Gifted & Talented Exceptional Child Spring 2002

Group Members

What does it mean to be “gifted and talented”? Formal Definition: Children, and whenever applicable, youth who are identified at the preschool, elementary, or secondary level as possessing demonstrated or potential abilities that give evidence of high performance capability in areas such as  Intellectual  Creative  Specific academic or leadership ability  Performing/visual arts

Common Definition: children who have outstanding intellectual ability or creative talent

Giftedness Explained… Specific Types of Giftedness: o Schoolhouse giftedness o Creative-productive giftedness o Gifted vs. potentially gifted Three-ring Giftedness o Above-average ability o Creativity o Task commitment

Argh! Hard to determine “giftedness” Frustrations in school

The Purpose of Education for the Gifted Provide opportunity for self-fulfillment Help society

I know my child is gifted when…

Identification: Testing  Intelligence Tests  Creativity Tests  Achievement Tests  In-School Testing

Identification: Nomination  Teacher Nomination  Students’ Work  Peer Nomination  Self- Nomination  Parent Nomination

Educating Gifted Students The Options:  Acceleration: Smarter does not always mean more mature  Ability Grouping: Not beneficial for all students  Segregation: Only beneficial on a partial basis  Integration: Benefits all involved, including teachers  Partial Pullout: “Best of both worlds”

Teaching Tips Mixed Ability Middle School Teachers differentiate curriculum through: ContentProcessProduct Tips for making differentiation doable and for meeting the needs of gifting and talented students are: 1.Take Baby Steps 2.Make activities different 3.Raise the bar for everyone 4.Find your students passions.

Meeting the Enrichment Needs of Middle School Students National Research Center on Gifted and Talented’s Schoolwide Enrichment Model(SEM) National Research Center on Gifted and Talented’s Schoolwide Enrichment Model(SEM) Major goal: To promote challenging and enjoyable “high-end learning” across a range of school types, levels, and demographic differences. Major goal: To promote challenging and enjoyable “high-end learning” across a range of school types, levels, and demographic differences. Three major components that make up the SEM: Three major components that make up the SEM: Total Talent Portfolio Total Talent Portfolio Curriculum modification Curriculum modification Enrichment clusters Enrichment clusters

What’s it like to be gifted? Meadowlane Elementary School Odyssey of the Mind (OM) Invent America McNair Magnet School Science fair Special Classes Odyssey of the Mind (OM) Science Olympiad Kennedy High School Meetings every couple of months AP Classes

Works Consulted Bos, Candace S., Schumm, Jean Shay, & Vaughn, Sharon. (2000). Teaching Exceptional, Diverse, and At-Risk Students in the General Education Classroom (2nd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Carolyn, K. ( ). You Know You’re The Parent of a Gifted Child When… McCluskey, Ken W., & Walker, Keith D. (1988). The Doubtful Gift. Kingston: Ronald P. Frye & Company. Renzulli, Joseph S, Ed. D. (1998). Nurturing the gifts and talents of primary grade students. Creative Learning Press. Renzulli, Joseph S. & Richards, Susannah. (2000, March). Meeting the enrichment needs of middle school students. Principal,

Works Consulted Southern, Thomas W., & Jones, Eric D. (1991). The Academic Acceleration of Gifted Children. New York: Teachers College. Stephens, Kristen R. State Definitions for the Gifted and Talented Revisited. "Exceptional Children”, p ( ). Teno, Kevin M. (2000). Cluster grouping elementary gifted students in the regular classroom: A teacher’s perspective. Gifted Child Today, 23(1) , 53. Wehrmann, Kari Sue. (2000, Sept.). Baby Steps: a beginner’s guide. Educational Leadership, 58(1)

Educational Shoes…