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Showing posts with label anxiety. Show all posts
Showing posts with label anxiety. Show all posts

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

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.

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

RITALIN NAY-SAYER REBUTTED. The New York Times opinion piece "Ritalin Gone Wrong" has drawn firm responses from a variety of people and organizations. The Child Mind Institute posted a point-by-point commentary on its website. Letters to the editor of The New York Times on the topic are here. And Dr. Edward Hallowell (author of books on AD/HD) has written a response to the opinion piece that  you may find here. 
AD/HD AND THE DSM-5. One observer contends that the next edition of the DSM might have the effect of increasing the chances that a child may be diagnosed with AD/HD, the opposite of what observers fear will happen with ASD. Will "lowering the bar" for an AD/HD diagnosis lead to more diagnoses, more help -- and more meds? Read more.
SPEAKING OF ASPERGER'S, we found three pieces over the past few days dealing with the diagnosis of that condition in the past and in the future. In one article, the writer recounts how "For a brief period... I had Asperger syndrome" -- diagnosed by his mother, a psychology professor and Asperger's specialist, of all things. Read how the writer says after college his symptoms vanished. In another article the author claims that the Asperger's label is perhaps overused, calling it a tide of pathologizing; find the article. And finally, Atlantic ran an article called "Can My Kid Still Get Treatment? Why Autism's Definition Matters," explaining the positive impact of a diagnosis on the author's own child; read it.
AD/HD DRUG WARNING. Reuters reports that advisers to the U.S. FDA have asked that Focalin carry a warning about the risk of suicidal thoughts in those who take the medicine. The number of instances involving those thoughts appears to be small compared to the number of children taking the drug, four linked to the drug and four others where the link was not clear. Read more.
MORE ON SPECIAL SERVICES. We recently posted that the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has changed the definition of who should get special services under 504 plans. Read more about it, including pointers to the guidance issued by OCR and a list of questions an answers on the topic.
SSRI's FOR ANXIETY. A psychiatrist recommends that clinicians should be "pushing the doses of these [SSRI] medicines so that you can give kids a chance to respond the best they can," contending that the usual "start low, go slow" advice might not lead to anxiety being controlled adequately. Got a bright but anxious kid? Read more.
SMARTKIDS YOUTH ACHIEVEMENT AWARD. The organization Smart Kids with Learning Disabilities has opened nominations for its annual Youth Achievement Award, $1000, which "recognizes the strengths and accomplishments of young people with learning disabilities and ADHD." The deadline for nomination is February 28. Find out more.
AD/HD SCHOLARSHIPS. About.com has news of the Shire AD/HD Scholarship for those with AD/HD pursuing higher education. Fifty scholarships are awarded, each including $2000 plus a year of AD/HD coaching. Find out more.
NEAR DURANGO? Colorado, that is. Liberty School in that area is holding a dyslexia conference on March 16-17. Find out more.
GEORGIA SCHOOL FOR DYSLEXICS. A private school for elementary and middle schoolers with dyslexia is in the works in Marietta, Georgia,and scheduled to open in the fall. Read more about it.
EDUCATION WEEK OPEN HOUSE. Until February 5, Education Week is hosting an "open house" on their website. One feature there is titled "The Virtual World of Learning," and visitors may also download a white paper on online education. Go there. 
RTI WEBINAR. RTI (response to intervention) can help all kids, including those who are gifted or twice-exceptional. One of NAGC's Webinars on Wednesdays (WOW) will address the topic on March28 at 7:00 pm. Titled "What Parents and Educators Should Know about RtI," presenters include Mike Postma, MinnetonkaPublic Schools, Minnetonka, Minnesota; Bobbie Gilman, Gifted DevelopmentCenter, Denver, Colorado; Dan Peters, Walnut Creek, California; and Kathi Kearney,Project Excel, Berwick, Maine. Find more information.

