This past weekend, Bridges 2e Center for Research and Professional Development hosted the . I had the honor and privilege of attending its Super Sunday program, which offered a diverse range of presentations by leading experts in the field of Gifted and Twice-Exceptional research, advocacy, talent development and education. While not the full picture of the many wonderful conversations I had with new and familiar faces, here are a few highlights of the people, places and presentations that I learned from at this special event.

Susan G. Assouline, Ph.D. is a research, scholar and director of the at the University of Iowa, as well as 2019 2e Hall of Fame inductee. Her presentation, The Paradox of Twice Exceptionality: Unlocking the Door to Talent Development, introduced psychoeducational implications of clinically-based research with twice-exceptional individuals, as well as interdisciplinary research aims of neuroscientists, educators, computational geneticists and clinicians to help unlock and celebrate talent development.

Rick Olenchak currently serves as Head of the Educational Studies Department, Professor of Educational Psychology & Research Methodology, and Professor in the at Purdue University. His presentation, Twice-Exceptional Persons, the 21st Century, and Lifespan Development as Viewed through an Affective Lens, emphasized the importance of socio-emotional development on all other development, and as it relates to Affect Development areas of need on the Bull鈥檚 Eye Model, including Natural Affect, World Context, Meta-Affect and Personal Affect.

Dr. Joseph S. Renzulli established the University of Connecticut鈥檚 annual with Professor Sally Reis, with whom he is also a co-founder of the Joseph S. Renzulli Gifted and Talented Academy in Hartford, Connecticut. He received the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Award for Innovation in Education, considered by many to be 鈥渢he Nobel鈥� for educators and was a consultant to the White House Task Force on Education of the Gifted and Talented. His presentation, A Curriculum Enrichment Infusion Process for Jazzing Up The Standards Driven Curriculum, introduced guiding steps to incorporate higher-level thinking skills, creativity training activities and application of skills into curricular content.

Sally M. Reis, Ph.D. holds the Letitia Neag Morgan Chair in Educational Psychology at the and is past-president of NAGC, co-director of Confratute, and former Vice Provost of Academic Affairs at University of Connecticut. Honored as a 2019 2e Hall of Fame inductee, her presentation, From Deficits to Strengths: Past and Present Turning Points on 2E Students and the Education They Deserve emphasized the need for presenting each individual with challenging learning that is strength-based, that enhances interests and task development, and that results in a positive reaction to challenges

Ann Smith is Executive Director of and serves as Past-President for the California Association for the Gifted, on the advisory board for the Belin-Blank International Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development, on the Editorial Board for the Gifted Education Communicator, on the Blue Ribbon Advisory Committee for the USC/US Department of Education Jacob Javits Grant, Project CHANGE, and on a Public Policy Committee for the Institute for Educational Advancement. is an interdisciplinary language arts curriculum created by Gifted Support Center that uses poetry and music to engage across disciplines for PreK through 8th-grade students. The Leave Your Sleep for Educational Project: How an interdisciplinary curriculum can help 2e learners be recognized for their gifts, introduced non-negotiable elements of an interdisciplinary language arts curriculum that is designed to provide opportunities for sustained engagement and talent development.

We look forward to incorporating many of the takeaways from these fantastic presentations into the programs at 优蜜视频. 

For more resources for 2e students,

As a die-hard Gilmore Girls fan dating back to the show鈥檚 original run, its coming revival has me very excited. It seems like there is a new article on some aspect of the show every day, from fashion choices to boyfriend debates to behind-the-scenes trivia. 聽While re-watching a favorite episode, it hit me that one thing I have never seen addressed is the giftedness of two of the characters and the contrasts in how it is manifested.

Rory is a teenager who would be considered 鈥済ifted鈥� by most traditional definitions of the word. She craves knowledge and grasps concepts easily. As her grandfather put it, 鈥淭his girl could name the state capitals at 3, recite the periodic table at 4, (and) discuss Schopenhauer’s influence on Nietzsche when she was 10.鈥� Rory clearly has an advanced ability.

In the first episode of the series, she leaves the local public high school, Stars Hollow High, to attend the prestigious, academically-challenging Chilton school. After initially struggling (especially socially), we see Rory find her place and thrive among students of similar ability and drive before eventually moving on to Yale University. Rory ends the series having had many opportunities to pursue her interests, both academically and personally, in a stimulating environment.

In contrast, we meet her eventual high-school boyfriend Jess. He demonstrates an ability to learn quickly, is constantly reading and always seeking out new knowledge, characteristics that attract Rory. He also has an apathetic attitude toward school, is socially isolated and shows a lack of long-term goals, all signs of a gifted underachiever, according to the . He eventually drops out of high school due to boredom, spending years achieving way below his potential.

So what is the difference between them? Why does one gifted student thrive and the other flounder? Perhaps it is their support systems, or lack thereof. 聽A of the University of Connecticut notes that family problems and home environment can affect the achievement of gifted students. 聽Rory comes from a home with an extremely supportive mother and grandparents willing to do anything they can to help her succeed. Her gifts and interests are encouraged and celebrated by those around her. Jess, however, comes from a tumultuous home where he is often overlooked. He lacks the same opportunities and support to find his 鈥渢ribe鈥� that are available to Rory. Would Jess have thrived if he, too, would have had the chance to learn in an environment like Chilton?

