and act on LDs in gifted children. The webinar is to be held during the evening of March 15. Find out more.
AND FINALLY, THIS. A new paper at the Dana Foundation site is called "Musical Creativity and the Brain" and examines what happens during improvisation, covering:
  • Creativity and prefrontal cortex function
  • Creative processes and underlying brain mechanisms
  • Perception and communication of improvised material
The authors also speculate on the future of the neuroscience of artistic creativity. Find the article.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

ELIGIBILITY FOR SPECIAL SERVICES. In raising or teaching a twice-exceptional child, one basic consideration is whether the child is eligible for special services, for example under IDEA. The current edition of Wrightslaw's Special Ed Advocate provides answers to three questions regarding eligibility: who determines it; what the law says; and what the school must do before determining a child is not eligible. Read the newsletter. 
AUTISM SPEAKS now has over a million fans for its Facebook page; check it out. 
SPOTTING AUTISM DEVELOPMENT. Researchers have found significant differences in brain development in infants as young as six months old who later develop autism, compared with babies who don’t develop the disorder. The imaging study, by scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the University of North Carolina, and other centers suggests autism doesn’t appear abruptly, but instead develops over time during infancy. Read more. (From materials provided by Washington University.) 
GAME ADDICTION can be real, according to a researcher who studied more than 1,000 8- to 18-year-olds and compared their behaviors to those common to any addiction. The behaviors are: "excessive use that impedes other aspects of life, increasing tolerance in order to obtain the 'high,' withdrawal symptoms, and a willingness to sustain negative consequences in order to maintain the habit." Got a bright gamer kid? Read more. 
TEXTING AND LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT. Text more, lose some linguistic ability. That's the conclusion of a study comparing university students who text more or less frequently. The study author suggests that "reading traditional print media exposes people to variety and creativity in language that is not found in the colloquial peer-to-peer text messaging used among youth or 'generation text.' She says reading encourages flexibility in language use and tolerance of different words. It helps readers to develop skills that allow them to generate interpretable readings of new or unusual words." Find out more.  
MORE TO WORRY ABOUT. Mice genetically engineered to be susceptible to autism-like behaviors that were exposed to a common flame retardant were less fertile and their offspring were smaller, less sociable and demonstrated marked deficits in learning and long-term memory when compared with the offspring of normal unexposed mice, a study by researchers at UC Davis has found. The researchers said the study is the first to link genetics and epigenetics with exposure to a flame retardant chemical. Read more at the UC Davis press release, from which this item was taken.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

TO MEDICATE OR NOT -- that's often an issue in a family with 2e children, and an Indiana news outlet takes a look, citing scary stories as well as successes. One success was a young man with behavior issues, who, with the right meds, went from getting Ds and Fs to As and Bs. The report also notes a shortage of child and adolescent psychiatrists. Find the report. 
BROCK EIDE ON NPR. The co-author of The Dyslexic Advantage was a guest on NPR's Diane Rehm Show on February 15 for a discussion of "The Dyslexic Brain." Also on the show, Jeffrey Gilger, whose work has been featured in 2e Newsletter. Find the show.
"YES I CAN" AWARD. A young man in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, has won a self-advocacy award in CEC's "Yes I Can" recognition. Eleven-year-old Cade Gardner has LDs and was born with a cleft palate, but speaks to groups about overcoming obstacles, according to news reports. Find out more.
CEC, THE PREZ, AND EDUCATION. The Council for Exceptional Children has released a statement in response to President Obama's education budget request for fiscal year 2013. The president gets praise for a couple things and disappointment for a couple. CEC charts out the request for FY 2012 compared to 2012; in the chart, we see that funding for the category "Gifted and Talented" is... still... zero. Find the statement.
A.T. BOOK ON SALE. In the January/February issue of 2e Newsletter we profiled Joan Green, author of the Prufrock book The Ultimate Guide to Assistive Technology in Special Education. Prufrock has put the book on sale for 40 percent off for the remainder of this month. Find out more.
DSM DISCUSSION. Following the discussion over the upcoming DSM-5? A University of Michigan psychiatrist has weighed in with his opinions, prefaced by the statement "Almost no one likes the DSM, but no one knows what to do about it." Read more.
DC-AREA EVENT. Don't forget the third annual "Diamonds in the Rough" event in Shady Grove, Maryland, on Sunday, March 16. Early-bird registration -- $25 -- ends February 29. Find out more.
HORMEL G-T ED SYMPOSIUM. Registration is now open fo the 4th Annual Hormel Foundation Gifted and Talented Education Symposium, scheduled for June 11-14, 2012, in Austin, Minnesota. Readers of 2e Newsletter will be familiar with some of the presenters. (Austin is also home to the SPAM Museum, a tour of which is one of the optional events at the symposium.) Find out more.
SENG. The SENG Vine Newsletter for February is out, including news that registration is now open for the summer SENG conference in Milwaukee. Find the newsletter.
ANTI-BULLYING. The entertainer known as Lady Gaga is establishing a foundation focusing on anti-bullying and self-esteem for youth. The organization, Born This Way Foundation, is to be officially launched with an event at Harvard University on February 29th. Guests at the launch will include Oprah Winfrey, Deepak Chopra, US Secretary of Heath and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius, and Professor Charles Ogletree. Find the pre-launch website for the foundation at http://www.bornthiswayfoundation.org/.
AND FINALLY, THIS. The US Census Bureau reminds us that February is the anniversary of America's first public school. The Boston Latin School opened in 1635, presumably in Boston, Massachusetts.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

SPECTRUM U. A blog devoted to college choices for those on the spectrum offers information on what's offered at over 200 schools, plus tips on choosing a school, connecting with others, and how to thrive at college. It looks as if information is updated frequently. Find the blog. (Thanks, Liz!)
REACTION to the article "The Upside of Dyslexia" has been posted at the New York Times site; we blogged about the article last week. Two readers who respond remind us of "the down side" of dyslexia. Another says, "It is imperative that we keep these learning advantages in mind, and provide students with a flexible and multisensory education that highlights both their strengths and weaknesses." And a fourth respondent suggests "It is time for the federal Department of Education to recognize dyslexia as a specific diagnosis instead of using the broad and misleading diagnosis of learning disabled." Find the reactions.  
TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATION. Our January/February issue of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter focused on A.T. for 2e kids. An article in the news today about a school in North Carolina that issues Apple laptops to all students in grades 4-12 portrays the school as a leader in increasing test scores, boosting attendance, and lowering the drop-out rate. Read the article. 
SUMMER PROGRAMS. NAGC offers resources for those looking for a summer program for their gifted children. One resource is the NAGC Resource Directory. Another is an upcoming Internet "radio" program. Here's NAGC's blurb on the event: "Tunein live to EducationTalk Radio on Thursday, Feb. 16, at 11:30 a.m. (Eastern) for 'A KickStart to Summer Camps.' The segment features NAGC member Bob Schultz, fromthe University of Toledo, discussing summer enrichment options for high-abilitylearners. The segment shares the same title of the article Schultz is writingfor the spring 2012 edition of Teaching for High Potential. If you can'tmake it next Thursday, you can listen to an archive on the Education Talk site here." 
SCHOOL FINDER. A web-based service called FindTheBest offers, among other things, a tool for finding a public or private school based on factors such as location, school type, size, and student-to-teacher ratio. We haven't tried it, but it looks as if it could be useful. If you try it, let us know what you think. Find the site.