HIGH ACHIEVERS RUNNING INTO TROUBLE. A Canadian study of students who excelled in high school but ran into trouble at the university level indicates that some of those students could have reading comprehension difficulties. Apparently, even while the students may read fluently they have trouble making sense of what they read, probably through difficulties in working memory and simultaneous processing of the information. The researchers' recommendation? More reading, and practice at creating a mental map of the ideas in the material. Find out more about the study.
MORE ON AUTISM DIAGNOSIS. We've  blogged about possible changes to the diagnostic criteria for ASD in the upcoming DSM-5. We've found two more items about the changes, one at Science Daily and one from CNN. If this topic is relevant to you, you might be interested in these two items.
SENG has issued a press release sharing its concerns with certain aspects of the American Academy of Pediatrics' new position on diagnosing AD/HD in younger children. SENG is concerned that pediatricians might confuse some traits of gifted kids with symptoms of AD/HD, resulting in misdiagnosis. Read the release. Separately, SENG is offering a SENGinar on February 16 titled "Taming the Worry Monster: Anxiety in Gifted and Twice-Exceptional Youth," featuring Dan Peters. Find out more. Finally, potential West Coast facilitators of SENG Model Parent Groups may want to check out a facilitator training session to be held Saturday and Sunday,March 17-18, 2012, in the San Francisco Bay area. The session is to be led by Kathleen Crombie, MA, M.Ed., with Dr. Dan Peterspresenting. Early bird reduced registration ends 1/27/12. Find out more about SENG Model Parent Groups. 
THE GIFTED DEVELOPMENT CENTER has issued its first newsletter of 2012, including (among other things) a preview of the 10th International Dabrowski Congress. Find the newsletter. 
IN THE RENO, NEVADA, AREA? The Davidson Institute is offering a free presentation for educators on common myths about gifted students on March 28, from 4 to 6:30 p.m. on the Davidson Academy campus. Find out more.

From the Publishers of 2e Newsletter

ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION in their children are very common concerns among parents in the 2e community. The Wall Street Journal ran an article about mental health issues in college students and how educators should accommodate them. According to the article, a rising number of students are registering psychological problems with college disability offices. Read the article.
LDs, THE ADA, AND COLLEGE. A woman student was dismissed in 2003 from George Washington University Medical School after repeated warnings that she was not meeting academic standards. Shortly before the dismissal, she sought to establish that her academic performance was related to learning disabilities, undergoing evaluation and receiving a diagnosis of dyslexia and a mild processing speed disorder. She contended the dismissal violated her rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Recently, as U.S. district court ruled in the the university's favor, deciding that the student had failed to demonstrate that her difficulties were from her LD as opposed to study habits and a heavy schedule of extracurricular activities. Read the article.
DOPAMINE, AD/HD, AND MOTIVATION. Scientific American reviewed a study where researchers established a positive correlation between positive dopamine function in the brain and motivation trait scores on a personality test. They also showed a correlation between the CAARS AD/HD symptom test and the motivation score (i.e, fewer symptoms, more  motivation. The conclusion: a disrupted dopamine pathway is associated with lower motivation and with AD/HD. The review does not mention that there are several types of AD/HD, but insofar as the study applies to at least one type it might be of interest to parents, educators, and clinicians who deal with AD/HD children. Find the article.
AN ASPIE'S MEMORY helps him connect with other people now that he's in his teens, according to an essay in the Washington Post. At first it was remembering birthdays... then addresses... then movie release dates... and then being able to connect names, birthdates, and movie releases to amaze family and friends.  Read more. 
THAT'S IT! More next week...

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

NOT JUST INTELLIGENCE: CURIOSITY TOO. "Personalty traits like curiosity seem to be as important as intelligence in determining how well students do in school." That's the conclusion of a study published recently in a publication of the Association for Psychological Science. Conscientiousness also affects academic performance. Read more.
WRIGHTSLAW. The current issue of Special Ed Advocate examines whether children with AD/HD  -- which is not a "specific LD" -- are eligible for IDEA services or eligible for Section 504 accommodations. Find out more.
THE WEINFELD GROUP is presenting an event on November 10 titled "Helping Your Worried Child -- Behavioral Treatment of Childhood Anxiety." The presenter is Bonnie Zucker. To be held in Rockville, Maryland, the event is an hour and a half long; the cost is $25 for those who register by 11/3, $35 afterward. More information.
AD/HD DRUGS do not increase the risk of heart problems in children or young adults, according to a U.S.-funded study involving over a million subjects. Included were meds such as Adderall, Concerta, Strattera, and Ritalin. Find out more.
SCREEN THOSE PRESCHOOLERS. A study funded by the National Insititutes of Health found that many more preschoolers have vision problems than previously thought -- about 25 percent compared to the previous figure of 5 percent. The net-out -- screen that preschooler to make sure vision problems don't masquerade as learning problems, and also, of course, to make sure that kid can see. Read more.
MAYO TOOLKIT FOR CHILDREN'S MENTAL HEALTH. The Mayo Clinic has published a toolkit to help identify mental health problems in children and teens. The motivation? The fact that up to 75 percent of children with problems evidently don't get help. Read more about this. Find the toolkit.
AND FINALLY, THIS. If  you've ever worried about food safety -- whether what manufacturers put into the food you buy is really safe -- you'll not enjoy a recent item at ScienceDaily on the topic. It seems that U.S. law:
  • "Allows manufacturers to determine that the use of an additive is "generally recognized as safe" (GRAS), and then use that substance without notifying the FDA.
  • "Does not require that manufacturers inform the FDA when health reports suggest new hazards associated with additives already used in food."
If that makes you dangerously excited and you want to know more, go to ScienceDaily.

