1. Nature and Needs of Gifted Students Module I of V (6 of 30 clock hours)
Kristin Fawaz
Gifted and Talented
McKinney ISD, 2012

2. Housekeeping
Sign-in
Agenda
Breaks
One hour 11:30
End early!
Cell phones
Poll Everywhere
QR Scanner
Todayschat/natureandneeds
Aurasma
Primarypad
Twitter/ Instagram
“The beaver is very skilled at its craft. It knows exactly what to do to fix a dam. The last thing it needs is someone on the bank shouting dam instructions.” Author Unknown

3. What would YOU like to get out of today?
New Ideas
Awareness / Understanding
Refresher about what you already know
Networking
Credit
???

4. Learning Objectives
Demonstrate an understanding of the characteristics and behaviors of gifted students in order to meet their cognitive and affective needs.
Review the historical, legal, and conceptual understanding of Gifted Education.
Understand the many faces of gifted students.

5. Participant Expectations
Be open to new ideas.
Play along; engage in activities and group discussions.
Share your thoughts, experiences, expertise and learning.
Return from lunch and breaks on time.
Enjoy our time together and have fun!

6. Networking Introduce yourself to your table.
Share your favorite summer moment so far.
Be prepared to introduce the person sitting to your right to all of us.

7. Continuum of Talents 1 - Awful.  10- FANTASTIC! 
Evaluate your own performance and line up according to how well you think your “talents” compare.
1 - Awful. 
10- FANTASTIC! 

8. Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

9. Howard Gardener’s Nine Intelligences
Verbal/Linguistic
Intrapersonal
Musical
Visual/Spatial
Logical/ Mathematical
Bodily/Kinesthetic
Naturalist
Existential
Interpersonal
Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

10. Description of the Multiple Intelligences
Verbal/Linguistic intelligence: A sensitivity to the meaning and order of words.
Logical/mathematical intelligence: Ability in mathematics and other complex logical systems.
Musical intelligence: The ability to understand and create music. Musicians, composers and dancers show a heightened musical intelligence.
Visual/Spatial intelligence: The ability to "think in pictures," to perceive the visual world accurately, and recreate (or alter) it in the mind or on paper. Spatial intelligence is highly developed in artists, architects, designers and sculptors.
Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence: The ability to use one's body in a skilled way, for self-expression or toward a goal. Mimes, dancers, basketball players, and actors are among those who display bodily- kinesthetic intelligence.
Interpersonal intelligence: An ability to perceive and understand other individuals -- their moods, desires, and motivations. Political and religious leaders, skilled parents and teachers, and therapists use this intelligence.
Intrapersonal intelligence: An understanding of one's own emotions. Some novelists and or counselors use their own experience to guide others.
Naturalistic intelligence: Possesses extensive knowledge of the living world and its taxonomies. This person is highly capable in the recognition and identification of plants and animals.
Existential intelligence: Possess the capability to see how something relates to the big picture, finds meaning in the values of truth, goodness and beauty, has an acute responsiveness to the intangible qualities of being human, be it responding to the arts, philosophical virtues, or religious tenets.

11. Fact or Fiction Quiz
Answer the 20 question quiz independently. Sure, YOU may know all the answers, but most people don’t. Go ahead and guess if you aren’t certain on some of them. It’s okay not to be perfect. Learning something unexpected and new can be fun!

12. Fact or Fiction Quiz
1. Fiction 2. Fiction 3. Fiction 4. Fiction 5. Fact 6. Fact 7. Fact 8. Fact 9. Fiction 10. Fact

13. Fact or Fiction Quiz 11. Fact 12. Fiction 13. Fiction 14. Fiction

14. How did you do?
What surprised you most? What questions do you have? What didn’t surprise you at all? As a group, how would you define “giftedness”?

15. What is Giftedness? Text 273338 and your answer to 37607

16. US Office of Education Definition of Giftedness
GT children are those identified by professionally qualified persons who by virtue of outstanding abilities are capable of high performance. These are children who require differentiated educational programs and services beyond those normally provided by the regular program in order to realize their contribution to self and society. Children of high performance include those with demonstrated achievement and/or potential ability in any of the following areas:
General intellectual ability
Specific academic aptitude
Creative or productive thinking
Leadership ability
Visual and performing arts
Psychomotor ability

17. Texas State Goal of Services for Gifted and Talented Students
Students who participate in services designed for gifted students will demonstrate skills in self-directed learning, thinking (critical & creative), research (advanced) , and communication as evidenced by the development of innovative products and performances that reflect individuality and creativity and are advanced in relation to students of similar ages, experience, or environment. High school graduates who have participated in services for gifted students will have produced products and performances of professional quality as part of their program services.

