Carla Marie Boulianne's Blog

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Northwestern University's Center for Talent Development (CTD) conducts the Saturday Enrichment Program (SEP) for gifted and talented students during Fall, Winter, and Spring sessions. Winter SEP courses start January 8th. Enrollment continues through the first week of classes.

SEP Gifted Enrichment in Writing and Literature

• Aesop’s Fables (K-1)
• In My Own Words (1-2)
• Writing Workshop (1-2)
• Traveling Notebook (2-3)
• Right Writing (3-4)
• Vampire Literature (6-8)
• Noel Ideas: Outcasts (6-9)
• Creative Writing Honors: Poetry (7-9)

SEP Gifted Enrichment in Language and Rhetoric

• Word Wizards (2-3)
• Latin I Honors (7-9)
• Persuasion and Debate Honors (7-9)

CTD Saturday Enrichment Programs- Winter 2009 Courses

Northwestern's Winter 2009 CTD SEP program also offers courses in:

• Math and Logic
• Science and Technology
• History, Culture, Business, and Psychology

For Winter 2009 SEP enrollment information, read "Northwestern CTD Winter 2009 SEP Courses."

Find additional information on Northwestern University's gifted programs and services in:

"Northwestern Centern for Talent Development (CTD)"

"Northwestern CTD Winter 2009 Parent Seminars"

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

• Far East Adventures (K-1)
• The European Renaissance (4-5)
• Shakespeare Rocks (4-6)

• Getting Down to Business (2-3)

SEP Gifted Education in Psychology

• Psychology (6-9)

CTD Saturday Enrichment Programs- Winter 2009 Courses

Northwestern's Winter 2009 CTD SEP program also offers courses in:

• Math and Logic
• Science and Technology
• Writing, Literature, Language, and Rhetoric

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

• Astronomical Adventures (PreK-K)
• Chemistry Concepts (PreK-K)
• Pebbles in Our Pockets (K-1)
• Life Cycles of Change (K-1)
• Making the Best of It! (1-2)
• Good Vibrations (1-2)
• Future Scientists: Our Solar System and the Universe (2-3)
• Hot, Hotter, Hottest: Understanding Heat (2-3)
• Scratching Technology (3-5)
• The WOW of Biology: Systems of the Human Body (3-4)
• Feeling Poorly? (4-5)
• Animals at Risk: Biology (4-5)
• Computer Gaming Academy I (5-6)
• Robotics I (5-7)
• Explorations in Space (6-7)
• Energy for the Future (6-7)
• Exploring Engineering (6-9)
• Integrated Science Honors: Physics (7-9)

• Math and Logic
• History, Culture, Business, and Psychology
• Writing, Literature, Language and Rhetoric

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

• Math Like You’ve Never Seen it Before (K-1)
• Math Challenges (K-1)
• Brain Benders II (1-2)
• Show Me the Money! (1-2)
• It’s Not a Problem for Me (2-3)
• The Math Zone (3-4)
• 3-D Math (4-5)
• Math Logically Speaking (6-7)
• Think Hard! Math for Problem Solvers (6-9)
• Topics in Pre-Calculus (8-9)

The Winter 2009 SEP Program also offers gifted courses in:

• Science and Technology
• History, Culture, Business, and Psychology
• Writing, Literature, Language, and Rhetoric

For SEP enrollment information, read "Northwestern CTD Winter 2009 SEP Courses."

Read more about Northwestern CTD gifted programs:

Northwestern Center for Talent Development

Northwestern CTD Winter 2009 Parent Seminars

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

This year I purchased only one major gift new. Everything else came from local secondhand sources. While searching for used presents, I compiled a list of used gift ideas for my readers. The article suggests top Christmas presents for everyone on your gift list.

Here are some of my personal finds, proving that even with three children there can be an inexpensive, secondhand Christmas:

• Ice skates
• Action figures
• Dora the Explorer talking globe
• Board books
• Barbie Dream House
• Space lamp
• Word blocks
• Racecars and track

I'm still thinking about children's cross country skis.

For extended family, I purchased used:

• Power tools
• A giant scary sword (don't ask)
• Jewelry

What was the one new gift?

Gross Magic. My daughter has been asking for it since June, every time we visit the locally owned bookstore and toy emporium.

There is still time to shop used locally. Just check out Craigslist, Freecycle, and area pawnshops and thrift stores. Skip eBay; long distance purchases result in shipping emissions.