GIFTED AND STUTTERING. A gifted 16-year-old New Jersey boy who is taking two college classes described how his professor had asked  him not to speak in class because of  his stuttering. According to an article in The New York Times, about five percent of people stutter, and it is thought to have genetic and physiological causes. Find the article.  In response to the article, the Stuttering Foundation issued a response that includes eight tips for teachers; find it. (The foundation website also notes that for both Winston Churchill and James Earl Jones, "Stuttering didn't stop them. Don't let it stop you."

EDUTOPIA has a blog entry on its site titled "How to Support Gifted Students in Your Classroom." It notes the importance of identifying such students and of having a gifted, intuitive teacher to serve gifted students. Find the blog.

MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES. We received an email directing us to a site by the name of Bytes Power Smarts, which is apparently deigned to help kids 8-11 "recognize and appreciate their strengths and talents," as manifested in the eight multiple intelligences recognized by Howard Gardener. The site contains stores for the children to read relating to those intelligences. Find it. (We recognized at least one name on the staff listing as being involved in the 2e community.)

OCD. CNN has an article on its website about OCD in children, and the article profiles two young people with different sets of symptoms. It describes how each young person has confronted the disorder. Find the article.

THE GIFTED DEVELOPMENT CENTER newsletter for October is out, and it brings news of the organization's move out of downtown Denver to more spacious quarters. (We visited the Center several years ago and would characterize their present space in an old house as pleasantly unique, but could see how they could use more space.) The newsletter also notes Linda Silverman's five decades of experience in the gifted field. Read the newsletter.

CURETOGETHER: ANXIETY. CureTogether, a site that provides information and support for persons with a variety of conditions, has posted information stemming from a 6200-patient survey on which treatments for anxiety work best and which are most popular. If you have a gifted child with anxiety, this will be of interest to you. The top three treatments in terms of effectiveness: exercise, Xanax, and then yoga. The treatments reported least effective: Wellbutrin, Amitripyline, and Paxil. Find the site.

EDUCATION WEEK published an article, available to non-subscribers, about the various types of reading problems (eg, phonemic awareness) and reading programs that work for those various types. Find it.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

PREPARING FOR COLLEGE WITH A LEARNING DISABILITY is the title of a guest blog recently at the Washington Post's "Campus Overload" feature.A young woman who recently earned an associate's degree from Landmark College, a school that focuses on students with LDs, offered a recap of her experiences there plus five tips for those with LDs who plan to attend college. Find the blog.
NEGATIVE THINKING AND TEEN ANXIETY. A person's  outlook on an ambiguous situation may determine whether the situation induces anxiety, according to a new study. An approach called "cognitive bias modification of interpretations" may help those subject to anxiety interpret unclear situations in a more positive light, averting unnecessary anxiety. Got an anxious gifted or 2e teen? Check out the study. Separately, Psych Central offers the tip that routine high-level exercise may reduce anxiety in persons predisposed to panic attacks. Find out more. 
MATT COHEN answers questions each month at LD Online. Among the topics he addresses for July are: getting a teacher to find ways to help a student with an LD learn best; whether it's appropriate for a teacher to  recommend that a child be medicated for an LD; what to do when a school denies an IEP because of a student's success; and how to get accommodations for the LSAT, among others. Find it. 
AD/HD ENTREPRENEURS. Smart Money tells the stories of four entrepreneurs who succeeded on their own in spite of AD/HD and because of it. The article covers both the energy and the challenges; one entrepreneur once booked two different dinners for the same night -- on different continents. Read more about these achievers. 
NEUROSCIENCE AND EDUCATION. Education Week, in a feature on special ed, covers some of the ways neuroscience can help not just special ed but education in general. Among the topics: the ability to differentiate LDs based on brain imaging; and early identification of LDs through biomarkers. Find the article.
DYSGRAPHIA IN THE "REAL WORLD" is the featured topic in Carla Crutsinger's most recent Brainworks e-newsletter. Crutsinger offers four solid strategies for achieving success at work with an impediment such as dysgraphia. Find the newsletter.
RESOURCES. For information or support, don't forget a couple resources we've mentioned in the past. One is #gtchat, a weekly, international, Twitter-based discussion on a specific gifted topic, sometimes on 2e topics. For example, on June 24 the topic was AD/HD in gifted kids; and on May 27 it was "Understanding and Supporting Twice-Exceptional Learners." If you can't participate in the hour-long chats, transcripts are available at the #gtchat site.  Another resource available on an ongoing basis is About.com: ADD-AD/HD. About.com is operated by The New York Times, which makes us assume the information is reliable. You can sign up for periodic updates on the topic of AD/HD or any other topic at About.com -- topics relevant to the 2e community include anxiety disorders, ASD, gifted children, and more. (But no dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia!?) Find About.com.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

