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The Belin-Blank Center for Twice Exceptional Students

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The Belin-Blank Center for Twice Exceptional Students

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Belin-Blank Center 600 Blank Honors Center Iowa City, IA 52242 belinblank@uiowa.edu 319-335-6148 800-336-6463 8:30am - 4:30pm University Holidays Privacy Statement Nondiscrimination Statement

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Twice Exceptional Kids: Both Gifted and Challenged

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Twice Exceptional Kids: Both Gifted and Challenged

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Some children are highly gifted in areas such as math, writing or music. Then there are those with challenges that affect learning: They could have ADHD, dyslexia or dyscalculia, or perhaps they're autistic or have sensory processing issues. But there are also kids who fit both categories. They're called twice-exceptional, or 2e, which means that they have exceptional ability and disability. They are gifted in some way but they also face learning or developmental challenges.

Children who are both gifted and challenged can be tough to understand. Gifted kids can use their strengths to compensate for the special need, and in the process mask their learning problems. Or the special needs can mask the giftedness. In some cases, neither the disability nor the giftedness is recognized.

Once 2e kids are identified, it can still be difficult to get the supports these children need in school. If they're in a gifted program, they may be floundering in a certain area. If they're placed in a special-ed program, it may not challenge them, and they may be frustrated and restless. In either case, anxiety, depression, a lack of self-esteem and emotional dysregulation can result, leading to behavior problems.

Why 2e kids are overlooked

One reason twice-exceptional kids are in danger of slipping through the cracks is that their schools are set up to help kids meet grade-level academic skills, and they may be on grade level, despite their challenges.

"Let's take bright kids who have a reading disability," says Adam S. Zamora, PsyD, a neuropsychologist at the Child Mind Institute. "When they're reading, there are words that they don't know how to decode but they use inferential reasoning and their overall cognitive capacity to kind of figure out what the missing word might be. These kids might go under the radar."

They may eventually be diagnosed with a learning disability if they hit a wall when they reach later grades and expectations rise, or they may never receive the diagnosis and support they need.

Then there's the case of a 2e child who may have issues that overshadow his giftedness.

This was the case at first with Jenn Choi 's son, Logan, now 14. His special needs (ADHD and then dyslexia) were identified after he was asked to leave his first preschool for his "behaviors," which included not being able to sit in circle time.

But it wasn't until Logan was turning 5 and had his first neuropsychological assessment that his parents realized his potential, when he scored in a very superior range in visual-spatial thinking, including perception, analysis and synthesis. This can translate into excellence in math, science and engineering.

"It was a big surprise to us that he was really smart," Choi says. And it wasn't until first grade, when he attended an afterschool program at the Quad Mahattan, created for twice-exceptional kids, that she learned the term. Choi now offers a listserve for 2e parents in New York City.

Emotional and behavioral issues

Not having both talents and disability identified can have emotional and behavioral consequences for children.

"They know that they're capable of more and yet something is holding them back, and they can't really figure out why," says Laura Phillips, PsyD, a neuropsychologist at the Child Mind Institute."That's why you often see a lot of frustration and anxiety and even behavioral dysregulation in a lot of these kids."

They may come off as lazy because they're clearly bright but performing poorly in some areas. They may get a lot of criticism from parents and teachers: "You're just not trying on this math!" Their self-esteem suffers and they may experience depression.

Or they seem oppositional to teachers and parents. "Frustrated by their difficulties, they act out in infinite ways, and they get mischaracterized or misunderstood as being oppositional," Dr. Phillips says.

Giftedness can lead to misdiagnosis

Children who are gifted may have behaviors that look like ADHD or autism.

"One of the things we know about gifted children almost universally is that they are intense," says psychologist James T. Webb, who specializes in them. "If they're into dinosaurs, they eat, drink, live dinosaurs. If they're into math and factors, they love it. If they're into power struggles or sibling rivalry, it's equally as intense."

