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The GHF Dialogue

An online journal for the gifted learning community.

Kris Happe, MEd

Parent, student, teacher, administrator, coordinator, coach, consultant, and speaker. You really want to meet and or connect with Kris Happe. She is kind of a big deal… popular, tall, and sometimes a beautiful, complicated mess of learning. Her husband likes to say that she thinks she’s pretty funny, to top it all off.

Kris Happe (sounds like Happy) is a veteran educator with two gifted children of her own. Giftedness, ADHD, dyslexia, anxiety, intensity, and depression are part of the picture the Happe family experience. With more than thirty years in education, her roles have included being a fourth and fifth grade classroom teacher, a gifted education program specialist in elementary schools, a district gifted coordinator, a literacy and intervention coach and coordinator, and an assessment and data coordinator.

Kris served on the Minnesota Department of Education’s Gifted Education Advisory Council from 2006 to 2016. She is a popular presenter to both educators and parents at national and local conferences for groups such as the National Association of Gifted Children (NAGC), Supporting Emotional Needs of Gifted (SENG), Minnesota Council for Gifted and Talented (MCGT)—our parent advocacy group in Minnesota, and the Minnesota Educators of Gifted and Talented (MEGT). She is a nationally certified SENG Model Parent Group facilitator and an educational and family consultant.

Community. Life or Death? It Was for Us.

September 2, 2020 By Kris Happe, M.Ed. Leave a Comment

That fall,  when Grace started the gifted school-within-a-school program, was not spent focusing or doing what she was supposed to. Her teacher was emailing, albeit carefully, letting me know that she was hoping Grace could focus a bit and give her best effort. These emails made my husband and I smile. She was getting in trouble because she had found her … [Read more...] about Community. Life or Death? It Was for Us.

Urgent, Paralyzed Possibility

May 6, 2020 By Kris Happe, M.Ed. 1 Comment

My continuing search for information was often debilitating, mired in ambiguity and desperation to  find clarity not for myself but for my students and my own children. Questions that started to plague me included some of the following: Does learning disabled mean broken? Does an affinity for aesthetic beauty and art become void when paired with dyslexia? What about a need for … [Read more...] about Urgent, Paralyzed Possibility

Brilliant, Gorgeous, Talented, and Fabulous—or a Hacker?

January 5, 2020 By Kris Happe, M.Ed. 9 Comments

I became a talent scout as I started looking for intensities, creativity, ingenuity, and quirkiness in my students and the adults around me. Listening to a comment from a student that was particularly insightful or witty, I dug deeper. If I heard a teacher complain about someone not ever turning in homework, but acing tests, I flew into the office to dig into student files for … [Read more...] about Brilliant, Gorgeous, Talented, and Fabulous—or a Hacker?

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Ten ways you can use psychologically minded language with Dr. Matt

#11 Ten ways: (Bonus!) The power of “that sucks.”

By Matthew J. Zakreski, PsyD

(Bonus!)  The power of “that sucks.”  I’m a big fan of the TV show Parks and Recreation.  In one of the later episodes, Chris Trager (played by the indomitable Rob Lowe) is trying to meet every single possible need of his very pregnant girlfriend Ann Perkins (played by the fabulous Rashida Jones).  He makes smoothies, […]

#10 Ten ways: Avoid “Should”

By Matthew J. Zakreski, PsyD

Avoid “Should.”  Should is a dangerous word in self-esteem, performance, mental health, and relationships.  One of my colleagues says that the word “Should” is really an abbreviation of the words Shame and Could.  So you take the infinite possibility of the word “could” (I could do this, we could do that, etc.) but add shame […]

#9 Ten ways: Use meta-communication.

By Matthew J. Zakreski, PsyD

Use meta-communication.  I love this point because it sounds SO NERDY.  Talking about talking?  The prefix meta?!  ::Groan::  Nerdiness aside, however, I have found that adding these conversational techniques into our daily communication increases understanding, empathy, and success in difficult interactions. Meta-communication is talking about talking.  To me, it is using verbal introductions and explanations […]

More Posts from this Category

Dear Gifted with Dr. Nicole

Q: I just found out that I am on the spectrum and have an IQ of 153. What does that mean? Who am I?

It means you are AMAZING! Having an IQ of 153 and being on the autism spectrum is what you call twice-exceptional (2e), where one has a dual identification of giftedness and a learning difference.  Being 2e is part of the neurodiverse spectrum where your mind and body are uniquely wired. This unique brain wiring is foundational […]

Q: I heard meditation is good for people with ADHD. But meditation is hard even for someone without ADHD. What tips do you have for a 2e person who wants to try meditation?

Guided meditation centers the mind to tune into the present. Meditation is not about doing or getting somewhere, meditation is the practice of being mindfully aware in the moment you are experiencing.  We live in a world where we have 24/7 access to information, and we are continuously navigating many attentional shifts. Guided meditation provides balance […]

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