At 优蜜视频, we are committed to the whole child, inspiring students to grow and find balance among all five aspects of self: intellectual, social, spiritual, physical, and emotional. We understand that emotional wellbeing is just as important as intellectual growth, and that positive emotions actually facilitate openness and drive curiosity and exploration. In fact, studies³ find that emotions significantly influence our learning strategies, motivation, cognitive resources, and academic achievement.

GETTING IN THE 鈥淔LOW鈥� OF THINGS

Research has documented that happiness is best obtained through 鈥渇low鈥� activities that require active physical and psychic investment.⁴ With that being said, flow is defined as a state of concentration so focused that it amounts to absolute absorption in an activity^.5. In fact, there are six key factors that encompass the experience of flow⁶:

1. Intense and focused concentration on the present moment
2. Merging of action and awareness
3. A loss of reflective self-consciousness
4. A sense of personal control or agency over the situation or activity
5. A distortion of temporal experience
6. Experience of the activity as intrinsically rewarding

So, how can we 鈥済et into the zone鈥�?!

READING

 Around the world, the most frequently mentioned enjoyable activity is reading⁵. What can be more absolutely absorbing than 鈥榣osing yourself鈥� in a good book?! Whether it be fantasy or non-fiction, reading is a great way to become completely involved in an activity, leading to feelings of immersive interest and maybe even a different experience of time itself. Getting wrapped up in an engrossing read allows for the opportunity to escape your own sense of self-consciousness, even if just momentarily.

BEING WITH OTHER PEOPLE

 Followed closely behind reading as being reported as the most enjoyable activity is being with other people⁵. Though the COVID-19 pandemic has thrown a wrench into this particular activity, there are still ways to socialize with other people- whether that be engaging in shared virtual gaming, meeting via video-call hangouts, or even writing letters back and forth! Engaging with others in various ways allows us to focus our concentration on the present moment- a key factor in the experience of flow⁶.

CREATING ART

 Another great way to reach a state of flow is to create art, which allows for a sense of control as well as a merging of action and awareness. Any act of creating and crafting that brings you into the present moment will do- painting, playing music, sculpting, sewing, or even doodling, to name a few. As Pablo Picasso once said, 鈥淎rt washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.鈥�

GETTING PHYSICALLY ACTIVE

Physical activity is an exceptional way to achieve a state of flow, specifically in its ability to provide opportunities to match one鈥檚 skill level to a challenging or goal. Think of a physical activity, like swimming, running, or yoga- we feel most accomplished and competent, allowing for experiences of confidence and a sense of control, when the goal of the activity is well matched to our ability. A beginner runner who participates in a 5K marathon would most likely not reach a state of flow, but an advanced runner could surely 鈥済et into the zone鈥�. Not excluding one鈥檚 ability to expand one鈥檚 skill set, make sure to get your body moving in challenging ways, but not too challenging!

With all of this being said, developing tangible techniques to reach states of flow offer exciting opportunities to work towards finding balance among all five aspects of self and reaching our full potentials. Given the multitude of ways to achieve flow, that elusive emotion we call happiness is surely within our reach!

FOOTNOTES

1. International Day of Happiness.听
2. Freedman, J. (1978).听Happy People: What Happiness Is, Who Has It, and Why. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
3. Berry, Natalie (2013, February 17)聽Are Happy Students Successful Students?聽https://natberryblog.wordpress.com/2013/02/17/are-happy-students-successful-students/
4. Nakamura, J., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2002). The Concept of Flow. In C. Snyder, & S. Lopez (Eds.),聽Handbook of Positive Psychology聽(pp. 89-105). Oxford University Press.
5. Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990).听Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. Harper and Row.
6. Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1975).听Beyond Boredom and Anxiety. Washington: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Summer plans may not be shaping up the way we had imagined, but that doesn鈥檛 mean that traveling to new and exciting places are off the table. There are no limits to where our minds can take us. No matter where we find ourselves, there is always an opportunity for adventures and self-discovery right at the tip of our fingers!

Summer magic is manifested in books! Let the adventure begin.

Elementary School

Summer by Cao Wenxuan, illustrated by Yu Rong

Readers find out how some of their favorite animals stay cool during the summertime in this whimsical, poetic book. The animals fight until they are inspired by an act of love to offer shade to one another. Through lyrical text from Hans Christian Andersen Award winner Cao Wenxuan, the story comes alive with bright, delicate art from award-winning illustrator Yu Rong.