ANXIETY IN KIDS was the topic of two articles in the last few days. One article, from Australia, noted  how social networking sites supposedly cause anxiety in children as young as eight, which leads them into treatment by psychologists. According to one psychologist, "children [are] using social networking sites such as Facebook to determine their identity and form a view about what society thought of them." The other article, in The New York Times, profiled a child psychiatrist in New York City whose  mission is to remove the stigma of mental illness in children; he charges as much as $1000 per hour for  his services -- but seems to be much in demand.

DEPRESSION IN PRESCHOOLERS. Sadness and irritability in very young children can be a sign of depression, and researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have found that brain activity in young, depressed patients is similar to activity in adult depressives. Mentioned in the article is a longitudinal study of 600 families to try to identify early factors that influence chronic depression. Read more.

DR. RUSSELL BARKLEY is presenting on various aspects of AD/HD in two September workshops to be held in Shady Grove, Maryland. The workshops are sponsored by Alvord, Baker & Associates along with the Weinfeld Education Group. Find out more. 

AD/HD AROUND THE WORLD. Depending on where you are in the world, the diagnosis and treatment of AD/HD differs, according to a new study. Among the findings: "..although the prevalence of AD/HD varies across nations, largely due to disparate diagnostic practices and algorithms, far larger international variability exists with respect to treated prevalence and treatment procedures" Find out more. 

THE "AUSTISM ADVANTAGE" in prehistoric times is the topic of a scholarly paper. Researchers posit that certain autistic traits, including spatial skills, concentration, and memory, might have proved beneficial in a hunter/gatherer society. Read more.

AND FINALLY, THIS. Need more ammunition to clamp down on video gaming at  your house? Check out the message delivered at a recent presentation by child and adolescent psychiatrist Paul Weigle. He's a hard-liner when it comes to  the effect of gaming and violence on our sweet, innocent young children. Go there.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

2e AND AP. A mother at the 2e Newsletter Network at Ning.com is looking for input from others on "successful scaffolding for a 2e student taking AP classes."  If you have experience in this area, consider sharing at the "Forum" section of the online 2e Newsletter Network. Free registration is required at http://2enewsletter.ning.com/?xgi=5fRjVktrpoYhb5, but you may use a screen name rather than your real name.
BULLYING AND THE BRAIN. Being bullied can actually alter the molecular chemistry of the body, according to a recent study. According to one of the researchers, "We found that chronic social stress affects neuroendocrine systems that are paramount for adaptive mammalian social behaviors such as courtship, pair-bonding and parental behaviors. Changes in components of these systems have been implicated in human disorders, such as social phobias, depression, schizophrenia and autism." Read more.
MRI-ASSISTED NEURO-FEEDBACK. Researchers have discovered that providing real-time, fMRI-based feedback to subjects engaged in a task allowed them to better control their thoughts and perform the assigned task. The study results may have implications for improving everyday life, says the writeup, and also for the clinical treatment of conditions such as depression, anxiety, and OCD. Find out more.
IF MOM'S HAPPY, KID'S HAPPY. A British study of over 40,000 UK households has found that children's satisfaction with their lives is closely linked to the mother's happiness. Researchers found that "the happiest children are those living with two parents... with no younger siblings, who do not argue with their parents regularly, who eat at least three evening meals per week with their family and whose mother is happy in her own relationship." Got that, June? Got that, Beav? Read more.
RESILIENT KIDS. A final study reported recently may explain why some kids are more socially resilient. The study involved kids with "problem parents," those less available than "regular" parents. Kids with a specific gene variant were more likely than their siblings without the variant to have better relationships with those problem parents. Read about the study.
AND FINALLY, THIS. Are you a political liberal? You might have a larger anterior cingulate cortex than that political conservative you know or married, who, in turn, might have a larger amygdala than you do. No kidding -- we read it on the Internet, so we know it's true. Actually, says a report on the study, "Based on what is known about the functions of those two brain regions, the structural differences are consistent with reports showing a greater ability of liberals to cope with conflicting information and a greater ability of conservatives to recognize a threat." Okay, if you don't believe us, read it for yourself.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

