Dear Ones,
I'm taking steps to launch a website to bring my brainstorming abilities to the wider world of parents as a part time job.
By wider world, I mean parents of gifted kids who would never imagine using the G word, and parents of bright and intellectually average kids.

The aim of the website is to help Parents help their kids to be successful at school.

Anyway - if anyone would be willing to write a testimonial that I can post, I'd sure appreciate it.

Post here or email to grinity@schoolsuccesssolutions.com

If anyone wants to help by sending a short question that I can answer at my website, that would also be very helpful in getting some info out of my head and written down.

Thanks in advance,
Grinity

Hi Grinity,

Glad to help. That is a nice clean look on your web site.

I am not quite sure what you are looking for in terms of a testimonial, but here are some possible questions for your site:

1. How do I get my child interested in homework?
2. Why does my bright child do so poorly at school?
3. What are some online teaching supplements? (Khan Academy, Art of Problem Solving etc.)
4. Once your site gets popular, you can have user reviews of local or national programs (Kumon, Russian Math in Massachusetts).

Hope this gets you started.

Thanks Mithawk!

Sounds like a great idea, Grinity.

How about . . .

What are some challenging but age-appropriate books for advanced younger readers?

I'll put together a testimonial when I get a spare moment. Do you want more general, anonymous types of questions, or questions like you'd see in an advice column, tied to a person's specific situation?

Grinity:
I think I need a little more info. The posts you've written here on the forum have been tremendously helpful to me in my G/T journey, and you've given me invaluable personal advice. So I could go on all day.

But so that it's the right kind of testimonial, can you give me a little more of an overview. Is it a site where you'll be blogging on topics, spurred on by some of these questions? Or is it more of a one on one event, like consulting? both?

You have such a vast knowledge and a remarkable ability to sift through the emotional and get to the facts that I so enjoy reading your responses to questions and concerns. Your responses are direct and thought provoking and never condescending or rude. I certainly would look forward to seeing your creativity and wealth of knowledge on a website that is easily accessable. Best wishes for a successful launch!

Thanks HappyReader - I dedicate the most recent post to you! Yippee!
Grinity

Thanks Iucounu. ((great big smile)) I think I'd do better with advice column, because specific situations seem to inspire me the most!

I want to write a testimonial but will need more time, you have been tremendously helpful. Not only with info, but also with the feeling that you are not alone, both myself and my ds.

For know I think a general good question/discussion(if blog) could be, Can my child be gifted and not be achieving well/behaving well at school? Or have trouble fitting in with other students or even the teachers? The posters on this board will of coarse know this could be true, but for parents just beginning to experience these difficulties at school a discussion(along with references and links) on the reasons for this could be very informative and helpful. There are so many reasons you could maybe even organize them into categories such as problems with academic fit, intensity temperaments, 2E issues, WISC info, etc. This was written very quick so please excuse any errors. I just wanted to show my support and state some "brainstorming"
ideas. Also comparing how a good educational fit can help the student.

Another suggestion, what about e-mailing the specific posters on this board that you have answered their specific questions and ask if you can post their question on your new site?

The website is schoolsuccesssolution.com
And the idea is to encourage people to hire me to coach them to help their children succeed at school. My business buddy says I need a website show what I can do so that I can help people one to one. I have the idea that there are a lot of bright and gifted kids out there that would never come here because 'the g word' so these seems like a good way to use what I've figured out for good.

Thanks Mammabear!

schoolsuccesssolutions.com Better get in the habit of not leaving out the last 's' when you type it!

I'm worried about the things I've heard about zero tolerance for fighting along with stories I've heard about bullying and cruelty. My husband wants my son to fight back if there's any problems because that's how he was raised and he doesn't want our kids to be pushed around. I don't want my kids to get in trouble for being in a fight they didn't start. I have told him, don't hit or push back. Hold your hands out in front of you and say very loudly, "stop! Don't hurt me!" loudly, so everyone can hear you. Will that work? What can I do to bully-proof my kid and keep him from breaking a zero tolerance policy against fighting back?

La Tex - I love that Q and A.
@ElizabethN Great Pointer!!! ((red face))
Today I found out that I'm unable to read any email that gets sent to Grinity@schoolsuccesssolutions.com because of ((mumble IP address,mumble mumble, points to, mumble mumble MX Record Pack))

I'm hoping the nice people at tec support will bail me out soon.
I'm taking it as an opportunity to 'breath through' my perfectionism.