惭补帽补苍补濒补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;by Pam Mu帽oz Ryan

New York Times best-selling author Pam Mu帽oz Ryan is an American writer for children and young adults, particularly in the multicultural genre. In this magical story, Maximiliano C贸rdoba goes on a dangerous journey armed only with a compass, a mysterious stone rubbing, and legends about traveling mythical gatekeepers.

Clayton Byrd Goes Underground by Rita Williams-Garcia, illustrated by Frank Morrison

When his beloved grandfather, the blues man Cool Papa Byrd, dies suddenly, Clayton鈥檚 anger and misplaced alliances get him into trouble. This story of family grief, reconciliation, and the power of music is set in New York City.

Mindy Kim Series By Lyla Lee illustrated by Doug Ho

Lyla Lee’s Mindy Kim series is a heartwarming, authentic look at an 8-year-old girl trying to navigate life in a new state where her Korean heritage makes her stand out., launched in January 2020 with books,  Mindy Kim and the Lunar New Year Parade and Mindy Kim and the Yummy Seaweed Business.

Just in Case You Want to Fly by Julie Fogliano, illustrated by Christian Robinson

What do you need for your next adventure? Explore this nurturing tale through colorful pictures and lyrical text. A joyful, inclusive cast of children fly, sing, and wish their way across the pages, with everything they could ever need-a cherry if you need a snack, and if you get itchy here’s a scratch on the back-to explore the world around them.

Middle School

Wink By Harrell Rob

A wrenching and hilarious story about embracing life’s weirdness and surviving an unthinkable diagnosis, based on the author’s own experience with a rare eye cancer. Twelve-year-old Ross Maloy just wants to be normal. Not to have a rare eye cancer, not to lose his hair, not to have to wear a weird hat or have a goopy eye full of ointment. Just normal. 

Queen of the Sea by Dylan Meconis, illustrated by the author

Cult graphic novelist Dylan Meconis offers a rich reimagining of history in this hybrid novel loosely based on the exile of Queen Elizabeth I by her sister, Queen Mary. As an added bonus Candlewick Press is offering a with Dylan, premiering July 24th .

The Bridge Home by Padma Venkatraman

Runaway sisters Viji and Rukku end up living on the streets of Chennai, where they find a new family of friends who help them to survive by scavenging the city鈥檚 mountains of rubbish. Penguin Middle School hosts an for added context after reading the book.

The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart

Coyote Sunrise and her dad travel the country in their school bus. Along the way, they meet new friends who help them see their world in a new way and heal from the tragedy that hit their family five years earlier.

High School

Aix Marks the Spot by S.E. Anderson

Jamie has been dreaming of this summer forever: of road trips and intensive art camps, of meeting cute boys with her best friend Jazz. What she didn’t count on was the car accident. Anderson recently took part in , an online two-day event to celebrate and talk about all thinks YA Thriller.

Swing By Kwame Alexander & Mary Rand Hess

Kwame Alexander might be more well known for The Crossover series but these New York Times bestselling authors team up to tell this lyrical story about hope, courage, and love that speaks to anyone who’s struggled to find their voice. And the surprise ending shines a spotlight on the issues related to our current social divide, challenging perspectives and inspiring everyone to make their voice heard.

CIRCE by Madeline Miller

A bold and subversive retelling of the Circe from Homer and the Odyssey. This goddess’s story, a #1 New York Times bestseller. This remarkable journey into mythology brings the ancient gods directly and viscerally into the present. Circe is a perfect mashup of elegant language, glorious storytelling, and exquisitely modern sensibilities. 

American Road Trip By Patrick Flores-Scott

With a strong, loving family, an incredibly loyal best friend, and a budding romance with the girl of his dreams, life shows promise for seventeen-year-old Teodoro 鈥淭鈥� Avila. But he takes some hard hits the summer before his senior year when his nearly perfect brother Manny returns from a tour in Iraq with a devastating case of PTSD.

