#HighlySensitivePeople: How do you feel about a high school with no letter grades?

Hancock High School in Missouri says that the students will be judged by their work habits and engagement as well as academics in a cycle of feedback, reflection and revision. The burden of proof is on the students to show that they have mastered the required skills and concepts to graduate. Each day, they perform  a self-accessment about what they know and what they still need to learn. The goal is continuous  learning, or a growth mindset to empower students to succeed. The new learning philosophy is more common in New England helping two schools transition from letter grade systems. The reasoning behind this is that it reduces the stigma of "bad" grades and allows students and parents to better understand where they are in…

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#HighlySensitivePeople: Do you appreciate yourself?

I wrote this poem in 2005 while stranded on a seven-hour train ride from New York to New Jersey. This would normally take one hour! It was a hot summer night. The train had been delayed because of a damaged power line. I was exhausted and upset. This was a situation that I couldn’t control. This poem symbolizes my way, as a highly sensitive person, to best cope with this situation.

Self-Appreciation 

Who are you?
Where do you fit in this world?
We come in different colors, shapes, sizes, abilities, and aptitudes.
Some of us are able bodied, and some of us are not.
Some of us have physical handicaps, and some of us are handicapped by our thinking.
Some of us have attitudes that will make us soar, whoever we are.
We all have choices. We can choose to make our situations better or worse.
We are all dealt circumstances that we can and cannot control.
Don’t we owe it to ourselves, our loved ones, and our world to make the best out of whatever we’ve got?
Why not make the best out of your lot?
For better or worse, we’re all we’ve got. (more…)

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#HighlySensitivePeople: Do you believe in alternative healing practices?

Do you believe in alternative healing practices? I do. I have personally benefited from acupuncture, chiropractic, hydrotheraphy treatment , and massage therapy.

Here are some alternative and complimentary healing practices for you to consider:

  • Acupressure:  Practitioners use their hands, elbows or feet to apply pressure to points along the body’s “meridians.” Meridians are channels that carry life energy (qi or chi) throughout the body. This reasoning holds that illness can occur when a meridian is blocked or out of balance. Acupressure is thought to relieve blockages, so energy can flow freely again, restoring wellness. More research is needed, but some pilot studies have found positive results: Acupressure might decrease nausea for chemotherapy patients and reduce anxiety in people scheduled to have surgery. (more…)

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