• Home
  • About
    • Kite Kids 101
    • Uneven development
    • Overexcitabilities
    • My goal
    • Why “kite kids”
    • Contact me
  • Educators
    • Traits of giftedness educators should know
    • How educators can help kite kids
    • Resources for school teachers, counselorsย and administrators
  • Clinicians
    • Traits of giftedness doctors should know
    • How to help gifted patients
    • Resources for clinicians
  • Parents
    • The day I knew
    • The G Word
    • Ways to make your child feel valued
    • Parent tools and resources
    • Self-care for kite kid moms
  • Subscribe
  • Donate
  • Tools for influencers
Kite Kid Mama

Kite Kid Mama

Rising above the obstacles of giftedness

distance learning for kids and you
educators, parents

Remote learning & enrichment ideas for kids

Mar 25, 2020
parents

Topics & featured experts for the 2020 Bright & Quirky Online Summit (March 12-16)

Feb 25, 2020
clinicians, educators

A great way to compare points of view & build social competencies

Feb 8, 2020
extroverts with social anxiety can be difficult to understand
clinicians, educators, parents

How to navigate social anxiety in kids who are extroverts

Jan 26, 2020
when an extroverted child develops social anxiety
clinicians, educators, parents

When an outgoing child develops social anxiety

Jan 25, 2020
demystifying executive-function deficits
clinicians, educators, parents

Demystifying executive functions: what they are & how to teach them

Jan 24, 2020

Posts navigation

Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 … 12 Next

Meet Patti

Meet Patti

Thanks for stopping by. I created this site after learning why my son had been bullied & excluded since age five. It took three years to find out โ€“ mostly because of long-standing myths. That's far too long, so now I'm on a mission to help others. I explain what "the G word" is &, just as important, what it isn't. With the help of many experts, you'll also see tips for navigating this type of neurodiversity. Join me as I share what I'm learning.


Want to know when I post a new article? Subscribe here.
 

Affiliate links:

This site contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase via any of them, Iโ€™ll receive a small referral fee. (Usually less than half the cost of a tall latte.) I use this income to help offset the expenses to operate the Kite Kid Mama blog & its corresponding social media accounts. Also, there is never a mark up to you. Pinky swear! Learn more

My articles on Pinterest:

My Instagram feed:

