Does doing one thing at a time drive you batty? Do people frequently tell you to pay attention or to 'stay on topic?' Do you think in pictures instead of words? Does the whole "You have to do it in the right order" concept bother you? Join us for an exploration of the How's and Why's of non-linear thinking. We'll talk about how to recognize and develop strengths, not just how to 'fit in.'

Dr. Kazimierz Dabrowski’s Theory of Positive Disintegration (TPD) provides a lot of explanations for why some of us feel as if we fit into this world so poorly. In this session, we will explore the basics of TPD, including OverExcitabilities, Dynamisms, and Levels of Development of personality. So, if you are looking for alternate explanations for why some things bother you far more than they bother most folks, join us!

We'll spend a good chunk of this class exploring how magic is presented in a variety of books and movies, after which we will see about constructung our own, either individually or collectively, as the class prefers.

In the year 2150, we've colonized Mars. How did we get from here to there? On the planet Trzymy, there is a plot to overthrow the Usurper! How did he come to power and what is the heritage of his country? We're doomed. We know we're doomed. The leaders say so. Has it always been this way? If not, when did things change and how? Creating a solid history to lean on in your story telling can make the tale a lot easier to craft for an author, or at least a lot easier to follow for a reader! We will work to understand how histories work and what we need to do to build them!

This is a course for students who have taken the Introduction to Positive Disintegration course whether this year or a previous one,, or those with familiarity with Kazimierz Dabrowski's work from other sources. It is *not* for beginners!

Gender performance is the set of behaviors that we use to communicate gender to the outside world. It comes in as many types as there are gendered expectations of behavior -- everything from clothing and hair styles to how much space one takes up when seated in a public space. While gender identity encompasses one's internal feelings about one's gender, performance centers around behaviors that communicate something about gender to the outside world. People who do not think of themselves as transgendered may still feel deeply uncomfortable with the gender performance that society expects of them. This class will be a small group discussion of the dissonance between personal identities and gendered behaviors, and how to go through life as a person who may not fit well into any set of gender norms.

We will talk about the implications of heightened sensitivity for everyday living in gifted people and take a quiz to see which Dabrowski's Overexcitabilities manifest in us. "Overexcitabilities are inborn intensities indicating a heightened ability to respond to stimuli. Found to a greater degree in creative and gifted individuals, overexcitabilities are expressed in increased sensitivity, awareness, and intensity, and represent a real difference in the fabric of life and quality of experience. Dabrowski identified five areas of intensity-Psychomotor, Sensual, Intellectual, Imaginational, and Emotional. A person may possess one or more of these. “One who manifests several forms of overexcitability, sees reality in a different, stronger and more multisided manner” (Dabrowski, 1972, p. 7) - See more at: http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/overexcitability-and-the-gifted#sthash.SVDb8uHh.dpuf