Merry Christmas!

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Christmas for many years meant making fudge. For the last few it has meant walnut current baklava. This year, I'm returning to my favorite cranberry walnut white chocolate fudge recipe as I prepare for relatives' parties and put together gift baskets.

Here's a list of ideas for a unique, tasty gift basket:

Cranberry Walnut White Chocolate Fudge

Classic Chocolate Fudge

Peanut Butter Swirl Fudge

Penache (Brown Sugar) Fudge

Turkish kahve (coffee) from Tulumba

Copper cezve (coffee pot) from Tulumba

Turkish fincan (coffee cup) from Tulumba

Evil eye wall decoration from Tulumba

Evil eye bracelet from Tulumba (for a woman)

Inexpensive personalized ornament used as gift basket name tag

Secondhand gift basket, mixing bowl, platter or pan from Goodwill or other thrift store

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

This gourmet organic soup recipes all emerged after snowy holiday feasts when our family couldn't reach the store due to impassable roads. Luckily, our refrigerator is usually well-stocked with organic produce and our cupboards overflow with organic herbs and spices. Throw in some Thanksgiving or Christmas Dinner turkey leftovers and a little cooking creativity, and you have:

"French Green Lentil Soup With Leftover Turkey"

"Leftover Turkey Recipes: Turkey Noodle (Gnocchi) Soup"

"Crimini Mushrooms Minestrone"

The Crimini Mushroom Minestrone recipe doesn't list leftover turkey as an ingredient, but any organic meat makes a wonderful addition. Don't be scared unusual ingredients like Dr. Shultze's SuperFood, anchovies, and Maine Coast Sea Vegetables dulse. It is really quite delicious and even young children will ask for seconds of this gourmet organic soup recipe.

Tip: Organic free-range turkey can be tougher than conventional birds. Consider brining free-range turkey for succulent results.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

When I wrote "Eco Friendly Christmas Gift Giving (Shopping Used)" and "Environmentally Green Holiday Gifts (Shopping Local)", it was based on my personal experience giving used presents last Christmas. My friends and I were about to embark on a "No Shopping" month, where we only purchased essential items. I felt guilty that we were delaying the commitment until January.

I wanted to model a lifestyle of sustainability to my three children, growing up in a rapidly changing world of diminishing resources. So I set out to purchase all my gifts locally, selecting gently used items, and using no new packaging materials. The year was a great success. My friends and relatives received carefully selected power tools, jewelry, vintage clothing, books, toys, electronics, dvds, and cds." Everyone was thrilled with their gifts as each unigue Christmas present required careful consideration of interests, hobbies, and passions.

Little did I suspect that my personal experience shopping used would become so relevant with the growing economic recession. KQED/NPR reported Peter Jon Shuler recently featured my article in a segment on "Holiday Giving in a Recession." Shopping used is gentle on the environment and your pocketbook. My Christmas purchases cost a tenth of what they did a few years ago.

Whether shopping for a cheap Christmas gift or eco friendly present, I hope my tips for selecting used gifts will transform your holiday shopping this season. I proudly sport the new moniker of "used gift maven." You can too!

Shop used to conserve resources and the cash in your wallet. The Earth has enough stuff.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

I discovered ashura during the second year of my marriage to a Turk. The recipe is easily adapted to ingredients found in American grocery stores. My first year making ashura for Christmas dinner, I used standard lima beans, Great Northerns, and dried cherries. I prefer the creamy version of the recipe, using milk instead of water while cooking.

My mother-in-law was extremely impressed that I pulled off this dish, normally served to visitors during New Year's celebrations in Turkey. It is actually quite easy to make. The biggest challenge is the extended visit to the bulk section of a grocery store during the holiday shopping crush. My cart is always in someone's way in the narrow aisles.

My children love this Christmas dessert recipe. Don't tell anyone there are beans in the dish, and everyone will enjoy Noah's Dessert. Share the story of its origins, described in the recipe for this traditional Christmas Eve Dinner dessert.

Enjoy! Whether you call it Noah's Pudding, asure, or ashure, I hope ashura becomes a welcome holiday tradition in your house.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Let me share a little secret. My family went through an extended period of homelessness and housing insecurity when I was a child. We stayed in motels, slept in cars, washed in bowling alley bathrooms, and squatted outdoors when we need to relieve ourselves.