Adult

Exhalation: Stories by Ted Chiang (Chiang Feng-nan)
This is a perfect example of why science fiction now calls itself speculative fiction. No aliens, no space travel, no dystopias. Only nine mind-stretching tales based on technological or historical hypotheses. From an award-winning science fiction writer (whose short story “The Story of Your Life” was the basis for the Academy Award-nominated movie Arrival), the long-awaited new collection of stunningly original, humane, and already celebrated short stories

The Peanuts Papers: Writers and Cartoonists on Charlie Brown, Snoopy & the Gang, and the Meaning of Life: A Library of America Special Publication By Andrew Blauner (Editor)

This collection offers a delightful range of commentaries, by authors from Umberto Eco to Maxine Hong Kingston, including analyses of Lucy鈥檚 incongruity as a psychiatrist and Snoopy鈥檚 triumphant narcissism, to a Jonathan Lethem parody of Allen Ginsberg鈥檚 鈥淗owl.鈥�

On Looking: A Walker鈥檚 Guide to the Art of Observation by Alexandra Horowitz

From the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Inside of a Dog. Walk as Horowitz did, in the company of observers, from a toddler to a typographer, a diagnostician to an urban designer, a doctor to a sound engineer, your walks will soon exemplify Proust鈥檚 observation,鈥淭he real voyage of discovery consists, not in seeing new landscapes, but in having new eyes.鈥�

The Order of Time by Carlo Rovelli

Any writer on physics who鈥檚 praised by novelist John Banville, naturalist Michael Pollan, and actor Benedict Cumberbatch, as well as his professional colleagues, must be exceptional鈥攁nd Rovelli is. He uses analogy, witty diagrams, a sense of drama, and quotations from Horace, Shakespeare, Rilke, and the Grateful Dead to make his explanations of space-time, gravitational fields, and such, as Einstein said 鈥渁s simple as possible, but no simpler.鈥�

If you shop through , Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase to 优蜜视频. through our Amazon Smile link. Let us know which books you will be reading this Summer in the comments below! 

Summer is here! Whether you or your gifted child are taking summer school courses, attending camp, traveling or enjoying activities with family and friends, summertime is a great opportunity to enjoy some extra reading. Do you have a long road trip coming up? Listen to an audiobook. Will you have time to kill at the airport? Reading a book will help pass the time. Are you and your friends on the hunt for a new endeavor? Start a book club to read and discuss novels together. In case you need some convincing to read beyond your assigned summer reading for school, here are you should be reading more:

1. Reading reduces stress.
2. Reading, especially books, may add years to your life.
3. Reading improves your language skills and knowledge of the world.
4. Reading enhances empathy.
5. Reading boosts creativity and flexibility.
6. Reading can help you transform as a person.

I personally enjoy reading because it鈥檚 a gratifying and necessary way for me to unplug. I love the moment when I discover I鈥檝e been reading for hours on end because I鈥檝e been so enveloped in a story and lost track of time. Sometimes there鈥檚 nothing better than devouring a good book!

Here are a few summer reads I鈥檝e compiled to help inspire your and your gifted child鈥檚 summer reading list:

• Her Right Foot by Dave Eggers (Gr K鈥�3): A moving and conversational description of the history of the Statue of Liberty and how some of the smallest details contribute to her symbolism as a welcoming beacon to the world.
• Hello, Universe by Erin Entrada Kelly (Gr 3鈥�7): Told from four intertwining points of view鈥攖wo boys and two girls鈥攖he novel celebrates bravery, being different and finding your inner bayani (hero).
• The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl by Stacy McAnulty (Gr 4鈥�6): Lucy Callahan was struck by lightning. She doesn’t remember it, but it changed her life forever. The zap gave her genius-level math skills and, ever since, Lucy has been homeschooled. Now, at 12-years-old, she’s technically ready for college. She just has to pass one more test鈥攎iddle school!
• Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt (Gr 5鈥�6): Ally struggles to hide her dyslexia by continually getting in trouble, until a substitute teacher discovers what she is really hiding.
• Boying Up: How to Be Brave, Bold and Brilliant by Mayim Bialik (Gr 7鈥�9): Mayim Bialik, star of The Big Bang Theory and author of the #1 bestseller Girling Up, puts her Ph.D. to work to talk to teen boys about the science and pressures of growing up male in today’s world.

Happy reading!

Do you have a favorite novel or book you are looking forward to reading this summer? Share it with us in the comments below!

