If you’ve ever wondered about this form of communication, you’ll find Achyuta’s videos fascinating! 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dc0_ipaSIF0&feature=youtu.be” title=”Cryptography I – The Tools of Antiquity”]

The current state of our world has forced many of us to be stuck inside physically. Mentally, the social distancing measures along with the uncertainty of what’s to come can cause a lot of unrest and unhappiness. I know I personally have been feeling anxious and nervous when I think about everything going on right now. Even when we weren’t in such unprecedented times and things were more “normal”, spring has always been a wonderful time to reset mentally. It’s a season of life and growth; flowers bloom, days are longer and the weather is warmer.

If you are looking for things to keep your mind and body occupied while adhering to physical distancing, explore some of the options below.

● Clean and reorganize spaces in your house.

If the prospect of deep cleaning your entire house seems daunting, simply focus on clearing out an overflowing closet or throwing away old papers on your desk. Decluttering and organizing might help you feel productive and more in control of your situation. One study for the Mindfulness journal even found a correlation between people doing dishes and an increase in positive emotions like inspiration and mindfulness and a decrease in negative emotions like nervousness.

● Try an online workout.

In this digital age and with social distancing in full-swing, there is no shortage of online workout classes to choose from. Check out YouTube for some free yoga flows, or find a gym that might be live-streaming a Zumba class. Exercise is linked to many psychological benefits, such as improved mood, decreased anxiety and boosted creativity.

● Plant something.

Getting down in the dirt and growing plants can stimulate positive feelings, reduce stress and increase mindfulness. If you have access to a yard, try planting flowers or vegetables. If you don’t have a yard, you can always pick up seeds from your local nursery or order them online and start an herb garden on your window sill.

● Create art. Draw, paint, sculpt or write.

Whatever gets your creative juices flowing, try it out! Harvard Health Publishing shared that expression through art can improve cognition, reduce stress and promote relaxation. Creating art can also give your eyes a much-needed break from staring at your computer and phone screens.

● Journal.

Writing your thoughts and emotions down on paper can give you a sense of release and an opportunity to reflect. Sometimes, simply writing down your fears and concerns can instantly help you feel more at ease. It can also allow you to examine negative thoughts and potentially identify situations or moments that contribute most to those feelings.

● Talk to someone.

Whether you choose to talk to someone you live with or call a friend or family member, interacting with other people, focusing on topics that aren’t centered around the news and enjoying the company of others can allow you to feel more social and improve your mood. There are also apps and online tools like TalkSpace where you can speak with licensed therapists if you are seeking professional mental health help.

● Meditate.

There is research to suggest that mindfulness meditation may ease symptoms of anxiety and depression. In a rapidly moving and chaotic world, many people find comfort in and benefits associated with sitting and focusing on breathing through a guided meditation for a few minutes. If interested, try IEA’s mindfulness exploration or an app like Calm or Headspace.

I also feel compelled to end this list with a disclaimer. The activities mentioned above are simply suggestions that might provide some relief to any mental distress you may be experiencing right now. They are not meant to stand in for professional guidance nor do I hope they make you feel anything other than intrigued or inspired to try a new, soothing activity.

Right now many of us are inundated with a seemingly constant, discouraging news cycle. Many have also been under a barrage of encouragement from brands and peers to use this time of self-isolation to be extremely productive. Viral challenges and lists like the one above may make you feel like you should be as busy as– or even busier than– you were in your pre-quarantine life; baking cupcakes in the morning, running three miles in the afternoon, knitting in the evening and finishing that best-selling book you’ve been meaning to read all before you go to bed.

American psychologist, Abraham Maslow, described that humans are motivated by five basic needs. These needs are physiological, safety, love, esteem and self-actualization. Before we can even begin to work towards feeling confident in who we are (our esteem) and feel we are achieving our greatest potential (self-actualization), we must first ensure our physiological needs and safety. This means we must have food, water and a place to sleep. After that, we need to feel safe and secure, we need a predictable environment that is free from threats and harm.

In the current situation, many people’s physiological and safety needs feel threatened. If you are worried about getting food, staying healthy or ensuring you have a home to sleep in, it might be very difficult to focus on painting a portrait or feel motivated to clean your closet. Our regular lives and most basic needs are suddenly no longer guaranteed in the way we might have always known them to be.