We were cold. Very cold. Imagine taking turns huddling over a van engine compartment for warmth, but only being able to turn on the engine every few hours to save gas.

We were hungry. Imagine your only meal as that school hot lunch and crying the last day of school because you knew a hungry summer awaited.

As a child, I was humiliated by our homelessness. I hid it from friends in school and created excuses for why playdates were always at their houses. I was ostracized when classmates discovered my family secret. As an adult, I'm not humiliated by my childhood homelessness. I am angry when people talk about poverty in America with no understanding of the impact of our system on struggling families.

As a graduate student at Emory University, students from privileged private school backgrounds would talk of the need to reform welfare and social services so that lazy people would stop living off the government and get a job.

I am the product of free hot lunch, government cheese, TANF (and its predecessor AFDC), subsidized energy bills, food stamps, Section 8 housing, and Pell Grants. It is crucial that these social services are preserved for the next generation of homeless children. Helping the most disadvantaged vote is one way.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Cranberry mustard and cranberry ketchup make tasty glazes for Thanksgiving turkey or Christmas ham. The cranberry mustard is especially tasty on pretzels, crackers, and other Thanksgiving appetizers. I've also tried the cranberry ketchup with a meatloaf recipe and achieved surprisingly pleasant results. Both cranberry ketchup and cranberry mustard add a delicious zing to sandwiches made from Thanksgiving and Christmas leftovers.

These recipes are adaptations of recipes from old friends in the Hoquiam Young Mothers Club. We lived only a few miles from an Ocean Spray factory, processing the surrounding cranberry harvest. If you ever make it to Westport, Washington during cranberry season, try to attend the wonderful cranberry festival. You'll sample cranberries used in ways you would never have thought possible.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Simon's Rock holds a bittersweet place in my heart as one of my biggest educational regrets and an exceptional missed opportunity. When I was fifteen, Simon's Rock courted my application after receiving my SAT scores. I was determined to attend. I wrote my application essay on an old Brothers electric typewriter hauled from class to class. My teachers wrote wonderful letters of recommendation and my friends bid me farewell at the end of my sophomore year of high school. I was going to college at Simon's Rock!

Then my absentee father balked at the cost when I asked for his income for my FAFSA. Simon's Rock tuition was $25,000 in 1990. My mother insisted any school would accept you for $25,000; she is inherently skeptical. Then the unthinkable happened. My mother admitted she was not ready for me to move back East to attend collee. She forbid my attendance and refused to sign the paperwork. T

That was the abrupt beginning of my descent into chronic underachievement. I was a straight "A" student when Simon's Rock discovered me. After my aborted attempt to start college early, my grades became a mix of five letters from the alphabet. It was six long years before I tried again, including four years after high school working minimum wage and getting nowhere.

My mother has apologized for not letting me attend early college at Simon's Rock of Bard College. I accept her apology and understand. While attempting to make a final decision about my daughter's grade acceleration, one of my first incredibly selfish thoughts was that she would leave me a year early and I would not be ready. My fear was never that she wouldn't be ready for college at a younger age; it was all aout a mother not wanting to lose her child to the world.

My daughter's grade acceleration reinstilled her love of learning and diverted an early descent into underachievement. I won't fool myself into thinking there won't be other challenges parenting my gifted child. I do know if my daughter ever asks to skip high school and attend Simon's Rock, CSULA-EEP, PEG, or TS-EEP, my answer will be a resounding "Yes!" I won't get in the way of her happiness or chances for success.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

When my daughter went for her gifted assessment, the professional indicated that one of the strongest factors in underachievement was mindset. She recommended Carol Dweck’s Mindset: The New Psychology of Success as essential reading for parents raising a gifted child.

Dweck discusses gifted underachievement arising from a fixed mindset. For gifted kids, this can involve perfectionism combined with a mistaken belief that to be smart all learning must come easily. These two aspects can form a fatal combination leading to underachievement. Gifted underachievers tell themselves that they are failing because they never tried. They secretly fear failure, or imperfection, upon genuine effort.

Parent praise holds a critical role in the formation of fixed versus growth mindsets. If you want to understand your child’s underachievement, you should first consider how your praise could undermine motivation and effort by influencing your gifted child’s self-concept.

Linda Emerick found that gifted children overcoming underachievement all experienced critical changes in self-concept. There are usually many factors contributing to any particular gifted student’s underachievement. It should be no surprise that Erickson found six elements essential to improved performance: parents, student interests, self-concept, personal goals, classes, and teachers all play a role in reversing underachievement.

