Blog Archives - #ohiogtchat

#Ohiogtchat is Starting its 3rd Year!

10/28/2016

Posted by Jeffrey Shoemaker

This November #ohiogtchat will be starting its 3rd year. In the past 2 years we have learned a lot about Gifted Education and those who serve every day in some capacity influencing and teaching gifted children. We want this year to be even better! We encourage you to join in, take part in, retweet, follow, and share what you learn from this chat.

I hope that as we start off this 3rd year of this chat I would hope that you would let others know about this chat. If you would like to discuss a topic or be a featured guest please tweet @jeff_shoemaker or @HeatherCachat.

Questions for Nov. 6 #ohiogtchat

10/28/2016

Posted by Jeffrey Shoemaker

The #ohiogtchat is back next Sunday Nov. 6 at 9pm ET with a great topic that has a lot to do what I have been trying to get others to see. The topic is Why Giftedness Matters. We have an awesome guest for this chat featuring Guest Author Celi Trepanier (@CeliCeliC). She authored the book Educating Your Gifted Child: How One Public School Teacher Embraced Homeschooling. I would encourage you to check out her blog. It is a great resource, and a place to find some encouragement as you raise or teach your gifted child.

Here are the questions for the Nov. 6th Chat:
1. Why does giftedness matter?
2. Why is having a gifted child often likened to a roller coaster ride?
3. Why is advocacy important as a parent of a gifted child?
4. Why is advocacy important as an educator?
5. How can we support all parents of gifted children with making choices about their child’s education?
6. What is the ideal educational setting for gifted children?

I hope you can join our chat on Sunday Nov. 6. Also, if you haven't read her book, I would highly encourage you to read it. I wrote a review of it here.

Bullying Prevention and Gifted Children

10/23/2016

Posted by Heather Cachat

Tonight's chat is one I've been looking forward to for awhile. It's topic hits close to home, and my own experiences heightened my sensitivity towards the emotional well-being of my students. The environment we create for our students includes how we treat each other, and tonight's chat was all about bullying prevention.

Our guests were Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) author of Gifted, Bullied, Resilient: A Brief Guide for Smart Families, and Trudy Ludwig (@TrudyLudwig) author of several books that highlight specific bullying situations, including My Secret Bully, Trouble Talk, Just Kidding, & The Invisible Boy. I feel very blessed to have each of these ladies as our guests! They are incredibly knowledgeable, and even though a chat only skims the surface of a topic, they were able to really dig deep and give us valuable information!

What qualifies as "bullying", and what are some signs and symptoms?

In our first question Pamela and Trudy both differentiated between meanness and bullying. Pamela shared this resource from PsychologyToday.com Is It Bullying... Or Ordinary Meanness. Trudy added rude, giving parents these helpful ways to teach them to their children:

#ohiogtchat When someone says/does something hurtful once, but not on purpose, that's RUDE
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

#ohiogtchat When someone says something or does something hurtful on purpose and only once, that's MEAN
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

#ohiogtchat When someone says/does something hurtful on purpose& you show you're mad/sad/scared & tell them to stop & they don't : bullying
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

For signs or symptoms, Pamela shared a resource from PACER's National Bullying Prevention Center: Help Your Child Recognize the Signs of Bullying. In it, I would like to highlight, the reactions to avoid immediately jumped out at me:

Tell their child to stand up to the bully
Tell their child to ignore and avoid the bully
Take matters into their own hands

And the authors absolutely nailed it - these were exactly what I heard from my own parents. What can we do instead?

Tell your child they are not alone.
Tell your child it is not his or her responsibility to make the bullying stop.
Tell your child that even though bullying happens to many kids, that never makes it right.
Tell your child no one deserves to be bullied.
Tell your child that we all need to work together to address bullying.

Additional signs or symptoms of bullying or relational aggression include:

giving the silent treatment
intentional social exclusion
gossiping
spreading rumor

Yes @HeatherCachat The subtlety makes "zero tolerance" so ineffective. Not treating problem correctly or even at all at times. #ohiogtchat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

Honestly, since bullying isn't confined to schools, I'd say that adults in any setting can ramp up or down behaviors #ohiogtchat https://t.co/KE2P7AD25n
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

Why do children bully?

When asked why do children bully? Trudy boiled it down: in the end, it's really all about choosing to be cruel.

#ohiogtchat Q2: One give give a lot of reasons why kids / adults pick on others; but really it's about a conscious choice to be cruel
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

A2) The bully gets something positive fr the behavior. More power? Attention? A sense of control? A buzz from the manipulation? #ohiogtchat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

#ohiogtchat A 2) Some kids who bully think very highly of themselves. You cannot say that all kids who bully have low self-esteem
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

@redwhiteandgrew i.e. the adult smiles at the behavior, looks away? #ohiogtchat
— Heather Cachat (@HeatherCachat) October 24, 2016

When we talk YOUNG highly verbal G/2E kids, bullying issue gets trickier. They may know words but not full impact of behavior. #OhioGTChat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

As we teach our children about their behavior and its impact, this teaching may need to come up again and again.

