By: Patrick Archuleta, Linda Bennett, and Melanie McKinley

What is Giftedness?  High intellectual ability paired with outstanding: Subject matter understanding, Aptitude/achievement, Creativity/divergent thinking, and/or Problem-solving/critical thinking  To such a degree that an Individualized Education Program is deemed necessary to meet the child’s educational requirements.

Identification of Giftedness CCan be identified by: Parent or other family member Teacher Social worker or counselor Self

Characteristics of Giftedness  Five primary characteristics: Learns new material faster Retains information easily Understands abstract concepts Very strong interest in one or more subjects Processes more than one task at a time

Other Characteristics  Being ultra-sensitive to other people’s feelings.  Having a sophisticated sense of humor.  Being very intense.  Transferring learning and concepts to different situations.

Diverse Populations  Tend to be underrepresented.  Many standardized tests are culturally biased.  Do not focus solely on being above grade level.  Instead look for: being able to learn new material quickly. being able to think in a different way. being able to apply learning to different situations.

Dual Exceptionality  Some students are both gifted and have: a learning disability, a visual impairment, a speech impediment, a behavioral problem, and/or Attention Deficit Disorder.  Their learning challenges may mask the fact that they are gifted.

Process  Follows the same process as other Special Education Referrals Initial Referral School Support Team (SST)/Student Assistance Team (SAT) Referral Team Special Education Diagnostic Evaluation Eligibility Determination Team (EDT)/Individualized Education Program(IEP) Committee (See flowchart)

Diagnostic Evaluation  Administered by qualified diagnosticians.  Two tests Intelligence Quotient (IQ) exam ○ 130 or above required ○ Exception: a 124 or higher with social and/or economic struggles Structure of Intellect (SOI) exam.

IQ Chart Gifted

Funding  Via the State Equalization Guarantee  Considered as part of Special Education  Generates an additional 0.7 Unit Value (approximately $2510/child in 2011/12)  Potential changes in upcoming years

Intervention Programs  Self-contained classrooms  Pullout programs/resource room  Gifted education seminars  Resource centers

Classroom Interventions  Compacting  Differentiated Classroom  Ability Grouping  Other Ideas

Compacting  Any student may take the end of the unit assessment as a pretest.  Mastery of Content =Extension Activities.  Student accountability during extension activities.  Designated area of the classroom.

Differentiated Classroom  Four characteristics essential to the effective differentiated classroom: Instruction is idea focused and standard driven. Ongoing assessment of student readiness and growth. Flexible grouping is consistently used. Students are active explorers.

Ability Grouping  Ability grouping for reading and math Placement Pacing Advanced reading interventions Advanced math interventions

Other Ideas  Long-term project that is ultimately presented to an audience and/or entered into competitions.  Most Difficult First strategy  Concrete feedback on their work.

Struggles of Gifted Kids SSome things gifted kids have said: Parents, teachers, and friends expect us to be perfect all the time. Kids often tease us about being smart. We feel overwhelmed by the number of things we can do in life. We feel different and alienated. We worry about world problems and feel helpless to do anything about them.

Final Thought Gifted programs are not about elitism. We are talking about the essence of quality public education: enabling all children to reach their full potential. We seek for gifted children exactly what we seek for other groups of exceptional and special-needs children: an appropriate learning environment. (Bob Chase, NEA President)

Questions?