With the thanksgiving holiday approaching, we begin to reflect on all that we are grateful for.  As I think about the past year, I remember many wonderful moments and people associated with the Institute for Educational Advancement (IEA).

Whether it was a joyful moment speaking with an excited new Caroline D. Bradley Scholar or a moving conversation with campers at Yunasa, IEA has greatly impacted my journey this year, and I hope it has for you as well. If you are a student, camper, parent, instructor, extern, staff member or volunteer, you understand what it means to be a member of the IEA family: to be seen, understood, enriched and appreciated for your uniqueness. We feel so many of the same emotions and understand the trials and triumphs that come with being a part of the gifted community. We are grateful for you, as your presence in our community has supported IEA on its journey to see, understand, enrich and appreciate almost 10,000 gifted youth across the nation.

As I look back on this past year, I cannot help but also look ahead at all that is to come. On the journey ahead, IEA hopes to serve more students in our Pasadena hometown and beyond. We hope to provide more scholarships to ensure all children have access to IEA’s unique web of support. We hope to enact lasting change through state and national policy initiatives, shedding a brighter light on the needs of the gifted community. However, we need your continued support to turn these hopes into reality. This holiday season, please Join the Journey by donating to IEA.

In my time in the field of gifted education so far, I have learned that anything is possible. This is especially true with the unwavering support of the IEA community. It is because of members like you that I believe the goals we strive for are within reach. With your support, we can create a clear and bright journey ahead where all gifted youth are supported as they reach toward their full intellectual and personal potentials.

With gratitude on this Thanksgiving Holiday,

Elizabeth D. Jones
Co-Founder and President

As a part of IEA’s effort to advance the cause of gifted students nationwide, IEA commissioned the first ever national survey assessing the American public’s views on gifted education. The summary covers the results of a national survey, completed in 2016, that sought to understand the public’s perception of gifted students in the United States. This poll was designed in collaboration with leaders in the field of gifted education, including the National Association for Gifted Children, and conducted by Benenson Strategy Group and The Winston Group.

“We are seeing overwhelming support for funding and resources to ensure that our brightest students’ minds are nurtured and supported, which hasn’t always been the case in the past,” said Elizabeth D. Jones, President & Co-Founder of IEA. “As a community, we are committed to advocating for what the public wants: helping our highest potential students succeed.”

The poll report contains helpful information about the state of gifted education in the U.S. and details recommendations for how to communicate about gifted students and advocate for this cause. The goal of this document is to provide a tool for the gifted community, families, teachers and professionals alike to use when advocating for these unique learners.

The poll report was written by Jones and Dr. Shelagh A. Gallagher. The authors will be hosting a webinar presenting the results and answering viewer questions on March 26th at 11 a.m. PST/2 p.m. EST. The webinar is free and open to the public.

Additional contributors include: Alan Arkotov of University of Southern California, Dr. Jim Delisle, René Islas formerly of National Association for Gifted Children, Michael Petrilli & Chester Finn of Thomas B. Fordham Institute, Ann Smith of Gifted Support Center, Dr. Amy Shelton of Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth and Adam Umhoefer of American Foundation for Equal Rights.

The release of the full results was preceded by a poll summary, Public Attitudes Towards Gifted Education, released in August 2018. This document contains highlights from the results of the poll.

Read the full report.

For more information about IEA’s policy initiatives or any of IEA’s other programs and services, visit our Advocacy page. 

The program, which began in 2002 and is generously funded by The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, is one of the few merit-based, need-blind scholarships of its kind in the U.S. To date, IEA has awarded 263 scholarships to gifted learners, and alumni are already making their mark on the world.  Currently there are 126 alumni, 89 of whom have graduated from college and are in the work force, attending graduate school and/or participating in international service and fellowship programs.

“Every child deserves the opportunity to learn in an appropriate, challenging and engaging educational environment. We must support our advanced students to grow as individuals and global citizens who are able to contribute to the innovation, strength and growth of our nation,” said Elizabeth Jones, President of IEA.  “Thanks to the generosity of the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, 30 gifted students of the Caroline D. Bradley (CDB) Scholar class of 2018 are assured resources to fuel their passion and support their advanced learning in a challenging learning environment.”

