The Bright & Quirky Child Summit Program
Day 1: UNDERSTANDING YOUR UNIQUELY WIRED CHILD
Monday, January 28, 2019. Begins at 10 am ET/7 am PT
Ever wonder how to explain your bright & quirky child to a teacher, grandparent or other person in your child's village? Dr. Dan Peters shares a concise way to explain it. He also shares pearls of wisdom on raising twice exceptional (2e) kids and what to do in the heat of the moment when emotions run hot. Dr. Dan also talks in depth about what a neuropsych assessment is and what to do if you don't live near a clinician who 'gets' bright & quirky kids or if an assessment is out of the budget. He talks about how to run problem-solving experiments for your child's particular challenge and how to keep hopeful when life gets challenging.
Dan Peters, PhD, is a licensed psychologist who has devoted his career to the assessment, consultation and treatment of children, adolescents, and families, specializing in learning differences, anxiety, and issues related to giftedness and twice-exceptionality. He is passionate about helping parents and teachers engage children in the classroom, at home, and in life so that they can realize their full potential. Dr. Peters is co-founder and Executive Director of the Summit Center in California, and co-founder of Parent Footprint, an online interactive parent training program. He hosts the Parent Footprint Podcast with Dr. Dan, available on iTunes, Stitcher, Libsyn, and elsewhere. He is the author of Make Your Worrier a Warrior: A Guide to Conquering Your Child’s Fears, and other books. Dr. Peters blogs for Huffington Post and Psychology Today and writes and speaks on topics related to parenting, learning differences, and education.
RESOURCES:
Books:
Website & Social Media:
- http://drdanpeters.com/
- https://parentfootprint.com/
- https://www.facebook.com/parentfootprint/
- Podcast
- Videos and Webinars
Clinic:
According to Dr. Laura Kastner, the best parenting style for our bright and quirky kids features an ingenious blend of challenge and support. Easier said than done! Learn from Dr. Kastner how to adapt your parenting style to fit your child, including how to calibrate support with gentle “nudges,” especially when we have started to habituate to some of our child’s less-than-desirable behaviors. Dr. Kastner talks about how to:
- Use her C-A-L-M model to keep your cool and build a positive relationship with your child
- Replace being “right” as a parent with being “effective”
- Get more compliance from your 2e child by turning off the lectures and engaging them with the key skill of empathy
Dr. Kastner received her doctorate in Psychology from University of Virginia. Currently a clinical professor in the department of psychology and the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Washington, Dr. Kastner has also taught in pediatrics, adolescent medicine, and the medical school. The topics of her academic publications include adolescent sexuality, chronic illness, eating disorders, adolescent development, behavioral pediatrics and medical education. Dr. Kastner is a frequent speaker at conferences, workshops and forums on adolescent development and family relationships. She is an author of five books written for parents on child development and parenting. In her clinical practice, she sees children, adolescents, couples and families.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- Getting to Calm, The Early Years: Cool-headed Strategies for Raising Caring, Happy, and Independent 3-7 Year Olds
- Getting to Calm: Cool-Headed Strategies for Parenting Tweens + Teens
- Wise Minded Parenting: 7 Essentials for Raising Successful Tweens + Teens
Website & Social Media:
There's a reason Dr. Devon's recent video on Neurodiversity is going viral with over 28 million views. She offers a timely paradigm shift away from the deficit model and towards a universal acceptance and appreciation of neurodiversity as an evolutionary and societal advantage that is as critical to human existence as biodiversity. She unpacks the question so many of us ask - do we change our bright and quirky children to fit their environment, or do we change the environment to fit our child? Dr. Devon offers a poignant and fresh perspective that leaves parents feeling a sigh of relief, excited, and empowered to re-focus our efforts in ways that more closely reflect our individual family values, including what feels right for our 2e kids. The result is greater ease, fewer battles, and happier kids moving towards their greatest potential. If ever there was a talk to share with a friend or family member who you wish could understand your child a bit better, this is it!
Devon MacEachron, PhD is a licensed psychologist in private practice on the Upper East Side in Manhattan. She conducts psychoed and neuropsych assessments focused on uncovering the student’s complete profile of strengths and weaknesses as a learner in order to provide an action plan to families that simultaneously further develops strengths and interests while remediating and accommodating weaker skill areas. She is especially knowledgeable about twice-exceptional and gifted learners whose strengths often camouflage their weaknesses, resulting in unexpected performance below the student’s potential. She works with school-age students through young adults. She has an active social media presence on Facebook, Twitter, and blogs on giftedness, twice-exceptionality, being wired differently, the strengths associated with learning disabilities, achievement, and success.
RESOURCES:
Website & Social Media:
Dr. Dan Siegel shares a profound and fascinating approach to helping all 2e children, and especially those exhibiting symptoms of depression. Grounded in Interpersonal Neurobiology, Dr. Siegel shares concepts and strategies that impact a child's relational world, with both parents and peers, that have a significant effect on well-being through neurotransmitter functioning. Dr. Siegel discusses:
- The imperative of doing the "inside work" of parenting, including understanding your own expectations and childhood experiences, so you can be fully present and responsive to your child's needs
- How the boredom and disconnection many 2e students experience can promote depressive symptoms
- The significance of a child's sense of "belonging" with environments and like-minded humans, and how a parent can promote this (including evaluating current learning environments)
- To medicate or not? Dr. Siegel shares a few ideas on what to consider first before medicating your child's symptoms of depression.
