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Showing posts with label parenting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label parenting. Show all posts

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.

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

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

NAGC WOW. The National Association for Gifted Children offers "Webinars on Wednesday" -- WOW -- throughout the year. This spring the lineup includes two that deal with twice-exceptionality. On April 4, Lois Baldwin, Daphne Pereles, and Stuart Omdal present "RTI and Twice-Exceptional Students: A Promising Fit." On April 11, Lois Baldwin presents "The Intricacies of Twice-Exceptional Children: An Overview." Both are in the evening. Find out more about WOW.
THE APPLE AND THE TREE. Maybe you've heard us use one of our favorite 2e-related expressions, "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree." Carla Crutsinger, in her Brainworks newsletter, addresses a mom's discovery that she, as well as her son, have AD/HD -- and offers a symptom checklist for moms who might be in a similar situation. Find the newsletter.
INTERNET ADDICTION DISORDER is receiving attention from scholars, clinicians, and researchers. A recent study in China found that teenagers diagnosed with IAD performed less well on certain behavioral assessments. The also found that lower scores on those assessments were linked with a lower density of white matter in certain brain regions. In particular, IAD is "characterized by impairment of white matter fibers connecting brain regions involved in emotional generation and processing, executive attention, decision making and cognitive control." Got a smart kid at your house who spends a lot of time online? Check out the study.
GIFTED EDUCATION PRESS QUARTERLY. The winter edition of this e-newsletter is out, and it contains an article called "Bringing the Educational Power of Steve Jobs into Your Gifted Classroom." Also in the issue: an article exploring what kids' familiarity with technology means for gifted education. Find the newsletter. 
AND FINALLY, THIS, in the category of "parenting." Americans evidently consume over 13 billion gallons of sugar-sweetened drinks per year. That's about 43 gallons for each American, about two 12-ounce cans per day per person. A study estimates that a penny-per-ounce sales tax -- eg, 12 cents on a can of soda, almost $3 on a case -- would reduce consumption by 15 percent, leading to almost $2 billion annual savings in healthcare costs plus $13 yearly in additional tax revenue. Would you support such a tax? Read more.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

FOUR BOOKS LOOK AT DYSLEXIA is the title of a story in the Boston Globe. The writer describes: 
  • Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain, from 2007, by Maryanne Wolf, the director of the Center for Reading and Language Research at Tufts University, that offers a scientific/evolutionary perspective on the condition
  • In the Mind’s Eye: Creative Visual Thinkers, Gifted Dyslexics, and the Rise of Visual Technologies, second edition 2009, by Thomas West
  • The Human Side of Dyslexia: 142 Interviews with Real People Telling Real Stories, 2001, by Shirley Kurnoff, on the less-than-bright side of dyslexia
  • My Dyslexia, 2011, a personal account by Pulitzer-prize-winning poet Philip Schultz.
EFFECTS OF "TIGER MOTHERING." A professor at Michigan State University (and Chinese mother) refutes parts of the popular book Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, saying that her research shows that happiness is important to a child's development as well as success. She found that Chinese students are more anxious and depressed than white students because of traditional Chinese parenting methods. Read more. 
LDONLINE'S newsletter is out, containing articles on helping with homework, a review of The ADHD Book of Lists,  and a legal column by Matt Cohen on the use of an IEP after high school graduation. Find the newsletter.
AD/HD IN CANDADA. Ontario's Ministry of Education has stated that kids with AD/HD and are having difficulty in the classroom  may receive special education supports. The provision also applies to other "non-LD" conditions such as fetal alcohol syndrome and Tourette's. Read more.
COMPETITION. Got a middle-school science whiz? The 3M Young Scientist Challenge is now open for 2012. Find out more.
EDUCATOR'S RESOURCE. The UCLA Center for Mental Health in Schools has published "RTI and Classroom & Schoolwide Learning Supports: A Guide for Teachers and Learning Supports Staff." The Center says that the guide is designed to:
  • Broaden perspectives of response to intervention
  • Provide frameworks for contextualizing the work in classrooms and schoolwide
  • Generally enhance practices.
Find the PDF. 

