DYS Homeroom

“Criticism is something we can avoid easily by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing.” –attributed to Aristotle Humans, in general, do not like criticism. We often take it personally (as an attack on our character), even if the feedback is about a project of ours, a random action, or an opinion we need to refine. In general, we have a hard time separating ourselves from the “thing” being criticized.  Is it possible to handle criticism in a positive way? Yes. Our first natural reaction to criticism is to become defensive. However, if we can overcome this tendency, an entire new world of learning awaits on the other side. Instead of spending our time trying to justify whether or not the criticism was warranted, we can take a moment to give the content some thought and look for positive lessons. If your overall goal is to become a better person (or better student, better musician/athlete, artist, etc.), your first job is to realize some critical feedback directed at you will b

One common concern showing up in students I’ve worked with over the years is related to the social fear of appearing arrogant when they are highly gifted. Another common concern involves not being able to tolerate people who come off as arrogant with similar abilities… (Why on earth do they brag so much? I can do xxx and I’m not drawing attention to myself… What’s the deal?) This week we strived to tackle the tricky topic of “arrogance vs. confidence.” Opening Quotes: “He who truly knows has no occasion to shout.” - Leonardo da Vinci “A person is bound to lose when he talks about himself; if he belittles himself, he is believed; if he praises himself, he isn’t believed.” - Michel de Montaigne “A session of boasting won’t attract any real friends. It will set you up on a pedestal, however, making you a clearer target.” - Richelle E. Goodrich “If I seem to boast more than is becoming, my excuse is that I brag for humanity rather than for myself.” - Henry David Thoreau “If I cannot

Individuals who are highly gifted often experience their emotions in a heightened and intense manner. If students are uncomfortable with many of the emotions they’ve labeled “negative,” these emotions can metastasize and become a landmine for shame.  This week, we discussed how jealousy and frustration are natural parts of the human condition. We also worked on broadening our emotional vocabulary by distinguishing certain emotions from one another. Facts:  - Envy and jealousy are very different emotions  - Envy is when we want something another person has - Jealousy is when we fear losing a relationship or valued part of a relationship we already have  - Jealousy is not considered a singular emotion, but instead a “thinking response” to a feeling of anger, sadness, or fear.   - In children, jealousy most often relates to loss of parental attention or perceived special treatment of someone else. (I sometimes wonder if my own kids are jealous of you while I teach these classes - how odd?

Concerning the mini-lesson, this week we focused on common “maddening myths” about gifted education (see below). Students were presented with a myth and asked to break it down from their own perspective while being exposed to the “fact” in the Gifted Teen Survival Guide (sometimes I borrow from this excellent book in addition to the Gifted Kids Survival Guide). We used myth number four (“gifted kids are good at everything they do”) to segue into a discussion about twice-exceptionality. I let students know, even if they don’t identify as twice-exceptional themselves, they will encounter many students on their educational journey who do, and it’s beneficial to be aware of this definition and the specific challenges involved (see images below). We also discussed Famous 2e people in history (a brief list) and analyzed corresponding quotes. Hans Christian Andersen  Simone Weil  Mozart  Beethoven  Archimedes  Vincent van Gogh  Isaac Newton  Nikola Tesla  Einstein  Henry Cavendish In addition

Guiding Quotes: “Listening is an art that requires attention over talent, spirit over ego, others over self.” – Dean Jackson "Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply." – Stephen R. Covey "I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen." – Ernest Hemingway “Speaking is only valuable when it offers something better than silence.” - Someone who really liked silence Surprising Facts: In a study that analyzed adult conversations nine minutes long, in the segments recorded, the average length of silences varied from an average of .04 to .09 seconds. Most people are uncomfortable with silence. Most people make it less than 10 seconds before asking a question or saying something. The average person hears between 20,000 and 30,000 words during the course of a 24-hour period People are distracted while listening about 75% of the time. An estimated 85% of what we have learne