(Look for Dr. Siegel's fascinating 'Prequel' on the science behind this subject in a separate talk called 'Deep Mechanisms of the 2e Brain' on Day 7, Session #5)
Dr. Siegel is a clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine and the founding co-director of the Mindful Awareness Research Center at UCLA. He is also the Executive Director of the Mindsight Institute which focuses on the development of mindsight, which teaches insight, empathy, and integration in individuals, families and communities. Dr. Siegel has published extensively for both the professional and lay audiences. His five New York Times bestsellers are: Aware: The Science and Practice of Presence, Mind: A Journey to the Heart of Being Human, Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain, and two books with Tina Payne Bryson, Ph.D:The Whole-Brain Child and No-Drama Discipline. His other books include: The Developing Mind(2ndEd.), Mindsight,The Mindful Brain, andThe Yes Brain (also with Tina Payne Bryson, PhD.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- Aware: The Science and Practice of Presence--The Groundbreaking Meditation Practice
- The Yes Brain: How to Cultivate Courage, Curiosity, and Resilience in Your Child
- Parenting from the Inside Out: How a Deeper Self-Understanding Can Help You Raise Children Who Thrive: 10th Anniversary
- The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind
- Mind: A Journey to the Heart of Being Human (Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology)
- No-Drama Discipline: The Whole-Brain Way to Calm the Chaos and Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind
- Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain
- The Developing Mind, Second Edition: How Relationships and the Brain Interact to Shape Who We Are
Website & Social Media:
Day 2: MANAGING EMOTIONAL INTENSITY, MELTDOWNS & BEHAVIOR
Tuesday, January 29, 2019. Begins at 10 am ET/7 am PT
Dr. Ross Greene dives right in giving us insight into his proven model for collaboratively and proactively identifying and solving our 2e children’s most challenging behaviors. His transformational model for understanding behavior as a symptom of unmet expectations and unsolved problems, followed by collaborative problem solving that is realistic and mutually satisfactory, will change how we think about and approach difficulties with our 2e kids. He talks specifically about challenges we see with our bright and quirky kids, from impulsivity and defiance to sensory issues, and how his model specifically applies to their unique lives. He ends by sharing how we can advocate for our kids needs in schools with the greatest chance of success.
Ross W. Greene, PhD, is the originator of the innovative, evidence-based approach called Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS), as described in his influential books The Explosive Child, Lost at School, Lost & Found, and Raising Human Beings. Dr. Greene was on the faculty at Harvard Medical School for over 20 years, and is now Founding Director of the non-profit Lives in the Balance. He is adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Virginia Tech and adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Science at the University of Technology in Sydney, Australia. Dr. Greene has worked with several thousand behaviorally challenging kids and their families, and he and his colleagues have overseen implementation and evaluation of the CPS model in hundreds of schools.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- The Explosive Child: A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated, Chronically Inflexible Children
- Lost at School: Why Our Kids with Behavioral Challenges are Falling Through the Cracks and How We Can Help Them
- Lost and Found: Helping Behaviorally Challenging Students (and, While You're At It, All the Others)
- Raising Human Beings: Creating a Collaborative Partnership with Your Child
- Treating Explosive Kids: The Collaborative Problem-Solving Approach
Website & Social Media:
- http://drrossgreene.com/
- https://www.
livesinthebalance.org/ paperwork - https://www.facebook.com/livesinthebalance/
Documentary:
Non-profit Organization:
Dr. Barry Prizant addresses common myths about the experience of people with Autism, and sheds light on what children on the Spectrum are communicating through their behaviors. He shares specific strategies for both preventing and responding to difficult behaviors with confidence.
He helps parents cultivate a deeper, more connected relationship with their 2e child by answering questions like:
- What is my child communicating through their behavior?
- How can I help them anticipate overwhelm, and self-regulate?
- What are the best strategies for creating a predictable environment
- within the reality of our fast paced life?
- How do I address the social challenges my child faces?
- How do we regulate video games and screen time?
Dr. Barry Prizant is recognized as one of the world’s leading scholars in autism spectrum disorders and communication disabilities, with more than 40 years experience as a researcher and international consultant for individuals with ASD and related disabilities. He is a certified Speech-Language Pathologist, an Adjunct Professor at Brown University, and Director of Childhood Communication Services, a private practice. He is a member of the Professional Advisory Board of the Autism Society of America. Publications include four books, 130 chapters and articles and The SCERTS Modelmanuals, an educational approach now being implemented in more than a dozen countries. Barry has presented more than 800 seminars and keynote addresses internationally. His most recent book is Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, winner of the 2017 Autism Society of America’s Temple Grandin Award for Outstanding Literary Work.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism
- The Scerts Model: A Comprehensive Educational Approach for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders (2 volume set)
Website & Social Media:
Carol, author of the renowned Out-of-Sync-Child, dives into Sensory Processing Disorder to help 2e parents understand exactly what is going on inside the body of their out of sync child. She explains the interconnectedness of sensory challenges with twice exceptionality, and offers pearls of wisdom across the board, including:
- Subtypes of SPD and if and how they show up in your child
- What each subtype needs in terms of sensory input or avoidance
- A wealth of strategies to help kids regulate and find their calm
- Answers for overwhelmed parents who are tired of worrying when the next “episode” will happen
During 25 years as a preschool teacher, Carol Stock Kranowitz introduced Sensory Processing Disorder to parents and educators around the world through her groundbreaking book, The Out-of-Sync Child. This first book in the “Sync” series has been translated into many languages, has sold one million copies, and is regularly among the top ten in booklists about children with disabilities. Her most recent book is, The Out-of-Sync Child Grows Up.Carol speaks nationally and internationally, explaining SPD’s effect on children’s learning and behavior and how families, teachers, therapists, and other professionals can help at home, at school, and out in the world. A graduate of Barnard College, Carol earned her master’s in Education and Human Development from The George Washington University. She lives in Bethesda, Maryland, plays the cello, and dotes on five grandchildren.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- The Out-of-Sync Child: Recognizing and Coping with Sensory Processing Disorder (The Out-of-Sync Child Series)
- Growing an In-Sync Child: Simple, Fun Activities to Help Every Child Develop, Learn, and Grow
- The In Sync Activity Card Book: 50 Simple Activities to Help Children Develop, Learn, and Grow!