THE DANA FOUNDATION has published "Brain Imaging Technologies and Their Application to Neuroscience" for all of you neuroscience mavens.  Need to know more about past and current imaging technologies? Find the 45-page PDF.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

DIET AND AD/HD. Does that gifted kid you know have AD/HD? A study at Northwestern University in Chicago reviewed past research on the effectiveness of diet in controlling AD/HD symptoms -- and the news isn't that promising. The study found conflicting claims, and suggests that nutritional interventions -- while simple and inexpensive -- probably should be considered only as an alternative to therapy and medication. Read more, or find an NPR program about the study, which appeared in the journal Pediatrics.
2e VALEDICTORIAN. A young man in Michigan diagnosed with LDs and autism as a child went on to be valedictorian of  his high school class, and his mother has told the story in a book called My Child Wasn't Born Perfect, published by a Grand Rapids-area firm. Find out more.
WORKING MEMORY TRAINING. David Rabiner pointed us to a webinar from Cogmed on working memory training. Originally directed at professionals, the webinar is now viewable at no cost at the Cogmed website. Find it.
NC SCHOOLS CATER TO ASPIES. Two Asperger Connection schools catering to students with Asperger's have opened in the North Carolina, and a third is in the works. The founder of the school has Asperger's, as do her two children. An article on the school notes that "Each Asperger Connection staff member is required to either have the syndrome, have children with the syndrome or have worked with Asperger students for at least 10 years." Read more.
EXERCISE is good for the brain and grades. Maybe you knew that, but now there's a study backing up that conclusion. Find the ammunition you need to get that gifted kid off the couch.
ASPERGER'S AND DRIVING. The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (which evidently calls itself CHOP for short) has studied teens with Asperger's and the way they approach driving. The study looked at characteristics of those teens who were likely to become drivers, and also touched on a couple things parents can do to make sure their teen with Asperger's is ready to drive. Read more.
COMPETITION. The 2012 FIRST Robotics Competition is underway. If your gifted high school child is interested in robotics, find out more about this competition. 
MATT COHEN, special ed attorney based in Chicago, has formed his own law firm "to better serve my clients and to improve and expand the services I have provided in the past," he says. "We will continue to provide special education and other legal advocacy, risk management, policy consultation and related client services, as well as training that I have provided to countless individuals and families, advocacy and professional groups, mental health and social service agencies and private practitioner for thirty years." Find out more in his January newsletter.  
AND FINALLY, THIS. The makers of Play Attention have developed and are marketing a wearable (on the arm), wireless sensor that can report levels of attention, cognitive processing, relaxation, or anxiety and stress to a nearby PC, allowing its use in a variety of applications related to education,attention management, sports training, driving safety, or stress management. At the moment, however, the device and system costs $1795. Find out more at the website of Freer Logic, the developer, or read a press release about the product.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

TWO ASPIES IN LOVE were featured in a lengthy article in The New York Times this week that examined the complexities -- and advantages -- of such a relationship. The writer obviously spent a lot of time with the young people, one of whom is the son of John Elder Robison, author of Look Me In the Eye: My Life with Asperger's. Read more.
ASPERGIRLS is the title of a book by woman who, in her 40s, discovered she was on the spectrum. She interviewed women formally diagnosed with Asperger's to fill "a gap in the literature on females on the spectrum." A Time "Healthland" interview reveals her findings from the interviews and gives a preview of the contents of the book. In the interview the author, Rudy Simone, addresses differences between girls with Asperger's and typical girls; challenges; advantages; possible connections to anorexia or sensory issues; socializing; and support. Find the interview. 
MIDDLE CHILDHOOD. Got a kid between 5 and perhaps 12? You might be interested in an article explaining the physical and mental changes that take place during those years, set in the context of other species and other cultures. An excerpt: "Middle childhood is when the parts of the brain most closely associated with being human finally come online: our ability to control our impulses, to reason, to focus, to plan for the future." Find the article. 
PARENT-CHILD RELATIONSHIPS are important in shaping the relationships that kids have with their peers. According to Time "Healthland, "New research shows that adolescents who quickly backed down during an argument with their mother had a harder time resisting peer pressure to use drugs and alcohol than teens who were able to calmly, persuasively, and persistently argue their point with Mom." Evidently, the right kinds of arguments are beneficial. Read more. 
PREMATURE BIRTH RISKS. A study of babies born three to seven weeks early showed sleep and attention problems in such children by age four. According to a write-up of the study, "Preterm boys suffered more sleep and attention troubles than their full-term peers, but the effect in girls was more dramatic. Preterm girls were significantly more emotionally reactive, depressed and withdrawn than full-term girls, and over all they had about 20 percent more sleep problems, attention problems and aggressive behaviors." Read more. 
WE WISH "HAPPY NEW YEAR" to our friends and subscribers all over the world!

