Saturday October 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:45pm CDT
Gifted students are often celebrated for their intellect, but their emotional world is just as complex and just as important. In this powerful and deeply human keynote, Dr. Bryan Pearlman, therapist, author, keynote speaker, adjunct professor of educational psychology, and former gifted teacher, gifted director, and principal, invites educators to rethink how we support advanced learners.
This session is not only grounded in research and decades of professional experience. It is personal.
Dr. Pearlman shares his own story of growing up gifted and learning disabled in reading and writing, not on grade level until middle school, and navigating ADHD before it was fully understood. He describes being the poster child for twice exceptional at a time when many believed it was not possible to be gifted if you could not read fluently, write well, or sit still. In third grade, he was told he would not be college material. Many years and four degrees later, he stands before educators as living proof of what happens when potential is not defined by a narrow lens.
He speaks candidly about what it felt like for school to be both too hard and too easy at the same time. Concepts made sense quickly, yet reading and writing were exhausting. His mind raced with ideas, yet sitting still and focusing felt nearly impossible. The confusion, frustration, and self doubt that so many twice exceptional students experience today were once his daily reality.
Drawing from both lived experience and professional expertise, Dr. Pearlman explores the affective and psychosocial needs of gifted and twice exceptional students through the lens of Maslow Before Bloom. Before we can expect our students to perform at the highest cognitive levels, we must ensure they feel safe, understood, regulated, and connected.
This keynote addresses the often overlooked realities of gifted learners, including perfectionism, anxiety, asynchronous development, identity struggles, impostor syndrome, intensity, and the complex inner life of students who are simultaneously advanced and challenged. Participants will gain practical, brain based strategies to support social emotional learning, identity development, and overall well being without lowering expectations.
Dr. Pearlman challenges educators to hold two powerful truths at the same time. High expectations matter deeply. Emotional safety matters just as much.
When we intentionally meet students’ affective needs first, we do not water down rigor. We unleash potential. We create environments where gifted learners are not only high achieving, but healthy, resilient, self aware, and purpose driven.
This keynote will leave attendees energized, equipped, and reminded why this work matters. When we lead with Maslow before Bloom, we do not just grow smarter students. We help all students reach their highest potential academically, socially, emotionally, and beyond.
Speakers 
Life Change Specialist, Educator & Mediator, Pearlman & Associates
Closing Keynote Title
Maslow Before Bloom: Meeting the Affective and Psychosocial Needs of Gifted and Twice Exceptional
Learners to Unlock Their Highest Potential
Keynote Description
Gifted students are often recognized for their intellectual abilities, yet their emotional and psychosocial needs are frequently underexamined and underserved. In this powerful and research grounded keynote, Dr. Bryan Pearlman invites educators to reimagine gifted education through...
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Saturday October 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:45pm
CDT
North Cafeteria
Lindbergh High School, 5000 S. Lindbergh Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63128