- The Out-of-Sync Child Has Fun, Revised Edition: Activities for Kids with Sensory Processing Disorder (The Out-of-Sync Child Series)
- The Out-of-Sync Child Grows Up: Coping with Sensory Processing Disorder in the Adolescent and Young Adult Years (The Out-of-Sync Child Series)
Website & Social Media:
In this video, Dr. Laura dives into the heart of helping our child with self regulation. She talks about both preventative calming strategies as well as what to do in a red hot moment. Dr. Laura gives valuable advice about how to manage our own emotional reactions to our child’s meltdowns, and gives great ideas to refill our own tank so we can connect more lovingly and effectively with our children. Dr. Laura also talks about how to help your child through homework meltdowns and what the most powerful message is to give your child to restore a strong and loving connection with them.
Dr. Laura Markham
Dr. Laura Markham is the author of Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids:How To Stop Yelling and Start Connecting, Peaceful Parent, Happy Siblings:How To Stop the Fighting and Raise Friends for Life,and now her latest book, The Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids Workbook:Using mindfulness and connection to raise resilient, joyful children and rediscover your love of parenting. Dr. Laura earned her PhD in clinical psychology at Columbia University and has worked as a parenting coach with countless families across the world. Dr. Laura’s aspiration is to change the world, one child at a time, by supporting parents. The proud mother of two thriving young adults who were raised with her peaceful parenting approach, she lives with her husband in New York.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids Workbook: Using Mindfulness and Connection to Raise Resilient, Joyful Children and Rediscover Your Love of Parenting
- Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids: How to Stop Yelling and Start Connecting (The Peaceful Parent Series)
- Peaceful Parent, Happy Siblings: How to Stop the Fighting and Raise Friends for Life
Website & Social Media:
Course Offerings:
Day 3: NAVIGATING SCHOOL & LEARNING CHALLENGES
Wednesday, January 30, 2019. Begins at 10 am ET/7 am PT
Parents of 2e kids all know how difficult it can be to navigate the school system and to advocate for the needs of our very bright and quirky kids. Dr. Schuster carefully lays out a roadmap for both understanding and navigating this process. In his information packed talk, he answers pressing parent questions like:
- Where should parents start when kids begin to have trouble in school.
- What if my child needs both gifted ed, and special ed?
- How do I know what school environment is right for my child, and how do I know when it’s time for a change?
- What key players should I recruit to be on our “team” of advocates, and what roles will they play?
Kenneth Schuster, PsyD, is a neuropsychologist in the Learning and Development Center and Director of Clinical Training at the Child Mind Institute. Dr. Schuster has extensive experience conducting diagnostic evaluations, as well as neuropsychological, developmental, educational and personality assessments in children as young as 18 months and across the life span. He specializes in evaluating and working with individuals struggling with issues related to ADHD and learning disorders. He also provides individual psychotherapy, organizational skills support and writing remediation.
RESOURCES:
Website & Social Media:
Clinic Location:
- Child Mind Institute
101 East 56th Street, New York, NY 10022
Talk about a dream team! Moving from the traditional deficit model, Dr. Susan Baum and Dr. Robin Schader assert that the most helpful thing we can do is focus in on our 2e child’s strengths and interests, as this is the gateway to engagement, skill building, connection, and lifelong success. Rather than focusing on remediating weaknesses, they explain how to:
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Leverage strengths in order to build skills in other areas.
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Get around deficits and still meet or exceed expectations.
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Find the balance of developing talents without “dimming the light.”
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Implement Starting with Strength Days at your school.
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Use their Learning Print tool for strength assessments (at home or school).
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Bring more joy to your family, growing interests and becoming more connected.
Susan Baum, Ph.D. directs the 2e Center for Research and Professional Development at Bridges Academy. Susan is widely published in the field of gifted education including her seminal book (in its 3rd edition), To Be Gifted and Learning Disabled. Her expertise in twice exceptionality earned her many awards including the Weinfield Group’s, Lifetime Achievement Award, Connecticut Association for Gifted’s Friend of the Gifted Award, and Distinguish Professional Alumni Award from the UCONN School of Education.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- To Be Gifted and Learning Disabled: Strength-Based Strategies for Helping Twice-Exceptional Students With LD, ADHD, ASD, and More (3rd)
- Multiple Intelligences in the Elementary Classroom: A teacher's toolkit
- Creativity 1, 2, 3
Website & Social Media:
Robin Schader received her Ph.D. in Gifted and Talented Education from the University of Connecticut. Her work and research focus on talent development, particularly with respect to the role of parents. Dr. Schader served as Parent Resource Specialist for the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) for ten years. Robin is currently a trustee of Bridges Academy, a school for 2e students, as well as on the executive board of the 2e Center for Research and Professional Development.This past year, Susan Baum and Robin Schader published the award-winning 3rd edition of To Be Gifted and Learning Disabled: Strength-Based Strategies for Helping Twice-Exceptional Students with LD, ADHD, and More.
