Gifted Childrens Intensities Barbara Branch Executive Director California

Gifted Children’s Intensities Barbara Branch Executive Director California Association for the Gifted

Agenda Dabrowski’s Overexcitabilites Intensity in Gifted Children Suggested Classroom Interventions for Intense Gifted Children

Dabrowski’s Overexcitiabilites Kazimierz Dabrowski (1902 -1980) – Polish psychiatrist Two Concepts Developmental Potential Your initial opportunity for growth Depends on how it is actualized Multilevelness Various levels of inner growth Might be higher in a young person who has been self-integrated The work of personal growth

Dabrowski’s Overexcitiabilites Psychomotor Sensual Intellectual Imaginational Emotional

Psychomotor Surplus of Energy Rapid Speech Need for Action Misdiagnosed as ADHD

Sensual Enhanced sensual experience Sight Sound Touch Taste Smell Beauty Music

Intellectual Curiosity Capacity for sustained intellectual effort Search for truth and understanding Capable of reflective thought

Imaginational Creative thinking Capacity for image and fantasy Can create private worlds Need for novelty and variety

Emotional Extremes of emotion Empathetic Shyness and timidity Capacity for strong attachments

• Overexcitabilities lead to Intensities

INTENSITY OF THOUGHT “Her mind is always whirring. ” From J. R. Delisle, Once Upon a Mind: The stories and scholars of gifted child education. 2000.

INTENSITY OF PURPOSE “Once he makes up his mind to do something, he’s not satisfied until it’s accomplished. ” From J. R. Delisle, Once Upon a Mind: The stories and scholars of gifted child education. 2000.

INTENSITY OF EMOTION “She internalizes anything anyone says about her. ” From J. R. Delisle, Once Upon a Mind: The stories and scholars of gifted child education. 2000.

INTENSITY OF SPIRIT “He’s always looking for someone less fortunate who needs help. ” From J. R. Delisle, Once Upon a Mind: The stories and scholars of gifted child education. 2000.

INTENSITY OF SOUL “She asks questions that philosophers have asked for centuries and gets upset when we can’t give her definitive answers to them. ” From J. R. Delisle, Once Upon a Mind: The stories and scholars of gifted child education. 2000.

Emotional Intensity Emotional intensity in the gifted is not a matter of feeling more than other people, but a different way of experiencing the world: vivid, absorbing, penetrating, encompassing, complex, commanding- a way of being quiveringly alive.

Problems with Being Gifted Emotionally intense Unrealistic expectations of self and others; perfectionist; depressing Excessively competitive Low frustration tolerance Easily hurt Feels powerless to solve world problems

Problems with Being Gifted Impatient; sees too much Disruptive; class clown Uses humor to seek attention Excessive questioning (why, why) Goes too far; seems disruptive Unable to accept help

Brains on Fire f. MRI showed intense and diffuse brains Not one mode thinkers – multi-modality Enhanced distractibility but leads to creativity (daydreaming) Need time for rumination and reflection

Teacher’s Role Learn about giftedness Understand gifted intensities Create a learning environment that allows for movement, creativity, exploration, choice, structure, and opportunity for questioning. Know that gifted children need less repetitions and review Often gain incidental knowledge

Teacher's Role Understand that gifted students may know more than you do about some subjects Understand value them intellectually and emotionally At the beginning of the year find out the learning style and interests of your students Give the Overexcitability Questionnaire

Overexcitability Questionnaire 1. Do you ever feel really high, ecstatic, and incredibly happy? Describe your feelings (Younger children can draw a picture. ) 2. What has been your experience of the most intense pleasure? 3. What are your special kind of daydreams and fantasies? 4. What kinds of things get your mind going?

Overexcitability Questionnaire 5. When do you feel the most energy, and what do you do with it? 6. How do you act when you get excited? 7. What kind of physical activity (or inactivity) gives you the most satisfaction? 8. Is taste something special to you? Describe in what way it is special.

Overexcitability Questionnaire 9. Do you ever catch yourself seeing, hearing, imagining things that aren’t really there? Give examples. 10. When do you feel the greatest urge to do something? 11. If you come across a difficult idea or concept, how does it become clear to you? Describe what goes on in your head in this case. 12. Describe what you do when you are just fooling around?

Teacher's Role Talk about being gifted and what it means including advantages and challenges Maintain a structured environment and clear discipline Teach organizational skills and processing of information Teach them to think like a disciplinarian (expert in the field)

Teacher's Role Teach gifted children to be metacognitive – understand the nature of thinking Teach gifted children to evaluate the quality or status of a piece of information as knowledge – internet overload – what counts as knowledge Teach Socratic seminar – the art of argumentation – a scholarly discussion of an essential question Teach using moral dilemmas rather than just following rules

How to Nurture Emotional Intensity Accept children’s emotions Don’t try to minimize their emotions Teach children that their feelings are normal for them Apply consistent discipline Discuss feelings openly Use expressive outlets such as art, music, poetry, journaling

Teaching Focus Too often gifted children’s facility for assimilating information is taken as a sign that gifted education should consist of “filling up their brains” with vast quanities of information. On the contrary, information acquisition should take a diminished role in gifted education, and information processing a great one.

Final Thought We stand at the dawn of a new era. Before us is the most important decade in the history of civilization, a period of stunning technological innovation, unprecedented economic opportunity, and great cultural rebirth. The issue is how do we prepare our children for it. John Naisbitt Megatrends 2000

Suggested Reading Living with Intensity Susan Daniels Emotional Intensity Christine Fonseca Once Upon a Mind Jim Delisle Misdiagnosis Jim Webb

Barb’s website www. drbabs. wikispaces. com