Tracks in the Snow | Think Outside Boxes
“What made those tracks in the snow, Mom?” Isaac, my five year old, peered intently at the ground near his feet. The footprint was likely made by one of the many stray cats that roam our neighborhood at night, but his simple question reminded me that there...
Star Wars Gifts That Are Out of This World
Do you have Star Wars fans in your home? We do. Lots of little Star Wars fans… I’m always on the look out for cool gifts to give them that they’ll love. Check out these amazing Star Wars gifts I found. There are so many unique toys, games, and...
RLL 35: What This Homeschool Mom Doesn’t Do
People ask often how I do it all. I try to tell them that I simply don’t — that there are balls I drop regularly, but I’m not sure they completely believe me. In today’s episode, I tell you all the things I don’t do. The home and...
Learn Basic Coding Skills | Coding Foundations
“Did you know that your son can solve a Rubik’s Cube with his eyes closed?!?” “Trevor just found FOUR four-leaf clovers in 15 minutes! That’s insane!” My oldest thinks algorithmically. Algebraic thinking has always come easily for...
RLL 34 Ginny Kochis: Cultivating Critical Thinkers
We really want to encourage critical and creative thinking in our kids — especially with so many things going on in the world that require us to think clearly and make informed decisions. Ginny Kochis has some great tips for developing these skills without...
STEM Gifts for Science Loving Kids
How many of you — like me — have kiddos who will get all excited about science gifts if they find them under the tree? Just look at all of these great STEM gifts. You can launch rockets, make perfume, build structures, and even program robots. These...
Learn Electronics at Home with Mandlabs
Kids are natural tinkerers… they can learn so much just by fiddling around with things. It’s why I love the art of strewing so very much. Putting things out for the kids to discover is a great away for them to find new things to get excited about and rabbit trails to...
RLL 33: The Holidays and Your Differently-Wired Child
The holidays are coming and I know — if you’re like me — that you’re gearing up and trying to figure out how to make it happy, fun, and successful for all your kids, you, and the rest of your extended family. In this chat, I’ll share...
Fire Up Your Kids to Take Risks | Think Outside Boxes
Some of the best gifts we can give our kids are the freedom to take risks, try hard things, get hurt, and attempt seemingly impossible tasks. Really. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America,* anxiety disorders affect over 25% of children...
Managing Your Child’s Intensity During the Holidays
Ever since I was a little girl, I looked forward to the holidays. My birthday kicked everything off, followed by Thanksgiving, several other family members’ birthdays, Christmas, New Year’s Eve, and more birthdays. Time was an exciting blur from late November through...
Great Books to Read With Your Kids in November
November is an exciting time of year. We have bountiful harvests, Thanksgiving, and many more fun days to celebrate. To take advantage of the excitement, I created a list of great books to read with your kids in November. Did you know that there’s a day just to...
Strengthen Kids’ Brains and Bodies | Think Outside Boxes
More than 70% of the Earth is made up of water, yet only a small percentage of that water is drinkable. This simple fact fascinated my kids the other day, and led to some big juicy conversations around our table at our morning time. We were diving into our latest...
100 Quirks of Famous Gifted People (That Will Make You Feel Better About Your Own Quirky Kid)
If my son had a theme song, it would sound like nervous laughter. People often aren’t sure what to make of him. Is he being sarcastic? Is he being rude? Does he even know what he’s saying? Are those… dead bugs he’s displaying? Hasn’t he...
Gift Ideas for Young Geology Lovers and Rockhounds
First, we dove into one incredible Homeschool Geology Study Unit… Then we discovered some Geology Books that we could simply not live without… Now, I’m excited to bring you one more way to get kids fired up about geology — these are the best...
Books to Help Kids Learn about Geology
We’ve been on a geology kick lately. The kids are exploring rocks, minerals, gemstones, and fossils, and I’m even teaching a group of pre-k kiddos all about it at our homeschool co-op. It’s been so interesting. If you haven’t read it yet,...
RLL 32 Anne Guarnera: Raising Globally-Minded Kids
Raising globally minded kids in today’s world is important as the world grows closer and more connected. Today Colleen talks with Anne Guarnera about bringing language and cultural learning into the home and homeschool effortlessly, and what it’s like...
100 Hints That Your Child May Be Gifted
Admit it, you’ve thought about it. You see your precious little one handling blocks with expert dexterity. Your heart swells as they garble through their ABCs. Your pride and joy is walking already or handles math problems with ease and you wonder, Could my...
Stargazing with Kids and Think Outside Boxes
“It’s the perfect night to look at the stars, Mom.” My five year old has wanted to travel to space since he was a teeny tot. He loves reading books about space, watching documentaries about celestial bodies and space phenomenon, and going outside to...
Gifts for Geeky Moms
These gifts for geeky moms are the perfect way to show mom how much you care. Even though she may be a little geeky, she is still the loving and caring mom you know…. and she deserves only the best gifts! I found some fun, sentimental, and useful gifts that...
Gifts for Hobbit Lovers of All Ages
In honor of all of the Tolkien fans out there, I have gathered some fun gifts for Hobbit lovers. There are some really interesting ideas on this list. I was able to find some great books written by Tolkien as well as some other gifts that are handmade. One of my...
Getting Kids Outside with Think Outside Boxes
There’s nothing I love more than spending the day on a hiking trail with the people I love most — my family. For years and years, from the time my oldest (now almost 16!) was a teeny tot, we participated in a local parks system’s “hiking...
100 Things to Never Say to the Parent of a Gifted Kid
Look, we get it. Gifted kids are statistically fairly rare. It’s not every day you meet a child who has memorized the periodic table or who can hold their own in a political discussion on the playground. A child with a high IQ can be a bit jarring to encounter,...
The Best Homeschool Geology Study Ever
I have a confession to make. Shhhh… don’t tell my kids, but I really don’t like geology. Really. I know it’s kind of hard to believe as I share science activities all the time, but I much prefer any kind of life science. In fact, geology was...
RLL 31: Should I Test My Child for Giftedness?
The testing question… it comes up often in conversation and consults, but as a listener asked again recently, Colleen thought it worth revisiting in a podcast episode. Testing your child for giftedness is a personal choice and everyone has different reasons...Welcome!
Hi! I'm Colleen, gifted specialist, educational consultant, author, speaker, and homeschool mom of four gifted/twice-exceptional kids.
Grab a cup of coffee, some of that chocolate you're hiding from the kids, and join me as I learn, experiment, and explore with my kiddos -- and hopefully inspire you a little in your journey alongside smart, quirky, creative kids, too!
Inspire Creativity… Effortlessly!
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