18. Ultimately, what is education’s goal for the gifted learner?
Million Dollar Question…
Ultimately, what is education’s goal for the gifted learner?

20. Levels of Giftedness
Interventions increase the further you move away from the middle.

21. By the numbers… To put this in perspective…
.14% of the population fall in the +3
Students with IQ of 130+ are in the 95th percentile and will usually qualify for gifted services.
“Gifted” :95
“Highly Gifted” :260
160 “Exceptionally Gifted” 1:31,560
175 “Profoundly Gifted” :2,000,000
It’s no wonder they feel isolated and school struggle to meet their needs.
Through the Roof Learning.com

22. Renzulli’s 3-Ring Conception of Giftedness.

23. Francois Gagne’s Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talents

24. Gagne’s Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent (DGMT)
DMGT
simplified

25. Mentorship and relationships can often bridge the gap.
“You learned in one day what it’s taken months for me to teach my other lab students.”

26. Hollingsworth 1942, Renzulli & Silverman 1991
Researched how much time was wasted for our very brightest students…
IQ 140= 50% of their time in school is wasted.
IQ 170= 90% of their time in school is wasted.
These children have learned most of the curriculum before they even walk in the door. The parts they aren’t certain about, they pick up rapidly, or already know intuitively.

27. . Brain Sneeze… Name that scene. Text in your answer.
Text and response to 37607 .
Brain Sneeze…
Name that scene.
Text in your answer.

29. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GIFTED One size does not fit all.

31. Bright vs. Gifted
Card Sort Activity

32. Some Common Characteristics
(Not every gifted child will have each characteristic)
Endlessly curious Perfectionist
Compassionate Avid reader
Morally sensitive Extensive vocabulary
Keen observer Perceptive
High degree of energy Questions authority
Advanced sense of humor Mature judgment
Sensitive Insightful
Highly creative Non-conforming
Vivid imagination Excellent memory
Learns rapidly Perseveres in interests
Concerned with justice Wide range of interests
Reasons well Grasps abstract concepts
Thrives on complexity Precocious reasoning ability
Highly verbal Highly INTENSE
Performs better with A need to know
challenging work

33. Hey, that’s what they do, okay?

34. Something to Consider:
Gifted children see the world differently than most other children.
124
-95

35. Gifted people are different.
Neurology
Larger frontal lobe, faster synapses, efficient processes
Perception
Over excitabilities, sensitivity, awareness, intensity
Behavior
Capacity for being active, psychomotor responses
Environment
Sensual, intellectual, imaginative, emotional

36. Asynchronous Development
Out of sync with “normally developed same age peers”.
Parents need to serve as “multi-level mediators”.
Consider the whole gifted child…emotions can’t be treated separately from intellectual or physical development.
Society often values the products of a gifted child’s intellect while the traits that go with these characteristics are not.
(Example: winning essay vs. emotional reaction to war as “neurotic”)
Gifted kids have an acutely heightened awareness of everything so they recognize turmoil within themselves.
"Achievement is neither the essence of giftedness nor the most important aspect of it.”

37. Lunch Trailer: http://safeshare.tv/w/uTNlMxovrE Film:

38. Welcome Back!

39. Roll the die… 1 – Connect an item from your lunch to something you learned today. 2 – One word to sum up what you learned. 3 – Celebrate something you already knew. 4 – I’m still fuzzy about…/I want to know… 5 – Name an “aha” student connection. 6 – I want to remember.

40. Overexcitabilities in Gifted People
Over excitabilities are increased sensitivity, awareness, and intensity.

41. Psychomotor Sensual Emotional Intellectual Imaginational
Dabrowki

42. Intensity of… Thought - “Her mind is always whirling.”
Purpose - “Once he makes up his mind to do something…”
Emotion - “She internalizes everything anyone says about her.”
Spirit - “He is always looking out for someone less fortunate who needs help.”
Soul - “She asks questions that philosophers have asked for centuries and gets upset when we can’t give her definite answers to them.”
From J.R. Delisle, Once upon a mind: The stories and scholars of gifted child education. Harcourt_Brace, 1999

43. Intensity… Text 298816 and response to 37607
Who is the intense character in this scene and what are they doing? Text in your response.