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The lovable title character in Roald Dahl鈥檚 Matilda is a precocious young girl who can teach the world a lot about gifted kids. Here are 12 lessons from the novel:

1. can often be seen early in a child鈥檚 life. Matilda is depicted as an extremely precocious and advanced child, speaking perfectly by 18 months, reading by age 3, and multiplying double-digit numbers in her head by age 5.

2. Giftedness is innate, not taught. One myth about gifted children is that they are the product of pushy parents. This may be true with some high-achieving children, but it is not generally true of gifted kids, whose intellectual ability comes naturally, sometimes even without any parental support. By giving Matilda parents who have absolutely no interest in her abilities or education, Dahl illustrates that some children just have natural intellectual ability.

3. Gifted children love to learn and often have a variety of interests. Because of this, many gifted children love to read. It appeals to their need to constantly learn and take in new information. Before she is even in school, Matilda spends as much time as possible reading. When she starts school, she tells her teacher, Miss Honey, all kinds of interesting facts she learned from reading. 鈥淭his child, Miss Honey told herself, seems to be interested in everything鈥� (231).

4. Gifted kids often outgrow 鈥渃hildren鈥檚鈥� content early. Oftentimes, they view children鈥檚 books as overly simplified and opt for more advanced content that provides greater depth and complexity to subject areas. At age four, Matilda reads Great Expectations in one week and thoroughly enjoys it. Though she doesn鈥檛 fully understand everything in adult books, she understands enough to appreciate, enjoy, and learn from them. These books also challenge her intellectually in a way that children鈥檚 books can鈥檛.

5. Gifted children often have a . Matilda鈥檚 dad frequently talks about cheating his customers, and Matilda speaks out against his actions. She plays tricks on her parents when they are mean to her in an attempt to achieve balance in an unjust situation. She also gets extremely upset when she is accused of things she did not do.

6. A supportive figure in a gifted child鈥檚 life is incredibly important. The librarian who introduces Matilda to fantastic literature and Miss Honey, who encourages Matilda to learn more advanced concepts, keep Matilda challenged and interested in learning.

7. is the best way to meet the needs of gifted students. When Matilda skips grades, she works well at the advanced level and is finally academically challenged while still being happy. Miss Honey explains to Matilda, 鈥溾�榃hile you were in my class you had nothing to do, nothing to make you struggle. Your fairly enormous brain was going crazy with frustration. It was bubbling and boiling away like mad inside your head. There was tremendous energy bottled up in there with nowhere to go鈥� [Now you are] competing against children more than twice your age and all that mental energy is being used up in class. Your brain is for the first time having to struggle and strive and keep really busy, which is great鈥欌�� (229-230).

8. Sometimes gifted kids just know things intuitively, without being taught at all. On Matilda鈥檚 first day of school, Miss Honey asks her who taught her how to multiply. Matilda responds, 鈥溾�業t鈥檚 just that I don鈥檛 find it very difficult to multiply one number by another鈥 simply put the fourteen down in my head and multiply it by nineteen鈥鈥檓 afraid I don鈥檛 know how else to explain it. I鈥檝e always said to myself that if a little pocket calculator can do it why shouldn鈥檛 I?鈥欌�� (73-74). Often, gifted children cannot explain how they know something; nor can they understand why they know something, while others don鈥檛. Matilda, like many gifted children, 鈥渏ust knows.鈥�

9. Gifted children have a deep, intense focus when interested in a topic. Before Matilda is old enough for school, she spends all day absorbed in books. When she starts school and Miss Honey differentiates her work by giving her a geometry book to read and study, Matilda 鈥渧ery soon became deeply absorbed in the book. She never glanced up once during the entire lesson鈥� (91). This strong focus among gifted children when intellectually stimulated and challenged is common.

10. . 鈥淭he nice thing about Matilda was that if you had met her casually and talked to her you would have thought she was a perfectly normal five-and-a-half-year-old child鈥nless for some reason you had started a discussion with her about literature or mathematics, you would never have known the extent of her brain-power鈥� (101).

11. Gifted children just need to find friends with whom they can connect. She is well-liked by her classmates and has several friends. Gifted children often form one or two really close friendships, and Matilda develops a meaningful peer relationship with Lavender, who is also bright. Matilda also has deep social relationships with adults, including Miss Honey and the librarian. She can talk to adults on a more intellectual level than she can with her classmates, which is typical of gifted children.