And it is the very young, highly verbal G/2E kids who I think need MORE coaching and tricks EARLIER for benefit of all #ohiogtchat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

#ohiogtchat The reality is kids make both intentional & unintentional mistakes. Grown-ups need 2 turn them into teachable moments
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

The other reality w/ older highly verbal G/2E kids is that they fool the adults. How to switch from - to + behaviors important #ohiogtchat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

How can we help children who are targets of bullying?

#ohiogtchat Q3: In nationwide survey kids were asked this very question. What do you want peers 2 do? Top Answers: Comfort, Include, Report
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

Comfort circles back to the PACER resource, and knowing they are not alone.

Include. I feel there needs to be more clarification on this, but to me I think it means to include the child socially, as well as include them in the resolution of the bullying behavior. I hesitate to call it conflict. To me conflict connotes equality on both sides.

When a witness has the courage to Report bullying behavior to a trusted adult, they have shown the child being targeted that this behavior is not okay. And to me reporting does not include glorifying an incident. Recording and posting to social media is not reporting.

A3) Also imp. understand that G/2E kids may have heightened sensitivities to + and - social behaviors. Give them tools to deal. #ohiogtchat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

A3) SUPER important w G/2E targets to get needs addressed by counselors and supportive adults who factor in their difference. #ohiogtchat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

What advice / guidance can you offer parents who have a child displaying hurtful behaviors towards others?

Being careful of what we are modeling for our children. And on the days you model bad behavior? Have the presence of mind to admit to your children that, "I made a mistake and I want to talk to you about what I should have said and done." Even if that admittance comes later, children will benefit from learning that their parents make mistakes too.

Yes. This is critical. "That was a bullying behavior" is more neutral. (Golly, the word is so loaded now as to be problematic) #ohiogtchat https://t.co/yihJLdmBlv
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

A4) Begin "kitchen table conversations" re: appropriate & inappropriate interactions, ideally BEFORE behavior but, yk, get on it #ohiogtchat https://t.co/9Xzd0ZlTGK
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

#ohiogtchat A4) Let child know bullying is NOT acceptable behavior. Child needs to take responsibility & make up for hurt he/she caused.
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

The first few go hand in hand with the last word. Stripped of New Age-y vibe, it's about being thoughtful in word and deed #ohiogtchat https://t.co/bvFVoDrnmU
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

@jeff_shoemaker A 4) YES! #Empathy can be taught. Great new resource: Unselfie by Dr. Michele Borba #ohiogtchat
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

Unselfie: Why Empathetic Kids Succeed in Our All-About-Me World by Dr. Michele Borba

Parents, too, really need to check their vibe on pushing "dominance." Good to push excellence but not at "crushing" competition. #ohiogtchat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

@TrudyLudwig @redwhiteandgrew Absolutely! A huge problem among the gifted population causing so much pressure. #ohiogtchat
— Heather Cachat (@HeatherCachat) October 24, 2016

In SOME G/2E households, you've got a stew of dominance, poor modeling and perhaps unresolved parental issues #ohiogtchat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

How can parents and school educators work together to address and prevent bullying?

#ohiogtchat A5 ) Bullying is a community issue that must be dealt w/ at community level-educators, parents and kids in school community
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

#ohiogtchat A 5) Rather than focusing on "NO Bullying" posters, we need to see more + messaging in schools--YES to Kindness!
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

A5) All adults need to 1) get clear on language 2) address/resolve personal history with the topic #ohiogtchat https://t.co/7sisjM1hp1
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

A5) I mention some resources in book, but programs like Mindful Schools help create pro-social environment for adults AND kids #ohiogtchat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

Mindful Schools

@HeatherCachat #ohiogtchat. A big factor in changing school climate is to empower the students--the bystanders can help by being upstanders
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

@redwhiteandgrew In other words...parents need to keep their own emotional baggage in check :-) #ohiogtchat
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

@HeatherCachat #ohiogtchat Upstanders report 2grown-ups they trust 2help targets get protection & kids who do hurtful behavior can get helpt
— TrudyLudwig (@TrudyLudwig) October 24, 2016

A5) Note my book has a sample letter--written with help from a school admin--for parents on how to address a problem w/poise #ohiogtchat
— Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) October 24, 2016

Gifted, Bullied, Resilient: A Brief Guide for Smart Families by Pamela Price

Being bullied is a painful experience, but there is one more resource I want to leave you with. It is something I have used with parents in my SENG parent groups. The Bully Shield is a family activity that helps your children know their strengths in your family, and what each person values about the other people in your family. Feel free to use this with your family, and let us know your thoughts about this chat and resources in the comments.

