“You are capable of more than you know.” — Glinda from The Wizard of Oz
To understand why twice-exceptional kids sometimes can struggle to master new skills, one might first examine how our brains work.
The human mind is comprised of knowledge and energy flow. Our knowledge is our perception of the present, made tangible through our five senses and our memories. Energy flow is electrical pulses that fire across neural paths and transfer information. The way we perceive information is directly related to the attention and intention of how we choose to cultivate our neural pathways. Developing one’s neural pathways is similar to Dorothy Gale’s journey down the yellow brick road in the Wizard of Oz — unbound, uncharted, and full of possibility.
Unlike the classic film, life is not always rainbows, sunshine, and happy endings. But when we encounter unexpected showers, we can gain wisdom from walking in the rain. We learn to avoid puddles (unless we prefer to leapfrog from puddle to puddle) or to choose tree-lined paths to deflect the raindrops. Building mental flexibility, neural strength, and connections allow for innovation and new patterns for greater adaptation that lead to new moments of insight. Our growth is directly related to our openness to neuroadaptation.
Neuroindividuality is ubiquitous. Brains have their own unique lands of Oz, criss-crossed with distinct yellow brick roads. The minds of twice-exceptional (2e) children are alive with networks of pathways with unexpected detours, back country roads, and high-speed interchanges. Over time, brains develop according to factors like attention, inattention, and experience. As such, mental flexibility and neural plasticity go hand in hand, informing mindsets as they take shape and grow. As parents and educators, we have the power to directly impact the roadways in our children’s brains.
Neural plasticity allows for neural patterns to build and strengthen in the brain, a process that involves a person’s experiences, environment, and memory. This notion, drawn from the scientific work of Donald Hebb, can be put succinctly as, “Neurons that fire together, wire together.” In other words, a common firing pattern creates a circuit and memory that shapes and develops the brain. These pulses relay information about how we perceive our environment and can impact our mindset based on how we direct our attention, possibly forming additional neural pathways.
Can we build neural connections for new skills from scratch? Yes, but it takes more time to develop a completely new neural pathway. A recent study in Richard Anderson’s laboratory at Caltech shows that learning a new skill is easier for the brain if a common neural pattern already exists. The lead authors, Sofia Sakellaridi and Vassilios Christopoulos, used a brain machine interface paradigm (BMI), which is a tool that converts neuronal signals into instructions that command external hardware or software like that of a robotic hand. BMI devices are used frequently in people with sensory deficits and can track learning and individual neuron firing.
The authors found that learning is restricted by pre-existing neural patterns. In other words, a person trying to acquire a new skill may lack the neural framework that must be adapted in order to learn that new skill. Commonalities between existing skills and new skills increase a person’s capacity to develop new skills. A violinist, for instance, can learn to play the bass guitar more easily than the drums, because the neural pattern involved with playing a string instrument already exists. Having the pavement for the pathway helps when learning a new but similar skill. However, when learning a new skill that does not have as well-paved neural path, it takes time to build the road through repetition and practice, where attention and intention are paramount factors.
Often, 2e children have difficulties learning new skills. Their brains may have pathways that equip them with an excellent spatial memory, while their peers require months or