This intensity can make sitting in a regular classroom very frustrating. "The research indicates that for most gifted children, from one fourth to one half the regular classroom time is spent waiting for others to catch up," Webb notes. "If you're sitting there and your mind is intensely churning, you're likely to be seen as being off task, fidgety, interrupting others, classic behaviors that would be ADHD-like."

It's also easy to misdiagnose gifted kids as being on the autism spectrum. There's that intensity in interests. Also, "gifted children as a group just seem to be quirkier than other kids," Dr. Webb says.

Gifted kids can also be oversensitive to stimuli, making them avoid bright lights, noise and crowds. The combination of over-excitability and intellectual advancement can make them a bad match for their noisy and boisterous peers. "They just don't play well with others," he says. "They try to structure their world in a rigid way. They have difficulty with being redirected to new tasks. All of these are behaviors are ones you often see on the spectrum."

Of course a child can also be 2e - both gifted and have ADHD or autism.

How to identify 2e children

First, Dr. Webb emphasizes, parents and teachers need to be familiar with the concept of twice exceptionality. "One of the big myths about gifted children is that they will be equally gifted in all areas, or very close to that," he says.

"There really is no universally agreed upon definition of 'gifted' - even with respect to general intellectual ability," Dr. Phillips says, "as giftedness in its truest definition is not limited to intellectual potential, but instead can refer to extraordinary capabilities in creative thinking, specific academic areas, psychomotor functioning, or visual/performing arts." She says she and most school placement decisions use a Standard Score in IQ testing of 130 as the cut-off for gifted intelligence, which would place the child in the top 2 percent of the population.

Experts suggest that when a teacher sees a child who does just okay in some areas, but in one or two areas is a prodigy - or does exceptionally well in all areas except one, where she is lagging - the child should be referred for testing.

The optimal way to pick up on twice exceptionality is through a neuropsychological evaluation.

"Neuropsych evaluations are really the best way to understand a student's full profile of cognitive and academic strengths and weaknesses, and to individualize a curriculum, which really is what these kids need," Dr. Phillips explains. "They might be three grade levels ahead in math, but they might need extra support in reading."

The challenge of educating the 2e child

According to a survey spearheaded by Choi of 503 parents with 2e kids, 254 of whom attend New York City public schools, their biggest challenge is being forced to choose between cultivating the child's intellectual ability and helping with their special-education needs; they are not usually offered at the same time.

One way to try to get the individualized teaching 2e kids need is by being placed in an Integrated Co-Teaching (ICT) class, with one general-education teacher and one special-needs teacher. But if 2e kids are performing at grade level, it can make it difficult to persuade schools that they should provide remediation or accommodations through an Individualized Education Program or a 504 Plan.

Choi says the survey showed parents are told that children in a gifted and talented program can't have an IEP, which is not true. The survey also showed that only 5 percent of the 2e kids had a gifted and talented placement in an ICT classroom.

Should kids be moved to older classrooms for the subjects where they excel? Dr. Phillips says it can be tricky because they don't have the maturity level to handle the homework and social demands. In some cases, parents may opt for private schools, with smaller classes and/or curriculum tailored to a particular student's strengths and weaknesses.

Instead of placing kids in older classes, Dr. Phillips recommends that parents provide a lot of enrichment outside school. One such resource: the Davidson Institute, including its Davidson Young Scholars Program for 2e students. Also, some museums provide weekend programming for gifted students.

How support can help

Getting support can help twice-exceptional children reach their full potential, both in terms of academics and on the emotional front.

When 2e kids are identified and supported, Dr. Zamora says, they can do better in school and have higher self-esteem. "If parents are well informed about what's going on with the kid, if the teachers really understand that this is a bright kid who just has these one or two areas of weakness, it can affect the way the teachers talk to the kid, the way they teach the kid," he says.

Another way to help 2e kids, adds Dr. Phillips, is to let them know it will get easier. "When I work with any sort of learning disability, I tell parents the years from kindergarten through 12 th grade are going to be the hardest years in their kids' lives" because they are required to take all the core subjects. But when they head off to college, they can select the courses in their areas of strength. "After that, they can choose careers that are suited to their strengths again and really shine there as well."

