Invite Julie to Speak

In-person or virtually, Julie brings energy and enthusiasm to Conference Keynotes, Teacher Trainings, PTA events or any venue where people want to learn about the Twice Exceptional profile and strategies to bring out the best and raise self-confidence in 2e kids. Attendees often comment on Julie’s passion. Julie can also train your child’s teachers. Share this page with your County’s Professional Development Administrator, Special Education/Gifted Education Programmer, or your school’s Administrator.

Speaking

Choose from these topics, or contact Julie to present on a topic of your choosing.

Short description: When parenting and teaching twice exceptional learners it’s important to remember that behavior is communication. More important than addressing specific behaviors is understanding what lies beneath those behaviors. Once there is a deep understanding of the child’s experience and triggers, adults can implement appropriate strategies and develop an advocacy plan. This session will discuss common challenges and how to address them as well as ways to collaboratively advocate on behalf of the 2e child.

Long Description:  The objective of this presentation is to empower parents, educators and professionals to bring out the best and raise self-confidence in twice exceptional kids through an understanding of the 2e person’s inner experience, through strategies that are immediately applicable for parents and educators, and through advocacy tips necessary to encourage the adults in 2e kids’ lives to implement best practices. In order to accomplish this, we will take a deep dive into the 2e profile looking at definitions of giftedness, myths surrounding the profile, discussing 2e characteristics: asynchronous development, perfectionism/anxiety and OEs. We will discuss how gifted brains differ from neuro-typical brains and will introduce the idea of responsive parenting and teaching rather than reactive parenting and teaching. Participants will learn specific strategies that are particularly impactful for the 2e population including strategies to forge and maintain personal connections, strategies for positively reframing typical 2e characteristics and behaviors and maintaining a strengths-based approach, how to anticipate challenging behavior by identifying lagging skills and unsolved problems, how to give meaningful choices that allow the child to take control, and the importance of sense of humor and exercise for this population. Finally, we will discuss best approaches for collaborative advocacy on behalf of 2e learners. The overarching message is that all kids want to do well and that 2e kids come with incredible potential because, not despite, their differences.  We must circle the wagons of the adults in 2e kids’ lives in order to support them in a way that strengthens their self-confidence so they can thrive.

 

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Attendees will learn how to define gifted beyond intellect.
  2. Attendees will recognize patterns of behaviors – both from the adult and from the child – and how to positively reframe and adjust to a strength-based approach.
  3. Attendees will identify ways to advocate effectively on behalf of and with the 2e learner.

Short Description: When faced with a transition, gifted and 2e learners often resist. The fear of the unknown, fear of failure, or absence of trust may drive their refusal and withdrawal. Parents and educators find themselves asking, begging, and pleading with their gifted or 2e kid to do something, go somewhere or try something new. It’s hard to find empathy when you’ve just got to get out the door, or when your child or student is refusing to do something, you know they’ll love or enjoy. This session discusses how to set up a delicate balance of structure and flexibility to ease the strain of transition for our gifted and 2e learners.

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Attendees will learn why transitions are hard for gifted and 2e learners.
  2. Attendees will gain strategies for avoiding power struggles and to ease transitions.
  3. Attendees will understand how their reactions to a 2e child’s resistance may exacerbate their need for a smooth transition.
  4. Attendees will learn about Pathological Demand Avoidance and it’s role in making transitions tough for 2e kids.

Short Description: Learn why your twice exceptional learner seems “over sensitive” or reacts in ways that appear out of sync to what bothers him. Discover how to respond rather than react to your 2e learner’s challenging behavior.  Learn why emotion regulation seems like a 2e characteristic, the formula for emotion regulation and responses to bring calm to your classroom and home.

Long description: Emotion regulation is often a challenge for twice exceptional children. Grappling with intensities, a strong sense of justice, frequently challenged with output and frustrated by a lack of social nuance, our 2e learners can act out in ways that seem out of sync with what is frustrating them at a particular moment. It is imperative to understand what lies beneath behavior and to consider that seemingly severe responses, may be triggered by environments where they feel repeatedly misunderstood. In this session gain a deep understanding of the 2e profile and why it lends itself to emotion dysregulation, a ‘Formula for Emotional Dysregulation’ how to understand what underlies your child’s/student’s behavior, and best ways to respond, rather than react, to stop or shorten the downward cycle. Using research and practice, the presenter will also discuss screen time as a potential cause for dysregulation — and will share an approach to help 2e kids understand how screen time may affect their ability to regulate emotions, as well as a suggested structure for addressing screen time. Attendees will learn strategies for reducing anxiety, which is often attendant to emotion dysregulation, and will be able to recognize what helps a 2e child to fill (or empty) his ‘bucket of resilience.

