October 23rd, 2010 by El Ed Mom
Sue Mayer’s blog hit a nerve with me and will with every mom who has ever had to fight for their child. Her son, Sam was the inspiration for the Cedar Valley Character, Sam from our book: Let’s Get Ready For First Grade!
Sue, Sam and the rest of the Mayer Family, we are sending you strength, hope, courage and love on this new fight!
August 19th, 2010 by El Ed Mom
Now that summer is ending, many of us are thinking about the upcoming school year and how to create an atmosphere of success for our children. Regardless of age, a blank notebook, a fresh backpack, new pencils, pens, markers, and/or crayons should be joyful and yet, for many children, it elicits feelings of insecurity and fear of failure. It is up to us, as parents and educators, to make certain that our kids are emotionally, socially, cognitively, and physically ready to meet new challenges. Children need guidance, time, and reminders in order to successfully transition from the more carefree days of summer to the more rigorous routines of the school year. Proper manners should be reinforced, kindness acknowledged, reading, listening, and practicing skills encouraged and healthy eating and sleeping patterns enforced. Since children mimic our attitudes and behaviors, it is critical to speak in positive ways about the school year, teachers, school, and curriculum. It is also important to set realistic expectations so that your child/children can tackle their new experiences and challenges with self confidence and with the knowledge that you will be both their cheerleader and confidant. Please note that I am not encouraging parents to make excuses for or to complete assignments for children, but rather, am advocating an environment of open dialogue, where discussions focus on both positive and negative emotions, behaviors, and experiences.
Creating a solid foundation is critical to buildings constructed from brick and mortar as well as those more gentle structures made up of feelings, ideas, and knowledge. Let’s work together towards building a foundation that supports a love for learning, a respect for self and others, and a dedication to excellence, diligence, and empathy.
I wish everyone a successful and lovely school year!!
Magical Educating!
Donna Mavrides
Magical Moments
www.magicalms.com
December 4th, 2009 by El Ed Mom
Although parents and teachers may be concerned about academic planning for gifted and talented young people, they often assume that career planning will take care of itself. Students may have many choices available because of multiple gifts or a particular talent, and a career choice in that area seems inevitable. There is no need for career planning: The student is simply expected to make an occupational decision around the sophomore year of college and then follow through on the steps necessary to attain that goal.
Unfortunately, evidence is mounting that youthful brilliance in one or more areas does not always translate into adult satisfaction and accomplishment in working life. Studies with such diverse groups as National Merit Scholars (Watley, 1969), Presidential Scholars (Kaufmann, 1981), and graduates of gifted education programs (Kerr, 1985) have shown that the path from education to career is not always smooth, and it may be complicated by social-emotional problems and needs of gifted students that differ from those of more typical students.
Recognition of these problems has produced counseling models that address student needs (e.g., Berger, 1989; Buescher, 1987; Silverman, 1989; VanTassel-Baska, 1990). Some factors that can contribute to problems with career planning are presented here, along with ways of preventing and intervening with career development problems.
October 29th, 2009 by El Ed Mom
Although some people believe the myth that raising gifted kids is easy, parents of those gifted kids know the truth. If you are a parent, you may wonder if other parents of gifted kids have the same concerns that you do. If you are a teacher, you should be aware of parent concerns for gifted kids.
Educational Issues
One of the most nerve-wracking of all of the parent concerns for gifted kids is the clash that the child might have with the education system. Although both the public and private schools will try to accommodate all students at different skill levels, often the number of students in the class prevents the teacher from being able to challenge each student as much as possible. Unfortunately, gifted kids often get the short end of the stick. Struggling students are easily identifiable, and school systems often focus primarily on them, trying to bring them up to grade level. In order for gifted students to receive individualized attention, however, parents need to be particularly proactive.