RESOURCES:
Books:
Website & Social Media:
No matter what all we do to support our kids outside of school, whether or not our kids are getting the most out of their education remains a continual source of worry and fear. Dr. Barry Prizant offers strategies and solutions to navigating the IEP and 504 process, stemming from years of consulting with schools and families on how best to accommodate and support 2e students. In his talk, Dr. Prizant explains:
- How to help your child's teacher understand their unique gifts and challenges
- Quick and easy ways for teachers to meet the individual needs of even their most challenging students.
- How parents can approach school meetings with assertiveness, but not aggression.
- How to identify exactly what supports your child needs, and then the best way to advocate for them.
- When a change of school environment might be necessary.
Dr. Barry Prizant is recognized as one of the world’s leading scholars in autism spectrum disorders and communication disabilities, with more than 40 years experience as a researcher and international consultant for individuals with ASD and related disabilities. He is a certified Speech-Language Pathologist, an Adjunct Professor at Brown University, and Director of Childhood Communication Services, a private practice. He is a member of the Professional Advisory Board of the Autism Society of America. Publications include four books, 130 chapters and articles and The SCERTS Modelmanuals, an educational approach now being implemented in more than a dozen countries. Barry has presented more than 800 seminars and keynote addresses internationally. His most recent book is Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, winner of the 2017 Autism Society of America’s Temple Grandin Award for Outstanding Literary Work.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism
- The Scerts Model: A Comprehensive Educational Approach for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders (2 volume set)
Website & Social Media:
Founder of the wildly popular Art of Problem Solving, Richard Rusczyk walks us down the career path for our bright and quirky kids who only receive traditional math instruction in school. He shares his personal journey, his reason for nearly quitting, and the transformation that shifted his entire trajectory. He explains:
- What traditional math instruction is all about, and why it isn’t enough.
- How the Art of Problem Solving transforms the way we think about not just math problems, but any problem at all.
- How this translates to a successful, reliable career path.
- The social and emotional benefits of connecting with peers around shared interests, like in his Art of Problem Solving groups.
Art of Problem Solving was founded by Richard Rusczyk in 2003 to create interactive educational opportunities for avid math students. Richard is one of the co-authors of the Art of Problem Solving classic textbooks, author of Art of Problem Solving's Introduction to Algebra, Introduction to Geometry, and Precalculus textbooks, co-author of Art of Problem Solving's Intermediate Algebra and Prealgebra, one of the co-creators of the Mandelbrot Competition, and a past Director of the USA Mathematical Talent Search. He was a participant in National MATHCOUNTS, a three-time participant in the Math Olympiad Summer Program, and a USA Mathematical Olympiad winner (1989). He received the World Federation of National Mathematics Competitions Paul Erdös Award in 2014. He graduated from Princeton University in 1993, and worked as a bond trader for D.E. Shaw & Company for four years. AoPS marks Richard's return to his vocation - educating motivated students.
RESOURCES:
Books:
Website & Social Media:
Course Offerings:
Schools & Learning Centers:
We all know that failure is a part of life that we learn and grow from, yet many of our 2e kids have low tolerance for failure and shut down at obstacles. From struggling student to PhD scientist, Collin shares his inspiring personal journey of overcoming learning differences to finding success doing what he loves! Collin talks about the ingredients that came together for him, from his own acceptance of his learning differences, to creating a resilient mindset that could tolerate failure, to learning how to self-advocate. Collin’s sometimes bumpy road to success was paved in personal perseverance and wonderful support from others, including parents, tutors, and teachers. Grab your older 2e kid and listen to this talk together for inspiration and motivation. In identifying with Collin’s journey, it may help generate new ideas and approaches to the roadblocks currently in your child’s way.
Dr. Collin Diedrich has a PhD in Molecular Virology and Microbiology from University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, a Certificate in Disability Legal Studies from University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and is a postdoctoral associate researching how HIV changes immunological responses to tuberculosis. Prior to his current position, Dr. Diedrich was a postdoctoral fellow at University of Cape Town in South Africa for approximately 3 years. Dr. Diedrich has multiple learning disabilities and is an advocate and professional speaker for students who have learning disabilities. He is also the founder and president of a newly formed non-profit, Learning Disabilities Association of Pennsylvania that will provide services to students and adults with learning disabilities and those affected by them. You can read more about Dr. Diedrich on his personal website: www.ldphd.org
Books:
- Dr. Diedrich is currently writing a memoir. It’s in its second draft. If you are interested in learning more please email Dr. Diedrich directly at: collin@ldphd.org or visit his personal website.
Website & Social Media:
Day 4: MANAGING SOCIAL CHALLENGES & BUILDING COMMUNITY
Thursday, January 31, 2019. Begins at 10 am ET/7 am PT
Dr. Garcia Winner dives into her Social Thinking system and how to apply it specifically to our 2e kids. She teaches us how to lovingly coach our kids to socially attend, interpret, problem solve, and respond and engage with peers and social groups. She tackles the complexity of tech use and managing our 2e kids’ digital lives with intention and balance. She teaches us how to encourage our child’s innate “inner coach” and support the development of a positive, solution oriented mindset. Her strategies for teaching our kids how to navigate and problem solve social challenges and then engage in meaningful ways is uplifting and hopeful, even for the most shy and introverted 2e kids.
