Gifted Jaguars and Eagles

November 4, 2021 Dear Parents and Guardians of DA 10 cohort, We have noticed that this semester is significantly more difficult for some of our DAHS students than previous years. We appreciate that many of you answered the survey the GT department sent out. The data demonstrated what we are seeing in class - we have a wide range of experiences right now in the DA STEM program and some of our students are very stressed. What we are seeing in Bloomington is similar to the experiences of educators (including other AP teachers and gifted advocates) across the country. Many of our students are struggling in ways which hadn’t manifested in pre-pandemic times. We are now seeing many members of our cohort struggle with self-regulation, the ability to focus on their work, their ability to ask questions, their ability to work with peers on an academic task, and are struggling with issues of depression and anxiety. We want to be responsive and support our gifted learners. I have met wit...

I'm gearing up for the fall and for working with students the next couple of weeks on study skills both at KHS' upcoming AP Boot Camp and DAHS orientation.  https://www.edutopia.org/article/study-strategies-beyond-memorization?utm_source=Edutopia+Newsletter&utm_campaign=177ffcde0c-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_080719_enews_whyattendance&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_f72e8cc8c4-177ffcde0c-83435023

This was one of my favorite quotes, "Many gifted children struggle with failure. The trouble, Kendall explains, is that if you’re known for being a brainbox you don’t have to try, and so don’t build up resilience. She works with many bright children who “won’t put pen to paper”. At workshops she runs for gifted children, the kids sometimes play Twister, a game where players contort themselves over a mat covered with coloured dots. “They’re in hysterics,” Kendall says. “You can’t get it right so you’re teaching them to do something just for the joy of it.” https://www.1843magazine.com/features/the-curse-of-genius

I read this article recently and it really connected with me as we are currently doing MCA/MAP testing and preparing for the AP exams in May.  https://www.edutopia.org/artic le/building-metacognition- test-prep

For our 9th graders they are finishing their first week of high school finals and then in 2 weeks they will wrap up their first college semester!  I have been looking for articles to help them improve their metacognition and study skills and found this one: https://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2017/11/22/a-better-way-to-study-through-self-testing-and-distributed-practice/

Metacognition is the #1 thing I work on with the DAHS students.  What I have learned from four years of working with Dimensions Academy is that gifted students struggle with studying and figuring out whether they have mastered material before the test. Our program is one of the first times these students have had to study.  This article has some great study strategies but it is not just for gifted learners.  These strategies work for all kids to improve their studying. https://www.edutopia.org/article/how-metacognition-boosts-learning?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=socialflow