Three regional Selection Committees comprised of a diverse group of school admissions directors, CDB alumni, university personnel and community and business leaders nationwide were tasked with choosing 58 finalists out of a pool of hundreds of applicants. Each of the 58 CDB Finalists, from which the 30 were chosen, met with members of the CDB staff for an interview.

Over the course of the next several months, IEA staff, current CDB Scholars and CDB alumni will provide guidance and assistance to the entering class of 2018 Scholars as they begin to identify potential high school programs, completing applications and preparing their individualized educational plan for next year.

2018 Caroline D. Bradley Scholars:

• Benjamin Acosta, Montclair, VA
• Veer Agarwal, Farmington Hills, MI
• Joy An, Bellevue, WA
• Evalynn Bogusz, Leesburg, VA
• Josh Caruso, Stone Mountain, GA
• Vivian Chan, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA
• Daniel Choi, Hartsdale, NY
• Soren Cowell-Shah, Portland, OR
• James Crabtree, West River, MD
• Sophia Eno, Woodside, CA
• Luke Gialanella, Marina Del Rey, CA
• Sadie Hastings, Los Angeles, CA
• Aurora Jackson, Oswego, IL
• Davin Jeong, Beverly Hills, CA
• Arul Kolla, Arcadia, CA
• Joyce Li, Lake Zurich, IL
• Michelle Mahoney, Hillsborough, CA
• Desirey Manon, Santa Fe Springs, CA
• Stella Nakada, New York, New York
• Olivia Oh, New York, New York
• Abraham Rochez, Los Angeles, CA
• Stella Schick, Durham, NC
• Espen Slettnes, Castro Valley, CA
• Carter Smith, Jersey City, NJ
• Mia Tavares, Burlingame, CA
• Maya Vendhan, Highlands Ranch, CO
• Abigale Wee, Menlo Park, CA
• Yunrui (Ryan) Yang, Easton, CT
• Jessica Zhao, Austin, TX
• Alex Zitzewitz, Hanover, NH

Congratulations to the 2018 Scholars! We welcome you to the IEA community.

Applications for the 2019 scholarship will be available in November 2018. To be notified when the application is available, sign up for IEA’s newsletter.

“I am happy to be in a room of too’s,” said Betsy Jones, IEA President, as we concluded IEA’s Summer Spotlight this year. “We are all too’s – too emotional, too smart, too intense….”

Tuesday, June 8, was a bright evening of community, learning, and friendship as IEA and its community gathered at the University of Southern California for dinner and a time of sharing. Eight IEA Apprentices, who studied Industrial Design under Stan Kong at Art Center College of Design, displayed their impressive concept design sketches – pieces of art that would later become final projects. Posters, books, and sculptures created by Academy students, Caroline D. Bradley Scholars, and Yunasa campers were also scattered about USC’s Vineyard Room, along with plenty of photos of Academy kids at The Huntington Library, Art Collection, and Botanical Gardens; Yunasa West campers frolicking in Colorado; and CDB Scholars who convened for the Bradley Seminar in April.

After dinner, IEA’s Program Coordinators introduced speakers from each of IEA’s programs. Min-Ling Li, the valiant leader of 29 Apprentices, began by announcing both Alex T., who is studying shock waves with Dr. Eliasson at USC, and Robert, an Industrial Design Apprentice.

Alex’s speech was an expounded acrostic he created from the letters of IEA: I –“I am Alex,” he began. This is Alex’s second year as an IEA Apprentice, and he thanked the Caroline D. Bradley Scholarship program for introducing him to an opportunity that would change his life. “Once you are a part of IEA, you support it, and it supports you,” he said. E – “Eager. That is what the students here are,” Alex continued. Finally, A – “Apprentice…we are all Apprentices, because every day we learn something new. One thing I learned while I was here is of all the gifted children being overlooked by teachers. IEA works to find them and help them come to terms with their giftedness…Institute for Educational Advancement: intelligent, eager, able,” he concluded.