44. Use your phone to scan the code for instructions.

45. Psychomotor OE “Cooper” “Capacity for being active or energetic”
Talks compulsively
Acts impulsively
Displays nervous habits
Compulsively disorganized
Others may find them overwhelming
Seems to never be still
Common misdiagnosis ADD.
(Piechowski, 1991)

46. Sensual OE
“Keaton”
“Heightened experience of sensual pleasure and displeasure emanating from sight, smell, touch, taste, sound.”
Pleasure and pain are much more intense.
Increased & early appreciation of music, art, language
Endless delight from sensations- smells, textures, tastes.
Ability to escape reality and become thoroughly absorbed in sensations.
May become over- stimulated and uncomfortable easily.
May withdraw (due to rough clothing, cafeteria smells, pencil pressure, etc).
(Dabrowski & Piechoski 1977; Piechowski 1979, 1991)

47. Intellectual OE “Cade”
“Need to seek understanding and truth, to gain knowledge, and to analyze and synthesize”
Many characteristics commonly listed for gifted students fall into this category.
Intensely curious
Keen observers
Detailed visual recall
Loves theory/ thinking
Strong concerns for moral and ethical issues
Impatient when others cannot sustain their intellectual pace
May interrupt at inappropriate times due to excitement
Elaborate planners
Able to engage in prolonged intellectual effort
Tenacious problem solvers (when they choose)
(Dabrowski & Piechoski 1977; Piechowski 1979, 1991)

48. Imaginational OE “Kenzie” “Rich association of images and impressions”
Frequent use of images
Metaphors
Facility for invention and fantasy
Visualization and elaborate dreams
May mix truth with fiction
May create private words/ codes
May have imaginary friends/ daydreams
Difficulty staying tuned to rigid academic curriculum and may prefer to write or draw instead
Difficulty completing tasks when an idea captures their thoughts.
(Dabrowski & Piechoski 1977; Piechowski 1979, 1991)

49. Emotional OE “Marisol”
“Intense emotion, intense empathy, and magnified affective expression.”
Stomach aches / blushing
Concern with death / depression
Capacity for deep relationships
Strong emotional attachments to people, places, things
Acutely aware of own feelings
Often carries on inner dialogue and routinely practices self- judgment
Often accused of over-reacting.
(Piechowski 1991)

50. “Over excitabilities represent a real difference in the fabric of life and quality of experience.”
(Lind, 2001)
“One who manifests several forms of over excitability, sees reality in a different, stronger, and more multisided manner.” (Dabrowski, 1972)

51. The Experience of Gifted People is NOT “Normal”.
Sometimes being gifted doesn’t feel like a “gift”.

52. Taken from “Poems for the Soul”
Crying for the moon, A coyote’s mournful howl, Piercing the soul. A cry of anguish, Coming from the breath of time, Saying its goodbye. The ghosts of saddened spirits, Singing a haunting melody, Saddening the Earth.
By Sam Roberts
Age 8

53. I am. By Sam Roberts (age 8)
I am a dreamer, an imaginer, I understand why. I can’t suppress emotions. I am sadness. I feel like the world is an endless waltz. I touch the currents of magic. I worry about nuclear winter. I cry. I am a dreamer, an imaginer. I understand pity.

54. Brain Sneeze… Name that scene! Text 279286 and response to 37607

55. Many Gifted Students are Introverted.
60% of GT population vs. 30% of general population
Not “shy”
Front-end analysis
Dislike being the center of attention
Mentally rehearse before speaking
Have few very close friends, not casual
Feel drained by people
Learn by observing rather than doing

56. Responding to the Needs of Introverts
Give wait time
Don’t interrupt them.
Prone to embarrassment in public
Reprimand them privately.
Allow them to observe in new
situations.
Often in flow state; give warning
Respect their introversion.

57. The Varied Faces of GT Students
GT Culturally Diverse Students
GT Twice Exceptional/Special Ed.
GT Economically Disadvantaged Students
GT English Language Learners
Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

58. The Varied Faces of GT Jigsaw Activity
Work with your table group to read over the information about diverse learners.
Be prepared to make a short presentation to the larger group in order to share your discoveries and insights.
Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

59. Is it a Blessing or a Curse to be Identified as GT?
Are your GT students accepted and valued for their unique abilities? Explain what you see.
Do your GT students appear to socialize with everyone or cluster with their intellectual friends? Explain.
How are some GT students treated by their grade level peers?
How are GT students treated by their teachers?
Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

61. Needs of Gifted Students at School
Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

62. TAG Graffiti Activity
Tape the slip of paper you just read onto the correct poster on the wall.
Use the colored markers to “Graffiti Write” your suggestions about how teachers can help meet these needs.

