This slidedeck accompanies my conference session on 5 Tips for Parenting Renaissance Kids. You know the ones - they are interested in everything. You can find a resource handout at http://bit.ly/ren-kid-handout.

1. with Lisa Van Gemert {mensafoundation.org}

2. Think of people
like these…

3. Archimedes

4. Omar
Khayyám

5. Leonardo
da Vinci

6. Thomas
Jefferson
Maria
Agnesi

7. Thomas
Jefferson
Maria
Agnesi

8. Maria
Agnesi

9. Johann
Goethe

10. Steve
Jobs

11. They’re
polymaths
Johann
Goethe

12. and
polymaths
like
Johann
Goethe

13. everything
Johann
Goethe

15. paleontology!

16. Maybe that’s
my kid
history!

17. space!

18. Impressionism!

19. paleontology
{again}!

20. All before lunch.

21. So please
allow me
to share
with you

22. tips for raising a renaissance child

24. They change interests
like they change shoes.

25. Don’t make them keep
one pair on until they
wear out.

26. You can’t
just get off
anywhere,
however.

27. You
can
get off
here.

28. This is called
being a
quitter smart.

29. new goal = really important

30. Don’t wait
until this
dog goes to
heaven

31. to bring
home this
bundle o’
love

33. If they think it
should come easily
because they are
smart,

34. they will become
discouraged and
begin to doubt
themselves.

35. If that happens,
they may quit too
soon for the
wrong reason.

36. Let’s look
at typing.

43. Is this your family?

44. Do you live in
fear you’ll forget
to bring the
snacks to the
game?

45. Do you know your child’s color on the
calendar as well as you do her name?

46. Do you feel guilty if you sit here
{even for a minute}?

47. Do they know
you at the
Are you
Wendy’s driveKnown by
thru?
name here?

48. If you got sick,
would it cause
a scheduling
explosion?

49. Do you ever wish
you would get sick
so you could have
an excuse to lie in
bed?

50. Do you put enough miles
on your car to be a longdistance truck driver?

51. Do your
kids fall
asleep in
the car
{often}?

52. Bonus
points if
they’re
eating &
sleeping.

53. Do you often feel
like something is
chasing you?

54. If you answered yes {or
laughed uncomfortably}
to more than five of these,

55. you need a 12-step
program for
overscheduled people.

56. The first step is admitting
that your schedule is
untenable.

57. Saying “no” to
too many
activities teaches
your children the
important skill of
discernment.

58. protip:
You don’t need
to take lessons
in everything
you like.

59. Most of the
girls with
classes
every single
day, all day
don’t look
like this
when they’re
there.

60. Here’s an
underused
word for you
to try:

62. Or the slightly more pc:
That won’t
work for me.

64. A Nobel Prize starts here.

65. Isaac Newton’s Notebook

66. Artists & inventors use them

67. Chemists use them.

68. These are so awesome.

69. And so are these.

70. And you’ll need
these, too.

71. current thoughts
= future passions

73. Let your
child build
a library.

74. Perhaps
not quite
this big.

75. organization + context + relevance
Curation

76. SKILL 1:
GATHER

77. Image credit: U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
SKILL 2:
FILTER

78. Even big museums don’t display all of
their collection at any one given time.

80. Image credit: Behn, Wikimedia Commons
SKILL 3:
THEME

81. SKILL 4: DISPLAY

83. You’ll need a labeler.
Boy, will you need a labeler.

84. How
Dancing
Baby can
help.

85. You can create digital
libraries on sites like
slideshare.net.

86. Or even
Pinterest.

87. Create a virtual
bookshelf on
Goodreads.

88. Or LibraryThing

89. Using Dewey is
super fun for some of
us. #noshame

90. Remember
Johann
Goethe

91. Organized
collections
are called
museums
Johann
Goethe

92. Disorganized
collections
are called
hoarding
Johann
Goethe

95. All he
needs is
unstructured
time & raw
materials &
books.

96. No one needs this
stuff. Trust me.

97. AGAR

98. NOT AGAR
$239

99. AGAR

100. NOT AGAR
$399

101. YOU ARE THE
BEST AGAR.

102. Let’s
Review

104. This presentation is made possible
through the generous donors of the
Committed to recognizing,
encouraging, and communicating
excellence in intelligence.

106. Giving Credit where
Credit is Due
Notebooks: Flickr by sa_ku_ra
Library of Alexandria: O. Von Corven "The Great Library of
Alexandria"
Dewey Decimal System: Maggie Appleton Flickr
Explosion: Photo: LA(Phot) Dave Jenkins/MOD
Isaac Newton notebook & other notebooks: Trinity College,
Cambridge & wikimedia creative commons
Toy Storage: Jodeswa via Flickr; flickr, anna st;
All other images cited are in the Creative Commons & are shared
under appropriate licensing requirements.
All images not cited are from Pixabay, morguefile.com, sxc.hu,
freerangestock.com, or were purchased from iStock photo or
Shutterstock.