Sept. 27, 2026: My Brain Hurts!

“My brain hurts!”  one of my students wailed.

My small group of Gifted 2^nd graders had just finished a STEM Challenge which had taken them most of the day, made a mess of the classroom, and in which they had failed. The day also included laughter, discovery, creativity, and struggle. 

After reading the book Ada Twist, Scientist, they had been tasked with the job of designing and building a safe way for my UCF Troll Doll to get from our 2^nd floor to the 1^st floor, without using the elevator, the stairs, or being carried. After they decided that a parachute was the best way to go, we had a mini lesson on air flow and drag.  We watched a couple of short videos, we explored designs, and looked at the materials available.  Then I let them go.

Watching students make discoveries is like a drug for teachers. It gives us such an emotional high. And watching students struggle is painful for us. While struggle is a natural part of the learning process, educational theory and research tells us that we must also provide scaffolding to make sure their struggle is productive.  So, a great deal of our lesson planning is thinking about where and how students might struggle and planning for how we can support them as they move toward mastery.

But what I have discovered, is that scaffolding and struggle is completely different for Gifted learners.  At least it should be.

As the teacher of the Gifted students at our school, I have had to become comfortable with letting my students struggle and fail.  I have had to embrace uncertainty and allow for the time and space for discovery and progress.  In my classroom, we have had to reframe failure as something positive, confusion as something welcome, and discomfort as something beneficial.

And much of this work goes on during the debriefing part of our learning activities. When I ask students to think about their thinking. To reflect on their approaches and strategies.  To synthesize the discoveries they made and to make connections to seemingly unconnected ideas.

This is the most powerful part of the lesson. It is also the most illuminating for the students. When they are able to articulate the connections they made, to identify the obstacles they encountered, and to recreate the steps they took, they are taking ownership of their learning.  They are also discovering that advocating for themselves is a critical part of the learning process, and that the self-awareness that goes along with that is extremely powerful.

Even if it does make your brain hurt!