Because gifted students often feel things more intensely, they can experience sadness (and happiness!) on levels that are sometimes difficult for others to interpret. This week we touched on mental health as it relates to giftedness. We also touched on how mental health is just as important as physical health. Most of us have a "monster hall of fame” - a list of words we hold on to or negative events that happened that repeat in our heads (and give us a sneaky excuse to hold ourselves back). Human brain 101: Generally, in our day to day lives, everything we experience or see is subject to labeling, categorization, evaluation, and comparison. This is a process that unfolds automatically, and it is facilitated by our cognitive analysis functions. These processes happen without us being aware, which is very useful when it comes to problem solving. However, a problem arises when these mental processes that facilitate comparison and pass judgment are directed inwards. This typically

Emotions are connected to thinking. You are feeling an emotion at every point in time throughout your life. Of course, emotions such as “rage” will get our attention quicker than emotions such as “contentment,” but it’s important to acknowledge emotions are always there. That’s why learning to recognize and handle them can make a big difference regarding the quality of our life. When we work on improving in this area, we are working on what is known as emotional intelligence. EQ “Test” Questions: Do your feelings lead to actions that disrupt your relationships on a frequent basis? Can you adapt to change? Do your feelings interfere with your ideal self and cause you to hide (debilitating stage fright or avoidance of conflict would be an example of this)? Do you use intuition or do you ignore your gut? Can you name a wide range of feelings? Can you identify when they take place in you? People with high emotional intelligence understand themselves and their emotions. They understand how

From a high-performance perspective, alter-egos are proven to increase confidence (and performance) for writers, musicians, athletes, business owners, actors, and students. Why? This week we explored some studies behind "self-distancing" and put some thought into constructing our own "alter-egos" for various situations.  Study to illustrate the power of alter-egos: “A recent University of Minnesota of Minnesota study of four and six year old children found that to teach kids perseverance, parents should teach children to pretend to be like Batman or another favorite character because it creates psychological distance… The study split kids into three groups. The researchers put a toy in a locked glass box and gave the kids a ring of keys. The catch? No key worked. The researchers wanted to see how to improve the children’s executive functioning skills and were interested in seeing how long they would try to unlock the box and what they would try. To help the kids,

We experience stress when we are unsure about our ability to cope successfully with what is being asked of us. We experience stress when we process the outside world as unpredictable, uncontrollable, and too much.  Top 3 Sources of Mental Stress: 1. Overload (Too much to do and too little time to do it. For example, I don’t have enough time to study for this test because I have a different project due at the same time.) 2. Expectations (High expectations. For example, It’s important that I pass this test/Mom wants me to get 100%/I want to be perfect.) 3. Conflict (Conflict comes from two sources. Internal: I have to study for this test, but I want to do something else. External: The teacher wants me to study for this test, but I want to do something else.) Class discussion: Can you think of effective ways to handle these three sources of stress? We brainstormed specific advice for students in each cohort. Stress vs. Overwhelm Overwhelm represents an extreme level of stress where we

One of the five overexcitabilities recognized by Dabrowski in the mid-20th century was “sensual overexcitability” related to the five senses. Further research took off in the 1990s around this topic with the work of Dr. Elaine Aaron. Her theory discovered “high-sensitivity” as a trait common in about 15%-20% of humans as well as many animals. High-sensitivity is disproportionately present in individuals who are gifted. It also has a correlation with introversion (70% of individuals who are highly sensitive are also introverted while 30% are extroverted).  This week we discussed the topic of “super-sensing” and took some corresponding surveys related to super-hearing, super-sight, super-smell, super-touch, and super-taste. We also discussed the pros and cons of this trait. In order to continue the reflection, students can complete these optional activities: List several ways high sensitivity makes life better. List several ways high sensitivity makes life harder. Which list was easier f

Building off last week's topic involving executive functioning skills, this week students learned specific tips related to time management. First, we narrowed in on prioritization using the Eisenhower Matrix. Then we looked for examples in each quadrant relevant to students' daily lives. We then moved on to powerful tips related to executive functioning skills and tracking time for more self-awareness with long-term planning.  “Who can define for us with accuracy the difference between the long and short term! Especially whenever our affairs seem to be in crisis, we are almost compelled to give our first attention to the urgent present rather than to the important future.” — Dwight D. Eisenhower  “Freedom has been defined as the opportunity for self-discipline.” — Dwight D. Eisenhower  Accomplishments of Eisenhower:  34th president of the United States  Five-star general during World War II  Interstate Highway System  NASA  First significant civil rights legislation since the e