GOOGLE SCIENCE FAIR. We've mentioned this new, online competition before, but want to pass on a pointer to an article with more details about the fair. The article discusses the differences between in-person and online fairs and also speculates on what's at stake for Google -- but if you're thinking about encouraging a teenager to enter this fair, find out more.
ABDOMINAL MIGRAINE? A child with belly pain may be experiencing an abdominal migraine, according to a new study. Reuters points out that the label is a common diagnosis in Europe and the UK, but not in the United States. According to the article, the condition affects about two percent of kids. Read more.
ATTENTION RESEARCH UPDATE. The March issue is now posted, and in it David Rabiner reviews an approach to helping "inflexible and explosive children" who are prone to outbursts and meltdowns. The approach was tested in a study that showed ODD kids and their families benefited long-term from a particular approach conceived by Dr. Ross Greene called collaborative problem solving. Find the issue.
SENG WEBINAR. SENG has announced an April 26th webinar titled "Stress, Anxiety, and Gifted: Coping with Everyday Life." Presented by Michele Kane, the webinar "examines the sources of stress as well as explores specific strategies designed to minimize stress and develop self-awareness." Find out more about the 1.5-hour, $40 event at the SENG site. 
TREATMENTS FOR AUTISM. If you've been considering any of a variety of autism treatments, check out an article about the effectiveness of such treatments, based on studies reported in Pediatrics. 
ANXIETY seems to plague lots of gifted and twice-exceptional children. If your child is one of them, an article at PsychCentral lays out various forms of anxiety, the ages at which they typically occur, and when you the adult should worry about the child's worries. Find the article.
WOODWORKING FOR KIDS is the topic of a a recent article in The New York Times. Benefits to the kids of participating in woodworking projects -- pride of accomplishment, satisfaction from solving problems, and being engaged. The article profiles a woodworking program or two and lists a few programs across the country. Read it.
DEEP BRAIN STIMULATION is used for severe cases of depression, OCD, and Tourette's, as well as for adult conditions such as Parkinson's disease. The current print issue of Brain in the News from the Dana Foundation contained two articles on the topic, one of which was reprinted from the Associated Press and the other from The New York Times.
AND FINALLY, THIS, about physical safety for your college student in Texas. CBS in West Texas reported last week on Texas Senate Bill 354, which would allow those over 21 who have a license for a concealed handgun to carry their weapons on Texas college campuses. The bill has been approved by a committee and is apparently ready to be voted on by the Senate. CBS notes polls indicating that "67 percent of Texans are against guns on campus." Read more.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

THERAPY ANIMALS AND CHILDREN. An article in The New York Times covers the use of therapy animals for a variety of conditions, including autism (animals can cause a drop in stress hormone in their human companions) and AD/HD (animals can help a child learn to behave more calmly). While debunking the use of dolphins ("no evidence of benefit and considerable risk of harm to the animals and to the children"), the article lists a variety of ongoing studies of the effectiveness of therapy animals with children and adolescents. Find the article.
OWNERSHIP OF EDUCATION. A recent article described what happens when students can "own" their education by designing it and actively participating in its administration.  Eight Massachusetts high schoolers -- some in danger of dropping out, some honors students -- designed and ran their own "school within a school" and accomplished "transformative" results. Read more.
ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY might as well just be called "educational technology" because it may benefit all students, not just those with special needs, according to an article in Education Week. One expert positions the use of such technology as part of universal design for learning. Find out more.
SNOPES FOR THE AUTISM COMMUNITY. That's how the blog "The Thinking Person's Guide to Autism" bills themselves. The blog solicits and publishes essays on a variety of autism-related topics. Find the blog. 
ACUPUNCTURE FOR KIDS. It turns out that quite a few children are being treated with acupuncture these days, for conditions such as pain, nausea, migraine, and anxiety.  Find out more.
MISCELLANY that might be of interest: If your bright child plays a musical wind instrument, check here to find out what you should know about bacteria, mold, and fungi. Or, find out how 80 percent of kids under 5 use the Internet regularly. Lastly, if that young adult gifted offspring is a boomerang kid, find out how your assistance might not be bad.
AND FINALLY, THIS. We've updated some areas of the 2e Newsletter website, as well as posting items from the March/April issue. More on what's new here.