Robert, who came to the Los Angeles-based Apprenticeship Program all the way from Miami, is a first-year Apprentice who described his experience as a time of extremely hard work and the unbelievable opportunity to “study at a school he hopes to get into in a field he hopes to make a career out of.”

One of IEA’s earliest Caroline D. Bradley Scholars, Ryan, spoke next: “It’s much more than a monetary gift – it’s a community,” he said of CDB. According to Ryan, CDB helped him develop the confidence to be whatever it is he wanted to be. When it was time to apply for college, the CDB coordinator helped him apply. Ryan opted for Harvard, where he began by pursuing an education in engineering, ended up in neuroscience, found himself in musical theater, and finished his degree in creative arts. Now Ryan produces movies – Lego movies, of late.

Arden, a six-year-old Academy student, stood upon a chair to reach the microphone and talked about how, in the past year at IEA, he has taken a Shakespeare class from a professional actor, advanced his math skills with a teacher who made it fun, made his first short film, painted himself blue using ice and an infrared camera in his first Physics class, and was introduced to the Spanish language for the first time. “If that wasn’t enough,” he said, “IEA has given me this opportunity in public speaking!”

Finally, 10-year-old Alexander A., who also stood on a chair to speak, described Yunasa as a place where he is able to be himself, a place where he feels loved and accepted by all the people around him. At Yunasa and Yunasa West, Alexander has learned practical ways to help him calm down when he feels tense and emotional. He talked about Senior Fellows Patricia Gatto Walden, Ph.D., and Michael Piechowski, Ph.D., who have given him hugs and engaged him in conversations about deep and interesting things. Alexander’s favorite Yunasa activity is the low ropes course because, he said, “you get to work as a team to get through obstacles.”

When the young brilliant pundits of IEA finished their enlightening speeches, Betsy Jones told a story of a girl she met at Yunasa West this year. This young lady explained to Betsy that when she feels sad, she spends time with her “Too People.” She has always been told that she is “too intense, too distracted, too talkative, too quiet, too much,” so her stuffed animals became a family of “too’s” who provide a safe place where she can exist without feeling chastised. IEA has been around for 16 years, and it is still one of the only organizations in the world where, as Betsy said, these young brilliant individuals “can grow and learn and be and do whatever it is they want to do.”

Summer Spotlight was an evening of illumination – a light shone upon a community of “too’s” and the programs that help them to grow, succeed, learn, and feel safe to be themselves.

Take a look at more photos from Summer Spotlight 2014!

Are you interested in learning more about IEA programs and our impact? Sign up for our email newsletter, which provides regular updates on the work we do as well as resources on giftedness.

You know that your child is different, and you may or may not know why or how. You search for answers and find out that your child is gifted. But what does that mean? How do you accommodate your child’s needs now that you know what they are?

Identifying and Acknowledging Your Child’s Gifts

Because you as a parent know your child best and see your child the most, you are the most likely person to notice your child’s gifts. Parents usually notice signs of giftedness in the first five years of their child’s life. 50%-90% of parents are proficient at recognizing early intellectual advancement in their children. As children near the age of 5, the accuracy improves.

Giftedness is fairly evenly distributed between genders. However, more girls are identified for school gifted programs than boys. As a parent, you know your child. If you suspect that your child is gifted, do something about it.

Some are skeptical of early identification. This is often associated with the assumption that giftedness equals extraordinary achievement. As many parents pointed out at our most recent parent support group meeting, this skepticism can also be due to a parent’s fear of what “giftedness” means or a belief that the child is “weird” or “just smart.” However, signs of giftedness do appear early in gifted children, and the earlier you notice and address them, the more support your child is going to have throughout his or her childhood. This is important, as giftedness rarely evolves into achievement unless there is a combination of cognitive ability, motivation, and an enriched environment.

