From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

FIGHT OVER GT, LD SERVICES. A mom and a school district in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, have been locked in a struggle for over a decade over services for her two sons, one of whom is evidently both gifted and LD. Services for both exceptionalities are part of the dispute. The mom wanted services and requested a number of due process hearings. According to an account of the dispute, the school district called the mom's behavior "vexatious." Read the account and form your own opinions...

FANTASY MOVIES FOSTER CREATIVITY? Researchers at Lancaster University in the UK say that watching fantasy movies such as Harry Potter films may improve their imagination and creativity. The subjects, aged four to six, reportedly performed "significantly better" on creativity tests after watching 15-minute clips from a Potter film. Read more.Separately, The New York Times reports that fiction can "stimulate the brain and even change how we act in life" -- this according to research involving brain scans. Read the article.

GIFTED TESTING IN THE UK. Gifted eleven-year-olds in the UK will be administered special "SATs," or national curriculum assessments, the results of which will be part of a school's performance. The rationale for the testing: to "encourage teachers to devote more time to high ability children," according to the Telegraph. NAGC in the UK supports the move. Read more.

DSM-V AND AUTISM. If you're following the debate over autism diagnosis in the upcoming DSM-V, you might be interested in an opinion piece/debate in New Scientist. Find it.

JACK KENT COOKE SCHOLARSHIPS. The application for 2012 scholarships through the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation is April 15. Eligible candidates come from low- to medium-income families and will start 8th grade this fall. Find out more. 

AD/HD AND FISH OIL An ADDitude online feature covers fish oil and other supplements as possible treatments for AD/HD. Find the feature.

WRIGHTSLAW. Special Ed Advocate takes on the issue of what to do when services specified in an IEP are not provided. Read more.

OCD WORKSHOP IN MANHATTAN. The Child Mind Institute has scheduled a family workshop on OCD on April 3 in the evening. Find out more.

ANXIETY IN DC. On April 17, Dr. Daniel Pine is scheduled to present "Current Thinking about Anxiety: The State of the Science." Read more.

EDUCATION WEEK is currently offering free downloads of some of its "Spotlight" sponsored white papers. They cover topics such as bullying, STEM, and personalized learning. Find them.

MORE AD/HD -- 66 percent more diagnosis in the past 10 years, as a matter of fact. An article at ScienceDaily attributes the change to increased awareness of the condition. Read it.

From the Publishers of 2e Newsletter

DISABILITIES IN THE U.S. The U.S. Census Bureau has released an analysis of disabilities in school-age children. About 2.8 million children (5.2 percent) were categorized as having a disability as defined by IDEA. Of those, perhaps 4.5 percent were cognitive disabilities. Find out more.

BLOCKS AS A LEARNING TOOL. A New York Times article about blocks in the classroom contained an anecdote about a presumably 2e child. After an apple-picking field trip, the child, described as a struggling second-grader, "went to the block corner and built an incredibly complex structure, a tractor engine, and she was able to talk about how all the parts moved,” according to a teacher, who continued: “We need to be looking at this student in a very different way.” Read the article.

WRIGHTSLAW'S current edition of Special Ed Advocate contains articles that might clear up certain questions and issues about RTI and how schools implement it. Find the issue.

AD/HD'S AFFECT ON MOMS is the topic of a study reviewed by David Rabiner in his Attention Research Update newsletter. As you might guess (or know), parenting a child with AD/HD can lead to stress, and the study documents how and when stress levels might elevate by taking an "electronic diary" approach to tracking events and stress. Find the newsletter.

EDUCATOR OF 2e HONORED. Ben Shifrin, Head of Jemicy School in Owings Mills, Maryland, was recently inducted to the Hall of Fame of the International Dyslexia Association (IDA). Jemicy School provides a highly individualized, flexible, and challenging education for above-average to gifted college-bound students with dyslexia or other related language-based learning differences. According to the IDA, Jemicy's philosophy is based upon building the academic and higher order thinking skills of bright young people through applied research and time-tested multisensory learning. Jemicy serves the whole child, celebrating each student's strengths while exploring individualized skills and strategies that will build the foundation for success in school and in life. Find more information here or here.

WORRIED ABOUT PSYCHIATRIC MEDS FOR KIDS? A member of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry has written an article for parents on concerns in children's meds, including "polypharmacy," when a child is on multiple psychiatric meds at the same time. Find the article.

AND FINALLY, THIS. A study has indicated that more creative people are more likely to cheat, but that there is no link between intelligence and cheating. According to the study authors, "people who are creative or work in environments that promote creative thinking may be the most at risk when they face ethical dilemmas." Got a creative kid? Find out more.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

AD/HD, ASD: SHARED GENETIC RISK. A new study has found that some genetic variants may be common between AD/HD and autism spectrum disorders. This could explain why some traits seem common in both conditions. Furthermore: "The research results could be reassuring for clinicians who may see characteristics of different neuropsychiatric conditions in their patients -- such as ASD-like social problems in a child with AD/HD -- but are concerned that they are over-interpreting these traits." Read more.

KIDS AND FACEBOOK. Time Magazine reports that kids who use Facebook frequently may earn lower grades, be more narcissistic, and be more prone to anxiety and depression. On the other hand, researchers have also noted beneficial effects on self-identity and empathy. Find out more.

RTI WORKING? A study indicates that response to intervention is widely used and can be effective in identifying -- and ameliorating -- LDs early. Read more, and find a link to the report "National Assessment of IDEA."

FINDING GIFTED UNDERACHIEVERS. The Victorian Association for the Gifted and Talented Children is holding its biennial conference in Melbourne on September 8-0. The theme: "Unmasking the possibilities." Find out more. 