We took our daughter to a professional. Her gifted assessment supported grade acceleration. After a brief blip of feigning math ignorance to fit in with her new peer group, the underachievement disappeared; so did the immature behaviors and acting out. The material was worth her attention, she was no longer bored, and she had shed her fixed mindset. I hope that this is the last time underachievement raises its ugly head. Wishful thinking, I’m sure.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

While reading Linda Emerick’s article on factors that help underachieving gifted kids reach their potential, I considered my transition from gifted underachiever to star student.

Emerick found out-of-school interests and parent support critical in reversing patterns of underachievement. I acutely recall two instances where my parents could have benefited from this advice.

While inklings of academic boredom and discontent had been present since elementary school, I entered high school with high hopes for challenge. After my first semester report card contained one B in a sea of As, my mother told me I might as well just give up because I would never get into Harvard now. She probably intended to motivate me as the B was in my easiest course, but I took her words to heart. It was many years before my report card that many As again.

As a junior, I became involved with the drama club at my school. I attended the after school course even though it was not part of my schedule. I auditioned for the school musical and got a part. My mom would not sign the permission slip. She said I needed to focus on my academics. After that experience, I furthered my disengagement from school academics and extracurriculars.

Parents who restrict extracurriculars for their gifted underachiever are only trying to help, but their efforts are misguided. Gifted underachievers can find their way back to academic success through skill development in areas of interest. Extracurricular activities are a great way to make learning relevant and help kids succeed in academics.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

As I researched “Gifted Out-of-level Achievement Test Criticisms,” the report by Wyner et al. really affected me. In all my years in GATE programs, I never heard of talent searches until my daughter was identified as gifted. My test scores easily warranted candidacy and talent searches were in full swing during my middle school years.

Was it that my teachers never thought to refer me to a talent search or were not aware of the benefits of participation? Maybe my parents were notified of my eligibility, but didn’t pursue the opportunity due to limited financial resources.

Then I started thinking about my daughter and the impact socioeconomic status has on her educational experience. When our daughter was assessed, we lived on the edge of school district serving a disproportionate share of our city’s underprivileged students. I saw this as an asset because our affluent children would experience diversity and not grow up sheltered and discompassionate.

When we sought gifted programming, we discovered that the school focused so much on the low performers that there was little for high achievers. After some soul searching, we requested a transfer into the best school in our district. It was actually a few blocks closer to our home. The school program was loaded with after school enrichment opportunities.

We received transfer, but the slot disappeared after discussing grade acceleration with the principal. In frantic haste, we returned to the private school our daughter attended as a preschooler. That principal approved her acceleration, which has been an unfettered success.

After reading Wyner's “Achievement Trap,” I can’t help but recall all the missed opportunities of my youth and appreciate that my daughter’s gifted experience is strikingly different solely based on economics and parent advocacy- two factors beyond a gifted child’s control.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Comprehensive gifted assessment generally includes an age appropriate IQ or ability test such as the Stanford Binet, Wescher, or Woodcock-Johnson, out-of-level testing designed for older students, and extensive interviews and history from both the student and his or her parents.

Above-level tests are an important component of gifted identification because in-grade tests lump together a broad range of abilities in the upper few percentiles. A good way to discern who really needs more challenge is to spread out this high performing cohort with a more difficult test.

Out-of-level testing occurs in group settings though Talent Identification Programs (TIP). TIP is a two-part process. Students are screened for TIP candidacy by performance at or above the 95th-97th%ile on a nationally-normed standardized test. Schools often notify families of TIP candidacy with achievement test result reporting. Students may also participate in out-of-level testing through parent or teacher nomination.

The next step is for students to take an aptitude or achievement test designed for older students, such as the EXPLORE, ACT, or SAT test. Those scoring well can participate in on-going university gifted programs and often receive state recognition.

Out-of-level testing for gifted student identification is a well-established practice first developed in the 1970s. If your child is gifted verbally or mathematically, out-of-level testing is a great tool for finding out what your gifted child already knows and is ready to learn.

