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For this Community Education Series event, we are happy to welcome Dr. Michael Postma to NOVA. Dr. Postma is a teacher, administrator, consultant, speaker, and author dedicated to the holistic development of both gifted and twice-exceptional children through his new company Gifted & Thriving, LLC. Over the last two decades, Dr. Postma has worked in the field of gifted/talented education as both a teacher and administrator in the public andcharter school system in Minnesota and North Carolina, and was the architect of the Minnetonka Navigator Program, a magnet school specifically designed for highly gifted and twice-exceptional students. Dr. Postma has published a number of articles and two books, the latest titled The Inconvenient Student: Critical Issues in the Identification and Education of Twice Exceptional Students. He travels and speaks nationally and internationally on a varietyof topics such as: the social/emotional development of the gifted, understanding twice-exceptional learners, gifted/talented programming, neuroscience and the gifted/2e brain, and school related topics from understanding assessment to quality instruction for gifted/2e learners. He currently lives in Bellingham, WA and is the father of four children, three of whom are twice-exceptional.
Anxiety and its Impact on Gifted and Twice Exceptional (2e) Children, Teens, and Young Adults
Living in an uncertain world, today’s children are more anxious than ever. In fact, 1 of every 5 male high-schoolers struggles with chronic anxiety. Within the Gifted/2e population that number is higher. In this session, Dr. Mike Postma explores how anxiety affects 2E students and what parents and professionals can do to help reduce their worries and nurture growth mindsets. After reviewing the biology, psychology and common sources of anxiety, they will show you how to help 2E children and teens change their relationship to worry, realistically evaluate situations and tolerate unpredictability. You’ll learn practical, useful tools to promote self-soothing and calming down, diminish negative thoughts and inner critics and build lasting strategies for bouncing back and resilience.