GIFTED ATHLETE, AD/HD. We believe in Gardner's Multiple Intelligences, so a recent sports story was of interest to us. It's about a New York Mets baseball player who played in the minor leagues for decade before accepting a diagnosis of AD/HD and beginning to take AD/HD medications. After that, he blossomed and made it back to the majors. Read more.

PARENTING  MATTERS -- especially if the kid has a short allele of gene 5-HTTLPR,  a gene associated with a predisposition to depression. Dutch researchers have found that as far as parenting quality was concerned, “If the environment is bad, these children have worse outcomes, but if it is good, they have much better outcomes.” They called these susceptible kids "orchids" because they need a good environment to flourish, as opposed to weeds that will flourish anywhere. Read more.

PARENTING RESOURCE. The American Academy of Pediatrics has a site called HealthyChildren.org. Included on the site is a feature called "Sound Advice on Mental Health," a collection of audios by pediatricians on behavior, mental health, and emotions. Sample audio topics: adolescent mental health; how to recognize anxiety and depression; and AD/HD in children and adolescents. The site also offers transcripts of the audios for those who read faster than they listen. Find the site.

ABOUT.COM has a page called "Understanding Learning Differences" that's based on a presentation by Jonathan Mooney. Find out what he said.

AUTISM SPEAKS has issued its "Top 10 Science Autism Research Achievements of 2011." Find them.

SAYING THANK YOU is the topics of WrightsLaw's Special Ed Advocate this month. The organization offers to "learn how and why to say thank you to those who have helped your child succeed." Read more.

AT SENG. The organization Supporting the Emotional Needs of the Gifted has posted an article by Melissa Sornik, a contributor to 2e Newsletter. The article is a primer on twice-exceptionalilty and is titled "Gifted and Underachieving: The Twice-Exceptional Learner." Find this and other SENG resources.

WE WISH YOU the best of the holiday season as you raise, educate, or counsel the twice-exceptional children in your life.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

ON IQ. Today we found three items concerning IQ, a topic of some interest to those who raise and educate gifted kids with learning challenges.  1. A UK study found links between higher IQ at ages 5 and 10 with higher-than-typical drug use at ages 16 and 20. Researchers' conjecture? Boredom or feeling different, "either of which could conceivably increase vulnerability to using drugs as an avoidant coping strategy," Read more.  2. The American Heart Association says that in men, a higher late-adolescence IQ score correlates with a lower waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) in middle age. A high WHR is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Read more.  3. Finally, a European study of breastfeeding and IQ indicates that preschoolers who had been breastfed longer had higher IQs. The conjecture: "It is the physical and psychological bonding and interaction between infant and mother during breast-feeding that nurtures development of an infant's cognitive abilities," noting that breastfeeding is not just a meal but "a dynamic, bidirectional, biological dialogue." Find out more.
SENG VINE. SENG's November newsletter is posted at Constant Contact. The issue's featured article is on parenting the gifted; it's by a woman who, as a girl, was featured in the movie Spellbound, about the National Spelling Bee.
RESOURCE. Education Week has announced that November 16-20 is an "open house" at its website, much of which is usually for subscribers only. Find the Education Week homepage.
THE SOCIETY FOR NEUROSCIENCE just concluded its annual meeting. A synopsis of some of the research presented at the conference is available at ScienceDaily; the synopsis features studies involving depression and schizophrenia. Another synopsis at ScienceDaily dealt with studies on ASD, Fragile X, and bipolar disorder.
AND FINALLY, THIS -- ON PARENTING. The New  York Times obituary section (we often learn interesting things there) noted the death of a Czech-born little person, 93, who had acted as a Munchkin in The Wizard of Oz. According to the obit, his father tried "witch doctor" treatments to make him grow, but then, when the child was 9, sold him to a traveling show. For his stint in Oz, he earned $50 a week, supposedly less than Toto was paid. Read a longer AP version of the obit.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