63. What can I do?
“Challenge all learners. A rising tide lifts all ships.”
-Joseph Renzulli

64. Offer: Acceptance Less drill and repetition
Opportunities to pursue interests in depth
Understanding (be flexible)
A safe environment for risk taking
Encouragement to be creative
Open ended questions
Time to think
Opportunities to share feelings
Contact with other gifted children
Help relating to others
Attention
Faster paced instruction
Complex subject matter
Interdisciplinary connections
Rich and varied resources
Contact with mentors
Continuous assessment of skills mastered
Created by Dr. Linda Silverman
Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

65. Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

66. Gifted Types Type 1 – "Successful" Type 2 – "Challenging"
Type 3 – "Undercover"
Type 4 – "Dropouts"
Type 5 – "Multiple Labels"
Type 6 – "Atypical Talents"
Type 7 – "Autonomous"
Task: Using handouts as your guide, create a character for your assigned gifted type. (Voki or Goanimate.)

67. Top Eight Gripes of GT Students
8. No one explains what being gifted is all about - it is kept a secret.
7. School is too easy or too boring.
6. Parents, teachers and friends expect us to be perfect all the time.
5. Friends who really understand us are few and far between.
4. Kids often tease us about being smart.
3. We feel overwhelmed by the number of things we can do in life.
2. We feel different and alienated.
1. We worry about world problems and feel hopeless to do anything about them.
Adapted from “When Gifted Kids Don’t Have all the Answers” Jim Delisle, Judy Galbraith, 2002
Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

68. What do Gifted Kids Want from Their Teachers?
Items mentioned 50% of the time:
Someone who understands them, has a sense of humor, can make learning fun, is cheerful
Items mentioned 30% of the time:
Someone who supports and respects them, is intelligent, patient, firm with them, is flexible
Items mentioned 5-10% of the time:
Someone who knows the subject, explains things carefully, is skilled in classroom management

70. What does “being gifted” mean and how does it feel?
“I’m different from the other kids because people can’t see my gift.” Hunter, 9
“I think gifted means well-developed at a younger age. It means precocious.” Gregory, 10
“It’s okay being gifted but there are a lot of disadvantages too. My teacher gives me too much extra homework. It’s hard to get it all done when I have my gifted homework too.” Lauren, 11
“Gifted means that you are born with the ability to do things in a different way. I’m different from other kids because I think in a different way than they think.” Matt, 8
“I feel a little left out because my teacher barely ever calls on me.” Matthew, 9
“I’m a normal kid. I just think faster and in a different way than every one else around me.” Callie, 10

71. Continued… In Their Own Words
“Teacher’s treat me like I’m dumber than other kids. Like I can’t learn. Why else would they make me sit there and do easy problems like 12x5 with the class if they really thought I was more capable and could do more? I feel like maybe I’m forgotten. Like I’m not there. If I could change something…I’d beg for harder work.” Keith, 9
“Sometimes being gifted is hard. It’s difficult when you get a question wrong and people look at you and say, “You should have gotten that right, you’re in GT!” Will, 9
“ I think sometimes the other kids may get a little jealous. Sometimes they won’t let me play at math races, because they think I’ll win them all, and won’t give them a chance to win.” Tara, 9
“In regular high school, teachers just wanted to knock me down. They would cut me in front of the class because they thought I was showing off and making them look bad. So, I just answered my tests in binary.” Gautum, 16
“I always tried not to be labeled the smart kid. Being the benchmark is bad. It’s not necessarily a good thing to be smart. So I’m kind of a slacker, I just do what I have to. There’s more to me than being a bookworm.” Cleve, 17

72. Then share your insights and comments on:
Find a person on the other side of the room and share which statement resonated with you the most and why.
Then share your insights and comments on:

73. Sometimes “gifts” aren’t what they seem.
Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

74. Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

75. The Right to Learn
“To ignore, either directly or indirectly, the needs of gifted students is to waste human potential.” (Torrance, 1978).
“In the final analysis, to fail to provide gifted learners with equitable educational experiences is to violate their constitutional and educational rights.” (Ford, Russo, 1995).