What You Can Do At Home

• Compliment your child for his or her abilities and efforts. Recognize real accomplishments.
• Demonstrate how to prioritize. Assist your child in learning how to pick and choose activities. Demonstrate and stress the importance of down time and balance.
• Share data relevant to your child. If a child takes an assessment, he should be told the results and what they mean. It is really important that your children understand who they are. This includes their abilities and needs as gifted kids.
• Enjoy. As challenging as it is to have a child that is different from the norm, some of the hallmarks of giftedness are a sense of humor, an excellent vocabulary, and high levels of perceptivity. No matter what your child’s level of giftedness or your school’s level of support, do your best to end most days looking at the positives and saying to yourself, “Wow! Am I ever lucky!”

The Gifted Child at School

The traditional school system can be difficult for your gifted child. If you walk into a doctor’s office, they examine you, talk to you about your symptoms, and run tests in order to diagnose you. If you walk into a school, they ask how old you are. Nothing else is taken into consideration. This is a problem when your child is outside the norm.

Just as the human body needs nourishment to survive, the gifted child’s mind needs to be fed. When gifted kids are not learning, their minds are not being fed, and they get anxious, tired, and worked up.

Highly gifted kids will typically change educational environments 3 to 4 times over the course of their K-12 education in attempts to find the right accommodations or fit between the school system and the student. When a highly gifted child is successful in a single school system, it is often thanks to acceleration.

Acceleration is an extremely viable option for students who need additional challenge in classroom. This can take several forms, including grade-skipping, single-subject acceleration, or classwork performed in more depth or at a quicker pace. Advanced online resources are also becoming a more and more viable option. If your child’s school will allow use of such resources, take them up on it.

There are a few concerns that parents and educators sometimes have with acceleration. It is important for you to know that studies show that acceleration works well and that students who have been accelerated rarely regret it. In fact, most kids who were accelerated wish they were accelerated even more. Will there be social differences between a child who was accelerated and his or her classmates? Absolutely. But many families feel the benefits of acceleration outweigh the emotional challenges that come with such a transition. These are not barriers that should stop your child from getting the education he or she needs. Acceleration is about meeting your child’s educational needs, and this is important to your child, as well.

When talking to the school about your child’s abilities and needs, bring a sample of your child’s advanced work to demonstrate the level at which your child is performing. This will resonate with teachers and administrators more than test scores – although those help, as well – and your word that your child is advanced.

Do your best to help make schoolwork challenging and interesting for your child. For many parents of gifted children, it is like pulling teeth getting their kids to do homework. Many gifted children also make silly mistakes on homework and tests because they rush through, knowing it is easy for them. Help make assignments interesting. There are unconventional ways to make your child pause, pay attention, and think, like doing multiple things at once. For example:

• Integrate movement of the body while completing the assignment. For reading assignments, draw a line on the floor of the hall with masking tape. Have your child walk the line while reading the textbook.
• If the assignment is not a linear progression, alter the order of activities in an assignment. For math problem worksheets, have your child start at the bottom of the page and work upward (or right of the page and work toward left) or make a design on the page rather than doing the normal left to right, top to bottom progression.

Everyone will see your child differently. It is important to recognize this early on. No two teachers will be the same, and you will likely have to advocate for your child’s needs often and in different ways. Most educators want to have the best interest of your child and your child’s education in mind; sometimes it is just difficult for them to understand what that means. Be patient, and be flexible.

To be notified of future IEA Gifted Child Parent Support Group meetings in the Los Angeles area, please contact us or sign up for our email newsletter and make sure to enter your zip code in the form.

Elizabeth Jones is the President and Founder of The Institute for Educational Advancement. She has worked with gifted and special needs children and their families for more than 20 years. Her current work emphasizes advocacy and the development and administration of specialized programs for underserved youth. She also consults with gifted children and their families to help them find solutions to meet each child’s intellectual, physical, spiritual, social and emotional needs.

Tragedies make us feel helpless. As adults looking for answers, dealing with heartache and trying to process what has happened, it is vital that we honor the fears and concerns of our children, as well. This can be extremely difficult when we don’t understand the events ourselves. It is hard to grasp entering into a conversation with our children without knowing the answers to who, what, why and if it will happen again.