Smiles,
Grinity

Go Tec Support! Thanks to the good people at GoDaddy and Workpress I now have working email, and a few new post. I feel like I'm walking on air!

There really is no better feeling that succeeding at something that at first seems way way waay too hard.

May you all have this experience on a regular basis!
Grinity

Grinity
I have always appreciated your thoughtfulness and willingess to share and learn from your own trials and tribulations. While you have given 1000s of pearls, many of which I quote to DH, the ones that I have found most useful are the how to talk to people comments - you are or have become an incredible translator for school speak especially for IEP, 2e and gifted scenarios. I think you could have a tab which emphasizes the different points of view and how those different points of view can lead to a lack of progress, understanding etc, and offer scenarios or suggestions of how to move around it.

Sounds like a great use of your skills and experience!

DeHe

Thanks for the encouragement DeHe ((big smile))
I did my best to convert it to a wider audience and it's up!

The "don't fight back" doesn't work.

I know. I tried it. Fail.

Also, the "stop! Don't hurt me!" sounds, uh, ineffective.

Let them get in trouble if that's the price to pay for fighting back in a fight they didn't start.

I think that you *can't* both bully proof your kid and not violate a zero tolerance policy, so I recommend throwing out the zero tolerance policy.

I agree with this part, but I'm not an expert in these matters. And I doubt anyone will give me a vote in this one. Have your read 'Rash?'
***
I think that with legs spread wide, and arms in 'halt' position, that

STOP. DO NOT HIT ME.

Could be very effective. It's more about the tone of voice and posture than the words. It's interesting that La Tex's advice is exactly the same that I got from a wise mom with older children when my son was about 8. I could never convince my son to try it, so I don't have a real datapoint. My hunch is that any kid who was well trained by about age 4 to react in this way would probably not have an opportunity to find out if it worked. So much in life is not the words, but the nonverbals.
G

I've known you two years. You bring a sense of clarity and comfort with you into every conversation.  Your sense of irony is sublime.  I just learned the difference between a "conniption fit" and a "hissy fit".  A person throws a hissy fit when they didn't get their way.  A person throws a conniption fit in response to insult or injury.  You have a remarkable talent for sussing out which one it is when you hear a story of misbehavior.


That's the best I can describe how helpful you are.

One thing I would add to your website would be information on your background and experience -- what would make THEM think that you are "qualified" for something like this. Also, it's a little unclear what services you are willing and able to provide -- phone consultations? In-person advocacy at case conferences? Etc.

Just trying to be helpful! Off to a great start so far!

I am so excited that you found this to do. You have always been helpful and insightful in so many ways here.

How about information on underachievement? something to the following question:

"My child is quite capable and used to love learning. The longer he has been in school, the more we are seeing anger and frustration. Most worryingly, is previous delight in learning has now turned to apathy resulting in his reluctance to show any abilities he has. My concern is the lack of growth he has shown over the past 2 years, and the defined backsliding visible over each semester in his school books and in his physiological development (sleeping, eating, physical patterns all backslide). how do I go about addressing this with the school as they say he is on par with his age? How can I help him to be himself and most importantly how can I help him love who he is without him feeling he needs to be like others around him?

Off to write a recommendation. You've been "momtoring" me for a few years now! Good luck with your new endeavor, and your blog will do a lot to build your reputation and credibility if you curate it regularly.

I totally agree ec_bb! Part of me yearns to go back to school and get some real credentials, but part of me knows that I really have to just jump in. The only training I have is here and with my IRL friends. I was planning to do skype consultations, phone consultations, email consultations, and for local folks F2F and School Visits.

I'll try and work up a bio soon.
Smiles,
Grinity

reminds me of a book i read called "a bundle of sticks" i believe, about bullying and fighting back. the point is not to fight back but to be not afraid to. After it was all over for us, I wished I had given my kid karate lessons as he asked for.

http://www.xi2.nl/EN/who_is_Xi/whoxi9.html

I was going to pm you  website abot "extra intelligent people".  

It's Dutch translated into Brittish English) but it's cool.  On their home page the list an article, "how to charm gifted adults into admitting to giftedness.". The page I linked to describes the drawbacks of uncommoness.  Funny to post it here- but your mailbox is full.  Give your sectretary a raise or a vacation because she ain't doing her job.