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Attendees will learn why the 2e profile includes emotion dysregulation.
  2. Attendees will understand what precedes emotion dysregulation and the attendant challenging behavior.
  3. Attendees will gain effective and practical interventions to address emotion dysregulation for the home and classroom.

Short Description: Advocacy is often emotional when 2e children are involved. Challenging behavior in gifted and 2e students can lead to parent/teacher and teacher/student conflict. To successfully communicate in a collaborative manner as well as foster open communication to support gifted and 2e learners, the adults at the table must be able to cooperate and manage their own emotional responses. In this session, participants will benefit from unraveling the complicated challenges of the gifted and 2e profile, why communication is often challenging between parents and teachers and how to overcome those obstacles to create a collaborative partnership of understanding and impactful strategies.

 

Long Description: Challenging behavior in gifted and 2e students can lead to parent/teacher and teacher/student conflict. To successfully communicate in a collaborative manner as well as foster open communication to support gifted and 2e learners, the adults at the table must be able to cooperate and manage their own emotional responses. In this session, participants will benefit from unraveling the complicated challenges of the gifted and 2e profile, why communication is often challenging between parents and teachers and how to overcome those obstacles to create a collaborative partnership of understanding and impactful strategies. This session will set up the why behind challenging communication including the complexity of the 2e profile, as well as the how to successfully communicate to foster collaboration. The top ten strategies that will be taught and explained include: 1. Build and Foster Relationships, 2. Collaborate, 3. Make Deposits, 4. Give the Benefit of the Doubt, 5. Don’t take it personally, 6. Be a Role Model, 7. Respect, 8. Don’t Take it Personally, 9. Take a Break, and 10. Advocate.

 

Learning outcomes:

  1. Attendees will learn why collaboration between educators and parents can be difficult and complex.
  2. Attendees will gain tools to regulate emotions during advocacy and collaboration between educators and parents.
  3. Attendees will walk away with 10 immediately applicable strategies for positive and productive collaboration between educators and parents.

Short Description: Most people think Executive Functioning skills are about ‘organizing stuff.’ There’s so much more! One could say successful executive functioning is the basis for enjoying life. We’ll talk about executive functioning as it relates to attention, mood and behavior specific for gifted and twice exceptional learners. You’ll learn the “Four Cs” for impactful EF instruction and to reduce teacher overwhelm. When we draw on our own strengths as well as our students’, teaching EF skills can be fun!

 

Long Description: Why are executive functioning skills such a challenge for 2e learners? How can we make practicing and learning EF skills fun? In this presentation, participants will learn why the gifted and 2e profiles are susceptible to weak EF skills and how this affects the 2e learner. We’ll review the asynchrony of a 2e child as he/she/they demonstrate that “easy things are hard and hard things are easy.” We will unpack how gifted characteristics affect the EF skills of organization, prioritization, initiation, planning, working memory, and sustaining attention. Once there is a deep understanding of the why of weak EF skills in gifted learners, we’ll tackle the best practices for how to approach teaching EF skills. Utilizing the “4 C’s” – compassion, collaboration, clarity, and creativity, parents and teachers will walk away with strategies to teach EF skills in fun and engaging ways.

 

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Attendees will learn to identify executive functioning skills.
  2. Attendees will analyze why executive functioning skills are challenging for gifted and 2e learners.
  3. Attendees will gain creative strategies for teaching executive functioning skills.

Short Description: “Easy things are hard and hard things are easy” for gifted children with ADHD. Caregivers and educators will deeply understand the similarities and differences of gifted and ADHD profiles and why one elicits a ‘glass half full,’ and the other a ‘glass half empty’ response. Attendees learn strategies and advocacy tools to bring out the best and raise self-confidence in Gifted/ADHD learners.