DISRUPTIVE MOOD DYSREGULATION DISORDER -- haven't heard of it? It's being proposed as a new diagnostic category, and, by providing a label, it could improve diagnosis and care for kids who have problems regulating mood and temper. Read more about it in the Los Angeles Times. Separately, the Dana Foundation pointed us to an article on mental health screenings of teens by schools. The purpose: "to identify those at risk and, if necessary, help them get treatment." One advocate calls such screening "a non-pressured way to ask for help." Read more.
LDs AND THE LSAT. A Minnesota man who wanted accommodations on the Law School Admission Test has received them. Twice rebuffed in his request, he apparently enlisted the US Department of Justice in pressing his case; the DOJ decided that the man had submitted appropriate documentation, and that the organization administering the LSAT had violated the ADA. Find out more.
EDUCATOR RESOURCE. Edutopia has posted about a school that has the lowest per-pupil funding in Arizona and yet has excelled in education -- at least partly because of differentiated instruction. Find out more at the Edutopia site. 
SENG has issued a call for proposals for speakers at its 2012 conference in Milwaukee, to be held July 13-14. Interested in addressing the attendees at this 2e-oriented conference? Visit a post on LinkedIn; the information is not yet on the SENG site. If you visit the SENG site, however, you'll find the announcement of the appointment of the organization's new executive director, James. D. Maloney.
A PEDIATRIC MRI appears not to cause inordinate risk unless it involves intravenous contrast dye or sedation -- in which case, according to a report from The Hastings Center, "an MRI increases the odds of harm and makes them unacceptably high." The study compared the risk of physical injury or death from the MRI experience to risks from "everyday" activities of healthy children. Read more.
GIFTEDNESS: POWER AND PERILS is the topic of a blog at the Psychology Today website, in which the writer uses the occasion of a friend's son's recent evaluation (99th percentile, 150 IQ) as a springboard on what it takes -- besides giftedness -- to succeed. Find the blog.
NAGC offers a variety of resources on its website for the 2011-2012 school year, including information about RTI, gifted programming standards, FAQs, and more. Go there.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

YOUR CHILD'S BRAIN was the topic of an interview with two neuroscientists recently aired on NPR. Authors of a new book (naturally) called Welcome to Your Child's Brain, the interview covered things such as language development, self-control, and reward and punishment. Find the interview.  
MEDIA BASHING is something we occasionally do in this blog. The American Academy of Pediatrics has released the results of a study showing that some TV s hows may be worse than others when it comes to a their effect on a four-year-old's  attention, problem solving, self regulation and other executive function abilities. While the researchers could not determine exactly which features had a negative impact on kids, a fast-paced animated "SpongeBob" cartoon resulted in poorer test results. Find out more, and note that the creators of SpongeBob refute the findings. 
PESTICIDES AND AD/HD. Rodale Press reports on the apparent association of certain pesticides and symptoms of AD/HD, based on a Canadian study involving organophosphate pesiticide byproducts excreted in urine. From the article: "Children with substantially higher levels of a breakdown product of neurotoxic organophosphate pesticides were twice as likely to be diagnosed with ADHD." Read the article for more scary stuff and what you can do about it.
AND THAT'S IT --  unless the topic of the complexities of children's naps is of interest to you ("a mix of individual biology, including neurologic and hormonal development, cultural expectations and family dynamics"). Seems like there's a dearth of items on giftedness and twice-exceptionalities this week, sorry.



From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

ASPERGER'S AND GEOGRAPHY. A local television station in the Chicago area profiled a 15-year-old boy with Asperger's whose love of geography allows him to do quite well in the National Geographic Geography Bee. But geography isn't a long-term goal, according the the report: " I want to possibly go into a career of broadcasting because I'm an actor and I love baseball and I just think the two would come together." Read the article. 
HOMESCHOOLING BENEFITS.  A Concordia University study indicates that structured, curriculum-based homeschooling can provide an academic edge when compared to either unstructured homeschooling or traditional education. One of the advantages of homeschooling mentioned by the study's lead author was the opportunity to accelerate a child's learning process. Read more. 
GLOBAL VIRTUAL MEETING FOR GIFTED EDUCATION, the next edition, is scheduled for September 24th. The topic: engaging gifted students in critical and divergent thinking, presented by Dr. Mary Bruck in the virtual world of Second Life. Find out more. 
BIPOLAR DISORDER IN CHILDREN. If this is of concern to you, a somewhat lengthy article (for Science Daily, anyway) discusses its diagnosis and treatment. Find it. 
SAFETY VERSUS EXERCISE. Helicopter parents may impede kids from getting higher levels of physical activity, according to a recent study of physical activity in public parks. The goal of the study: better design of public parks. Find out more. 
BRAIN SCANS may allow the diagnosis of autism. In MRI scans in children 8 to 18, researchers found differences between those with autism and those without. The method was accurate, but not likely to replace current diagnostic practice, according to Disability Scoop. Find out more.
AND FINALLY, THIS. On Facebook? Stop by and contribute:  http://www.facebook.com/2eNewsletter.

