GIFTED, CREATIVE, AND TALENTED
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Definition:
National Association for Gifted Children, n.d., p. 1 According to the state of Pennsylvania, "'Gifted students' (i) A student who is exceptional under section 1371 of the School Code (24 P. S. § 13-1371) because the student meets the definition of 'mentally gifted' in this section, and needs specially designed instruction beyond that required in Chapter 4 (relating to academic standards and assessment).; (ii) The term applies only to students who are of ‘'school age' as defined under § 11.12 (relating to school age). 'Mentally gifted' Outstanding intellectual and creative ability the development of which requires specially designed programs or support services, or both, not ordinarily provided in the regular education program" (Pennsylvania Code § 16.1) (National Association for Gifted Children, n.d., p. 1). National Association for Gifted Children, n.d., p. 1 Characteristics: Taken from NSGT, 2015 Creative Thinking
General Intellectual Ability
Specific Academic Ability
Leadership
Psychomotor
Visual/ Performing Arts
National Society for the Gifted & Talented, 2015, p. 1 Assessments to determine ability: Information taken from State of Connecticut (2015) Guidelines according to the State Department of Education in Connecticut:
State of Connecticut, 2015, p. 1 Teaching strategies: Taken from Davidson Institute for Talent Development, 2015, p. 1 Tip #1: Familiarize Yourself with the Characteristics of Intellectually Gifted Students Not all gifted students in your classroom will be identified and even those who are may not always appear to be gifted. As such, it is important that you don't allow yourself to be distracted by false stereotypes. Gifted students come from all ethnic groups, they are both boys and girls, they live in both rural and urban areas and they aren't always straight A students. Students who are intellectually gifted demonstrate many characteristics, including: a precocious ability to think abstractly, an extreme need for constant mental stimulation; an ability to learn and process complex information very rapidly; and a need to explore subjects in depth. Students who demonstrate these characteristics learn differently. Thus, they have unique academic needs. Imagine what your behavior and presentation would be like if, as a high school junior, you were told by the school district that you had to go back to third grade. Or, from a more historical perspective, what if you were Mozart and you were told you had to take beginning music classes because of your age. This is often the experience of the gifted child. Some choose to be successful given the constructs of public school and others choose to rebel. Either way, a few simple changes to their academic experience can dramatically improve the quality of their lives -- and, mostly likely, yours! Tip #2: Let Go of "Normal" In order to be an effective teacher, whether it's your first year or your 30th, the best thing you can do for yourself is to let go of the idea of "normal." I can't encourage you enough to offer all students the opportunity to grow from where they are, not from where your teacher training courses say they should be. You will not harm a student by offering him/her opportunities to complete work that is more advanced. Research consistently shows that curriculum based on development and ability is far more effective than curriculum based on age. And, research indicates that giftedness occurs along a continuum. As a teacher, you will likely encounter students who are moderately gifted, highly gifted and, perhaps if you're lucky, even a few who are profoundly gifted. Strategies that work for one group of gifted students won't necessarily work for all gifted students. Don't be afraid to think outside the box. You're in the business of helping students to develop their abilities. Just as athletes are good at athletics, gifted students are good at thinking. We would never dream of holding back a promising athlete, so don't be afraid to encourage your "thinketes" by providing them with opportunities to soar. Tip #3: Conduct Informal Assessments Meeting the needs of gifted students does not need to be an all consuming task. One of the easiest ways to better understand how to provide challenging material is to conduct informal whole class assessments on a regular basis. For example, before beginning any unit, administer the end of the unit test. Students who score above 80% should not be forced to "relearn" information they already know. Rather, these students should be given parallel opportunities that are challenging. I generally offered these students the option to complete an independent project on the topic or to substitute another experience that would meet the objectives of the assignment, i.e. taking a college/distance course. With areas of the curriculum that are sequential, such as mathematics and spelling, I recommend giving the end of the year test during the first week of school. If you have students who can demonstrate competency at 80% or higher, you will save them an entire year of frustration and boredom if you can determine exactly what their ability level is and then offer them curriculum that allows them to move forward. Formal assessments can be extremely helpful, however, they are expensive and there is generally a back log of students waiting to be tested. Conducting informal assessments is a useful and inexpensive tool that