Remember the teacher I mentioned about a week ago? Remember the teacher I mentioned about a week ago? She told my son & his classmates on a recent Zoom call that she'd been sewing a lot lately. Now we know why. ๐Ÿ˜Š Pillowcases! The constellations on the fabric even glow. ๐Ÿคฉ
I've been spending a lot of time trying to determi I've been spending a lot of time trying to determine which schools are most willing to partner with me as I try to teach my oldest child (who has social anxiety) how to self-regulate when he feels nervous or rejected. ๐Ÿง’ This is essential because I've started to realize I have unknowingly been part of what regulates him. ๐Ÿ˜ณ That's why I haven't seen the class clown antics his teachers & peers have witnessed. I've only seen the fallout, like watching kids ignore him when he tries to say "hello." ๐Ÿ˜ฅ For years, that confused me because, in those moments, he was calm. ๐Ÿค” But again...I was with him & apparently making him feel safer in a situation that (unbeknownst to his teachers, school counselor & me) didn't feel safe. ๐Ÿ˜ฎ . The "base zones" for these preferred schools I'm identifying come into play too, of course. ๐Ÿก Where can we live that will be within the zone for not only his 5th grade year, but also the middle school that I hear does a great job with divergent thinkers like him? โ“โ“โ“ . Also, would the default elementary school be a good fit for my son if I canโ€™t get him into the magnet elementary school I prefer? (Or my rising 3rd grader if that school doesn't have two openings)? ๐Ÿคจ These are just a few, of many, questions tumbling around in my head. ๐Ÿ˜ฃ Parents of countless other 2e kids have grappled with similar scenarios, especially when paying for private school was never part of the plan. (Therapy appts & extracurricular activities, like robotics & coding, are expensive enough!) ๐Ÿ’ฐ All of this has set off a wide range of emotions in me. And at times, I struggle to regulate myself! ๐Ÿ˜ฌ Perhaps I should meditate or take yoga. ๐Ÿง˜ Can any of you relate? ๐Ÿ˜…
A couple days ago, I said that we can have strong A couple days ago, I said that we can have strong opinions, but communicate them in a way thatโ€™s respectful & draws others in. ๐Ÿค— (Rather than shaming or belittling them, & ensuring there will never be the belief that you may have common ground.) ๐Ÿ’ฅ . I have a caveat to that statement, though... There are ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜บ๐˜ด going to be individuals who don't want to hear a different perspective. ๐Ÿ™‰ It doesn't matter ๐˜ธ๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต you say, or ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ you say it, they don't even want to listen to your experiences or viewpoint. ๐Ÿ™… . In my opinion, don't waste your breath on these folks. ๐Ÿšซ We can spend every hour of every day trying to make our case, & nothing will change. 0๏ธโƒฃ There are too many other individuals who ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ open-minded, & ๐˜ข๐˜ต ๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ด๐˜ต willing to listen. And by listen, I mean really listening (not crafting rebuttals while you're talking.) If you have something to say, focus your efforts on these folks. ๐Ÿค . Oh, & if you're truly trying to create change (rather than connect with those who already believe you), don't spend too much time preaching to the choir, either. ๐Ÿ˜‰
Truth. Truth.
We can have strong opinions, but communicate them We can have strong opinions, but communicate them in a way thatโ€™s respectful & that draws others in. ๐Ÿค (Rather than demeaning them & ensuring theyโ€™ll never see โ€“ or even listen to โ€“ our point of view.) The sun & moon create a lot of energy through a combination of gravitational pull, & showing up day in & day out. ๐ŸŒŠ As @malcolmgladwell says in ๐˜›๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜›๐˜ช๐˜ฑ๐˜ฑ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜—๐˜ฐ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ต, โ€œIf you want to bring a fundamental change in people's belief & behavior...create a community around them, where those new beliefs can be practiced & expressed & nurtured.โ€ ๐Ÿค— . This can be difficult when we're angry or hurting, but it really is essential if we want to create lasting change that people agree with & support. ๐Ÿ„ In fact, sometimes that's how we find our biggest cheerleaders. ๐Ÿ˜‰
If you've been following me for a month or two, yo If you've been following me for a month or two, you may know my family will be relocating soon. ๐Ÿ“ฆ The comment above is what my twice-exceptional (2e) fourth grader's gifted educator told me Friday. ๐Ÿ˜ . This comes as no surprise to me. 2e kids are always hard to figure out because they're outside the norm in almost every way possible. ๐Ÿคฏ Intellectually, they have very high abilities; in other ways, they lag behind their peers โ€“ often significantly. And in most cases, only one side tends to stand out to people. ๐Ÿค” For my son, it's the area in which he struggles. It's so glaring that, even with crazy high STAR scores, no one suspected giftedness. ๐Ÿ˜ฅ . The lack of awareness around 2e kiddos must change. ๐Ÿ” If you're an educator or psychologist, & you want to know how to identify them, I highly recommend listening to Episode 44 of @mindmatterspodcast, featuring Megan Foley-Nicpon, PhD. ๐Ÿ“ป It's a great conversation that explains the challenges, considerations & best practices for assessments. ๐Ÿง