As for Logan, he attended three private schools between kindergarten and the middle of seventh grade, partially for behavioral issues but also because the curriculum wasn't challenging enough for him. Eventually he settled into a gifted and talented program in a public school, which has been a better fit. This month, he started at a competitive public high school Even with the changes, Choi says she feels all of Logan's needs haven't been met. She says his gifts put him on an engineering path, something that won't be addressed in school. Instead, she says, "We are going to have to figure it out as we go along."

What are twice exceptional, or 2e, students?

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Twice-Exceptional Kids: Both Gifted and Challenged - Child Mind Institute

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Twice-exceptional, or 2e kids have exceptional ability but also disability. They may have ADHD, autism, dyslexia, or another learning disorder. And they have a unique set of issues that need addressing.

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Before we begin

On a personal note, I absolutely love working with 2e, twice-exceptional kids. I often say, "the more complex the kid, the better", because 2e kids are truly the most interesting people I know. They tend to be intellectually deep, incredibly creative, emotionally intense, quirky, and when they get their educational needs met, they do really cool things as adults. Many of the people who "change the world" were twice-exceptional kids. They're just super cool people, and too many of them fall through the cracks because they are misunderstood.

Adults don't always understand their strengths and/or challenges. In fact, strengths and challenges often mask each other. Consequently, rather than figuring out what these kids need to thrive, they are often shamed with ignorant messages like, "you're lazy", "you don't try hard enough", "you don't care enough about school", "you just need to be more disciplined and motivated". These shame comments don't help, they hurt, and many of these kids internalize the messages and begin to feel like they are not enough, that they are stupid, that they are failures, or that they are broken.

I happen to see these kids as the most important game-changers for creatively solving the world's future problems, and it's particularly important to society as a whole that these kids get the education they need. Now let's dive in...

(btw- you can get the 2e assessment freebie here or you can sign up for my Blog and Student Success Toolkit

What is 2e or Twice Exceptional?

Generally speaking, twice exceptional, or 2e students, are both intellectually gifted & talented and learning disabled. In the education world, giftedness and learning disabilities are both considered "exceptionalities", so the term "twice-exceptional" refers to a student with exceptionalities on both sides of the proverbial bell curve. In a nutshell, if you have a child who you know is smart/bright, but who struggles to show it, they may be 2e. About 5% of kids are 2e.

The '2e' abbreviation - People use the abbreviation "2e" for simplicity. It's used interchangeably with the term "twice-exceptional".

Multi-exceptional - Many professionals, myself included, prefer the term "multi-exceptional" because of how complex these kids are. Labels like 2e can be misleading because there is often a lot more that needs to be considered when planning to meet the complex educational needs of these kids. For example, it's not uncommon to have an intellectually gifted child who has also been diagnosed with ADHD, ASD, processing disorders, and an emotional disorder. Unfortunately, teachers rarely know the full story, and even if they do, they are not always given the time, training or resources they need in order to meet the needs of these kids.

Asynchrony - The #1 key concept to help understand 2e learners is asynchrony, aka dyssynchrony. 2E kids tend to develop quite "asynchronously". They are "all over the place" in terms of grade level ability or age appropriate development. For example, you might have a 6th grader who reads at the 12th-grade level, has the fine-motor handwriting of a 1st grader, writes papers like a 3rd grader, understands math concepts at an 9th-grade level, calculates math facts at a 4th-grade level, can hold remarkably deep conversations with adults, and has temper tantrums like a 3-year-old. You get the picture, the developmental levels of 2e kids aren't "in sync". The discrepancies between "potential" and "output" causes many problems.

I read a lot of neuropsychologist reports and it's not at all uncommon to see a 2e child in the superior range for some metrics and in impaired range for others. For example, a 2e child may be at the 98th %ile for verbal ability, but the 2nd %ile for processing speed. As you can imagine, these discrepancies cause a lot of misunderstandings.