Michelle Garcia Winner, MA, CCC-SLP,is the founder and CEO of Social Thinking, an organization dedicated to teaching social competencies through clinical work, international trainings, award-winning publications and the development of unique treatment strategies. She is a creative therapist, renowned speaker, and prolific author known for her ability to break down and organize abstract social concepts and teach them in concrete ways. Michelle’s work guides professionals and family members around the world on improving social competencies in individuals for greater success in life—socially, academically, and vocationally.She was featured as the therapist in the 2016 Sundance Documentary, Life Animated, and was honored with a Congressional Recognition Award in 2008.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- You Are a Social Detective
- Thinking About You, Thinking About Me
Website & Social Media:
- https://www.facebook.com/socialthinking/
- https://www.socialthinking.com/Articles?name=Social-Competency-Model
Temple shares both her personal and professional strategies for stretching our differently wired kids in order to broaden and build on interests, translating them into necessary life and career skills. She explains how to tackle resistance and fear based rigidity, giving 2e kids a sense of control through choice, playing on interests, and reframing even the most mundane or scary tasks to make them more approachable. She talks about the critical “loving push” that our bright and quirky kids need to build confidence and skills that will translate into a career, while naturally attracting like minded friends and coworkers.
Mary Temple Grandin (born August 29, 1947) is an American professor of animal science at Colorado State University, consultant to the livestock industry on animal behavior, and autism spokesperson. She is one of the first individuals on the autism spectrum to publicly share insights from her personal experience of autism. She invented the "hug box" device to calm those on the autism spectrum. In the 2010 Time 100, an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, she was named in the "Heroes" category. She was the subject of the Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning semi-biographical film Temple Grandin.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- Calling All Minds: How To Think and Create Like an Inventor
- The Autistic Brain
- Thinking in Pictures, Expanded Edition: My Life with Autism
- The Way I See It: A Personal Look at Autism & Asperger's: 32 New Subject Revised & Expanded, 4th Edition
- Unwritten Rules of Social Relationships: Decoding Social Mysteries Through the Unique Perspectives of Autism: New Edition with Author Updates
Website & Social Media:
Want to know the secret of creating a culture of acceptance and psychological safety for any size group of 2e persons? Take advice from Mike Cantlon who created the residential camp Satori for gifted kids that was founded over 35 years ago and still thrives every summer on a college campus in Washington State. Whether it's a classroom, interest group, or even your own family, learn from Mike what the most important ingredients are for creating a caring and accepting environment where members feel a deep sense of belonging, valued as unique and complex individuals. This is the basis for the culture we are creating in Bright & Quirky's own IdeaLab!
Mike Cantlon has dedicated his career to improving the learning environment of gifted and talented students and to helping people better understand the unique needs of highly capable children. He developed and implemented programs for gifted students in Washington State. He created a residential summer camp for gifted students grades 6-12 called Satori, hosted at Eastern Washington University. In Spokane Public Schools, Cantlon was instrumental in the identification of highly capable students. He has been an adjunct instructor at Eastern Washington University. He has presented at many institutes and symposiums for local colleges and school districts, as well as internationally, helping educators develop and better understand the importance of higher level questioning strategies when teaching gifted students.
RESOURCES:
Website & Social Media:
Dr. Kaufman offers a refreshing reframe of what intelligence truly looks like and how it relates to quirkiness. He shares his thoughts on diagnoses and how we can best frame and use them towards reaching full potential. He shares key insights into building confidence in our 2e kids, from finding their niche to contributing to the world in authentic ways. He speaks about “flow state” as the interconnection of grit, interest, and energy, and how we can encourage our 2e child’s engagement in these ways. He speaks about the power of our admiration, and parts with wisdom for parents that leaves us feeling both motivated and validated.
Scott Barry Kaufman is a psychologist at Barnard College, Columbia University who is interested in using psychological science to help all kinds of minds live a creative, fulfilling, and meaningful life. Kaufman has over 60 scientific publications on intelligence, creativity, personality, and well-being. In addition to writing the column Beautiful Minds for Scientific American, he also hosts The Psychology Podcast, which was named by Business Insider a podcast that “will change how you think about human behavior.” Kaufman is author and/or editor of 8 books, including Twice Exceptional: Supporting and Educating Bright and Creative Students with Learning Difficulties, Wired to Create: Unravelling the Mysteries of the Creative Mind (with Carolyn Gregoire), Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined, and The Complexity of Greatness: Beyond Talent or Practice. Kaufman received a PhD in cognitive psychology from Yale University, and an M. Phil in experimental psychology from the University of Cambridge under a Gates Cambridge Scholarship.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- Wired to Create: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Creative Mind
- Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined
- Twice Exceptional: Supporting and Educating Bright and Creative Students with Learning Difficulties
Website & Social Media:
Day 5: INCREASING FOCUS, MOTIVATION & EXECUTIVE FUNCTION
Friday, February 1, 2019. Begins at 10 am ET/7 am PT
Dr. Hallowell treats us to his personal journey from a young boy with ADHD and several Adverse Childhood Experiences, to becoming a wildly successful husband, father, psychiatrist, author, and speaker. He shows us the keys to unlocking confidence, connection, strength, and community for our bright kids with ADHD. He speaks to the challenges of raising these bright and quirky kids, and offers supportive strategies for thriving as their parents.
Edward (Ned) Hallowell, MD, is a board-certified child and adult psychiatrist, a thought leader, a NY Times bestselling author, a world-renowned keynote speaker and a leading authority in the field of ADHD. He is the Founder of The Hallowell Centers in Boston MetroWest, New York City, San Francisco and Seattle. He is a graduate of Harvard College and Tulane Medical School and was a Harvard Medical School faculty member for 21 years. Dr. Hallowell now devotes his full professional attention to his clinical practice at the Hallowell Centers, speaking to audiences around the world, writing books and hosting the Distraction podcast. He has authored 20 books on various psychological topics, including ADHD (and the 1994 Driven to Distraction that sparked a revolution in our understanding of ADHD), the power of human connection, the childhood roots of adult happiness, how to help your people SHINE, forgiveness, managing worry and managing your “crazy busy” lives. His Memoir, Because I Come From A Crazy Family The Making Of A Psychiatrist was released June 12, 2018.
