Gifted Children & How Trauma Impacts Them

Adam Laningham has over 20 years of experience in the field of education. Having been recognized as the Arizona Gifted Teacher of the Year in 2014, Adam has taught at several schools and multiple grade levels, run numerous gifted programs, and is currently serving on the Board for the Arizona Association for Gifted & Talented. As a district Gifted Services Manager, Adam oversees a large and diverse school district in the Phoenix area that provides a wide range of services and programs to over 5,000 gifted identified students in preschool - 12th grade. Mr. Laningham frequently travels throughout Arizona, the US, and Canada meeting with parents and educators to help support gifted learners.

Melissa Sadin has served as a special education teacher and a building administrator. She is currently working as a director of special education. Publicly, Dr. Sadin has been vice-president of her local School Board, is on the Board of Directors of the Attachment & Trauma Network and serves as the director of the Creating Trauma Sensitive Schools Program. She is a published author who produces numerous webinars on children with attachment trauma in schools. Currently, Dr. Sadin works as an education consultant and
developmental trauma expert providing professional development to school districts, municipal service providers, and parents. As an adoptive mother, Dr. Sadin has provided first hand expertise in her work with adoptive parents at conferences and in other formal and informal settings.

Nathan Levy is the author of more than 40 books which have sold almost 250,000 copies to teachers and parents in the US, Europe, Asia, South America, Australia and Africa. His unique Stories with Holes series continues to be proclaimed the most popular activity used in gifted, special education and regular classrooms by hundreds of educators. An extremely popular, dynamic speaker on thinking, writing and differentiation, Nathan is in high demand as a workshop leader in school and business settings. As a former school principal, company president, parent of four daughters and management trainer, Nathan s ability to transfer knowledge and strategies to audiences through humorous, thought provoking stories assures that participants leave with a plethora of new ways to approach their future endeavors.