Unfortunately, Jess鈥� situation is all too real for many gifted students. So much potential has been wasted in children who may not even realize their true ability and lack guidance in discovering their unique gifts. We as a community must help identify and nurture these children to reach their full potential before it is too late, whether that be through classroom intervention, mentoring programs or a change in how we measure giftedness. Perhaps one day we will live in a world where gifted children like Jess only exist in fiction.

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Nicole LaChance聽graduated from Michigan State University聽with聽a B.A. in Journalism before moving West in pursuit of milder winters.聽Prior to joining the 优蜜视频 team, she spent time working in marketing for an architecture firm and completed two years of national service in the AmeriCorps program. Over the past few years she has worked with聽nonprofits to聽communicate their message and impact to the world around them, work she is excited to continue at 优蜜视频. When not at the office, she enjoys reading, cooking, traveling wherever she can and making bad puns.

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Mark Erlandson, the parent of a gifted student who presently attends a boarding school out East, is a former lawyer and public high school English teacher from Wisconsin starting a new business as a legal writing consultant.

Grit. I鈥檒l admit I didn鈥檛 have it. Twice now I have put this blog down and stopped writing because I felt uninspired and bored. Weeks have gone by, and too many times to count I have ignored that voice telling me the deadline was approaching and I needed to get finished. So how essential is grit to success, and more importantly, how do we teach our children to get it?

鈥淕rit,鈥� otherwise known as persistence or determination, is currently a passion (some would call it a fad) in certain educational circles today. Angela Duckworth, a University of Pennsylvania psychologist, is a leading advocate of the importance of tenacity in life. Watch for a fascinating explanation of the results of her research in the area. Basically, she concludes, based, among other things, on her research of West Point graduates and National Spelling Bee contestants, that what correlates with success most is grit, not intelligence. Similarly, in the area of gifted students, the most famous study, conducted by University of Connecticut psychologist Joseph Renzuli, director of the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented, concluded that 鈥渢ask commitment,鈥� together with ability and creativity, was, indeed, one of the three essential components of giftedness.

Duckworth believes that grit can be quantified. Her University of Pennsylvania website has a . (My score was a 2.25 on a scale of 1 – 5 ,with 5 being the grittiest, and concluded I am 鈥済rittier than at least 1% of the U.S. population.鈥� Ouch, no wonder I can鈥檛 finish this blog.)

So what can we do to ensure our children will have grit when they need it?

First, stop praising your child for his or her intelligence. A Stanford University study found that children praised for their intelligence learned to care more about their grades than about learning on subsequent tasks, and after failing, they were less persistent than their unpraised peers. Instead, praise your children for their hard work and determination. Also emphasize to your children that intelligence can be improved through hard work. Another Stanford study concluded that students who believed that intelligence is malleable earned better grades during the next two years than those who believed that intelligence was fixed. (Carol Dweck, a Stanford University psychology professor, has a designed to measure to what extent you believe that success comes from effort rather than innate intelligence or talent.)

Next, show kids the effect of grit in the real world. Everyone, for example, has heard the story of how Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team but continued to practice. Other examples might include Steve Jobs, who failed at several Apple projects and ended up losing control of the company for several years, and Andrew Wiles, a mathematician who ultimately proved Fermat鈥檚 Theorem after years of failure. Of course, as always, modeling for your children where you have used grit to be successful may be the best teacher. (Maybe I can get my daughter to read this.)

Watch for when your child becomes frustrated. Use this as an opportunity to discuss the everyday nature of frustration, and explain to him or her that this is an opportunity for growth.

Finally, according to Paul Tough in his book How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power Of Character, the best thing to do to develop the character of our children is to let them experience failure. As he states,

American children, especially those who grow up in relative comfort, are, more than ever, shielded from failure as they grow up. They certainly work hard; they often experience a great deal of pressure and stress; but in reality, their path through the education system is easier and smoother than it was for any previous generation. Many of them are able to graduate from college without facing any significant challenges. But if this new research is right, their schools, their families, and their culture may all be doing them a disservice by not giving them more opportunities to struggle. Overcoming adversity is what produces character. And character, even more than IQ, is what leads to real and lasting success.

So now that this blog is done, maybe it鈥檚 time to get that unfinished novel out again and prove Duckworth鈥檚 test wrong.

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References

Duckworth, A. L., Peterson, C., Matthews, M. D., & Kelly, D. R. (2007). Grit: perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Journal of personality and social psychology, 92(6), 1087.

Duckworth, A. L., & Quinn, P. D. (2009). Development and validation of the Short Grit Scale (GRIT鈥揝). Journal of personality assessment, 91(2), 166-174.

Dweck, C. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House LLC.

Dweck, C. S. (2000). Self-theories: Their role in motivation, personality, and development. Psychology Press.

Tough, P. (2013). How children succeed. Random House.