RESOURCES:
Books:
- Driven to Distraction (Revised): Recognizing and Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder
- Because I Come from a Crazy Family: The Making of a Psychiatrist
- Delivered from Distraction: Getting the Most out of Life with Attention Deficit Disorder
- Superparenting for ADD: An Innovative Approach to Raising Your Distracted Child:
- The Childhood Roots of Adult Happiness: Five Steps to Help Kids Create and Sustain Lifelong Joy:
Website & Social Media:
Clinics:
- Boston, NYC, San Francisco, Seattle http://www.drhallowell.com/the-hallowell-centers/
Elaine understands that parents of bright kids with ADHD often feel chaos, frustration, and overwhelm. She shows us her proven strategies for handling any challenging situation with ease, and how to take aim to reach specific goals with realistic expectations. She shows us how to include our 2e child in this process to guarantee success while building their self-management and decision making skills. Elaine gets us asking the right kinds of questions that will shift the family dynamic from chaos to calm, meeting our 2e kids where they are at and creating lasting change for the whole family.
Elaine Taylor-Klaus, PCC, CPCC -- certified coach, author, co-Founder of ImpactADHD®, and co-creator of Sanity School®. A sought after speaker for parents and educators, Elaine provides training, coaching and support for parents and teachers of “complex” kids -- around the globe, online and on the phone. A lifelong advocate for public health, Elaine has served on Georgia’s Governor’s Council for Maternal and Infant Health and as a parent advisor for the American Academy of Pediatrics. Regularly featured in ADDitude and Attention magazines, she is the co-author of Parenting ADHD Now! Easy Intervention Strategies to Empower Kids with ADHD, and the mother of 3 young adults an ADHD Family of 5. Find a wealth of resources on her award-winning blog at ImpactADHD.com.
RESOURCES:
Books:
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Guide:
Seth Perler’s upbeat, solution oriented talk is packed with easy to implement strategies to help your struggling student overcome disorganization, incomplete and late work, resistance, and lack of motivation. He explains how to implement his signature program called the Sunday Night Overhaul, and how to tackle the resistance that we so commonly face when trying to help our 2e learners. He shows parents how to find the sweet spot of providing challenge just beyond their comfort zone, without pushing them over the edge. Seth Perler’s strategies have time and time again shifted the trajectory of kids on the path to failure, and re-aligned them with success, motivation, and confidence.
Seth Perler is an Executive Function & 2e Coach in Boulder, CO, who helps make life easier for students who struggle with homework, motivation, underachievement, organization, grades, focus, study skills, time management, emotions, overwhelm & resistance. He empowers these complicated, misunderstood, outside-the-box, neurodiverse learners to turn it around in a baffling system, so they can launch a successful future. His SethPerler.com blog gives parents and teachers game-changing answers in a sea of misguided educational fluff.
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In his talk, Ashanti Branch drills to the heart of the human experience that we can all relate with - not feeling seen, valued, or understood. He understands the challenges kids of color, often young boys, as well as many of our bright and quirky kids face when they are viewed from a deficit lens. He shares tools, strategies, exercises, and community involvement ideas that all aim to:
- Get even your most shut down or reluctant kids to open up
- Increase self-awareness and self-acceptance
- Get them more involved in things they are interested in
- Elevate strengths and naturally raise self-confidence
- Find their path and become alive!
Ashanti Branch works to change how young men of color interact with their education and how their schools interact with them. Raised in Oakland by a single mother on welfare, Ashanti left the inner city to study civil engineering at Cal Poly – San Luis Obispo. A construction project manager in his first career, his life changed after he tutored struggling students and realized his passion for teaching. In 2004, during Ashanti’s first year teaching high school math, he started The Ever Forward Club to provide support for African American and Latino males who were not achieving to their potential. Since then, Ever Forward has helped all of its more than 150 members graduate from high school, and 93% of them have gone on to attend two- or four-year colleges, military or trade school.
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Other Resources:
- 100 Masks Challenge
- Understanding Our Youth: A Dialog with Teenagers
- Big Ideas Fest 2014: Young Men’s Emotional Toolbox
Day 6: CALMING STRESS, ANXIETY & PERFECTIONISM
Saturday, February 2, 2019. Begins at 10 am ET/7 am PT
Lisa Van Gemert shares her very personal journey battling perfectionism, and the keys she discovered to unlock the stranglehold her perfectionism had over her life and relationships. She explains critical strategies to help parents join with their perfectionist child, challenge their extreme beliefs and fears, and to empower them to have more rational and balanced self-talk. Lisa explains the dangers of learned helplessness and gives us language to talk to our kids about their fears, how they can get unstuck, and ultimately build the resilience that leads to a happier, more balanced life.
Using a combination of neuropsychology, pedagogy, experience, humor, technology and sheer fun, Lisa Van Gemert shares best practices in education with audiences around the world. She is an expert consult to television shows including Lifetime’s "Child Genius," and a writer of award-winning lesson plans, as well as numerous published articles on social psychology and pedagogy and the Legacy Award winning book, Perfectionism: A Practical Guide to Managing Never Good Enough. A former teacher, school administrator, and Youth & Education Ambassador for Mensa, she shares resources for educators and parents on her website giftedguru.com. Lisa and her husband Steve are the parents of three sons and live in Arlington, Texas
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Anxiety and being a 2e kid can sometimes go hand-in-hand. Rachel Busman gets to the heart of what our 2e kids need from us to help them manage worry and anxious thoughts by meeting them where they are and stretching the comfort zone. In this talk you will learn:
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- What to do with your child’s anxiety triggers - avoid or lean in?