My sonโ€™s homeroom teacher sent me this bookmark My sonโ€™s homeroom teacher sent me this bookmark for Motherโ€™s Day. It was unexpected & so touching. ๐Ÿ˜ญ . She may not have understood my twice-exceptional (2e) sonโ€™s needs in August, but she sure does now. ๐Ÿ˜ฌ You see, I didnโ€™t want to be a helicopter parent ๐Ÿš & I mistakenly assumed that sheโ€™d be informed of my sonโ€™s anxiety via his IEP, the school psychologist or his gifted educator. To say that things were a mess by September would be an understatement. ๐Ÿ˜ฃ (Largely because of bullying when adults werenโ€™t looking.) ๐Ÿ‘Š . However, once I told my son's teachers about the distressing signs I was seeing at home, they saw my sonโ€™s behavior for what it really was, & we became a team that quickly changed things around (with the help of a few other key individuals). ๐Ÿค I adore the teacher who sent me this bookmark &, more importantly, she adores my son. ๐Ÿ’• . General education teachers donโ€™t need a special degree to better understand their โ€œgiftedโ€ & 2e students. ๐Ÿ‘ฉโ€๐Ÿซ Being familiar with these kidsโ€™ overexcitabilities, their asynchrony (sometimes in both directions, esp. if theyโ€™re 2e), & the interplay between these two phenomena, can go a long way โ€” especially from a social-emotional perspective. ๐Ÿ›ฃ๏ธ Do they need to be challenged academically? Absolutely! ๐Ÿ’ฏ. Intellectual intensity one of the five overexcitabilities. However, because of the way these kids' brains are wired, they tend to be intense in other ways, too. ๐Ÿ˜… . Thank you, educators, everywhere who never give up on trying to help their struggling & misunderstood students, regardless of what makes them โ€œdifferent.โ€ ๐Ÿ˜˜
Self-regulation, executive functions & social smar Self-regulation, executive functions & social smarts are intertwined. Itโ€™s difficult to talk about one without considering the others. ๐Ÿค” Thatโ€™s why Leah Kuypers, M.Ed., includes elements of the Social Thinking Methodologyยฎ in her @zonesofregulation curriculum. And itโ€™s the reason sheโ€™ll talk about best practices & common misconceptions @socialthinking's annual conference in June. ๐Ÿคฉ Itโ€™s also why other conference topics include: ~ ๐˜€๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฝ๐˜€ ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—ณ๐—ผ๐˜€๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฟ ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ด๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ถ๐˜‡๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ธ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด (via executive functions) ๐—ณ๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐—บ ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ณ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฐ๐˜† ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ด๐—ต ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฒ๐—ป ๐˜†๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐˜€, with developmental behavioral pediatrician Damon Korb, M.D., FAAP ๐Ÿ‘จโ€โš•๏ธ ~ the ๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐—น๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐—ฒ๐˜…๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐˜‚๐˜๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐—ณ๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ฐ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป๐˜€ (such as self-regulation & perspective-taking) ๐˜„๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ป ๐˜๐—ฟ๐˜†๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—บ๐—ฎ๐—ธ๐—ฒ & ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐—ฒ๐—ฝ ๐—ณ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐—ฑ๐˜€๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ฝ๐˜€ ๐Ÿค— ~ ๐—ต๐—ผ๐˜„ ๐˜๐—ผ ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ต ๐—ฆ๐—ผ๐—ฐ๐—ถ๐—ฎ๐—น ๐—ง๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ธ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐˜€๐˜๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ด๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜€ at home & through tele-education ๐Ÿ‘ฉโ€๐Ÿซ ~ ๐Ÿฑ ๐˜„๐—ฎ๐˜†๐˜€ ๐˜๐—ผ ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ต ๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐˜๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ-๐˜๐—ฎ๐—ธ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด & ๐—ฝ๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐—ฏ๐—น๐—ฒ๐—บ-๐˜€๐—ผ๐—น๐˜ƒ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด: around the dinner table, in the car, during teaching time, in virtual groups, & with siblings ๐Ÿ™Œ Continuing education (CE) credits will be available for those who qualify. โœ… For more details & how to register, read my story about Leahโ€™s presentation. (link in bio) ๐Ÿ–ฑ๏ธ
What has ๐—Ÿ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ต ๐—ž๐˜‚๐˜†๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ What has ๐—Ÿ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ต ๐—ž๐˜‚๐˜†๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜€, ๐— .๐—˜๐—ฑ., learned since publishing her top-selling curriculum? ๐Ÿคท A lot, actually! And she wants to tell you about it. ๐Ÿ˜Š ~ Watch her ๐—™๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฑ๐—ฎ๐˜†, ๐—๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ฒ ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฒ, ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐˜†๐—ป๐—ผ๐˜๐—ฒ ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐—ต for best practices & common misconceptions. Itโ€™s a live-stream event, so you'll also have the opportunity to ask her questions. ๐ŸŽ‰ ~ For more details about Leah's speech & other presentation topics, read my story about the ๐—ฆ๐—ผ๐—ฐ๐—ถ๐—ฎ๐—น ๐—ง๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ธ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ฃ๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐˜ƒ๐—ถ๐—ฑ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜€' ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ณ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐—ฐ๐—ฒ. (link in bio) ๐Ÿ–ฑ๏ธ ~ ๐—Ÿ๐—ถ๐—ธ๐—ฒ ๐˜„๐—ต๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐—œ'๐—บ ๐˜€๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด? ๐Ÿ’• ~ โžก Tag a friend in the comments (or send it to her/him) โžก Share this post as part of your Instagram story โžก Follow me @kitekidmama
