Gifted TLSE 240 Does the student o o

Gifted TLSE 240

Does the student… o o o Have a curiosity about the world? Have many interests or hobbies? Use advanced vocabulary? Catch on quickly? Think abstractly?

Then… o Perhaps he/she may be gifted or talented

o There and have been different definitions referring to this population

1972 Definition of Gifted and Talented Children o o o Capable of high performance Require differentiated services/programs Have demonstrated achievement and potential ability in theses areas

continued o o o General intellectual ability Specific academic aptitude Creative or productive thinking Leadership ability Visual or performing arts Psychomotor ability

o o o 1978 definition dropped psychomotor ability 1988 definition: high performance capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic, or leadership capacity or in specific academic fields. Requires special services

1994 Definition o o Does not use term “gifted” Recognized presence of talent among children across all cultural and socio-economic groups Potential for remarkably high levels Require specialized services

Definitions continued o Some differentiate between gifted (extraordinary ability and creativity) and talented (exceptional skills in a specific area such as art, music, science, or language)

o o States use different definition Not covered under IDEA or 504 Largely up to states and school districts No requirement for states to develop programs

Recent Views o o Include a reference to commitment to task (i. e. , motivation and task completion) View that gifted behavior is an interaction among ability, creativity, and task commitment

Some Characteristics o o o Outstanding memory Many interests, hobbies, and collections Passionate interest Intense Strongly motivated in area of interest May be unwilling to work on other activities

Characteristics continued o o o Track two or more things simultaneously Comes up with better ways to do things Sensitive Advanced sense of justice and fairness Aware of global issues May work in sloppy or careless manner

Invisible Gifted o Minorities o Disabled o Females

Misconceptions o o Advanced intellectually but behind physically, socially, and emotionally Superhuman and exceptional in every way

Identification o Uni dimensional approaches OR o o Multidimensional approaches

Identification continued o o o IQ tests (IQ of 130; 2 SD’s above mean) Academic assessments Tasks of creativity Teacher nomination Parent suggestion Observations, rating scales, etc.

Identification continued o Gardner’s Model of Multiple Intelligence n n n n Linguistic Logical-mathematical Spatial Musical Bodily-Kinesthetic Interpersonal Intrapersonal Naturalistic

o o May have a screening and/or referral and evaluation team If district criteria are met, the student is recommended for placement, and a plan is developed

Some Programs/Approaches o Resource programs o Self-contained programs o Inclusion programs

Definitions o Student acceleration – rapid movement of student through school (i. e. , 16 yr old in med school) o Content acceleration – rapid movement through the curriculum (i. e. , 5 th grader doing algebra in 5 th grade math class)

continued o Enrichment – provide supplemental learning opportunities to branch off the general curriculum o Independent learning Authentic learning Higher order thinking projects Community based projects o o o

continued o Curriculum compacting – opportunity to demonstrate what is known about a subject (i. e. , can pretest/test out of something)

Magnet Schools o o Advanced placement classes College credit for high school classes Honors sections Ability/cluster groupings

Groupings o o o Need to be with “like-minded” peers for at least part of the day Find cooperative learning (mixed ability groups) too slow and repetitive Summer camps or programs

Remember the o Need to be challenged o DO NOT Just give them more work Just let them be peer tutors o

These Students Need o Different opportunities

Scenarios o o o Student “aces” quizzes and tests but never hands in daily homework which largely influences grade Student only performs well on topics of interest Student complains to others that the work is too easy or babyish

May need grading adjustments o May need support to work in areas of dislike o May need to test out of subjects o May need to learn about individual learning styles/abilities o

Remember o These children are still children first…with all of the needs that all children have