- The difference between accommodating, rescuing, and enabling your child’s anxious thoughts and behaviors
- How “exposure” to anxious situations, when properly planned for and practiced, can help reduce your child’s anxiety level
- How to set a “time and place” for anxious worries
- At what point anxiety or worry is a problem and when professional help is needed
Rachel Busman, PsyD, is the senior director of the Anxiety Disorders Center and director of the Selective Mutism Service at the Child Mind Institute. She leads a team of clinicians providing evaluation and innovative treatment to children with selective mutism. She has extensive experience providing cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to children, teenagers and young adults struggling with anxiety disorders, school difficulties and behavioral problems. She also has specific interest and expertise in the evaluation and treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder, separation anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder and specific phobias.
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Clinic:
- Child Mind Institute
101 East 56th Street, New York, NY 10022
Dr. Denise Pope brings a wealth of information about what 2e children need to thrive, from re-evaluating our definition of success to creating a nurturing home environment. Dr. Pope shares research about the three “protective factors” that have significant bearing on a child’s happiness and well-being: playtime, downtime, and family time. She also shares what schools can do differently to cultivate engagement and authentic learning, as well as how parents can be an effective advocate for their child at school. Additionally, Dr. Pope shares research from Stanford on college “fit” that provides optimism for non-traditional learners and reduces the stress of the pre-college process for both student and parent.
Denise Pope, PhD, is a Senior Lecturer at the Stanford University Graduate School of Education, where she specializes in student engagement, curriculum studies, qualitative research methods, and service learning. She is co-founder of Challenge Success, a research and intervention project that provides schools and families the tools they need to raise healthy, motivated students. She is the author of, "Doing School": How We Are Creating a Generation of Stressed Out, Materialistic, and Miseducated Students and lead author of Overloaded and Underprepared: Strategies for Stronger Schools and Healthy, Successful Kids. Dr. Pope is a 3-time recipient of the Stanford University School of Education Outstanding Teacher and Mentor Award.
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Books:
- Overloaded and Underprepared: Strategies for Stronger Schools and Healthy, Successful Kids
- Doing School: How We Are Creating a Generation of Stressed-Out, Materialistic, and Miseducated Students
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In her talk, Patty Wipfler offers her deeply rooted wisdom and expertise in how to build and repair a trusting and connected relationship with even our most challenging 2e children. From her explanation of connection from a physiological perspective, to her very loving, compassionate approach to empathy and understanding, Patty covers all the barriers to connection and how to overcome some of the biggest frustrations we face as parents. She discusses self-care in a refreshing lens that is both practical and undeniably effective. Patty’s approach is rooted in such positivity, understanding, and respect that it leaves us wishing we had her in our back pockets in all of our most red hot moments!
Patty Wipfler is the author of Listen: Five Simple Tools to Meet Your Everyday Parenting Challenges, and Founder of the nonprofit Hand in Hand Parenting. During her 40 years of work with parents and children Patty Wipfler has developed a revolutionary parenting approach based on a fresh understanding of the way relationships in the family affect children's behavior and ability to learn. Over 800,000 of her Listening to Children booklets have been sold in English, Spanish, and 10 other languages. The Hand in Hand team currently trains parent leaders in the US and 10 other countries, and offers parents accessible support for the vital work of parenting.
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Books:
- Listen: Five Simple Tools to Meet Your Everyday Parenting Challenges
- Parenting by Connection: The Complete Set
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Day 7: PARENTING COMPLEX BRIGHT & QUIRKY KIDS
Sunday, February 3, 2019. Begins at 10 am ET/7 am PT
Parenting a 2e kid is a long game and often a journey of acceptance. Debbie provides a valuable roadmap in this process by sharing three valuable “tilts,” which are transformative mindshifts that help us bridge the painful disconnects between expectations and reality:
- Stop fighting who your child is and lean in - how to see your child as a “whole” being and meet and support them where they are
- Let your child be on their own timetable - they are not broken! How to work with your own insecurities about your child’s unique timeline.
- Practice relentless self care - how to get beyond the guilt and understand the value of self care in as little as 10 minutes a day
Debbie Reber is a parenting activist, New York Times bestselling author, podcast host, and speaker who moved her career in a more personal direction in 2016 when she founded TiLT Parenting, a website, weekly podcast, and social media community for parents like her who are raising differently wired children. The TiLT Parenting Podcast has grown to be a top podcast in iTunes’ Kids and Family category, with more than 600,000 downloads and a slate of guests that includes high-profile thought leaders across the parenting and education space. A regularly contributor to Psychology Today and ADDitude Magazine, Debbie’s newest book is Differently Wired: Raising an Exceptional Child in a Conventional World (Workman Publishing, 2018).
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Parenting complex kids can be an exhausting and bumpy ride. Kate and Jen have harnessed powerful learning through their own journeys and education, and created a parent self-care road map including a “parenting survival toolkit,” that is a saving grace for countless 2e parents. Kate and Jen address some of the most challenging parenting concerns from guilt and insecurity, to judgment and overwhelm. Kate and Jen are an upbeat and validating duo that believes in the power of connecting with other parents on similar paths, and the key to thriving vs surviving - feeling truly listened to, and exactly how to get that need met.
