#actuallygt

[malleablemovement]

Is there a school program that teaches HARDER stuff but not MORE? Because smart* kids that get bored in regular class have the same number of hours in a day to do stuff. Just doing more of the same stuff doesn’t make it interesting. Five essays and five different novels is the same as one essay on one novel, but with more stress.

And I was in IB where they want you to be “well rounded” which is great. But then they don’t leave space for having a passion. What if, hypothetically, I’m smart* and interested in academics and I want the skills and like minded classmates I can get in your fancy program but I also have a hobby I’m dedicated to and brings me joy? I don’t have time to do all your extra philosophy essays and CAS hours and reflections and come up with exciting individual assessment projects, AND commit myself to my hobby the way it demands and I think you would want. This is especially true for the many programs that only really exist until you graduate high school.

And and. What about dealing with any amount of mental illness? It runs rampant among the high achieving perfectionists you find in these advanced academic programs. Shouldn’t we try to nurture those kids, help them manage their lives and find balance? Not push them to achieve unobtainable heights?

I’m sick of kids being ignored because they’re smart*. They need care to, just a different kind.

*you know, smart as in good at school. Advantaged in the ways that matter to teachers and interested in pleasing them. There are certainly other kinds of smart that NEED to be valued more highly, but that’s another post.

[quarternotewhistle]

hey legitimate question for folks with adhd or other overlapping neurodivergences:

how do you get yourself to sit down and work on your hobbies?

right now my method is mostly just "remove obstacles between myself and the task, and break it down into smaller specific achievable/approachable steps" which does make it significantly easier to do said hobbies *when i have the impulse to* but it doesn't give me the impulse to do them or allow me to sit down and do them in the absence of that impulse. how can I like... work around this and make myself do things without that rare and random strike of inspiration?

[flannelmoth]

theres also the issue of how school systems treat (pretty much ignore) 2e students (god i hate the terminology associated with being gt??? "gifted" "twice-exceptional" stop trying to coddle us just give us words that mean things and dont alienate us instead please these words are bullshit) but yeah gt people who are ALSO otherwise neurodivergent get the short end of the stick?? schools just... pick one, either theit being gt or their being nd and ignore the other parts, stuff theit fingers in their ears and yell "im not listening!" when the gt+nd person "uh hey youre... not actually helping bc theres this other thing and that needs addressed to bc im struggling rn" im bitter abt how gt kids are treated and how it messes us up as adults and usually i try to be more positive and upbeat about it but im grumpy this morning? sorry abt that but ive honestly had a therapist tell me i cant "have it that bad if i have good grades" (i was seeing them for anxiety attacks, depressive thought patterns, and wanted to see if my focus issues could stem from adhd possibly? they completely blew me off and never tried. i never went back to that specific therapist) i dont answer the grades question anymore on those

[flannelmoth]

idk i havent talked abt gt stuff a lot lately bc idk how to be eloquent or clear abt it and only people who have that experience really listen anyway it seems so ? but im glad when gt people find my old posts it helps. i get messages every few weeks thanking me for letting them not feel as alone and thats nice, at least it does something a little bit.

[flannelmoth]

lest anyone think im bragging about How Smart I Am in that giftedness post talking about my biology degree...

i barely use that degree and am now working on getting certified to train dogs instead.

i only use it part time to teach small children and sometimes their enthusiastic adult guardians about science tidbits at an interactive kids science museum. which is fun but is not where the big bucks are lmao

some of the other folks who went to one of the same programs as me are working on like. their second doctorate or some shit. i am petting my dog. this is fine.

[flannelmoth]

@apetnamed-steverogers i can try to help you. i went through this same thing when I went to college (7 years ago now? wow) and while im still super inefficient at studying i can give general pointers? message me if you want and ill chat with you and we can figure out what you do/what you can try?

[seer-of-light]

This was a class of fiendishly bright kids who knew just how bright they were. Mrs. Finley wanted us to behave like the young scholars she imagined us to be. We wouldn't. We behaved badly at every turn and received more class reprimands than any other class in the school's history. Kids wouldn't move to the right places during rehearsals, or would ad-lib wisecracks, which Mrs. Finley didn't think at all funny. On the day we were to perform the play, she was virtually in tears. The play she saw as a gentle incursion into another culture we played as a comic romp with great effect. The school principal, who knew of our bad behavior reports, had come to the play and loved it. We were asked to perform it two more times.

Bad Boy: A Memoir, Walter Dean Myers

[seer-of-light]

Tips for those irritated by how slowly Sal talks/writes: Khanacademy videos are hosted on YouTube, and can be sped up (or slowed down) with the settings tab in the video player.