 

Long description: The objective of this presentation is to help parents and educators understand the similarities and differences between giftedness and ADHD and how one condition garners a “glass half-empty” approach and the other, a “glass half-full” approach. Juxtaposing giftedness and ADHD characteristics and myths, participants will learn to shift deficit thinking toward a strength based approach by recognizing specific needs of the twice exceptional learner identified with ADHD. Specific strategies that are particularly impactful include: forging and maintain personal connections, reframing typical gifted/ADHD characteristics and behaviors, anticipating challenging behavior by identifying lagging skills and unsolved problems, giving meaningful choices that allow the child to take control, and utilizing sense of humor and exercise. The overarching conclusion is that all kids want to do well and that gifted/ADHD kids come with incredible potential (super powers) because, not in spite, of their differences.  We must circle the wagons of the adults in twice exceptional kids’ lives in order to support them in a way that strengthens their self-confidence and allows them to thrive. (Sources: A Parent’s Guide to Gifted Children, To Be Gifted and Learning Disabled, The Columbus Group Definition of Gifted, Thinking Smart About Twice Exceptional Learners: Steps for Finding Them and Strategies for Catering to them Appropriately, DSM-V, various sources from Piechowski, Renzulli, Silverman, Baum)

 

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Differentiate the diagnoses of gifted and ADHD and why it’s important to consider each learner individually as opposed to the sum of their diagnoses.
  2. Demonstrate the effects of being twice exceptional through research and anecdotal evidence.
  3. Learn strength-based interventions to address strengths and struggles of the 2e child identified with ADHD.

Short Description: Twice exceptional learners enter this world wide-eyed and with and intense rage to learn and a deep imagination. All too often their life experience results in doubting their abilities and focusing on deficits. This session provides the “Cycle for Success” in which participants gain a deep UNDERSTANDING of the 2e profile, learn practical and implementable STRATEGIES, and learn how to best ADVOCATE collaboratively for twice exceptional learners. When adults gain this perspective and learn these skills, they are poised to help 2e learners believe in themselves and support their growth in ways these children never imagined could occur.

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Understand the twice exceptional profile.
  2. Grasp the importance of self-awareness and self-acceptance to gain self-worth.
  3. Identify strength-based interventions to encourage self-love.

Short Description: Parents and teachers often feel like their 2e learners are not “meeting their expectations.” Because of the complex twice exceptional profile, expectations are often too high or too low – each causing frustration for both the adult and the child. In this session participants learn the important difference between responsibilities and expectations, and how to make expectations clear, concise, consistent, and appropriate. The relationship between pathological demand avoidance (PDA) and how to obtain a child’s buy in regarding responsibilities and expectations will be discussed, as well as the relevance of setting expectations for privileges.

Long Description: Parents and teachers often feel like their 2e learners are not “meeting their expectations.” Because of the complex twice exceptional profile, expectations are often too high or too low – each causing frustration for both the adult and the child. In this session participants learn the important difference between responsibilities and expectations, and how to make expectations clear, concise, consistent, and appropriate. For instance, “clean your room” is a responsibility, and the expectations are how, when, and how often. When expectations are not specific, the 2e child flounders and likely becomes distracted which leads to disappointment and negative assumptions about the child. Often not meeting expectations leads the adult to assume the child is lazy, disrespectful, or avoidant. Structure for setting expectations is just as important as structure in the classroom or home. The relationship between pathological demand avoidance (PDA) and how to obtain a child’s buy in regarding responsibilities and expectations will be discussed, as well as the relevance of setting expectations for privileges.

 

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Participants will learn the difference between responsibilities/privileges and expectations.
  2. Attendees will understand the relationship between pathological demand avoidance and responsibilities.
  3. Attendees will be able to discern how to collaborate with a 2e child to make expectations clear, concise, consistent, and appropriate.

Description: Intensity is often an inherent part of the gifted and 2e profile. Often described as “over-sensitive” or seen as “too much,” the 2e person can develop a negative self-concept. This presentation describes how “overexcitabilities” are consistently misunderstood and usually perceived as negative. We will discuss the “upsides” to overexcitabilities and how to avoid giving negative feedback that directly affects the 2e person’s ability to regulate emotions or recognize their self-worth. Attendees learn to positively reframe overexcitabilities so the 2e person gains self-awareness and the ability to interact more successfully with others.  