will offer you a lot of information... Tip #5: Involve Parents as Resource Locators Parents of gifted children are often active advocates for their children. If you are not prepared for this, it can be a bit unnerving. The good news is that, at least in my experience, what they want most is to be heard and to encounter someone who is willing to think differently. Generally, I found that if I offered to collaborate with them, rather than resist them, we were able to work together to see that their child's needs were met. For example, if they wanted their child to have more challenging experiences in math, I would then enlist their help in finding better curriculum options. I generally conducted an informal assessment to help them determine the best place to start and then encouraged them to explore other options that could be adapted to the classroom. Most parents understood when I explained that I didn't have the luxury of creating a customized curriculum for every student, but that I would be willing to make accommodations if they would do the research. Flexibility and a willingness to think differently helped me create many win-win situations... Tip #7: Explore Acceleration ~ It's Free and It Works! Another option is to allow students to attend classes with other students who are at the same developmental level, rather than with their age peers. If a 9 year old can demonstrate that he is ready to learn algebra, why should he be forced to take fourth-grade math just because he is 9 years old? Same goes for language arts, or science, or social studies or any other area of the curriculum. Many well-meaning teachers worry that a student will run out of things to learn if they are given access to curriculum designated for older students. Whenever I hear this question I can't help but ask -- can a person ever truly run out of things to learn? Indeed, if we let Susie, a third grader, learn fifth grade math this year, then fifth grade math isn't going to be appropriate for Susie when she gets to fifth grade. So, during fifth grade, Susie should have access to seventh grade (or higher!) math -- depending upon her needs. What's wrong with that? Susie is learning at a rate appropriate to her abilities and will continue to do so whether or not we "make" her do third grade worksheets. Why not accommodate her unique learning needs with a bit of flexibility. Susie may just be the one who discovers the cure for cancer or comes up with an alternative fuel source that is more planet-friendly. Besides, and I can only speak for myself, I don't believe ANY student should have their opportunities limited because of their age, their race or any other factor that is beyond their control. I believe education should be about creating true learning opportunities for ALL students -- including gifted students. If you have a student who is ready for fifth grade work, collaborate with the fifth grade teachers. There are great tools, such as the Iowa Acceleration Scale, that can help you to determine whether the student should be moved ahead for just a subject or two or should be grade accelerated. Another reason that many teachers are afraid to try acceleration is that they are concerned about the student's level of social maturity. Research has demonstrated time and time again that acceleration is effective for many reasons and that social maturity is rarely an issue. Several studies have shown that social age is correlated with mental age -- not chronological age. So, not only is it generally in the student's best interest academically to accelerate, it is in his/her best social interest as well! The same goes for students in high school. If a student is ready for college work, encourage them to take college courses or to consider an early college entrance program. Indeed the student might need a bit of tutoring to get up to speed and/or may need some extra support initially, particularly with writing and/or organization, however, gifted students learn very quickly and my experience has been that these supports can generally be removed after a reasonable adjustment period" (Davidson Institute for Talent Development, 2015, p. 1). Davidson Institute for Talent Development, 2015, p. 1 Scenario: In a classroom with gifted, creative, and talented students, I would make sure to have extension activities fit for their needs. Because gifted children have high levels of reading comprehension, they would benefit from activities that stimulate their thinking and application processes (National Society for the Gifted & Talented, 2015, p. 1). When most students have simpler comprehension questions at the bottom levels of Bloom's Taxonomy, gifted students can be challenged with higher-order thinking questions. Naturally, all students should be challenged, but gifted students require higher-level material in order to grow as learners. Extension of learning can also mean completing projects and research assignments that would take the learning to a deeper level. Gifted learning does not mean more paperwork, necessarily, but it means a greater depth to learning because students' brains allow that to take place. Pairing students with higher comprehension levels and those students with lower ones also allows for students to learn from one another. Not only do the students with lower comprehension learn a great deal, but students who are gifted and talented reinforce concepts and gain more depth. Websites:
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