76. Some Social-Emotional Concerns of GT Students Are:
Underachievement
Perfectionism
Fragile self-concept
Family/Cultural issues
Expectations of others
Organizational issues
Interpersonal relationships
Peer relationships
Vulnerability
Heightened sense of fairness and justice
Inflexibility
Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

77. Perfectionism Profile of a Perfectionist
High expectations of self and others
Self imposed rules and structure
High moral and ethical standards for self and others
Parent/teacher/sibling pressure
Neatness: appearance and work areas
Low tolerance for mistakes
Lower self confidence
Self doubt; difficulty making decisions
Low trust of others
Making decisions; not easy
Good impressions are important/ works to maintain an image
Difficulty accepting criticism/ correction
Few friends
Bodies suffer; anorexia etc.
Other
Module 1 – Nature and Needs
Diane Wilcox, Region 10 Consultant

78. Brain Sneeze… Photobooth Break! #gtdynasty
Share your bearded pics with us on Twitter and Instagram.
#gtdynasty

79. Why? What does this imply?
Did you know…
The drop out rate for general education students is 11%.
The drop out rate for gifted students is between 20-25%!
Why? What does this imply?
The good news is that we can usually make things better for gifted students simply by improving their learning environment.
(Michael, 2005)

80. Myths about Gifted “Teaching gifted kids is easy!”
“Gifted kids will make it on their own. They’ll be just fine.”
“Gifted kids will bring up your class average with little to no teacher intervention.”
A colleague comes to your classroom after school to ask for help. During the conversation she says some of the statements listed above. How will you help her grow professionally while also advocating for the needs of gifted students?

81. The Myths and Realities of Giftedness
Myth vs. Reality Quiz
The Myths and Realities of Giftedness
Final Exam

82. Number your Post It 1-15 and answer “true” or “false” for each statement.
In general, the public is sympathetic to the plight of the gifted.
Special accommodations and programs for gifted learners are unfair and un-American.
Gifted students can “make it on their own”.
Everyone is “gifted” in some way.
The intellectually gifted differ as much from the average student as do the functionally academic students.
A high IQ score is a good predictor of success in life.
Teachers are better at identifying giftedness than parents.
Gifted students of color, and students with lower socio-economic backgrounds are less likely to be identified for gifted services.
Gifted students need more than the regular classroom curriculum and should be encouraged to strive to complete advanced, relevant, and meaningful work.
Gifted students always graduate at the top of the class.
Gifted students are gifted in all academic areas equally.
Gifted learners can sometimes have learning disabilities as well.
Over excitabilities rarely ever impact a gifted student’s life.
Gifted students need meaningful relationships and mentors in order to be successful.
Gifted programs are required and are fully funded by the state of Texas.

83. Who Are the Gifted?
Creative and imaginative people are often not recognized by their contemporaries. In fact, often they are not recognized in school by their teachers either. History is full of illustrations. Consider some of these.

84. Einstein was four years old before he could speak and seven before he could read.

85. Isaac Newton did poorly in grade school.

86. Beethoven’s music teacher once said of him, “As a composer, he is hopeless.”

87. When Thomas Edison was a boy his teachers told him he was too stupid to learn anything.

88. F.W. Woolworth got a job in a dry goods store when he was 21 but his employers would not let him wait on a customer because he, “didn’t have enough sense”.

89. A newspaper fired Walt Disney because he had, “no good ideas”.

90. Caruso’s music teacher told him, “You can’t sing; you have no voice at all!”

91. Leo Tolstoy flunked out of college.

92. The director of the Imperial Opera in Vienna told Madame Schumann Heink that she would never be a singer and advised her to buy a sewing machine.

93. "Can't act. Can't sing. Balding. Can dance a little."
Fred Astaire arrived in Hollywood at the age of 35 and received this comment from a Paramount Studios executive after one of his first auditions.

94. Verner von Braun flunked ninth grade algebra.

95. Admiral Richard E. Byrd had been retired from the Navy, as, “unfit for service” until he flew over both poles.

96. Louis Pasteur was rated as “mediocre” in chemistry when he attended the Royal College.

97. So who are the gifted?
Who will be coming to us this year? How can we help them meet their potential? How can WE positively impact lives? \
What did you learn?
What will you do differently to help gifted learners?
Text and your response to

98. A mind stretched to a new idea will never return to its original dimensions. Oliver Wendell Holmes \
Kristin Fawaz
Gifted and Talented
McKinney ISD, 2012

99. Nature and Needs of Gifted Students Module I of V (6 of 30 clock hours)
Facilitated by Kristin Fawaz
Kristin Fawaz
Gifted and Talented
McKinney ISD, 2012