I like to think of asynchrony like an old stereo EQ (see below). Imagine that each slider represents one developmental area. Perhaps one slider represents math, writing, reading, social, emotional, visual-spatial (of course you could break it down into smaller sub-skills if you wanted to). Sliding it up indicates greater ability and down indicates less ability as compared to most peers of a similar age. The image below could describe someone who was "on grade level" since the different domains are all at the same level, they are in sync. Standardized tests for such a child would show average grade level scores (they might be labeled "proficient" on tests). Now imagine an eq for a 2e child where the sliders were all over the place, some average, some very high, some very low. This would represent asynchronous development.

Neuro-typical - When discussing 2e kids, it's good to be familiar with the term "neurotypical" (a word commonly used in ASD circles, originally used to refer to non-ASD people). This word refers to kids who experience "neurologically typical" development cognitively, socially, emotionally. For example, it might be considered neurotypical to learn multiplication tables in 3rd grade or to be able to write a good research paper by high school. Some would argue that neurotypicals compose 80% of kids in the "middle" of the bell curve. 2e kids are, by their very nature, not neurotypical. I sometimes use the term neurotypical to refer to 2e kids or other kids who are outside-the-box learners.

Bell curve - Bell curves can be useful when used properly, but the metaphor of the bell curve can cause a lot of misunderstanding. I want to clarify how I think of it so you can have a better understanding to help your kids. The bell curve below is called the "normal bell curve" and the world normally carries a lot of baggage. The problem is that if there are "normal" people than there are "abnormal" people, and that frame can carry a lot of hurtful judgment. I have seen way too many kids who feel like they are broken, who feel like there is something wrong with them, and those feelings can cause a lot of trauma. I wanted to mention this because it's important that we are careful about the messages we send.

3-d Bell Curve - I think of the normal bell curve as being limited and one-dimensional. In other words, it doesn't give me nearly enough information about the complexities that make up students. These are human beings with incredibly complex and rich personalities and learning needs. Therefore, I like to think of these metrics as parts of 3-d bells, with countless interrelated qualities. Imagine that you could look at this bell from hundreds of angles to get perspective on various relevant aspects of these kids. It's so much more interesting and useful.

Identification: How do I know if my child is 2E or Twice Exceptional?

It's critical for parents and teachers to have clarity regarding their Twice Exceptional students because a failure to understand them can have devastating effects. Also, as stated above, adults who don't understand 2e often use shaming words that are damaging, sending misinformed messages that these kids are lazy, don't care about school or don't try hard enough.

Testing for intelligence and learning disabilities - 2e students are "smart but struggling", so if this describes your child, you should explore this until you feel clear about what's going on. Generally, parents have a gut feeling about this sort of thing, but many families find clarity through getting professional testing done by a neuropsychologist or other diagnostician who tests for giftedness and learning problems. Schools may also provide testing in order to see if they will offer services.

When parents ask me to refer to someone for testing, the most important factor I consider is how well the diagnostician consults with a family after testing. For example, my favorite neuoropsychologist in Colorado spends a great deal of time with families afterwards so they leave with all of their questions thoroughly answered. I've seen too many families come to me with an overwhelming 10-page report that they don't even know how to read. What good is paying for testing when you don't understand the results?

Common tests you can research - WISC IV, WAIS III, Stanford Binet, Woodcock-Johnson, DAS, UNIT, Ravens Progressive Matrices, NNAT, K-TEA/NU.

Discrepancies - The difference between what a child should be able to do and their actual execution causes a great deal of problems for these kids. Adults often say things like, "he's got so much potential, I don't know why he doesn't try harder?!?!". These kids are trying, but it's often masked. These kids are working very hard using their strengths, abstract reasoning abilities, and intelligence to compensate for their weaknesses, so they are often misunderstood. Unfortunately, the opposite is often true, their challenges can mask their gifts.