SHYNESS. Got a shy and gifted kid? NPR recently aired a program dealing with shyness. From the blurb for the program:  "Medical treatment and therapy is widely available for social anxiety, but some argue that shyness is not a sickness. They say shy people listen better and have higher levels of empathy. A look at shyness, its evolutionary basis, and why it might be an asset." Find the program.

AND FINALLY, THIS. As the parent or educator of a gifted kid, you're probably interested in out-of-the-box thinking, perhaps because of the way you've been exposed to it by that child. Technology columnist David Poque writes about an assignment he gave to a business school class: invent a better, more usable digital watch. You might enjoy some of the creations. Read the column.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

EDUCATION WEEK has made available a special report called "Diplomas Count: Before High School, Before Baccalaureate" that explores alternatives to the standard four-year degree. Among the parts of the report is one called "College for All Reconsidered." Find the report.

WRIGHTSLAW offers strategies for finding summer programs and camps in its current edition of Special Ed Advocate. One article is on a social skills boot camp for teens with ASD. Find the newsletter.

LEARNING: TOP-D0WN VERSUS BOTTOM-UP. Education in school traditionally is based on learning rules, then applying them. Researchers are looking into the effectiveness of a method called "perceptual learning," which uses the brain's pattern-recognition skills to provide an intuitive grasp of a principle. From an article on the topic: "...there is growing evidence that a certain kind of training — visual, fast-paced, often focused on classifying problems rather then solving them — can build intuition quickly." Read the article and see if you think it might benefit your twice-exceptional student.  

THE HEADLINE TELLS SOME OF THE STORY: "Push for A's at Private Schools is Keeping Costly Tutors Busy." But you have to read the article to find out how much some parents are willing to spend for grades and academic achievement -- and it's a lot.  Read more.

OUTLET FOR CREATIVITY. We recently became aware of a website called Xtranormal.com, where visitors can create their own animated video by choosing characters, entering text to be spoken by those characters, and controlling other aspects of the animation. Some users have had videos "go viral" on YouTube. Find the site. (A caveat; this site is for teens. The site wants no users under 14 and asks minors to have their parents give permission. Furthermore, a sample video there was slightly risque, so check it out first and then use your best judgement. If you don't think it's suitable for your kid, maybe you'll have a good time creating your own animations.)

EDUCATION REFORM. If you're interested in this topic, check out an article in Fast Company magazine from a while back. The mag solicited 13 radical ideas on how to use $100 million "to really save education." The article isn't about gifted ed or education for 2e students, just education in general. Find it. 

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

2e ACHIEVER. Trudie Styler is an actress, filmmaker, mom, and partner of "Sting." According to the Huffington Post, Styler also struggled with AD/HD and dyslexia as a child. Like some parents, she got her own "official" labels when her children received them. In the article, read about familiar topics such as being lost at school, unsympathetic teachers, and family difficulties. In the end, of course, her strengths prevailed. Read more.

ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY is the latest school to make the news for its efforts to include students with disabilities such as ASD and other cognitive or social/emotional issues. Help includes a four-day camp for high-schoolers to acquaint them with the demands of college and coaching. Read more.

A CANADIAN FRIEND reminds us that Bright Math Camp is gearing up for the summer. It is to be held at Carleton University near Ottawa. Find out more.

DYSCALCULIA. The University College of London has released a paper on dyscalculia, supposedly as prevalent ( 7 percent) as dyslexia. An article in Science Daily provides a primer on the disorder and tips for dealing with it. Find the article.

AUTISM BIOMARKERS. Researchers have found distinctive gene expression patterns in the cerebral cortex of the brains of those with autism. An article in Science Daily quotes the researchers as as saying that the discovery was a common thread, even though individuals may have distinct immediate causes of their conditions. Read more.  

SMART, CREATIVE, AND ENTREPRENEURIAL? Drop out of college. PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel has established the Thiel Fellowship, where young people under 20 compete for a $100,000 grant along with mentorship in starting a company. The hitch? They must drop out of school. His goal is not to encourage everyone to drop out, but rather for students to consider their options. Find out more.

AND FINALLY, THIS. The head of an industrial design studio offered a seminar on design to middle-schoolers at the School at Columbia (University). The seminar, "Tools for Schools," became part of the curriculum, involving math, science, etc. Kids worked in teams on particular projects, doing research and coming up with ideas for improving the products they were assigned (the desk, the chair, the locker). The results were impressive, and the head of the School at Columbia stated, "This will transform how these kids think about education." Read why.

From the Publishers of 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter

ASPIES IN COLLEGE. NPR aired a story on how some colleges are helping students with Asperger's survive and thrive. Colorado State University, for example, has a program called "Opportunities for Post-secondary Success" that involves mentoring and other services. Find the story.

ON TV: LD GOING TO COLLEGE. ABC interviewed an educator who provided advice on steps to take when heading for college with an LD. No transcript, but embedded video is at this site.

EXERCISE BALLS AS CLASSROOM SEATS. Some schools have good results allowing students to sit on exercise balls to increase attention, fitness, and even handwriting. Read more about the experiences of some schools and educators.

HOW GENIUS WORKS is the title of a "culture special report" in Atlantic. Various creative minds -- TC Boyle, Paul Simon, Frank Gehry, Grant Achatz, and more -- explain the how and the process of creation. Find it.

AND FINALLY, THIS. Anyone who's argued with a toddler has likely tried to figure out techniques to shorten the discussion process. A charming video of a father negotiating with his son brought back to us memories of such negotiations. Watch it and laugh.