DYS Homeroom

A lot of students who are gifted like to tackle the meaning of life for themselves by answering or pondering questions such as: What is time? Is Schrödinger’s cat cat alive or dead? What is real? How do I know? How does that adult supposedly know? What is truth? What is beauty?  What really matters in the end? How do I “do life” right? Is there a way to live that could be better than other ways? What is the purpose of life on the planet? Is there a purpose? Is true altruism possible? Is there another me (or millions of me’s) in a multiverse somewhere? If infinity is real and the universe is infinite, does that mean everything could happen is happening? Insert any other questions you can think of! A lot of this questioning starts long before any “Introduction to Philosophy” class. Philosophizing is for everyone, no matter how young. With this style of questioning, there are no “right answers” either (and this can be hard to realize in discussions with peers). This style of reasoning is

This week for the mini-lesson, students touched on a few key theories important to gifted education (Bloom's Taxonomy and Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs). We did this to help them understand and gain insight into their unique capabilities and unique challenges.  Bloom's Taxonomy: -Six levels of cognitive learning (in the revised version of Bloom's Taxonomy) -Each level increases in complexity of thinking -Remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating -The original version in 1956 said “evaluation” was the highest level -Then, a sixth level was added (judgment was replaced by creativity/synthesis) Here’s a summary of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (another pyramid with creative living at the top): 1st level: Physiological needs 2nd: Safety Needs 3rd: Social Needs (aka love and belonging needs) 4th: Esteem Needs 5th: Self-actualization Needs        - Self-aware        - Driven by personal growth        - Don’t mind what others think        - Interest

  You can’t study the creative process very long without hearing about divergent thinking. What does it mean as a psychology term, and what does it mean for students who are gifted? How can we apply this knowledge to our projects? That's what we explored in this lesson.   Convergent and Divergent Thinking Defined:  - Convergent thinking is systematic and represents thinking in a straight line towards the "best" solution. When you are asked to fill in a blank on a test (or reduce something to a simple and obvious answer), you are using convergent thinking. - Divergent thinking, on the other hand, is open-ended, web-like, and thrives on making flexible connections. Both thinking styles are needed while creating, but it’s great to know which one you prefer along with the strengths and limitations of each. -It's also fun to look at and discuss the notebooks of prolific thinkers such as Thomas Edison and Leonardo DaVinci to get a sense of divergent thinking: https://www.op

Thank you for a lovely class this week! We tackled a couple of psychology/history facts related to the creative process. Students seemed to enjoy this content quite a bit. They offered a lot of connections and came with many stories to share. The creative process has been around for as long as humans have. But it's only been observed scientifically for 100 years! "The Art of Thought" by Graham Wallas got it all started in 1926 when he formulated one of the first cohesive models of the creative process. Wallas noted a four-stage process, but a fifth stage (implementation) has been added.  We went over the definition of each of the following five stages with examples from our own lives and from history: 1. Preparation  -Sources of inspiration -Researching the problem -Prepping information and materials -Gathering resources 2. Incubation -Take your mind off the problem (do something else) -The unconscious mind wanders (Einstein called it “combinatory play”) -Marinating -Coul

This week’s discussion centered around high expectations. Sometimes these high expectations come from the outside world and sometimes they come from inside ourselves. Oftentimes, high expectations have a profound impact on us and the people around us. People can have high expectations in different areas (character/behavior, measured accomplishments, etc.), making the issue all the more complicated. Perfectionism and unrealistic expectations are often addressed in literature written for people who happen to be gifted, but we also talked about when expectations don’t seem high enough and we want someone to set the bar higher. Either way, sometimes we have to learn how to handle what pops out of other people’s mouths and what pops into our own minds! It’s our choice where and when we wish to strive for perfection and where we wish to be ordinary. We used the story of gymnast Simone Biles as a talking point for exploring this issue. We also discussed John Grisham vs. Michael Crichton (one