We helped our daughter prepare for her gifted assessment by letting her know that some questions would be easy and others very difficult. We told her not knowing all the answers was okay because it would help her teachers know what she was ready to learn so that they wouldn’t bore her with easy stuff. Her experience was very positive. She had fun and wasn't frustrated even when test questions were hard.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Both my past and my child’s ongoing gifted experiences bring me to Suite101’s Parenting a Gifted Child. Articles are intended as balanced, research-based sources. There is a growing body of gifted education research spurring gifted program innovation and psychosocial support to help gifted kids reach their full potential. My job is to analyze these resources and bring them to you.

This blog will be a forum for sharing my personal experiences parenting a gifted child and my often opinionated perspectives on a variety of gifted topics. Through both the articles and blog, my goal is to help you ensure that your gifted child has a positive education experience and by extension a happy, productive life.

Now on to great gifted content helping you parent your gifted child!

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

Aside from their school’s GATE program, one of the first stops for a gifted child’s parent should be a university gifted program. Gifted centers at some of the nation’s top colleges conduct groundbreaking research in gifted education. They develop tools like the Iowa Acceleration Scale, used by educators to screen grade acceleration candidates. College gifted programs also present gifted students with unique learning opportunities. They sponsor talent searches to identify gifted youth and offer gifted students rigorous coursework.

Programs vary by center and different services are available depending on a gifted students age. Summer programs are often the most popular with gifted students and their parents. Gifted kids cite their summer learning experiences as some of the most memorable of their academic years. Courses are fun, challenging, and offer a chance to make friends with intellectual peers. Johns Hopkins CTY, Northwestern’s CTD, and Carnegie Mellon’s C-MITES, are three of the nation’s best university gifted programs offering gifted elementary student summer day camps.

My elementary aged daughter is just getting old enough to participate in some of these summer programs (maybe next year), but it helps if you live near a major university or are willing to travel. The classes can be costly, but financial aid is often available for qualified students.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

My last two years of high school were interminable. I only took tests, refusing to do busy work. I skipped boring classes and attended interesting ones all day. Teachers had no idea what to do when one of their brightest students was failing. Somehow I graduated. I cheated the system to earn an underserved diploma, but the system also cheated me of a rigorous education. There was ample opportunity to find trouble with so much time on my hands.

I made my way into college after a few years working. I was in my element, earning straight As, research grants, and alumni awards. For the first time in my academic life, I reached my potential. My efforts resulted in a National Science Foundation Fellowship and a graduate position in the Special Pathogens Branch of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. I was surrounded by our nation’s best and brightest. The disparity between my public school education and the opportunities they had been afforded in elite prep schools and gifted programs was astounding. I was always playing catch up with the students who had rigorous early educations. I had never been challenged before and lacked the resilience and study skills to deal with difficult materials and failures.

After reading Carol Dweck’s book “Mindset: The New Psychology of Success,” I realized that my early academic experiences had contributed to forming a fixed mindset of academic abilities. For years I avoided challenge, which felt foreign, and threw away homework that wasn’t perfect. I was a stereotypical gifted underachiever and despite college success still struggled with that burden.

When my gifted daughter outpaced the curricula in her school and experienced frustration and defiance, it was like déjà vu. I knew that I would have to retake my soapbox and advocate for gifted education.

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne

As the new feature writer for Parenting a Gifted Child, I want to share some of my experiences with gifted education before covering topical content. I participated in various gifted pull-out, independent study, AP, honors, alternative, and early college entrance programs as a child. Some programs met my academic needs better than others.

Even as a child I had very strong opinions about the state of gifted education in U.S. public schools. I remember asking my sophomore honors English teacher why she was wasting our time with a coloring ditto. She replied that it was because of class overcrowding- enrollment stood at 32 students. I pointed out that if we weren’t using textbooks written at a seventh grade level, so many kids wouldn’t qualify for honors. She referred me to the school counselor.

I was designated as at-risk for dropping out because I questioned the learning objectives and demanded challenge. My school recommended early college entrance, but since it was mid-semester sent me to an alternative school part-time in the interim. That school met its educational mission by allowing students to watch MTV all day. I was in limbo.

I started college at 16 and thrived, getting "A"s and making friends. Peer acceptance was not an issue. The program was only half-day and my family could not afford an extra car; long bus rides between college and high school resulted in perpetual tardiness. Despite high test grades, my high school physics teacher informed me that I was failing his class based on attendance. He said I had the rest of my life for college, but needed to graduate high school. I dropped out of the college program. My preference was to drop out of high school. That was not an option.

To be continued in "Confessions of a Gifted Underachiever."