FIRST AID FOR ANXIETY ATTACKS is the headline on a RedOrbit piece today. The piece mentions:
  • The fact that at any given time around 13 percent of Americans may have a type of anxiety disorder
  • An organization called Mental Health First Aid, which we had not heard of, that provides a 12-hour certification enabling non-professionals to respond to several mental health issues, including depression, anxiety disorders, psychosis, and substance abuse disorder, before professional help is involved.
The MHFA program originated in Australia but has been exported to other countries. Find out more information about it at the organization's website.
ATTENTION RESEARCH UPDATE. The February issue of this e-newsletter has been posted, and in it David Rabiner reviews a study of children's perspectives on living with AD/HD. Among the interesting conclusions in the study was one that indicated the youngsters with AD/HD may feel better about their quality of life than their parents perceive them as having. In addition, very few (23 percent) of the subjects regard AD/HD as an illness. Find out more.
AAEGT ANNUAL CONFERENCE. The 14th Australian National Conference on Giftedness and Talent is scheduled to be held in Adelaide, South Australia from July 12th to 15th, 2012. The theme of the conference is "Equity and Excellence for All." The event is sponsored by the Australian Association for the Education of Gifted and Talented (AAEGT) whose website is here. 
MINNESOTA GT FORUM. The third annual Hormel Foundation Gifted and Talented Education Symposium, scheduled from June 12-16, is billed as "an opportunity for educators, counselors, administrators and parents to gain greater understanding of the unique needs of gifted and high potential learners." Held in Austin, Minnesota, the event features an opening night reception at the SPAM Museum. Presenters include several familiar to readers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter, and some of the sessions deal with twice-exceptional topics. Session descriptions are posted at the conference site.
JAY MATHEWS offered an interesting column in Sunday's Washington Post about a family in which the parents did not let the kids know their SATs, and who pointedly did not pressure the kids achievement-wise. Oh, and while the kids evidently have LDs such as AD/HD, all three seem to be thriving. Mathews brings up the family's situation as a counterpoint to "Race to Nowhere," the movie about pressure and achievement we mentioned in this blog a bit ago. Find the column.
AND FINALLY, THIS -- ON HAPPINESS. We read about a Gallup poll that tries to measure the components of a high-quality, happy life. Gallup has identified certain traits that seem to be associated with happiness, and The New York Times asked Gallup to do a composite of "the happiest person in America." According to the polling company, "he’s a tall, Asian-American, observant Jew who is at least 65 and married, has children, lives in Hawaii, runs his own business and has a household income of more than $120,000 a year." Right, we thought; good luck finding that person. Well, The New York Times did -- except maybe for the tall part -- and he evidently is really happy. Read more.
 

IDENTIFYING AD/HD. Researchers are getting closer to finding biomarkers that will identify those with AD/HD; up until now, we've used observations of behavior. An article in Education Week discusses two recent studies showing physiological differences between children with AD/HD and without. Both studies tracked hand movements; the second one, according to a researcher, may be a quantifiable measure of the disinhibition of behavior and concentration. Find the article.
LANGUAGE AFFECTS MATH? Also in Education Week, an article notes a connection between language skills and the ability to understand math concepts. The connection begins with -- bear with us -- deaf Nicaraguan adults who did not know a formal sign language compared to those who did know such a language, and their respective math skills. Researchers abstracted their findings to kids with certain language disorders along with math difficulties. Find out more.
LD: "LEARNING DIVERSITY," not "learning disability." That term cropped up in an article in the Massachusetts South Coast Today. The article was on dyslexia and featured the director of the Sally Borden School at Friends Academy, who provided a snapshot of kids with dyslexia and also of ways to help them read and learn. The author, a developmental psychologist and professor, offers his own advice at the end of the article to parents observing their child's development. Read more.
EDUCATIONAL VIDEO GAMES. What would they look like? Read an expert's opinions.
MISSED THIS WHEN IT APPEARED. An article in the Wall Street Journal during January covered the use of electricity in treating mental conditions such as depression, OCD, panic, schizophrenia, addictions, and memory problems. Learn about Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, Vagus Nerve Stimulation, Deep Brain Stimulation, and Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulation at the Journal's site. Separately, you may find links to two additional articles on deep brain stimulation for depression here and here.
FROM UC DAVIS MIND INSTITUTE: The January Distinguished Lecturer event was on pediatric anxiety, and is available by video at the Institute's site. Warning: The content looks heavy; read the abstract here.
AND FINALLY, THIS. Got a wandering mind, or a gifted kid with a wandering mind? Check out a slide-show feature at ScientificAmerican.com relating a few great achievements that sprang from daydreaming and downtime.