So before you feel like you need to learn a new skill, pick up a hobby or FaceTime all your friends and family members, focus on meeting your basic needs. Setting even just three simple goals for yourself to achieve in a day, like making your bed, brushing your teeth and eating breakfast, can help you feel more productive and in control of your situation. We cannot move onto meeting our higher needs or even helping others if we have not first prioritized ourselves. Be gentle with yourself and focus on getting through your day, little by little. We can all use a bit more self-love during this strange spring season.

IEA is here for you. Click here to learn more about IEA’s online resources for your family. 

When Leonardo da Vinci is mentioned, either in an academic setting or in a casual conversation, one of several knee-jerk references usually comes to mind:

• His inventions
• The Mona Lisa
• The Vitruvian Man, his painstakingly accurate depiction of the human form
• His influence on the Renaissance as a whole

What is more fascinating about da Vinci than his singular achievements, however, is that his portfolio of accomplishments – both achieved and never fully realized – spans more disciplines and fields than any other inventor, scientist, artist or influencer either before or since. (They don’t call him The Renaissance Man for nothing!)

Not one to rest on his laurels, da Vinci is oft quoted as having said, “Learning never exhausts the mind.” Did you know he is widely considered to be the father of architecture, paleontology, ichnology and dabbled – with varying intensity – in invention, painting, sculpting, architecture, science, music, mathematics, engineering, literature, anatomy, geology, astronomy, botany, writing, history and cartography?

Whatever profession you most associate with da Vinci, here are some fun facts to get you excited about Genius Day X: Da Vinci and our upcoming Fall Academy classes.

Simply put, da Vinci loved water and anything associated with it. Though they never came to fruition in his lifetime, da Vinci developed plans for a SCUBA-like underwater breathing device, a life preserver, a diving bell and floating snowshoes.

This fall, Academy is running an NAGC award-winning curriculum course on sustainability, developed by Yunasa Fellow Shelagh Gallagher, called It’s Electrifying! Fueling the Future, which focuses on alternative forms of energy, including wave energy and tidal energy.

He also studied the erosion of rivers in Europe and figured out that the earth is older than previously believed, based on a scientific investigation of water and soil samples, maps and journals. Though discredited at the time, due to the cultural climate, da Vinci’s findings were eventually deemed accurate.

Is your child interested in learning about the universe’s origin, evolution and current structure? Check out IEA Academy instructor Tristan Murphy’s new class From Dust to Dawn: Constructing the History of the Universe, where students will gain a comprehensive understanding of our universe’s complex development into what it is today.

da Vinci was a creative writer – not in the style or vocabulary he chose, but in the physical act of writing he executed. He wrote most of his work from right to left – the opposite of traditional written print. The result of this writing was a mirror script, which was difficult for most people to read. Historians have postulated that he did so intentionally, in order to keep his writing secret, though it may be simply because he was left-handed, making this unusual writing style was easier.

Check out Academy’s Saturday class Page One: Creative Writing for an opportunity to delve into language, style, and genre – and possibly the chance to develop your own mirror script!

Flight was another big area of focus for da Vinci, who is credited as being the first person to study the flight of birds scientifically. He spent considerable time delving into the field of ornithology and used what he observed and analyzed as inspiration to try and replicate wings and flying apparatuses for humans using biomimicry. One of da Vinci’s designs that he never got off the ground (no pun intended) was the parachute. It wasn’t until the year 2000 that a South African skydiver finally tested da Vinci’s design by developing a prototype based on his sketches.

Is your child interested in similar types of STEAM constructs? Be sure to have them join the Tuesday afternoon course STEAM Building: Creative Constructs, where students will design and test things such as marble runs, catapults, parachutes, spaghetti bridges, and much more. Or, have your child try Inventioneers, a class based on genius inventors like da Vinci, where students will play the dual role of inventor and engineer and come up with their own genius invention!

da Vinci believed that sight was mankind’s most important sense, which is why he focused so heavily on art, architecture, biological studies, sketching and the written word. He is quoted as saying, “Painting is poetry that is seen rather than felt.”