Children can be extremely affected by catastrophes, whether acts of nature or human infliction. They see adults as the gatekeepers to their safety; but when the adults in a child’s world have no control over a tragedy occurring, children often lose their sense of security. They just cannot understand why.

Gifted children exhibit high levels of intensity and sensitivity and can be even more deeply impacted by events such as the Boston bombings. Not only do they feel a loss of security, but they also have a profound feeling of empathy for the victims and a tremendous need to understand and “fix” the problem.

A six-year-old client going through some stress recently had a dream that he was able to bring back a World War II battleship to the New York harbor on September 11, 2001, and the ship saved the Twin Towers. He used what he knew to fix a problem – and prevent a horrible tragedy – that happened years before he was born. It brought him comfort.

Emotionally sensitive, highly able students feel very deeply and have a strong sense of justice and moral fairness. It is hard enough to cope with horrific events; yet, when you feel a responsibility to fix the problem, it can be completely overwhelming. Gifted children have an early awareness of complex problems facing humanity. They experience emotional intensity at a greater level than their non-gifted counterparts. As a result, their concerns should be understood and respected. Telling children they should not worry or think about a tragic event that is now part of their frame of reference can cause children to feel inadequate because they are not able to control their emotions. Feeling insecure can trigger more anxiety and loss of control.

Michael Piechowski speaks about the complex inner lives, early ethical concerns and heightened awareness of the world gifted children experience. This often causes internal confusion and tension between “what is” and “what ought to be.”

How can we help our children cope with tragic events when we don’t even understand the why? Here are some suggestions:

• Gifted children have vivid imaginations. Without appropriate, honest conversation, they will often imagine the worst that could happen to their family, pets, friends and others.
• If possible, be the first one to communicate the event. Give your child honest answers, but do not overload them with details. Limit exposure to media and graphic images. Be prepared to have several conversations that may include asking the same question over and over. Gifted children have a strong affective memory, which causes them to relive significant moments in their lives. Your child will not forget about it, even if you stop them from talking about it.
• Be consistent and reassuring, but do not make unrealistic promises. Children take cues from their parents. Share your concerns and grief, but do not do all the talking. Listen and let your child take the lead. Ensure they know that you always do the best you can to make them and other family members safe.
• Coordinate information between school, home and other locations where your child spends time. Articulate your child’s concerns and deep feelings of empathy to the teachers and others who interact with your child. Remind these people that your child is likely to react differently than peers and that your child is likely to continue to remember and be affected by the event for a longer time than classmates. It is important for everyone in your child’s life to understand this.
• Reestablish a schedule or routine as soon as possible. The normalcy of activities is comforting and can assist children in healing.
• Work with your child to establish ways to take action to support the victims. Encourage and suggest positive ways they can make a difference, like raising money or writing notes.
• Reinforce things in your child’s life that provide safety, including police, fire fighters, school officials and protocol of what to do when a potential problem occurs. Discuss the fact that, although tragedies occur, they are rare; it is important to be prepared, though.
• Encourage emotional, physical, creative and spiritual outlets that can relieve your child’s tensions. This is a good opportunity to discuss ways to rejuvenate yourself when difficult things happen. Expression through the arts can be calming.

Most importantly, be together and reach out to help. And, by far, touch, understanding and unconditional love are the most powerful coping mechanisms for all of us.

What strategies have helped you talk to your child about tragedy? Please share with others in the comment section below.

On February 22-24, 2013, we hosted the 10th annual Bradley Seminar in San Jose, California. The event, funded by The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, provides an amazing opportunity for the Caroline D. Bradley Scholars, their parents, and alumni to come together each year for a three-day conference to discuss issues of global importance and personal relevance.

The IEA community has found great personal and collective growth in sharing and learning together in an emotionally safe environment. Our most powerful moments have involved cross-generational discussions where each individual feels heard and supported. The Seminars offer a perfect forum to focus on a purposeful theme that causes us to look inward and to challenge ourselves to grow, not only intellectually, but also personally. This year, the theme was “Know Thyself.”