12. Gifted children are often mature and wise beyond their years. When Miss Honey invites Matilda to her cottage for tea, there are noticeable socio-economic differences. 鈥淸Matilda] seemed to be aware of the delicacy of the situation and she was taking great care not to say anything to embarrass her companion鈥� (189). Matilda had never encountered a situation like that before and was not taught how to act in that scenario. However, she looks at the context and understands how to behave. Miss Honey even tells Matilda, 鈥溾�楢lthough you look like a child, you are really not a child at all because your mind and your powers of reasoning seem to be fully grown-up鈥欌�� (195), and Matilda and Miss Honey 鈥渢alked to each other more or less as equals鈥� (231).

What other gifted characters do you love? Please share in the comment section below.

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Kate Duey is a private college counselor serving gifted students. She has worked with students on traditional schooling paths, home schooled students, community college students, and students seeking accelerated or early college entrance. Kate is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Business School. She has a Certificate in College Counseling from UCLA.

What happens if a student graduates from high school exhausted? AP classes, standardized testing, extracurricular activities, sports, music, community service, research projects…and all of those college essays! What if they worked so hard they can鈥檛 remember what they like? Are they ready for four or five or six more years?

Among gifted high school students, it is especially important to remember that giftedness is innate to a person, and we should embrace the whole student by supporting their intellectual, social, spiritual, emotional and physical growth. When a gifted student鈥檚 high school years disproportionately emphasize intellectual development, the whole person is neglected. Refreshing all parts of a gifted student鈥檚 self helps to focus his or her intensities in ways that work with and for the student.

For graduating high school students who find themselves exhausted, an intentional pause to decompress and plan their next steps 鈥� a 鈥済ap year鈥� between high school and college 鈥揷ould be a viable option. They often enter college with better perspective, more maturity, chronological alignment with his or her class, and enthusiasm for an old or new interest elevates the student鈥檚 whole experience.

Taking a gap year does not mean the student does not apply to college as a high school senior; they absolutely should. As a high school student, he or she has access to the teachers and counselors who will write letters of recommendation, grades and test scores are in hand, and good reference materials to search for college are easier to access. Definitely apply! Then, defer.

As a college counselor working with gifted high school students, I鈥檝e twice seriously advised a gap year. One student considered extreme mountaineering, the other living in Europe with extended family. (Admittedly, neither did it.) I鈥檝e talked about it with every student who has an interest in studying foreign languages. Among our tabloid friends, Prince William and Kate Middleton took gap years. Kate spent much of hers studying Italian. Every year, fifty to seventy students defer entrance into Harvard College for a gap year. In 2006, Harvard reported some of the focuses of those gap years:

• Backpacking
• Caring for grandparents
• Writing the Next Great American Novel
• e-commerce startup
• Figure skating
• Kibbutz life
• Language study
• Military service
• Mineralogy
• 听惭耻蝉颈肠
• Political campaigns
• Reading
• Special needs education
• Sports
• Steel drumming
• Storytelling
• Swing dancing
• Working to save money for college

Parents often worry that, by detaching from a year-to-year academic progression, their child will fall behind. Colleges seldom see it that way, and many letters of admission come with the option of deferring for a year. Once in college, students are often encouraged to take a year off, and college student counseling centers freely offer advice about opportunities. Splitting the difference, some colleges offer mid-year entrance, allowing the student a 鈥済ap semester.鈥� American University and Brandeis University have formal off-campus programs for first-year fall semester.

A year off can center around any endeavor. Now that average student indebtedness at graduation is $25,200, saving for a year before college can create more flexibility after college. Another opportunity is more family time, especially with grandparents, which may have been sacrificed for academic achievement.

Some parents and students prefer a structured year. There are many services which will match a student with a gap year program, and a quick internet search will yield many. Also, think outside of the box; my personal favorite was a year at Austin Community College studying blacksmithing.

A gap year can make for a more interesting student, capable of adding more to the academic community. Best of all, students can discover their passions and capture their zeitgeist before they begin college.

Has your child considered taking a gap year? Please share your experience in the comment section below.

Kate will be discussing college admissions at our next . The talk will take place at 6:30 pm on February 13, 2013, at the 优蜜视频 Learning Center, located at 625 Fair Oaks Avenue, Suite 288, South Pasadena, CA 91030 (across the hall from the 优蜜视频 main office). Please RSVP to reception@educationaladvancement.org. We hope to see you there!