THE GIFTED DEVELOPMENT CENTER, in its latest newsletter, brings the news that Center stalwart Betty Maxwell has retired, and features an interview with Maxwell, who assessed and worked with gifted learners and was particularly interested in visual/spatial learners. Find the newsletter.
AIMEE YERMISIH ONLINE. Aimee is offering two no-cost online events this month on the topic of "Cleared for Launch -- What's After High School" for gifted or 2e kids. Dates: 9/11 and 9/25. Find more information. Aimee also writes a blog at WordPress on "intelligence, creativity, psychology, education, and whatever else comes to mind" -- find it. 
FROM DUMMY CLASS TO PULITZER. The opinion piece starts out this way: "I was well into middle age when one of my children, then in the second grade, was found to be dyslexic. I had never known the name for it, but I recognized immediately that the symptoms were also mine." In the opinion piece, the writer describes his difficulties with words as a child, including his difficulties in reading and in processing spoken language. But he willed himself to read, found that he had a "voice," and later won a Pulitzer Prize for poetry. Read more. 
DOES TECHNOLOGY HELP IN THE CLASSROOM? An article in The New York Times gives plenty of information about how technology is used in one tech-savvy school district, but notes that test scores in the district have not risen. Find the article. (Whatever the outcome in "ordinary" classrooms, we could contend that the right assistive technology can greatly help the right 2e and LD kids.)
AND FINALLY, THIS. A survey by VTech, a maker of "play experiences" for kids, found this: "Equality in parenting is still a pipe dream. Nearly half (48%) of working moms say they spend more time each day parenting than on their careers, more than double that of working dads (19%)... Because moms are picking up so much slack at home AND at work, most moms agree 'me time' is nearly extinct. Nearly 70% of working moms have an hour or less to themselves each day. And more than 20% report that they have less than fifteen minutes.When parents were asked to add up how many hours they spend parenting each day, moms beat dads hands down. Moms average nearly 7.5 hours per day spent on parenting tasks, while dads clock an average of 4.3 hours per day. Over a year, that difference adds up to an extra 1150 hours of parenting duty for moms!" We say, remember this next Mother's Day (or next Father's Day).

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

DAVIDSON ACADEMY AND GIFTED EDUCATION. The cover story of the August 29th edition of the Christian Science Monitor featured the Davidson Academy as the apex of gifted education in the United States, and then used the Academy as a counterpoint to discuss the "class ceiling," limits on education for most gifted students. From the article: "...how many more American students share their experience of idling in their classrooms, unaware of their potential, or bursting with frustration because only a fraction of their curiosity and capability is tapped?" Read the article.
DYSLEXIC ACHIEVER. A young woman, her dyslexia undiagnosed as a child, who used to be angry and resentful at people not seeing who she really was, now sees dyslexia as "the best thing that ever happened to me." A successful adult, she found it refreshing that those in the business world "weren't looking for what was wrong, but saw what was right, and beyond that, wanted to use it constructively toward a common goal." Read more.
LEARNING STYLES. We recently posted on another debunking of learning styles. That article started a good discussion at Edweek.org. If this topic interests you, find the discussion and join in!
BRAINWORKS. In her latest newsletter, Carla Crutsinger addresses the importance of sleep in attaining "stress-free mornings" during the school year. She notes that AD/HD kids take a long time to fall asleep, probably depriving them of the necessary 9 to 11 hours of sleep. She offers tips for avoiding sleep problems; find them. Separately, a study of the sleep habits of college students finds that many are "undermining their own education" because of poor sleep habits. Read more and find additional tips for "sleep hygiene."
ATTENTION RESEARCH UPDATE. David Rabiner's August edition of this newsletter concerned a study about how children's symptoms of AD/HD affect parents' feelings and behavior. The short answer: adversely. The lesson: "Clearly understanding thatgetting children to change core ADHD symptoms is difficult... may protect parents from feeling increasingly powerless about exertingpositive influence on their child and help them remain engaged with theirchild in ways that children experience as warm, nurturing and supportive." Read more about the study. 
MORE ON AD/HD. Inattention is a bigger problem than hyperactivity when it comes to finishing high school, according to a Canadian study. Find out more. 
FLU SHOTS. The American Association of Pediatrics has issued a statement urging parents to vaccinate family members and caregivers. The AAPrecommends everyone 6 months or older receive influenza vaccine. According to the AAP, the 2011-2012 fluvaccine protects against the same three influenza strains as last year’svaccine. But because a person’s immunity drops by as much as 50 percent 6-12months after vaccination, it’s important to receive another dose this year tomaintain optimal protection. Read more at www.healthychildren.org/flu. 
THE DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION BOOK OF LISTS has Whitney Hoffman as co-author. Hoffman, who for awhile pubished podcasts on LDs and occasionally on twice-exceptionality, describes the book at this website.
AND FINALLY, THIS. Japanese researchers have developed a  chemical that turns biological tissue transparent, allowing "a revolution in optical imaging." The researchers are using the chemical to study non-living mouse brains but are on the track of another chemical which might allow the study of live tissue. All of this sheds new "light" on the question, "What do you have in mind?" Read more.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

