Homeschooling your child shouldn’t mean you are on your own regarding your child’s education. Indeed, there continues to be more resources and communities available to homeschoolers, whether they be in the form of online materials, learning pods, forums, curricula, or other teaching and learning strategies for those pursuing education outside of standard public, private, or parochial approaches.
But just as traditional school populations include scores of students with specialized needs, so do those who are homeschooled. That’s where organizations like the Gifted Homeschoolers Forum (GHF) come in.
The organization, originally founded in 2004 before being restructured in 2018, hosted its first Gifted Home Education Conference this month. The virtual event was organized into three themes over three days: DIY Education, Learning & Lifestyle, and Tools & Techniques, and featured upwards of 25 different speakers, presenters, and panelists discussing topics such as assessment and identification, processing speed, curriculum and resources, the neuroscience of giftedness and twice-exceptionality, and more.
“Our goal with our first GHF Gifted Home Education Conference was to fill a space that is needed in the gifted learning community,” GHF President Barry Gelston told 2e News. “As a grassroots organization whose mission is to empower every gifted family to make strategic, proactive, and intentional educational choices, we chose to encourage community between parents, professionals, and content creators.”
Gelston kicked off the conference with an introduction and overview before giving way to Dr. Suki Wessling, who paraphrased the iconic
Buckaroo Banzai quote, “No matter where you go, there you are” — appropriate for her session, which was entitled “Meeting Children Where They Are.”
Wessling spoke about the need to “relax and enjoy our summers” without worrying about kids being behind. She also spoke about perspective and defining success.
“If your two-year-old has a meltdown in the supermarket, it’s not going to stop them from going to college,” she said. “If your 10-year-old stops caring about subjects you approve of and starts liking hair dye videos, enjoy the ride — and the fun hair colors.”
Wessling asserted that parents should avoid planning their homeschool like someone else’s, being envious of another family’s situation, or apologizing for their own setup. She also said that many kids will be ahead in one area and behind in another. “That’s just life with gifted kids,” she said, adding that if parents are particularly worried, they should get an assessment.
“Don’t lose yourself,” she said. “Stressed out parents tend to make stressed out kids … It’s really important to forgive yourself, because you can’t do everything.”
Dr. Nicole Tetreault talked about how “neuroindividuality is the new norm” in her presentation, “Insight into a Bright Mind: The Latest Neuroscience of Giftedness, Twice-Exceptionality, and Living as Liberated Beings.” Tetreault explained that researchers now know there are 180 distinct areas in the human cortex — about twice the number previously known.
Tetreault discussed unique aspects of the “gifted neurotype,” including asynchronous brain maturation; expansions in brain activity for executive functioning and sensory, motor, and video processing; exceptional connectivity across brain areas; differences in information processing; learning information at an accelerated rate; experiencing heightened brain activation with greater intellectual challenges; exceptional sensory receptivity and sensitivity (can lead to overstimulation); enhanced maturation for emotional processing; and the ability for flexible and novel thinking to manipulate information.
[perfectpullquote align=”left” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]”If your two-year-old has a meltdown in the supermarket, it’s not going to stop them from going to college. If your 10-year-old stops caring about subjects you approve of and starts liking hair dye videos, enjoy the ride — and the fun hair colors.”[/perfectpullquote]
She cited a study using MRIs that found that each individual has a unique brain network activation in response to learning and thinking, and that brain activation patterns predict brain maturation of an individual.
Instead of asking “Am I normal,” Tetreault said, “Shift your dialogue to ‘What makes me unique?’”
Tetreault said that “personalized therapies are paramount for individual brain differences,” and in cases where giftedness could exacerbate differences and challenges, focusing on strength-based approaches like those championed by Dr. Susan Baum is key.
Other Day 1 sessions included Dr. Elizabeth Letsch on assessment and identification; Kasi Peters and her husband and children providing a perspective on gifted homeschooling; Carol Malueg on steps to take when school isn’t working; GHF Editorial Director Celi Trepanier and Ann Grahl on advice from parents and professionals; and a conversation with Mark Smolowitz, director of the upcoming
G Word documentary.
Day 2’s more 2e-focused sessions began with a dual session with Austina De Bonte & Dr. Heidi Lack titled “Is My Kid 2e? & Insights from Misophonia.” De Bonte talked about what to do if you believe your child might be twice-exceptional, including clues to that end and how to get an official diagnosis. She said that a child’s mid-elementary school years are the most common age for parents to seek professional help, followed by late middle school and early high school.
Lack focused on misophonia, which involves the potential for specific sounds to trigger emotional responses. She also talked about some of the “ridiculous advice” gifted and 2e kids often receive when reacting to auditory or other disruptive stimuli:
- You are too sensitive
- It’s not so bad
- No one else is bothered by it
- Concentrate on something else
- Just tolerate it
- Just ignore it
Lack explained that kids might not have the opportunity or even the wherewithal to adjust their situation.