Those of us who work with highly able youth seem to agree that the unique social and emotional issues related to their giftedness, coupled with adolescence, cause the majority of “stressors” in these students’ lives. In an effort to assist our population in dealing with stress, we explored aspects of resiliency and identification of personality types.

Prior to the event, participants read excerpts from The Resilience Factor by Karen Reivich and Andrew Shatte and completed the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). These served as a starting point for conversation.

Knowing thyself … personality types

After a Friday evening welcome for Scholars, alumni, and parents, Saturday began with reflections and discussions on learning to deal with stress. IEA President Elizabeth Jones led the group in exercises to learn what issues or situations “pushed” individual buttons and presented key points on how to develop resiliency. This dialogue set the stage for learning and exploring personality types. Guided by IEA co-founder and president of The Davis Group Ltd., James W. Davis, we discovered our personality types and learned about the characteristics of each type. Mr. Davis emphasized that the MBTI is a starting point to use to understand your preferences and grow, not an excuse to stay stuck in your ways. Some things are easy and natural, while others require growth. MBTIs help you understand where there is room to grow.

Parents and kids alike were interested to see how they were similar and different in their personality types. In many cases, the MBTI helped shed light on familial interactions and communication barriers that have been present but not understood for years!

Learning about different personality types at the Seminar encouraged us to better understand our own temperaments as well as those of our friends and family. It helped provide a structural foundation for understanding differences and methods for seeking out, incorporating, and acknowledging the value of other viewpoints.

Exploring Silicon Valley

On Saturday afternoon, the Scholars ventured to two amazing companies: Udacity and Bloom Energy.

In the fun and inviting setting of Udacity’s offices, Scholars had lengthy discussions with our hosts about course design, the technology behind online open courseware, business models, career preparation, work environments and the future of education.

Bloom Energy was a haven for our chemistry and physics enthusiasts. We toured the facility and learned about the clean, renewable energy they are developing. Discussions ranged from how their fuel cell systems are made and operated to why a new energy source like Bloom Energy’s is necessary and how it will change the world.

Udacity and Bloom Energy encourage innovation and out-of-the-box thinking. They are driven by the unique makeup of their employees, all of whom bring different perspectives to the table. These are the types of workplaces our Scholars will need. These are the environments that will allow them to thrive, and we were thankful that the Scholars were able to see companies like these in action.

Stress response … and why we should limit it

Saturday night, Dr. Robert Sapolsky delivered a fascinating and highly entertaining talk about the stress response and how it affects our bodies. Dr. Sapolsky is The John A. and Cynthia Fry Gunn Professor of Biological Sciences and Professor of Neurology and Neurosurgery at Stanford University. He is also a research associate at the Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya. Many of us were amazed to discover the variety of ways in which the stress response – biologically designed to keep us alive in threatening situations – negatively affects our bodies over time as we experience chronic psychological stress. Relaxation techniques provided in a Sunday breakout session were in high demand after hearing Dr. Sapolsky speak!

If you want a glimpse of Dr. Sapolsky’s expertise, take a look at the videos here and here. We highly recommend these!

Let’s continue the discussions…

We are always amazed at the caliber and depth of discussion at the Seminar. Adults and students alike ponder challenging personal and global issues. These discussions among future thought leaders provide a foundation that builds confidence, tolerance, and personal growth.

Over the weekend, we reflected on our own personalities and how knowing ourselves in more robust ways can help us relate to and work better with others. We thought about and discussed the implications of our personality types as well as the impact of stress on our lives. “Somehow, you made it possible for me to meet tons of fascinating new people, learn so much about myself and how I interact with others, and gain an insight into how startups work in the Silicon Valley, all in one, short weekend,” explained one Scholar.

Reach out and support a bright young mind. Teach them to think. Help them embrace who they are and all that is possible.

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Gifted children have a variety of unique gifts, as well as a variety of unique needs and challenges. Join the Institute for Educational Advancement as we explore ways to meet our gifted children’s particular needs and learn more about this extraordinary group of young people. These monthly meetings are intended for parents of gifted children to provide support and community in the midst of the joys and challenges of raising a gifted child.