THE LEARNING STYLE DEBUNKERS are at it again. NPR's health blog "Shots" quotes psychologist Dan Willingham, whom you've read about before in this blog, in saying that teachers should not "tailor instruction to different kinds of learners." This seems counter-intuitive to many of us parents and educators, but the blog also mentions another psychologist who, in reviewing studies of learning styles, "found no scientific evidence backing up the idea." So the debate goes on... Read "Shots."
KNOW AN ASPIE KID? Read a great article about Noah Egler, 13, who  because of his intelligence and interests recently got a chance to participate in a med school seminar on prosthetic limbs, bonding with his 23-year-old lab partner in the process. In Noah's mind, "Asperger's is what makes him him," according to the article. Read it.
DYSLEXIA MYTHS. Read about them in blog at "Accredited Online Colleges," where all of the posts seem to involve a number. (10 Scary Red Bull Facts Every College Student Should Know. 25 Funniest Academic Raps on YouTube. And more.)  Myth 10: "Dyslexia is rare." The reality? It impacts up to 20 percent of us. Find the myths. 
YOU KNOW YOU'RE A BAD MOTHER WHEN you don't get you son a birthday card he really appreciates -- and you don't include money in it. At least, that's what an 18-year-old son of an attorney, divorced from the boy's mother, thought when he and his sister filed a lawsuit (through the father) against his mom for bad mothering. Two  years into the suit, a judge dismissed it. Read more and marvel.
ONLINE DEGREE FOR STUDENTS WITH AUTISM. Sage Colleges in Albany, New York, will in January initiate an all-online bachelor's program for students with autism or LDs. The school promises individualization and flexibility. Find out more.
LAUGHING AT CHAOS is the name of a blog by the mother of two, one apparently 2e. Last month she blogged about the family move from Colorado to Illinois: "For the record, you haven’t lived until you’ve driven across Nebraska in July with a flatulent dog. We’ve been playing a New!Awesome!Game! 'Where’s the feedlot or was that Rosie?'" This is obviously an astute and discriminating person, because yesterday she picked up on Monday's quote of the week on the 2e Newsletter Facebook page and riffed on that for awhile. Find the blog.
"DUH!" OF THE WEEK. The Canadian Paediatric Society and the American Academy of Pediatrics (not Paediatrics) are against boxing, saying that "Boxing is not an appropriate sport for children and teens." We agree; save young brains. Read more.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