Kate Arms, JD, CPCC, ACC, is a leadership and life coach at Signal Fire Coaching, writer, and teacher. As a coach, she specializes in helping gifted, sensitive, and creative people harness their many passions and sensitivities and use that energy to thrive at work and home. She runs the Thrive with Intensity programs and developed the Side by Side Model of Healthy Relationships. She is the parent of four gifted kids, three of whom are twice-exceptional and a different three of whom are triplets. Her parenting journey has included periods of reluctant homeschooling and advocacy within public and private school systems.
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- http://parentsoftwiceexceptionalkids.com/
- https://www.thrivewithintensity.com/
- https://www.signalfirecoaching.com/
Jen Merrill is a writer, blogger, flutist, and gifted family advocate. The mom of two boys, she homeschools her twice-exceptional teen while happily sending his brother off to high school every morning. She is a music educator by trade, with degrees in music education and flute performance. Jen justifies those degrees with a large private flute studio and as principal flute of the North Suburban Wind Ensemble. In addition to writing on her long-time blog, Laughing at Chaos, she can be found at An Intense Life, and has published articles in the Understanding Our Gifted Journal, the 2e Newsletter, and the Huffington Post.
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Dr. Nicole Tetreault addresses the dangers of over identifying with diagnoses, and calls out Neurodiversity as the “new normal.” She explains the most up to date research in neuroscience and the critical gut-brain connection, and how these new findings are shifting the way we think about behavior. Dr. Tetreault dives into specific strategies for nurturing our children’s brains and bodies, and helps us understand the science of how these practices profoundly improve behavior and sense of calm.
Dr. Nicole A. Tetreault is a neuroscientist, researcher, author, and speaker who specializes in neurodevelopment and neurodegenerative disorders. She received her Ph.D. from California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in neuroscience. As the founder of Awesome Neuroscience (nicoletetreault.com), she is dedicated to translating the promise of neuroscience and positive psychology for gifted people to live the best quality of life. Dr. Tetreault has authored many peer-reviewed scientific papers on the topics of gifted experience, inflammation in autism, brain evolution, neuroanatomy, neuroinflammation, brain development, behavior, and cell function. Most recently, she has focused her efforts on studying the gifted experience, which encompasses the brain and body connection, by investigating the latest neuroscience, psychology, and physiology research. Her forthcoming book on the neuroscience of giftedness and the gifted experience, Feeling Color: An Insight into a Bright Mind, will be released by Great Potential Press in 2019.
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- https://www.nicoletetreault.com/
- https://twitter.com/awesomeneuro?lang=en
- https://medium.com/@AwesomeNeuro
- https://www.greatpotentialpress.com/authors/nicole-tetreault-ph-d
Olivia speaks to the silent grief and isolation that parents often feel, especially when we just learn about our child’s diagnosis for the first time. Combining her experience as an OT with her Family Therapy practice, and her own journey as a 2e mom, Olivia understands the emotional bandwidth that it takes to parent a bright and quirky child. Olivia offers her unique approach to parental self-care and the importance of prioritizing our own needs as parents. In following her self-care model, parents model ways to recharge, become more present, happier, and connected. Olivia addresses the constant guilt and fear of “I am not doing enough for my child”, and teaches us how to combat these disruptive and unhelpful thoughts, and to concentrate on what matters most – our connection with our kids.
Olivia Martinez-Hauge, MA, is a marriage and family therapist associate who, for the past eighteen years, has worked within the private sector and public school systems as a pediatric occupational therapist. She works with Tina Payne Bryson at the Center for Connection in Pasadena, California. Occupational therapy is a helping profession, which she chose in order to help children with special needs attain or regain function and achieve their true potential. In 2007, she gave birth to a daughter with significant special needs. The stories of these families became her reality. As she traveled through this unpredictable journey she experienced the ebb and flow of feelings, thoughts, and emotions associated with parental expectations.
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Ready for a deep brain dive with Dr. Dan Siegel? In a prequel to his talk that aired on Day 1, Dr. Siegel explains the brain mechanisms of the "differently wired" child. Dr. Siegel talks about the three step process - how the brain makes categories, concepts, and linguistic symbols - and how these things determine how our brain perceives the world in a different way. Dr. Siegel teaches us to celebrate children whose brains don't conform to the category and concept "norms" in the world, and whose brain has the gift of automatically thinking outside of the box!
Dr. Siegel is a clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine and the founding co-director of the Mindful Awareness Research Center at UCLA. He is also the Executive Director of the Mindsight Institute which focuses on the development of mindsight, which teaches insight, empathy, and integration in individuals, families and communities. Dr. Siegel has published extensively for both the professional and lay audiences. His five New York Times bestsellers are: Aware: The Science and Practice of Presence, Mind: A Journey to the Heart of Being Human, Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain, and two books with Tina Payne Bryson, Ph.D:The Whole-Brain Child and No-Drama Discipline. His other books include: The Developing Mind(2ndEd.), Mindsight,The Mindful Brain, andThe Yes Brain (also with Tina Payne Bryson, Ph.D).
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Books:
- Aware: The Science and Practice of Presence--The Groundbreaking Meditation Practice
- The Yes Brain: How to Cultivate Courage, Curiosity, and Resilience in Your Child
- Parenting from the Inside Out: How a Deeper Self-Understanding Can Help You Raise Children Who Thrive: 10th Anniversary
- The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind
- Mind: A Journey to the Heart of Being Human (Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology)
- No-Drama Discipline: The Whole-Brain Way to Calm the Chaos and Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind
- Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain
- The Developing Mind, Second Edition: How Relationships and the Brain Interact to Shape Who We Are
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