Common Learning Disabilities, Differences or Challenges

Don't let the stigma of the word "disabled" (dis-able) scare you, because what's most important is that you know the truth about your child's abilities and needs. Even when there is no formal diagnosis, parents often have an intuition about their child's "gifts" and "disabilities." Here are some common differences to look out for:

Dyslexia

Dysgraphia - writing disability

Dyscalculia - math disability

Processing disorders (sensory - visual, auditory, CAPD)

ASD, Aspergers, Autism

Dyspraxia, Sensory integration, fine motor problems

Dysphasia - problems understanding language

Speech & language

ADHD, attentional, executive function

TBI Traumatic Brain Injury

Emotional disorders, mood disorders, depression, bipolar, anxiety, OCD, etc.

Physical disabilities

Types of Gifts to consider

It does not have to be "book smarts," there are many ways a child can be gifted:

IQ, GT is often thought of as 130+, 160+ is often considered profoundly gifted

Academically - math, science, language arts, etc.

Artistically - art, music, dance, etc.

Kinesthetically, Athletically

Verbal ability

Visual-spatial

Problem-solving ability, original, unique ideas

Abstract thinking, flexible thinking, highly creative, insightful

Gardner's Multiple Intelligences: musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, logical-mathematical, linguistic, naturalistic, visual-spatial, bodily/kinesthetic

Asks unusually deep questions, High-level thinking

Intuitive or spiritual, "indigo kids"

Unusually observant in strength areas, learns very quickly in strength areas

Can communicate in a very mature way (sometimes being incredibly immature at other times)

Enjoys intellectual challenge

Advanced sense of humor

Remembers a lot of details easily

Crave learning and intellectual stimulation

What are common challenges facing 2e learners

Here's a list of common problems these leaners face. It is by no means a comprehensive list, but should adequately shed some light on the issue.

They fall through the cracks, don't get their needs met, waste years of their adult lives "finding themselves"

People who don't understand 2E learners often use ignorant statements like this: "He's just being lazy", "She's not trying her best", "He doesn't care enough about school", "What a shame, she's got so much potential", "He needs to be more motivated and disciplined."

Compensatory strategies that these kids use can mask the gifts or the legitimate learning differences/disabilities ("masking" can even lead to NOT being diagnosed)

Discrepancies between strengths and challenge areas can negatively affect how these kids are perceived

Low grades can mask true ability

Misperceived as not "gifted enough" for GT services and not "struggling enough" for SPED services, therefore do not get the support they need

Spend a ton of time and energy to process and do work as compared with peers and often get lower grades regardless of effort

Schools don't keep up with the research on 2e and don't train teachers adequately to serve them

These kids are often bored, they learn fast and when a school doesn't accelerate curriculum, these kids disengage

They can be sick of things that feel like pointless busywork and refuse to do homework

They often thrive with different aged peers but are kept with same-age peers because of "grade level"

Can't take advanced class because they are "underachieving", causing more boredom and resistance

Pull out programs may not be adequate

Pullouts may make them feel different since they are being pulled out of class (middle schoolers hate to look different)

Sometimes kids in pullout programs still have to make up "missed" work

Sometimes there are no accommodations whatsoever, often when there has been no identification or while they are going through an RTI process that drags out

Processing information at incredibly fast speeds but output ability is incredibly slow

Not using accommodations

Accommodations not articulated meaningfully to make a difference for the student

Teachers unaware of accommodations or disregard them

Teachers not adequately trained to differentiate for all learners

2e learners feeling broken or like something is wrong with them

2e learners NOT having opportunities to build upon their strengths / too much emphasis on weaknesses (strength-based education)

Never tested at all

Overexcitabilities, sensory, emotional (see Dabrowski)

Have to "do what everyone else does" even though it isn't working for them

Deficits can shadow gifts: often, there is a lot of emphasis on how they are NOT performing, they can't shine,

Diagnosis - as you can imagine, these kids can be difficult to diagnose. When kids take tests, many factors can influence the results in both directions, including processing, compensation, intuition. Under-diagnosis, over-diagnosis, misdiagnosis, no diagnosis

They can learn to resent school and learning particularly after middle school begins.