2012-2013 Parent Meetings:

Speaker: Elizabeth D. Jones
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
6:30 pm—8:00 pm

IEA Learning Center
625 Fair Oaks Avenue, Suite 288
South Pasadena, CA 91030

Special Guest Speaker:
Dr. Patricia Gatto-Walden
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
6:30 pm—7:30 pm

South Pasadena Public Library – Community Room*
1115 El Centro Street
South Pasadena, CA 91030

College Admissions
Speaker: Kate Duey
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
6:30 pm—8:00 pm

IEA Learning Center
625 Fair Oaks Avenue, Suite 288
South Pasadena, CA 91030

Summer Programs
Thursday, March 7, 2013
6:30 pm—8:00 pm

IEA Learning Center
625 Fair Oaks Avenue, Suite 288
South Pasadena, CA 91030

Gifted Children at Home and in the Classroom
Speaker: Sharon Duncan
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
6:30 pm—8:00 pm

IEA Learning Center
625 Fair Oaks Avenue, Suite 288
South Pasadena, CA 91030

My Child is Gifted. Now What?
Speaker: Elizabeth Jones, IEA President
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
6:30 pm—8:00 pm

IEA Learning Center
625 Fair Oaks Avenue, Suite 288
South Pasadena, CA 91030

Please RSVP to reception@educationaladvancement.org. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. Please invite parents that you feel would be interested.

Dates and topics later in the season may change. Please contact IEA for an updated schedule.

*This activity is not sponsored by the City of South Pasadena or the South Pasadena Public Library.

Want to stay updated on future parent meetings in the Los Angeles area? Sign up for our email newsletters and be sure to fill in your zip code!

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In reading the article “Is There a Place at the Table for Parents” a few days ago, I began to reflect on and evaluate how we at IEA invite parents to take a seat at the table.

I decided to discuss the topic with our staff. Kate Duey, a parent of 3 gifted daughters and a consultant for IEA, was in the office and had a few compelling comments about how she felt as the mother of gifted children.

She said that she did not feel particularly “included” in most of the past gifted organizations in which her daughters participated. “At one large summer program for gifted kids, I dropped my daughter off at the dorms, and that was pretty much it,” Kate recalled. “No one who administered the program was available for me to talk to. I got to talk to her dorm advisor for a few minutes that day, but that was it. When the program was over, I was to just pick her up and take her home, nothing more. I had no opportunity to speak with anyone running the program nor a way to learn about what happened while she was in attendance. I was a means of transportation more than anything.” That was disconcerting for her, and this was not an isolated incident.

I wanted to see what she would say about us – after all, she is a consultant here to assist our organization. She said, “At IEA, the parents are included in everything from the Apprenticeship presentations, to the Bradley Seminar, to talking with the staff and Fellows at Yunasa, to parent support groups, and parents are even on the Board of Directors. I even have been here when you call a parent to see how class went on Saturday or to see how a child was doing in school that week.”

At IEA, we support the whole gifted child – intellectually, socially, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. Parent input is crucial. The folks that live with these darling, amazing, and sometimes frustrating little guys have ideas and questions! We know that these children do not operate in a vacuum and that their parents are the life-line to their success.

We want parents to take a seat at the table. We want them to feel involved in our organization and the ways in which we serve their children.

We know that parenting a gifted child is not easy. Other parents, and often even teachers, don’t understand what you are going through. It is difficult to find information, resources, and support to help you raise your gifted child. Your child needs support, but so do you.

Because of this, every program at IEA has some parent component. For example:

• On the first day of Yunasa, parents get to meet and learn from the Fellows, renowned professionals in the social and emotional development of gifted children.
• Parents of high school Apprentices are invited to attend the Apprentices’ final presentations, in which all participants share what they have accomplished while working with their Mentor over the course of the program. A closing picnic for all hosted by IEA staff members follows.
• Academy families are encouraged to speak with staff before or after classes. We are starting Academy Family Nights, where families have the opportunity to connect and build community. We are also using parent feedback to create new classes – parents asked for a young girls’ book club, so we are going to start one this winter.
• Parents of Caroline D. Bradley Scholars attend the annual Bradley Seminar, a weekend of community and learning.
• All of our programs solicit feedback from students and their parents. Information gleaned in these evaluations has assisted us in honing our services to better meet the changing needs of our constituency.
• IEA staff members frequently speak with parents regarding their individual child, even if that family has not participated in one of our offerings.