“As an adult, I can adjust, move, understand,” she said. “Kids don’t have the same understanding or agency. They can’t typically leave to take a break and regulate emotions.
“They feel trapped, not able to understand why they can’t focus on what they wish.”
Dr. Michael Postma spoke about processing speed and the impact it has on gifted and 2e students, including misdiagnoses or missed diagnoses, as slow auditory and visual processing can result in autism-like behaviors.
“These are the kids who need additional time to process the information and show their brilliance in a very different way,” he said, adding that proper scaffolding is necessary to prevent kids from being bored. “Processing can be slow because they are not being challenged.”
Postma cites unengaging and repetitive material being a major issue in the education of 2e students, as it often is below the cognitive level of a 2e learner and isn’t presented in a way that is conducive to learning. Postma said acceptance of the child’s profile is key, as are teaching them self-advocacy, finding accommodations, and learning terminology. He also said teaching communication skills — particularly the words and terms that will help 2e learners express themselves — and focusing on the child’s strengths and interests will help foster success.
Postma also offered guidance on how to assist gifted and 2e learners in the area of working memory. If the child struggles to perform tasks or complete routines, provide visual aids that are specific, such as those including the correct number of shoes and socks, how the backpack should be found and worn, etc. These aids can visually enhance processing speed.
Author, educator, and blogger Jen Merrill talked about her experiences with her 2e children and how they have impacted her as a parent and teacher. Merrill joked that she suffers from adult onset child-induced ADD.
“I focus (on a task) and then something happens with my kids to distract me,” she said, adding that she has the attention span of a golden retriever with a yoyo. “I miss my brain.”
Merrill also discussed misconceptions of gifted children.
“Having someone say, ‘It must be nice having a gifted child’ was like pouring salt in a wound,” she said, noting her responses might include:
- “It must be nice to get FAPE (free, appropriate public education).”
- “It must be nice to take your kid somewhere new and not worry about leaving early due to overstimulation.”
- “It must be nice to only get calls from school for your kid having a fever.”
- “It must be nice to talk about kids’ accomplishments without seeming like you are bragging.”
- “It must be nice having your kid not get anxiety attacks about the environment, the world, death.”
Merrill said it’s never boring raising 2e kids, and she embraces the “absurdist humor” that comes with it.
“I’m a better human for having raised these G/2e kids,” she said, adding that a great deal of tension was relieved when she began homeschooling her children after deciding that the school system clearly wasn’t the right fit. A key to this success? “Follow your kids’ lead as much as possible.”
[perfectpullquote align=”right” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]”Instead of asking ‘Am I normal,’ shift your dialogue to ‘What makes me unique?’”[/perfectpullquote]
Merrill talked about how homeschooling groups are exploding, especially in these times of remote and hybrid learning. “Hopefully this will push the standard system to improve.”
Day 2 also featured Kasi Peters and Carol Malueg on GHF’s DIY education; John Thompson on scholarships and opportunities for homeschooled children; Dr. Matt Zakreski on supporting homeschooled students and their families; and Suzie Pileggi Pawelski and Dr. James Pawelski on the science of strengths.
Day 3 began with author, speaker, and podcast host Debbie Reber talking about homeschooling 2e children with “confidence and joy.” Reber discussed her journey from reluctant homeschooling parent to designing a thriving homeschooling life for her child, herself, and her family.
Reber discussed strategies for supporting 2e children in the areas of executive functioning and emotional regulation, and helping them become self-driven learners.
Other Day 3 sessions included a look at curriculum and resources with Dr. Sarah Mendonça; Rosali Lian on embracing the individual learner; David Chandler and Lois Letchford on homeschool match and creating change through stories; Heidi Molbak and Brett Kennedy on school away from home and the college search process; Paula Prober on guidance for gifted adults; and Michelle Kane and Dan Tischner on the inner lives of gifted children.
“We followed a careful path that focused on an approach of ‘Meeting Children Where They Are,’ using science to understand ourselves and our children, promoting a culture of love and kindness, and sharing practical tips from all corners of our community,” said Gelston, the GHF president.
“We have been overwhelmed with the positive feedback from the conference. Attendees felt a sense of connection, enjoyed relevant information, and found themselves within a community. We are excited that this conference is the first of many to come.”
Indeed, the sessions featured a good deal of focus on community, which GHF helps to foster. And, appropriately, Gelston ended his introductory talk thusly:
“Welcome — and go team!”
The sessions, which regularly featured upwards of 50 participants and included Q&A opportunities, were free to watch live.
Video replays of the conference sessions can be accessed by GHF Choices members (annual membership is $49.99).