 

In this session we will consider Dabrowski’s five overexcitabilities: Intellectual, Emotional, Imaginational, Sensual, and Psychomotor, and discuss how they are often misunderstood in 2e individuals. Using anecdotes, the audience will learn why intellectually overexcitable children are often seen as “show-offs,” disrespectful, precocious, or even lazy at times. The Emotionally OE child is seen as too intense, out of control, or coddled. Imaginationally OE children are sometimes misdiagnosed with ADD, or seen as flighty, unable to focus, or distracted. Sensually OE children are seen as oversensitive, disruptive, spoiled, or defiant. Psychomotor OE children are determined hyper or out of control. These misunderstandings and the failure to positively reframe OEs or address the incredible strengths that come with this intense way of plugging into the world, leave the 2e person feeling ashamed, misunderstood, and can lead to seriously negative self perception. In this session we will discuss the Dabrowski’s definition of OEs as “a high level of reactivity of the central nervous system” and grapple with the organic nature of this approach to the world. The audience will learn an overall approach to helping the 2e child become self aware, realize that not everyone has the superpowers and OEs that he has, and how to make a choice as to how to respond to their finely tuned nervous system. Attendees will learn the “Know-Show-Control” approach to strengthening self awareness, and giving agency to the child through their own cost-benefit approach to make choices and problem solving.

 

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Understanding Dabrowski’s five areas of overexcitabilities.
  2. Learn the prevalence and harm of deep misunderstandings of overexcitabilities.
  3. Identify a strength-based approach to honoring and addressing overexcitabilities to help the 2e child regulate.

Super Short Description: Advocacy is an ongoing, life-long pursuit for 2e people. When advocates feel defensive or are emotional, it’s difficult to effectively communicate. In this session, participants learn why it’s hard to advocate, how to apply the A-R-T of Advocacy approach, how to Craft a 2e Child’s story, and how to highlight what is most important about a 2e person’s needs.

 

Advocacy is an ongoing, life-long pursuit for 2e people. Parents advocate on behalf of their 2e child. Teachers advocate on behalf of their 2e learners to administrators or even to the 2e child’s parents. 2e people must learn to advocate on behalf of themselves. When advocates feel defensive or are emotional, it’s difficult to effectively communicate. In this session, participants learn why it’s hard to advocate, how to apply the A-R-T of Advocacy approach (Acknowledge, Request, Thank), how to Craft a 2e Child’s story, and how to highlight what is most important about a 2e person’s needs.

 

Short Description: Advocacy is an ongoing, life-long pursuit for 2e people. Parents advocate on behalf of their 2e child. Teachers may advocate on behalf of their 2e learners to administrators or even the 2e child’s parents. The 2e person must learn to advocate on behalf of himself. In fact, advocacy efforts are necessary within a family, in educational settings, whenever the 2e child interacts with others, and in the workplace and social settings for 2e adults. Parent, educator, and 2e adult advocates often feel defensive, and when they are emotional, it’s difficult to effectively advocate. In this session, participants learn the A-R-T of Advocacy (Acknowledge, Request, Thank), how to Craft their Child’s (or their own) story to address strengths, struggles, what works, what doesn’t, and to highlight what they know is most important about their needs. We’ll talk about setting specific goals and action items, to essentially develop a comprehensive “life business plan” to help find success and joy in life.

 

Long Description: Advocacy is an ongoing, life-long pursuit for 2e people. Parents advocate on behalf of their 2e child. Teachers might have to advocate on behalf of their 2e learners to administrators or even the 2e child’s parents. The 2e person must learn to advocate on behalf of himself. In this session, we will review the A-R-T of advocacy and Crafting Your Child’s Story. The A-R-T of Advocacy includes: acknowledge, request, and thank. Acknowledging is imperative to set a positive and collaborative environment. Even though the advocate may feel frustrated, emotional, and angry, it’s important to recognize how few people are trained to work with, teach, or even be with a gifted/2e person. Expressing appreciation changes the dynamic of advocacy. Requesting is an art in and of itself. Often advocates make general or overarching requests. Results come faster when goals are specific and can therefore generate action items and next steps. In this session participants will learn the difference between general and specific goals and how to craft their own specific goals. Thanking the people with whom you are problem-solving seems obvious but is often overlooked or forgotten. There are many ways to thank people and showing gratitude helps keep your advocacy efforts alive in the minds of those from whom the advocate seeks help. Crafting a Child’s Story includes identifying strengths, struggles, accommodations, and enrichment that work and just as importantly, those that don’t. It also entails identifying THE most important thing the advocate thinks should be known about the child. Often in a 2e child’s life, this is the need for feeling a personal connection. When advocacy is structured in this way it not only helps move the needle toward what the child needs, but also allows the advocate to role model how to advocate so eventually the 2e child learns to advocate on his own behalf. 