  Guiding Question:  What Makes For a Healthier/Safer/More Stable Sense of Identity Than One’s Rare Abilities? The topic this week was being a “whole person” that exists as more than their gifts (even while living in a busy driven brain that seems to dominate). We talked about why a person’s true value and worth has nothing to do with their talents, intelligence, or personality traits. People are valuable simply for being themselves and existing. There are helpful and not so helpful things about the way anyone is wired.  “Giftedness is a trait that shapes people's lives, but you get to decide what defines you.” Here’s an exercise to try with the above sentiment: Finish the sentence “I am…” as many times as you can with personality traits that describe you (fun-loving, hardworking, etc.), roles (son, daughter), and anything else that comes to mind. Notice just how many valuable things you are to yourself and other people.  Optional Artistic Homework: Complete the “coat of arms” acti

  This week we focused on effective routines and habits that lead to a pleasant experience while taking a variety of classes. We first discussed six popular study habits backed by research.  Connect your emotions and interests to the material. It’s easy to learn about something you are innately passionate about, and it’s easier to remember things when you’ve had strong emotional reactions. Ask yourself how and why this topic matters. Can you connect your passions to the material in some way? For example, if you love math but are studying oceans for a science class, can you think about relevant connections to pique your interest?  Vary content during an intense study session and take mini-breaks (like walks). Consider intense sessions of 20 minutes focused on a specific skill. As a guitar player this would look like 20 minutes practicing scales, 20 minutes practicing chord switches, 20 minutes playing through other people’s songs related to these micro-skills. For math, this could look

This week we finished up students' "About Me" sharing and discussed the psychology of motivation. We started by examining two very different forms of motivation at work in our lives: Intrinsic motivation is defined as the doing of an activity for its inherent satisfaction rather than for some separable consequence . When intrinsically motivated, a person is moved to act for the fun or challenge entailed rather than because of external products, pressures, or rewards. Extrinsic motivation is being encouraged to do something because of outside (extrinsic) forces . Said motivation could be positive or negative, meaning they can be encouraged to do something to receive a benefit or praise or discouraged to do something out of fear of consequences. Then we discussed common ways willpower can be depleted throughout the day and how to create an optimal schedule built on self-awareness. What a person works on (and when) can impact their motivation. Therefore, it’s beneficial t

  "Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better."  - Maya Angelou This week we discussed executive functioning skills and how these skills are different from mere intelligence. Taking “in” facts and remembering them is often a strength of learners who are gifted. However, acting on ideas or having “output” is a different set of skills.  Fundamental skills related to executive functioning: Metacognition Planning Organization Time Management Task Initiation Working Memory Attention Self-Control Perseverance Flexibility Day-to-day examples of executive functioning skills include: Taking notes Writing down assignments and ideas Organizing materials Prioritizing assignments Writing structured responses Having a study schedule Making a to-do list We talked about how we have to learn these skills by breaking them down and practicing them before they are needed for difficult classes or pursuits. If a class is easy, we may be tempted to by-bass these

  It was great to meet everyone this week while kicking off the first semester! As a reminder, "About Me" sheets will be sent today via email, and I am still collecting photos for the homeroom collage along with student emails. We talked today about how an "About Me" presentation can range from a freestyle speech riffing off the questions to a tech-assisted slideshow. It's completely up to students how much they wish to put time into it. The discussion this week around the topic of friendship was insightful and engaging. Every homeroom has a different chemistry, and it's an absolute honor to connect them in this online space. Mini-Lesson Topic: 8 Common Questions About Friendship and 12 Tips For Making Friends This week we focused on making friends in an online environment. Of course, these skills are transferable to other relationships as well. We started off with a list of common questions about friendship. One item on the list we narrowed in on involve

  Welcome to the DYS Homeroom Blog: What You Can Expect the First Week of Class First of all, welcome new students (and students returning from last year)! I’m looking forward to the upcoming 2022/2023 school year. Last year, part of my routine involved sending parents/caregivers and students a weekly summary on Fridays via email. These emails contained announcements and insights about the mini-lessons. (I love to write about gifted psychology and brainstorm useful journal questions for students. I don’t mind summarizing our mini-lessons at the end of the week so you can continue the discussion and deepen your reflections.) To streamline this process, I decided to create a blog. Please check here on Fridays for weekly updates, summaries, and optional homework. I also created a curriculum calendar and an easy place to access the class policy. Feel free to take a look around on this website! What You Can Expect the First Week of Class Photo For Homeroom Collage  It would be great if each