2011 DAVIDSON FELLOWS ANNOUNCED. Eighteen gifted high achievers have been awarded scholarships ranging from $10,000 to $50,000 for their work in a variety of fields. The Davidson Fellows Scholarship program has provided nearly $4.5 million in scholarship funds to 184 Fellows since its inception, according to the Davidson Institute.  Founded by Bob and Jan Davidson in 1999, the Davidson Institute for Talent Development recognizes, nurtures, and supports profoundly intelligent young people, and provides opportunities for them to develop their talents to make a positive difference. The Institute offers support through a number of programs and services, including the Davidson Fellows program and The Davidson Academy. For more information about the 2011 Davidson Fellows, visit www.DavidsonGifted.org/Fellows.
ONLINE EDUCATION FOR AUTISM. An Education Week article explores the value of online education for students with high-functioning autism, noting that it can  alleviate sensory overload, bullying, and other hazards of the real-world classroom. In the article covers pluses and minuses, and quotes 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter contributor Katherine Boser on considerations for when virtual education might be appropriate for a student with high-functioning autism. Find the article.
DBS FOR TOURTETTE'S. Fox News reported on a young man in New York for whom symptoms of severe Tourette's Syndrome were relieved by deep brain stimulation, which involves implanting electrodes to stimulate parts of the brain that are malfunctioning. Read more.
AD/HD ON THE RISE. The Wall Street Journal, reporting on a report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, notes that the percentage of children between 5 and 17 diagnosed with AD/HD has risen to 9 percent, a two-point change from the last measurement over a decade ago. The article also contained an estimate of the costs of such AD/HD to society -- over $42 billion per year when factoring in "health care, education, parental work loss and juvenile-justice costs." Read more.
PARENTS, TEACHERS, COUNSELORS: TAKE HEED. Although you may have already realized this, a new study indicates that boys think discussing problems is a waste of time. This is compared to girls, who researchers found "had positive expectations for how talking about problems would make them feel, such as expecting to feel cared for, understood and less alone." Read more about the study.
A BACK TO SCHOOL HEALTH QUIZ for parents about kids' health showed us that we didn't know lots of things we should have -- such as the maximum weight for a kid's backpack, or which common medicine the FDA has warned against for kids under 2. If you want to find out how much you know -- or don't know -- take the quiz.
AND FINALLY, THIS. Sometimes, after dinner and with the mom out of the house at her aerobics class, the dad and two young boys at our house used to play a game called "Daddy Monster." It was a combination of hide-and-seek, Nerf shoot-em-up, and roughhousing, where the hiding daddy would leap out of closets when the seeking sons approached, then either chase them or be chased and fired upon with Nerf weapons, each round culminating in either daddy being tackled and "dying" on the living room rug, or sons being tossed onto the couch while the monster escaped again. We miss it. Now we find and article in the Chicago Tribune giving parents guidelines for roughhousing with kids and espousing the benefits. Read it.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

ACCEPTING AUTISM. A Maryland mother writes in the Washington Times about how she came to understand what it was like to have a child with autism and how she accepts it. Now, she writes, "It is hard to imagine Jack without autism. If he were typical, would he still be so gentle and kindhearted? Would he still find so much joy in very small things? Would he still come up with the delightful and quirky thoughts he manages to articulate?" Read the article.  
CHILDHOOD BIPOLAR DISORDER. In Newsweek, a psychiatrist contends that "hundreds of thousands of children in the U.S. have been wrongly diagnosed with the trendy disorder."  He calls it a "diagnostic fad" and cites differences between bipolar disorder in adults and in children. His opinion is that cases of severe AD/HD combined with severe ODD are being diagnosed, wrongly, as childhood bipolar disorder, resulting in unwarranted and even dangerous medications. Find the article.
PERSONALITY DISORDERS: A MATTER OF DEGREE. The chairman of the DSM work group on personality disorders has noted a shift in perception of those disorders: that they're not binary but a matter of degree. Some personality disorders might disappear from the DSM-5, leaving antisocial, avoidant, borderline, narcissistic, obsessive/compulsive, and schizotypal. Read more.
A NEW BOOK ON AD/HD takes a strength-based approach to the disorder, noting that many kids with AD/HD "have tremendous passion, creativity and are often outstanding individuals." Along with his approach, the author titled the book Attention Difference Disorder. Read an interview with the author, and be sure to make it to the final paragraph.
VIDEO RESOURCES. A video on the Scientific American website treats the topic of how motherhood changes the brain. A video on the website of TECCA, a technology-following organization, features a new Dutch-designed font that supposedly helps dyslexics differentiate similar letters such as v and w. And from Deborah Ruf's newsletter we learned that the American Psychological Association will be publishing videos about recent psychological research, such as a recent video about children's mental health; find it.
AND FINALLY, THIS. If your bright child is interested in outer space, note that Scientific American has posted a collection of in-depth reports on the U.S. space shuttle programs, including a visual history, the final mission, and close calls experienced by those manning the spacecraft. Find it.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