What makes kite kids "different" often feels like What makes kite kids "different" often feels like a burden. As I explained in my ๐—ผ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐˜…๐—ฐ๐—ถ๐˜๐—ฎ๐—ฏ๐—ถ๐—น๐—ถ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜€-๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—น๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐—ฝ๐—ผ๐˜€๐˜๐˜€ last week, they may have: a stronger-than-normal sense of justice, heightened sensory experiences (good ones & bad ones), think more deeply about topics than their age peers, & more. ๐Ÿค” They also may be years ahead of their peers intellectually while, at the very same time, years behind when it comes to social-emotional skills and/or executive functions. (This is called asynchronous development.) โš–๏ธ ~ ๐—š๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐˜„๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐˜‚๐—ฝ ๐˜„๐—ถ๐˜๐—ต ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ๐˜€๐—ฒ ๐—ฑ๐—ถ๐—ณ๐—ณ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐—ฐ๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐—ป ๐—ฏ๐—ฒ ๐—ฝ๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ณ๐˜‚๐—น & ๐—ถ๐˜€๐—ผ๐—น๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด. However, when we nurture these kids' strengths & help them get to adulthood with their self-esteem intact, the results can be groundbreaking. ๐Ÿ™Œ In most cases, few people will hear about their accomplishments, aside from those in their industry of choice. In some instances, however, their impact will be far more noticeable to the public. ๐ŸŒŽ Being famous or reaching what someone else thinks is their "true potential" shouldn't be the goal, of course. ๐Ÿ™… What matters most is finding: individuals who accept them ๐Ÿค— & opportunities to pursue their interests at a deep level. ๐Ÿง In other words, true companionship & personal fulfillment. ๐Ÿ’• ~ ๐—Ÿ๐—ถ๐—ธ๐—ฒ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ถ๐˜€ ๐—ฝ๐—ผ๐˜€๐˜? ๐Ÿ˜Š โžก Tag a friend in the comments (or send it to her/him) โžก Share this post as part of your Instagram story โžก Follow me @kitekidmama
The majority of my experiences so far, as a mom, a The majority of my experiences so far, as a mom, are nothing like I anticipated. The struggles have been ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜บ different than I ever heard about or read in popular parenting books. ๐Ÿคทโ€โ™€๏ธ (Who knew a kid could have social anxiety disorder by five or six years old, or "joke" about suicide before even reaching middle school?) ๐Ÿคฏ ~ I could not feel luckier, though, for the kids that God blessed me with. ๐Ÿ’• They both see the world through a different lens than most, & by learning about them, Iโ€™m finding out about aspects of my extended family that weren't even on my radar. I was totally oblivious! ๐Ÿ˜ณ ~ I have a lot more to learn & process, but Iโ€™m getting there. I hope that what I share here is useful to you, too. ๐Ÿ˜˜
The past week, Iโ€™ve been explaining ๐—ถ๐—ป๐˜ The past week, Iโ€™ve been explaining ๐—ถ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜€๐—ถ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜€ (๐—ผ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐˜…๐—ฐ๐—ถ๐˜๐—ฎ๐—ฏ๐—ถ๐—น๐—ถ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜€) โ€“ a phenomenon present in all โ€œG wordโ€ children. ๐Ÿค” Some of these kite kids, as I call them, have one type of OE; others have more, or even all five. ๐Ÿ” ~ The fifth & final one is imaginational intensity. Some children with this OE get so lost in make-believe that they lose all sense of time & their surroundings. ๐Ÿ•ฐ๏ธ They may even have trouble distinguishing fantasy from reality. ๐Ÿฆ„ ~ Kids with this OE also may love music, drama & humor. This is ๐Ÿ’ฏ my daughter. She sings ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ญ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ & in most cases, she makes up the lyrics as she goes. ๐ŸŽต She makes up songs about everything from the hilarities of taking a bath ๐Ÿ›€ or a โ€œbeautifulโ€ drink sheโ€™s retrieving from the refrigerator (accompanied by exaggerated motions) ๐Ÿฅ› to the life cycle of butterflies, including how caterpillars eat all of the skin after they shed it! ๐Ÿ› There was even a verse about it being yummy. ๐Ÿ˜‚ ~ As with all OEs, there can be challenges, too. Kiddos with the imaginational OE can be โ€œtoo muchโ€ for some (or most) peers. They also may become so engrossed in imaginary play that they end up isolating themselves. To read more about the imaginational OE, including social considerations, see the link in my bio. ๐Ÿ–ฑ๏ธ ~ ๐—ช๐—ฎ๐˜€ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ถ๐˜€ ๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—น๐—ฝ๐—ณ๐˜‚๐—น? ๐Ÿ˜Š โžก Tag a friend in the comments (or send it to her/him) โžก Share this post as part of your Instagram story โžก Follow me @kitekidmamae
This error message is only visible to WordPress admins

Warning: The account for kitekidmama needs to be reconnected.
Due to Instagram platform changes on March 31, 2020, this Instagram account needs to be reconnected to allow the feed to continue updating. Reconnect on plugin Settings page

About me

About me
My inspiration

My inspiration
Disclosure

Disclosure
Praise

Praise
Contact

Contact

Kite Kid Mama

© Copyright Kite Kid Mama 2020. Theme by Bluchic.