Does your child have a knack for design and visuals? Do they enjoy creating appealing graphics and imagery? Be sure to sign them up for Web Design II: Form and Function on Monday evenings, where students will gain the skills needed to transform their own personally-designed website from functional to fabulous.

Though da Vinci’s list of accomplishments and endeavors may seem overwhelming, there’s no denying that his is truly a canon of inspiration and motivation. For more information on Genius Day X: Da Vinci: Restless Renaissance Rebel, visit the event webpage. This exciting day of learning is open to students in grades 4-8 and will take place at the breathtaking Getty Center on September 30th.

To view Academy course descriptions and register for fall courses, visit the Academy webpage. Apply by August 27^th!

What is your favorite work from da Vinci? Tell us in the comments!

Source: https://www.leonardodavinci.net/

Kate Duey is a private college counselor serving gifted students. She has worked with students on traditional schooling paths, home schooled students, community college students, and students seeking accelerated or early college entrance. Kate is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Business School. She has a Certificate in College Counseling from UCLA.

What happens if a student graduates from high school exhausted? AP classes, standardized testing, extracurricular activities, sports, music, community service, research projects…and all of those college essays! What if they worked so hard they can’t remember what they like? Are they ready for four or five or six more years?

Among gifted high school students, it is especially important to remember that giftedness is innate to a person, and we should embrace the whole student by supporting their intellectual, social, spiritual, emotional and physical growth. When a gifted student’s high school years disproportionately emphasize intellectual development, the whole person is neglected. Refreshing all parts of a gifted student’s self helps to focus his or her intensities in ways that work with and for the student.

For graduating high school students who find themselves exhausted, an intentional pause to decompress and plan their next steps – a “gap year” between high school and college –could be a viable option. They often enter college with better perspective, more maturity, chronological alignment with his or her class, and enthusiasm for an old or new interest elevates the student’s whole experience.

Taking a gap year does not mean the student does not apply to college as a high school senior; they absolutely should. As a high school student, he or she has access to the teachers and counselors who will write letters of recommendation, grades and test scores are in hand, and good reference materials to search for college are easier to access. Definitely apply! Then, defer.

As a college counselor working with gifted high school students, I’ve twice seriously advised a gap year. One student considered extreme mountaineering, the other living in Europe with extended family. (Admittedly, neither did it.) I’ve talked about it with every student who has an interest in studying foreign languages. Among our tabloid friends, Prince William and Kate Middleton took gap years. Kate spent much of hers studying Italian. Every year, fifty to seventy students defer entrance into Harvard College for a gap year. In 2006, Harvard reported some of the focuses of those gap years:

• Backpacking
• Caring for grandparents
• Writing the Next Great American Novel
• e-commerce startup
• Figure skating
• Kibbutz life
• Language study
• Military service
• Mineralogy
•  Music
• Political campaigns
• Reading
• Special needs education
• Sports
• Steel drumming
• Storytelling
• Swing dancing
• Working to save money for college

Parents often worry that, by detaching from a year-to-year academic progression, their child will fall behind. Colleges seldom see it that way, and many letters of admission come with the option of deferring for a year. Once in college, students are often encouraged to take a year off, and college student counseling centers freely offer advice about opportunities. Splitting the difference, some colleges offer mid-year entrance, allowing the student a “gap semester.” American University and Brandeis University have formal off-campus programs for first-year fall semester.

A year off can center around any endeavor. Now that average student indebtedness at graduation is $25,200, saving for a year before college can create more flexibility after college. Another opportunity is more family time, especially with grandparents, which may have been sacrificed for academic achievement.

Some parents and students prefer a structured year. There are many services which will match a student with a gap year program, and a quick internet search will yield many. Also, think outside of the box; my personal favorite was a year at Austin Community College studying blacksmithing.

A gap year can make for a more interesting student, capable of adding more to the academic community. Best of all, students can discover their passions and capture their zeitgeist before they begin college.

Has your child considered taking a gap year? Please share your experience in the comment section below.

Kate will be discussing college admissions at our next Gifted Child Parent Meeting. The talk will take place at 6:30 pm on February 13, 2013, at the IEA Learning Center, located at 625 Fair Oaks Avenue, Suite 288, South Pasadena, CA 91030 (across the hall from the IEA main office). Please RSVP to reception@educationaladvancement.org. We hope to see you there!

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