MORE ON GIFTEDNESS FROM THE GLOBE AND MAIL. A few days ago we noted an article on giftedness appearing in the Toronto Globe and Mail. It turns out that the article was one of a series run by the paper during the week. See the latest article, with links to the others.
ARTISTIC DYSLEXICS. LD Online pointed us to a brief piece in the UK Daily Telegraph linking the artistic success of Da Vinci and Picasso to dyslexia. The article referred to a Middlesex University study testing the visuo-spatial ability of dyslexic and non-dyslexic subjects. Read more. (So how valid are these posthumous diagnoses?)
NEWS FROM SENG. The organization Supporting Emotional Needs of the Gifted has published an interview with psychiatrist Mark Goulston on parenting gifted children, including consideration of the children's social-emotional needs. Find out about "empathy jolts," "power thank you's," power apologies," and more. In addition, SENG has announced an upcoming webinar from Victoria Ragsdale, titled "Is it a Gift or a Curse? What it means to be an outlier and what to do about it." Find out more. Finally, the organization has also posted an article about gifted homeschooling, in which the author presents her "top ten reasons" she's glad she homeschooled.
THE DIANE REHM SHOW: ANXIETY DISORDERS. A recent edition of this NPR program covered anxiety disorders, a topic we know is of interest to the readers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter. Here's the blurb: "Anxiety disorders are the most common psychiatric illnesses affecting children and adults. Yet out of the estimated forty million American’s suffering from it, only about a third receives treatment. The latest in research, treatment and education of this illness, and how to distinguish a disorder from everyday anxiety." Guests in the discussion include highly credentialed psychiatrists and researchers. Find it. Also of note: many listener comments posted at the site.

CHILDHOOD MENTAL DISORDERS and how we perceive them -- and react to them -- is the topic of an essay by a child psychiatrist at the Huffington Post site. The writer notes how we may try denial, shame, or blame instead of acceptance. The writer says: "If we embrace the reality of childhood psychiatric disorders and then refuse to judge and blame each other for them, we will be far more successful in reducing the suffering of kids and families, improving prevention efforts, and removing the barriers to treatment." Find the essay.  
PROBLEM VIDEO GAMERS -- 5%. That's the figure given in the aftermath of a study of 4,000 Connecticut high school video gamers. The signs of problem gaming were " having an irresistible urge to play, trying and failing to cut down on gaming, and feelings of tension that could only be relieved by playing." Read the article. (The current issue of 2e Newsletter carries an article by Kevin Roberts on cyber addiction -- what it is and how to deal with it.)
TALK VERSUS MEDS FOR PEDIATRIC ANXIETY. An fMRI scan may be able to differentiate kids who will benefit from talk therapy for pediatric anxiety and thus may not need medications. The difference: "children and adolescents, ages 8 to16, who show fear when looking at happy faces on a screen inside an fMRI scanner were those who had least success with an eight-week course of cognitive behavioral therapy." This was compared to kids who showed fear while looking at fearful faces. If you've got a bright but anxious kid, read more.
GIFTEDNESS -- LABEL, DOWNSIDES. An article in the Toronto Globe and Mail warns that both gifted programs and giftedness itself can have downsides. The article invokes Carol Dweck and her warning that the label can imply something bestowed rather than to be earned, and notes how accompaniments of giftedness -- high sensitivity, asynchrony, dealing with expectations -- can sometimes be troublesome. Find the article.
GIFTED IN MATH. Danielle Wang of Campbell, California, won the $25,000 prize for first place in the second annual Advantage Testing Foundation Math Prize for Girls competition on Saturday, November 13. Ms. Wang, an eighth-grader enrolled in the California Virtual Academy, received the top score on the 150-minute exam for high school girls. Find out more about the contest.
OPINIONS WANTED. A 2e Newsletter subscriber is looking for opinions on three books she's considering for purchase, wanting to know if others in the 2e community are familiar with them and have found them useful. The books are:
Got an opinion to share? Let us know. Thanks!