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Lisa is the mother of 3 gifted children and lives outside of San Francisco.

At my son鈥檚 kindergarten parent/teacher conference, his teacher played a game with my husband and me. She put 3 marbles on the table and asked us to close our eyes. When we opened them, we saw 2 marbles. She asked us how many she was holding in her hand. When we told her 鈥渙ne鈥�, she repeated the game with 4 marbles.

Our son鈥檚 teacher told us she played this game with each student until the child no longer gave the correct answer. All the children in her class stopped at 10 marbles, except my son. She played with him until she had 20 marbles on the table. Then she stopped. She told us that he was clearly very good at math.
I left the meeting feeling proud of my son鈥檚 talent and satisfied with the teacher鈥檚 assessment. My husband wasn鈥檛.

鈥淲hy didn鈥檛 she keep going until he gave the wrong answer?鈥�

From that moment, 鈥済ood at math鈥� wasn鈥檛 good enough for me. I wanted to know his limits. Then I wanted him to learn something new. Thus began my search for the perfect test: the one that would convince his teachers that he needed something different from the rest of the class.

I started with an . That was a terrible idea. I learned that he not only had exceptional perceptual reasoning abilities, but he also had excellent verbal abilities. When I shared this information with the principal, she was wary. What kind of parent gives her 5 year old child an IQ test? Clearly, I was one of 鈥渢hose鈥� parents. I not only complicated my search, I acquired a label that would follow me throughout my son鈥檚 elementary school years.

The psychologist who administered the IQ test also gave him the Wide Range Achievement Test. His Reading and Arithmetic achievement scores placed him in 3rd Grade. I approached his 1st grade teacher with these scores and asked if she could give him 3rd grade level work. She was sympathetic to my request. She thought she could deliver an appropriate reading curriculum. Unfortunately, she didn鈥檛 have the resources to deliver a 3rd grade math curriculum in her class and the school would not allow him to sit in a 3rd grade classroom.

I decided to make alternate arrangements for math. I enrolled my son in an online math program through the Educational Program for Gifted Youth (鈥淓PGY鈥�). He worked on the computer at home and brought the homework assignments to school. Finally, I understood what my son knew because I saw it on the computer screen every day.

I remained optimistic when my son started 2nd grade. I gave up on the advanced reading curriculum, but I continued to advocate for accelerated math. I doubled my efforts. My son took the Sequential Test for Educational Progress (STEP) for mathematics computation. The test detailed scores in reading and whole numbers, fractions, decimals, percentages, denominate numbers and algebraic manipulation in math. He scored at a 5th grade level. Armed with the STEP results and the completed EPGY math curriculum, I tried again.

His 2nd grade teacher was hostile. Through her behavior and comments, she delivered two messages to my son. First, he is not as smart as he thinks he is. He may be good at adding, subtracting and multiplying numbers, but he didn鈥檛 understand math concepts. (Later, I would learn his conceptual math abilities are particularly strong.) Second, he needed to be quiet about his abilities, or risk being ostracized by the class. Given the teacher鈥檚 hostility to my son, I did not push . She allowed him to work on word problems independently, but that was all.

I brought out all the big guns in 3rd grade. I not only had him take a second STEP test for math, I contacted Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth for an Educational Evaluation. Two Ph.Ds wrote a 3 page Educational Evaluation that concluded: 鈥淭o avoid repetition of material and the subsequent boredom and decrease in motivation, (my son) should be allowed to work on fourth grade-level math or higher.鈥� The teachers refused. I gave up. We hired a tutor so he could learn new math concepts after school.

By 4th grade, I learned that no test was going to convince any teacher at our school that his math curriculum should be accelerated. I sat in a room with my husband, the principal, my son鈥檚 4th grade teacher, copies of the California Education Code, the school district鈥檚 policies, and the book Teaching Gifted Kids in the Regular Classroom: Strategies and Techniques Every Teacher Can Use to Meet the Academic Needs of the Gifted and Talented, and I got mad. I got leaning-over-the table-finger-poking-red-faced-mad. My surprised husband (the reliably hot headed one) jumped into the fray and suggested that 鈥渨e all step back and try to find some common ground.鈥� It worked. We got the teacher to pre-test our son before each math lesson. If he demonstrated mastery, he was allowed to skip the lessons. We kept his tutor. When he tested out of a concept, he was allowed to work on the tutor鈥檚 assignments during class. In addition, the classroom teacher did not assign him any homework.