HOW TO LAND YOUR KID IN THERAPY is the title of an article in the July/August issue of Atlantic. It's written by a psychologist and parent, and it's about parenting, with lots of input from other mental health professionals. The impetus for the article was the number of patients she was seeing who felt empty, or anxious, or unhappy -- and who seemed to have no reason to feel that way, who claimed to have had good parents and a good upbringing.  The author's thesis is clarified near the end of the article: ".. by trying so hard to provide the perfectly happy childhood, we’re just making it harder for our kids to actually grow up." But along the way the author offers many things for today's parents to think about, including:
  • How much effort to make to protect a child from "reality"
  • The amount of choice a child is entitled to
  • How and how much to try to build a child's self-esteem.
AUTISM AND AUTHORITY. We once wrote about a gifted young boy with Asperger's who got into trouble at school because those in authority did not know how to deal with an Asperger's child who has trouble with authority and authoritarian ways. Now, according to the Akron, Ohio, Beacon Journal, a police officer with an Aspie son is teaching other law enforcement officers about those on the spectrum -- how to identify them and how to deal with them in various law enforcement situations. Read the article.
AUSTISM AND GIFTED ED. A Berwyn, Illinois school is making an effort to include bright Aspie kids in gifted ed classes instead of placing them in special ed, playing to their strengths rather than their challenges. Read about how the school adapted to these kids and how the kids responded. 
TEACHER-PARENT COMMUNICATION is the topic of an article in Education Week's Teacher. The article offers tips such as being proactive, how to deal with angry or abusive communications, and more. Parents would probably be well-served to read this article to see things from the teacher's point of view; after all, effective communication is especially important when parents and educators must discuss disabilities, accommodations, and challenges as well as gifts. Find it.
THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ON THE INTERNET. It's different, perhaps rewired. That's the conclusion of a recent study reported in Scientific American. Does your gifted young person spend too much time online?  Find out more. 
AND FINALLY, THIS. Got a near-sighted kid? It could be the result of too much time spent indoors in artificial light. At least, that's the thesis of an article in Scientific American. Read more.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY BLOG. A gifted young man who has dyslexia has established a blog to inform others about technology which may assist in reading and writing. Included are reviews of hardware and software. Begun last week, the blog already has 18 informative posts. Check it out. 
EXERCISE AND ADDERALL -- those are the two things that 674 people at CureTogether say are most popular and most effective as treatments. Apparently least effective for this group: Strattera and Wellbutrin. Find the report. CureTogether is a site where patients with any of 500 conditions may share with others information on their particular condition and treatment.
2e RESOURCES. The Lang School has posted on Facebook a list of resources for those in the 2e community. Check it out to see if they offer resources you might find useful.(Thanks, Micaela!)
SHOULD YOU SCREEN YOUR TODDLER FOR AUTISM? A new report suggests a couple downsides to early screening. The tests might not  be that accurate, for starters. And they apparently may lead to false positives up to 25 percent of the time, leading parents to believe their child has autism when that's not the case. Read more.
BOOKS AND BOYS. Reading is good for boys, in the sense that it can help develop reading skills, an area where boys may lag girls. But reading may not be perceived as "cool," according to an article in the Chicago Tribune, and may compete poorly with other activities more favored by boys, especially during the summer. The article offers ways to encourage summertime reading by boys. Find the article.
THE LEAD SAYS IT ALL: "Some 2 million Americans adolescents experienced a bout of major depression last year, but only about a third of them got any help in dealing with the sadness, irritability,  anxiety, guilt and loss of interest and energy that are the hallmarks of such episodes, a report says." If you have a teen at risk for depression, read the article.
SUMMERTIME BOREDOM can be an opportunity for creativity, says the author of a book on "dialed-down parenting" who recommends that a child's life be one-third busy time, one-third creative time, and one-third down-time. The author suggests that allowing a child to "dwell in the Land of What-to-Do" will soon result in self-generated, imaginative activity. Seems that this advice should surely apply to those gifted kids you know.  Read more.
EIDE BLOG POST REVISTED. A printout of an Eide Neurolearning Blog posting from January of 2009 somehow resurfaced on our desk, and it's titled in part "A Brain-based Framework for Understanding Twice Exceptional People." The post covers general characteristics of 2e students (intellectual strengths and deficits, along with social-emotional concerns), notes familial influences on the development of 2e traits, and points to research on asynchronous development (eg in prefrontal cortical thickness) in high-IQ youngsters. Read this blog post.
AND FINALLY, THIS. The U.S. government has released figures on the cost of raising a child from birth to age 18. A child born in 2010 to a middle-income family will cost $226,920 -- and that's without college. Expenses vary by geographic region, family type, and family income. And how might the child-rearing budget be different for families in the 2e community? Think "medications," "counseling," "private schools," and so forth; you know the affected household budget categories. Read more; if  you're interested in the details, find the government report.