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Author: seng_derek

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seng_derek

Education & Homeschooling
seng_derek

Advisory Programs: Improving the Social-Emotional Needs of Gifted Students

Advisory programs foster sustained teacher–student relationships that support gifted adolescents’ socioemotional development. When advisors tailor curricula and provide consistent adult support, gifted students receive coping strategies for perfectionism, isolation, and related challenges, improving belonging, help-seeking, and academic outcomes across diverse school settings.

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seng_derek October 1, 2013
Education & Homeschooling
seng_derek

The Tortoise and the Hare, Take Two

Critiques the tortoise-and-hare moral, arguing that fast, gifted ‘hares’ are discouraged by schools and society. Instead of slowing them, we should challenge and support them, connect them with peers, and celebrate achievement. Encouraging differentiated opportunities helps gifted individuals thrive and benefits society’s progress.

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seng_derek March 17, 2013
Miscellaneous
seng_derek

Fostering Giftedness, Literally

An educator describes fostering a gifted child and discovering how the foster-care system often misunderstands highly capable youth. Placements fail as behaviors are misinterpreted. She urges fostering, respite care, and advocacy to support invisible gifted children and recounts successfully adopting the boy into a family that understands him.

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seng_derek March 14, 2012
100 Words of Wisdom
seng_derek

100 Words of Wisdom: Judy Galbraith

Judy Galbraith emphasizes that gifted people’s social and emotional development must match their intellectual growth. She argues that giftedness is more than achievements or creations; equally important is the character and memory one leaves behind, and attending to emotional needs fosters happier, more meaningful lives.

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seng_derek February 14, 2012
Communication
seng_derek

Ask SENG: Parenting Gifted Teens

This article answers a parent’s question about struggles with a gifted teenager, describing parenting styles from overprotective ‘hothouse’ to laissez-faire ‘thrown to the wolves.’ It advises seeking help, building support networks, consulting therapists, and recommends books like Children: The Challenge and The Optimistic Child.

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seng_derek September 14, 2011
Twice-Exceptionality/Nontraditional
seng_derek

Benny and Me: A Father Sees Himself Through His Son

A father recounts his son Ben’s early struggles with Asperger’s, school challenges, and gradual progress through individualized support and dedicated teachers. He reflects on shared traits, worries about the future, and hopes for greater understanding and accommodations for twice-exceptional children.

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seng_derek September 14, 2011
Misdiagnosis
seng_derek

Attention Deficit Disorders and Gifted Students: What do we really know?

This article reviews what is known about ADHD in gifted children, distinguishing evidence from assumptions. It discusses diagnosis, co-occurrence of giftedness and ADHD, assessment challenges, risk of mis- and under-diagnosis, and calls for more research to guide identification, intervention, and educational strategies.

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seng_derek September 14, 2011
Misdiagnosis
seng_derek

Mental Health Care

The author describes how comprehensive neuropsychological assessments, though costly and often under-reimbursed, provide deeper understanding than brief insurance-driven visits. Short appointment slots risk misdiagnosis by overlooking learning, emotional, and medical causes. Gifted children especially reveal systemic flaws; advocacy can help address managed-care failures.

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seng_derek September 14, 2011
Twice-Exceptionality/Nontraditional
seng_derek

Gifted and Learning Disabled: A Neuropsychologist’s Perspective

Neuropsychologists describe how gifted children can also have neurologically based learning or emotional difficulties. Twice-exceptional students often go unrecognized because strengths mask deficits, leading to misdiagnosis and poor support. Effective assessment and interventions should consider whole-child context, accommodations, and targeted strategies for attention, language, memory, and executive functioning.

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seng_derek September 14, 2011