So, what did I learn from all of this? I learned that a good assessment (or several) can let you know what your child needs and give you the conviction to fight for it. I learned that no test will convince a teacher, not otherwise inclined, to deliver an accelerated curriculum if he or she lacks the resources or motivation. I learned that when nothing else works, righteous outrage sometimes is the catalyst to make things happen. I learned that to be productive, outrage must be coupled with a reasonable proposal. Most importantly, I learned that my son is the most accommodating child in the world to put up with all this nonsense.

What has your experience been with effectiveness of assessments in getting your children the accommodations they need? Please share with us in the comment section below.

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Kyle started to read when he was two. He carried the first Harry Potter book with him to preschool and proceeded to finish the book in a week. His preschool teacher told his parents that he needed to skip kindergarten, but the school district said it was against policy and that he should start kindergarten with his age peers. Kyle started to cry every morning and would try to negotiate ways to get out of going to school. He had few friends and was extremely emotionally intense. Reading was the only thing that made him happy. Knowing that something had to change, his parents pleaded with the district to do something. They worked with experts to assess their child and to learn coping mechanisms to help him deal with his intensity. Eventually the child was offered a grade skip, but the policy was not changed and the family was told not to discuss the issue.

In an ideal world, schools would identify and address the intellectual, creative and personal needs of all children. However, large class size, lack of funds, philosophical differences, inadequate teacher training, wide variety in student abilities and a myriad of other issues prevent this from being a reality.

Many gifted children only have the option of participating in advanced extracurricular programs. While a lifeline for highly able students, these classes are held after school and on weekends, which means students remain unchallenged during the traditional academic school day.

Research is clear on how to best meet the needs of gifted and highly gifted children in school, and it involves some form of academic acceleration. Acceleration is a program, service or administrative decision that shortens a student鈥檚 time in a course of study. Schools that offer services for gifted students are usually comfortable with subject area acceleration, curriculum telescoping and compacting. These forms of differentiation are good ways for students to remain engaged in learning.

Unfortunately, many parents are met with resistance when advocating for services for their bright young children. As experts in gifted education, we continually advocate for change to ensure that all bright, curious kids have a chance to be successful. Unfortunately, lasting effective change in our schools can take years, and these brilliant floundering students need challenging and enriched learning opportunities now.

Acceleration in the form of grade skipping is most common in early years of elementary school because it is often easier to determine basic mastery of content and skills. Research has demonstrated that, with solid planning, a grade skip is a positive solution to meeting the needs of highly able students.

Grade skipping

• Requires limited financial resources
• Positively impacts academic progress
• Strongly improves social adjustment
• Results in higher self esteem

Tom Southern and Eric Jones share that high ability students who are accelerated are actually more likely to make friends with students who have similar academic interests and are more socially mature.

础听 was conducted on 320 adults who were accelerated as highly gifted children 10 years earlier. The study found that more than 70% had no regrets about the experience. Of those that reported regret, 20% indicated they wish they had been accelerated more.

In our experience, the students who have the most satisfying experiences with acceleration are those who are performing well beyond their grade level peers, have an IQ score above 140 and have demonstrated frustration with the level and pace of instruction in the classroom. We have also noted that highly able students who are self-directed, excited and focused when presented with rigorous new challenges, have multiple interests and are somewhat socially mature do extremely well with grade skipping and advancement in single subjects.

Thoughts on what schools should do to accommodate the needs of highly able youth

1. Develop policies to address acceleration, including
   1. Criteria for grade skip, subject area acceleration and telescoping
   2. Credit or placement based upon performance
2. Train parents and teachers on forms of acceleration and strategies for success
3. Offer advanced placement and honor classes to student in middle school and high school
4. Provide information on early admission to college or dual placement

It is important to continually monitor the success of student progress academically, socially and emotionally. Kyle was accelerated again in third grade and entered junior high when he was ten. He participates in advanced enrichment classes, sports and music programs after school. For now it is a good balance. He is happy and is still interested in learning.

How does your child鈥檚 school respond to the need for acceleration? Please share your experiences with us in the comment section below!

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