REMINDER: AD/HD NOT AN LD. An article in USA Today reminds us that some of the learning challenges faced by twice-exceptional children are not actual, legal, learning disabilities. For example, AD/HD  is not an official LD; neither are emotional disorders. The difference is important in areas such as IEPs. See the brief article.
GIRLS AND AD/HD, AUTISM. A Swedish study suggests that many girls with autism or AD/HD who seek professional help might have their difficulties played down or misinterpreted. Read more.
ANXIETY is often one of the conditions our 2e Newsletter subscribers are concerned about in 2e children, according to survey responses from new subscribers. Depending on your attitude toward meds versus nutritional supplements, you might be interested in a study of herbal remedies on anxiety. Some researchers say that some nutritional and herbal supplements can be effective and without serious side effects. Find out which. (Note, however, that the study was probably conducted on adults.)
AD/HD, DEPRESSION. A report says that children diagnosed between ages 4 and 6 with AD/HD are ten times more likely to report depression as adolescents. The lesson: take that early diagnosis seriously. Find out more.
UPCOMING WEBINARS of interest to the gifted and gifted/LD community include:
  •  SENG offers a for-fee webinar on October 28th called "I'm not old enough for college, but I'm ready for to learn -- preparing children with the social-emotional skills for success." Find out more.
  • ASCD offers a free professional development webinar on October 14th called "Strategies for Maximizing Student Memory," with Judy Willis. Find out more.
2e ACHIEVERS. In 2e Newsletter we've begun a series of articles profiling successful adults who are twice-exceptional; our first profile was of economist Diane Swonk. While we see plenty of 2e adults at sites like this one, we would welcome suggestions from readers for people to profile (or votes for people at the Great Schools link) -- at least somewhat well known and successful in spite of (or because of) their combined exceptionalities. Make a suggestion. Thanks!

October 24, 2009 -- Baby Media, Reader Reaction, and More

BABY MEDIA. Seems that the Disney Company, which acquired Baby Einstein, a producer of electronic media for infants, is now offering refunds to purchasers of "Baby Einstein" videos marketed as "educational." The offer comes after pressure from public advocates and public health attorneys who threatened a class-action lawsuit. The advocate, Susan Linn, notes in The New York Times article about the matter that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children under 2 not watch video. So if you don't think your Baby Einstein videos truly benefited your young, high-ability child, here's your chance to get your money back. Read the article.

IT'S NATIONAL DYSLEXIA AWARENESS MONTH, and the executive director of The Bodine School, in Germantown, Tennesee, seeks to heighten awareness of the condition in an article in the Commercial Appeal of Memphis. In the article, brought to our attention by CEC's SmartBrief, the director points out some of the features of dyslexia that differentiate it from an LD, and stresses how early intervention -- by first grade or earlier -- can allow dyslexic children to read normally. Read the article.

READER REACTION TO DANIEL WILLINGSHAM, who disbelieves different learning styles. (See our September blog posts.) Nancy Mathias took issue with Mr. Willingsham's views that "There just doesn’t seem to be much evidence that kids learn in fundamentally different ways. This is not to say," continued Willingsham, "that all kids are the same, or that all kids should be taught the same way." Ms. Mathias says: "If the idea behind learning styles is to get teachers to approach teaching in multiple ways, then Mr. Williangsham's views actually agree with the outcomes of teaching to different learning styles. What I find fascinating is I have a 2e kid who could do algebra in his head (he is a visual-spatial kid who thinks in 3d and is currently studying mechanical engineering/robotics in college), yet had difficulty showing step by step on paper how to solve problems. The teacher's solution was for him to do many algebra problems (written) because the more you do, the more you learn (this wasn't at a public school but a school for the gifted!). It was generally the drill-to-kill method of teaching. In this case, my n=1 study would indicate that teaching to any one style doesn't work. By the way, I call teaching one way 'vanilla'; it may smell good while you use it, but if you use too much it becomes bitter..." Well said.

FROM BRAIN IN THE NEWS. The Dana Foundation's print newsletter from October contained articles that might be of interest to parents and educators of high-ability children with LDs. Some of the articles were reprints of other media stories from September dealing with TBI, which we've been harping on a lot recently. Another article, reprinted from the Washington Post, is a Post staff writer's personal account of how long walks and running helped her deal with severe depression. "One day [in adolescence], particularly agitated, I fled my house and began walking toward a nearby mountain. I walked for a long while that first day, discovering some old dirt tram roads that seemed to snake all over the mountain. When I got home I was excited about my discovery--and happy. My mother was curious about how far I'd walked, so we got in the car and tracked it. I had walked 27 miles, and it did more for my emotional state than all the therapy and pills." The writer credits walking and, later, running with saving her life. Read the article.

MISSED IN THE ACTION. We missed an October 4th article in The New York Times titled "Understanding the Anxious Mind." In it, you can read how researchers have come to believe that some babies are born wired to be anxious, reacting strongly to unfamiliar stimuli, and that "strongly reactive babies are more likely to grow up to be anxious." These results are fostered by at least four major longitudinal studies, beginning in babyhood and following hundreds of young people. The article features a study by psychologist Jerome Kagan. Read it (be advised that it's long), and know that the article generated lots of reader comments.