Topic Suggestions

10/21/2016

Posted by Jeffrey Shoemaker
So far 2016 has been a great year for our chat, but we are not satisfied yet. We want to be better. We are looking to add some more topics for the 2017 chat calendar. If you have a topic that would like to see us cover please fill out the Google Form below. With your help we can help make this chat even better in the coming year.

#ohiogtchat Oct. 23rd 9pm ET / 8pm CT

10/17/2016

On Sunday Oct. 23 at 9pm ET we will be discussing Bullying Prevention with an awesome panel of guests. Our featured guests will be Pamela Price (@redwhiteandgrew) & Trudy Ludwig(@TrudyLudwig).

Here are the questions we will be discussing.

1. What qualifies as "bullying"; what are some signs and symptoms?
2. Why do children bully?
3. How can we help children who are targets of bullying?
4. What advice/guidance can you offer parents who have a child displaying hurtful behaviors towards others?
5. How can parents and school educators work together to address and prevent bullying?

I hope that you can join us for this very important topic.

OAGC Conference 2016

10/17/2016

Posted by Jeffrey Shoemaker

We wanted to thank everyone today who came and participate in the #ohiogtchat presentation. It was you who made this presentation successful. If you didn't get a chance to give us some feedback please click here.

If you didn't get a chance to see the presentation it is below.

Parent Day 2016 This Sunday!

10/10/2016

Posted by Jeff Shoemaker

This Sunday is the OAGC Parent Day. The cost is $5, and gets you in to several sessions that I know will be fantastic. The information is below.

What is the Excellence Gap?

10/10/2016

Posted by Jeffrey Shoemaker

Excellence gap refers to the disparity in the percent of lower-income versus higher-income students who reach advanced levels of academic performance. The "gap" appears in elementary school and continues as students move through middle school, high school, college and beyond.

Why does this matter to Gifted Education advocates? Check out the video below.

#ohiogtchat for Oct. 9 Rescheduled for Oct. 16

10/10/2016

Posted by Jeff Shoemaker

Due to circumstances beyond my control I had to postpone Sunday night chat until next week.
I hope that you can join me this Sunday at 9pm ET for our #ohiogtchat. We will be discussing closing the Excellence Gap. You can see the questions by clicking here.

#ohiogtchat Questions for Oct. 9

10/8/2016

Posted by Jeff Shoemaker

Our first chat of Oct. is on Closing the Excellence Gap. This chat was inspired by Jonathon Plunker's Keynote Topic for the 2016 OAGC Fall Conference. I hope you can join us on Sunday at 9pm ET.

Here are the questions for the chat.

1. What are reasons that might be given for many gifted children not showing adequate yearly growth?

2. How can we diversify our gifted programs in urban areas where low income and minority students aren't fairly represented?

3. How can we as Gifted Coordinators, GIS, advocates, teachers and parents begin to close the Excellence Gap between low income minority and white students, and between low income and more advantaged students?

4. Our country has spent billions of dollars are spent on interventions that focus on minimal competencies. How can we expect Excellence Gaps to improve if we only focus on the minimum?

5. How can parents, teachers, administrators help raise the issues of the Excellence Gap to our representatives and congressman who write policy for education?

To get ready for this chat here are some websites that you can use that Heather compiled.

https://edexcellence.net/articles/why-the-excellence-gap-matters-for-civil-rights
http://education.jhu.edu/edpolicy/Event/pastevents
https://edexcellence.net/publications/high-stakes-for-high-achievers
https://edex.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/08.31%20-%20%2836%20Ohio%29%20High%20Stakes%20for%20High%20Achievers.pdf
http://hepg.org/hep-home/books/excellence-gaps-in-education
http://www.excellencegap.org/
http://cepa.uconn.edu/home/research/mindthegap/
http://www.jkcf.org/assets/1/7/ExcellenceGapBrief_-_Plucker.pdf
http://webdev.education.uconn.edu/static/sites/cepa/AG/excellence2013/Excellence-Gap-10-18-13_JP_LK.pdf
https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/beautiful-minds/talent-on-the-sidelines-the-widening-gap-in-excellence/#
http://www.parenttoolkit.com/index.cfm?objectid=1944BA30-E91F-11E4-B6B90050569A5318

OAGC Teacher Division Chat Blog

This blog is not only where we recap each chat and include all the links provided during the chat, but also share information about gifted education along with upcoming chats . The conversation does not end with the last tweet of a chat.

Join us on Twitter by following the hashtag #ohiogtchat. See you on selected Sundays at 9 EST!

OAGC Tweeting Community

Co-Moderator of Chat
Teacher Division Committee Chair-Elect
@jeff_shoemaker

Co-Moderator of Chat
SENG Facilitator
Central Ohio Gifted Support
@HeatherCachat

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