But are we doing enough? Probably not.

We try to be an open resource for parents looking for support for their gifted child. We offer consulting services. We host several parent support groups throughout the year to provide support, community, and information on topics of interest to parents of gifted children. We have asked Stephanie Tolan, a Senior Fellow, to speak about her experience parenting a gifted child. We have an active social media presence – here on our blog, on Twitter, and on Facebook – all of which provide an open forum for discussion and questions.

Yet children and their parents still go unheard in the gifted community.

We want to learn, we want to help, we want each parent to feel heard and hopefully helped.

Parents of gifted children often contribute to this blog to offer parent perspectives on raising gifted children. A parent of one of our program participants is currently helping with our strategic planning. We ask for parent input, and we take it seriously.

At IEA, we do advocate for gifted children in a way similar to what Lisa describes in the article, but we do our best to bring parent feedback into it. We often provide educators and other organizations with tools to serve gifted children. We do involve parents in our organization, and we believe we are supporting their needs. Our table maybe small, but it is well built.

Please know that you can always come to IEA for support, guidance, information, and resources. We want you to have a seat at the table. We can always build a bigger table.

As an organization that dedicates itself to connecting bright minds and nurturing intellectual and personal growth, we know that parents of these bright minds are integral in this process. Please take a seat at our table.

Do you feel that parents have a seat at the table in the gifted community? Please share with us in the comment section below.

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I have had the privilege of learning from gifted and highly gifted students for over 20 years. During that time, we have worked with schools, trained teachers, supported students, provided fun, engaging learning experiences, guided parents and listened to kids.

The anecdotes that follow demonstrate some of the most common characteristics of intellectually precocious youth, such as advanced vocabulary, curiosity, deep empathy, rage to master, keen observation, humor and the articulation of apparently logical theories.

Although these incidents are all unique to different children, if you have had the benefit of spending time with these amazing young people, you will inevitably relate to similar comments or events.

“Who knew? School is not a place you go to learn; it is where you go to make macaroni necklaces.” – 5-year-old boy

“There are 532 dots in the ceiling tile over my desk. I know it is a weird number but it is the number. I know because I count them every day when we read together in class. I think they should make the tiles with 576 dots or 484 dots. Why? Because it is easier to do the square root.” – 7-year-old girl

“Can I be my 8-year-old self this afternoon? I had to be my 15-year-old self all day.” – 8-year-old girl

“I learned something new in school today: you get in trouble if you tell the teacher she is wrong—even if she is wrong. That is not right—it is wrong!” – 7-year-old boy

“In my school, we have gifted kids called ‘nerds,’ and we have good athletes we call ‘jocks.’ I think we need a word for gifted kids who are good athletes—like ‘jerds!’ Ha! I am a total jerd!” – 11-year-old boy

“I just feel better when I eat only white food. What is the problem?” – 6-year-old girl

“I remember, when I was young, I cried when I saw the leaves on the tree in the back yard fall off. I thought it must hurt the tree. So I went to hug the tree, and she told me it was okay, it didn’t hurt, and new leaves would grow back. It took such a long time, but it happened. I love that tree.” – 6-year-old girl

“Home is safe; I have my books, my computer, my snuggle bunny and mom. Why should I go to some strange house to ‘play’?” – 8-year-old boy

“You are right; if you do your math work sheet upside down, it is a lot more interesting.” – 10-year-old boy

Gifted children are not better than other kids, they are just different. They think differently, learn in unique ways and they have a wonderful sense of humor. Imagine a world that celebrated all these kids have to offer! What a wonderful world it would be!

What things have your kids said to you that demonstrated a characteristic of giftedness? Please share in the comment section below!

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