 

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Participants will learn the A-R-T approach to advocacy to create a collaborative atmosphere.
  2. Participants will learn to Craft their Child’s Story (or their own as a 2e adult).
  3. Participants will gain skills to differentiate between general and specific goals and will learn to draft their own specific goals.

Short Description: Parents of 2e children want so badly for their child to “succeed.” Watching their child’s proverbial “train head toward a crash” the 2e parent goes into overdrive to stop that train. This session explores parenting styles and how to “get out of the way” to help your 2e child gain agency and learn to solve their own problems.

 

Long Description: There are three parenting styles that are observed among parents of 2e children. The Talker parenting style occurs because parents see their child’s issue clearly and believe that if they can just explain what they know, their child’s behavior will change. The Anxiety-Ridden style occurs when parents are fearful of what might befall their child. The Fix-It style is when the parent takes over and tries to solve their child’s “problems.” All three of these styles are completely understandable, but also not conducive to the 2e child developing agency and independence. In this session, participants will further understand these styles and learn how to adjust their styles based on their child’s needs. Attendees will gain an appreciation for the “Parent Pivot,” going from telling to asking and from solving to leading.

 

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Attendees will learn to identify their own parenting styles.
  2. Attendees will be able to demonstrate ways of regulating their own underlying emotions that lead to ineffective parenting styles.
  3. Attendees will create questions to ask instead of telling their child what to do in the face of a challenge.

Short Description: 2e learners are often naturally good athletes. There is good reason for this; their ability to synthesize material, desire for challenge, competitive nature, kinesthetic abilities, perseverance when motivated, and dedication and loyalty. But there are also common struggles for 2e athletes that depend on their profile. Auditory and visual processing challenges can require a different mode of delivering instructions and expectations. Need for novelty may derail rote and repetitive skill practicing. Working memory and processing speed may affect fluidity. If coaches are not aware of underlying causes for challenge, they may just demand more repetition or unintentionally undermine the athlete’s self-confidence. In this session we will discuss important interventions and adjustments that coaches can make to bring out the best in their 2e athletes and grow their love of their sport. 

Long Description: There are certain sports for which 2e athletes are naturally suited. Typically, 2e learners gravitate toward and do well in individual sports with high challenge and complicated steps or routines like gymnastics, swimming, martial arts, track, and tennis. These sports often have lower ongoing social demands. There are reasons 2e learners are excellent athletes – like their ability to synthesize material, desire for challenge, competitive nature, kinesthetic abilities, perseverance when motivated, and dedication and loyalty. But there are also common struggles for 2e athletes that depend on their profile. Auditory and visual processing challenges can require a different mode of delivering instructions and expectations. Need for novelty may derail rote and repetitive skill practicing. Working memory and processing speed may affect fluidity. If coaches are not aware of underlying causes for challenge, they may just demand more repetition or unintentionally undermine the athlete’s self-confidence. Unhealthy perfectionism can become exacerbated by the outcome nature of a sport. You win or you lose. You get the medal, or you don’t.  In this session we will discuss important interventions and adjustments that coaches can make to bring out the best in their 2e athletes and grow their love of their sport. 

Learning Outcomes:

  1. Attendees learn about twice exceptionality and why it is relevant to coaching 2e athletes.
  2. Attendees understand the strengths within the 2e profile that positively affect an athletes performance.
  3. Attendees gain skills and alternative approaches to coaching 2e athletes in order to encourage success and joy in competing athletically.

If you have a specific 2e topic that you’d like to explore and it’s not covered by the listed presentations above, I’m here to customize a talk just for you. Let’s work together to address your unique questions, concerns, and needs. Reach out, and we’ll create a personalized 2e presentation that fits your requirements. 

What does raising a poodle and raising a 2e child have in common? Poodles are definitely THE 2e breed of dogs! They are smart, anxious, eager to please, and strong-willed. They thrive on deep personal connection. And, just like 2e kids, incentive systems don’t always get them to meet expectations. So what’s a 2e parent (or poodle owner) to do? As a life-long lover of poodles and 2e kids, Julie Skolnick brings her expertise to help parents identify typical parenting styles that may work against their parenting goals, address how to adjust parenting patterns, and important ways to increase success in 2e kids’ abilities to meet expectations.

Invite Julie To Speak

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