May not "look" gifted

Standardized test problems

The can internalize shame and feel bad about themselves

They don't know the value of their strengths

They don't develop gifts/talents/strengths

They don't feel capable

Don't know how to advocate for themselves, how to articulate what they need

How can parents and teachers support and empower 2e learners

Use education (and life experiences) to build upon their strengths, gifts, talents, interests, passions

Don't put too much emphasis working on weaknesses. There's a time and a place to do this, but it should be done mindfully.

Create project based lessons based on interests, that give students ownership and choice in their learning

Use experiential learning experiences

Use authentic forms of assessment

Get rid of assessments that do not measure what we are looking for

Get rid of pointless busywork

Rethink homework all together and only give homework when there is a real purpose

Understand what the research says about the value of homework (hint: it's not nearly as valuable as you might think and interferes with much needed family, social and play time)

Alternate product possibilities based on student choice, don't just do tests and papers for assessment

Provide alternate options for how kids process knowledge

Support social and emotional needs

Coach EF skills, like how to chunk studying, how to use a planner, organize, etc..

Teach HOW to learn, not just what to learn

Build independence

Differentiate: Scaffold the curriculum. Accelerate curriculum to keep pace with learning. Compress curriculum,

Teach self-care

Catch em' being good, celebrate even small successes

Provide kids with great role models, older peers who can guide them

Make sure that documented accommodations actually work! They should be carefully and thoughtfully articulated so they effectively communicate to teachers what is needed. I cannot tell you how many times I've seen accommodations that are unclear and thus meaningless. Also, the older kids get, the less their teachers know about their accommodations, so advocacy is critical.

Expose them to a diverse range of experiences to expose them to many areas where passions may develop

Plan experiences that allow them to explore their curiosities

Allow them to use their imaginations regularly to explore learning

Dynamic assessment, performance assessment

Ideas for teachers and parents they can post

Use adequate wait time. Be patient and let them process their thoughts instead of expecting quick responses.

Give honest compliments and praise... Often.

Actively listen to your children: Ask "what do you think? Why, why, why?" Really listen.

Design creatively differentiated curriculum

Interdisciplinary learning experiences teaching holistic approaches

Make learning RELEVANT, meaningful, make it matter, give them experiences they care about.

Make clear expectations, in writing so it's concrete and not abstract.

Learn to coregulate emotionally

Challenging work

Don't focus too much on memorizing facts, worry about teaching how to think

Reconsider what "achievement" means

Educating teachers and parents about 2e

Advocacy, stick up for these kids (and all kids of course)

Do your own deep, inner work. The more you take care of you, the more you can support your child

Know your legal rights, make sure your child is properly identified and that they have effective documentation to support their needs. This may include ALPs ILPs IEPs RTI 504 Documentation (see IDEA)

Avoidance & Resistance

Another giant issue to consider is avoidance, and it deserves it's own section here. It's can be very difficult to help children when they seem unmotivated, when they avoid, when they are overwhelmed, stressed, anxious, withdrawn, push you away, and when they resist help. Their emotional overwhelm is so great that they have created many tools designed to avoid the perceived stress of dealing with these issues.

Be sensitive to these issues and consider a good coach or therapist to help deal with the underlying emotions so your child can learn to break through this avoidance and start to have more successes.

Executive Function

As you might have guessed, 2e kids often struggle with Executive Function. Often times, because they have trouble with "execution", their grades do not reflect their abilities. Problems with EF/execution include problems with organization, time management, planning, prioritizing, focus, reflective thinking, emotional regulation, and .

Processing Disorders

In my experience, processing issues cause seem to cause most of the misunderstandings. In other words, adults seem to confuse processing issues with some sort of willfulness, and this causes a lot of damage to students. When a student has trouble processing information, but the adult doesn't know that this is going on under the surface, it can look like the student is not trying, isn't paying attention, is being lazy, isn't motivated, etc..

Final thoughts

When giftedness is noticed and learning differences are not, adults often blame problems on laziness, not trying, low self-esteem, unmotivated rather than noticing how the disability affects the learner.

When the disability is acknowledged without noticing the giftedness, adults tend to focus on weaknesses rather than strengths.

When unidentified, this is the grey area. Perhaps worst scenario of all, the most misunderstood of the 2e kids, they compensate "too well", and the "two exceptionalities" hide one another.

Ideally, there is clarity regarding gifts and challenges so that we may design learning experiences that are appropriately challenging and supportive. Our educational culture is usually looking for easy ways to teach and measure, but kids are complex, and 2e kids are extraordinarily complex. We simply cannot rely on cookie-cutter curriculum to meet the diverse needs of these learners. There is no quick fix or magic bullet. Educating these kids requires a real investment in time and energy to creating engaging and meaningful learning experiences.

2e Twice-Exceptional Assessment Tool

Download and print my informal assessment below. It will help you gain a much better understanding of your child.

Great Links to 2e & Twice-Exceptional Resources

1. is a great website/blog with tons of excellent free articles. It's probably the best resource out there and I definitely recommend subscribing.

2. SENG Supporting Emotional Needs of the Gifted - a classic site got GT families

3. Hoagies Gifted Site is one of the best sites out there about gifted learners. It's a classic.

4. is a well-known 2e school in Studio City, CA.

5. is a great site for homeschool families and they have an excellent 2e resource.

6. The National Center for Learning Disabilities is the place to go to understand your rights as a parent of a 2e child.

7. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a law ensuring educational services to children with disabilities. IDEA is good for parents and teachers to become familiar with.

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Video transcript:
Parents and teachers, what's up? I'm here to answer an important question for you. What is 2E? What is 2e? What is twice-exceptional? What is a twice-exceptional student? What is a twice-exceptional learner? What is a twice-exceptional kid? Let me start off by telling you that I am biased because my favorite students work with are twice-exceptional students. I just think they're amazing and I think that their potential is absolutely incredible. And what I mean by that is that these are students that have some of the quirkiest, most creative, most interesting brains I've ever seen. I'm also biased because I happen to think that these are the kids that are going to make the most important impacts in terms of solving the world's current and upcoming problems as they as they grow up. One of the problems that we have with kids is that they can slip through the cracks, which means that these kids with incredible potential, not only for them being able to contribute to their friends, families, and communities, but for them to be able to contribute on a global level. If these kids don't get their needs met, if they are not seen for their strengths, if they fall through the cracks, they will not achieve their potential. Not only does that hurt them, but it quite literally affects the entire planet, in my opinion.

So anyway, what is 2E or twice-exceptional. A 2e student, or a 2e learner, or a 2e kid is somebody who has two exceptionalities. In the education world, giftedness is considered an exceptionality as are learning disabilities. So a 2e student is somebody who is, on the one hand, gifted and talented and on the other hand, has some sort of learning disability or learning challenged. So you put them together and you got two exceptionalities. Now, you're probably thinking what if there are three exceptionalities, or 4 or 5, and that is a very valid question and that is called multi exceptionality and I prefer that word because human beings are extremely complex. Anyhow, and twice-exceptional kids are even more complex. I'll get into that in just a minute. Real quick, the terms 2e and twice-exceptional are interchangeable. They both mean the exact same thing. Maybe 3 to 5% of all students are twice-exceptional.

The number one most important concept to understand when thinking about 2e or twice-exceptional kids is this concept called asynchrony. Our world, in this world of standardization and standardized tests, in the education world that so dependent on highly manufactured curriculum, in a world that's so obsessed with collecting data in order to understand students. People don't talk about asynchrony because we think of students as being these standardized beings that 'should' perform at certain levels depending on their age or grade. Don't get me wrong, there are developmental tendencies. Most students tend to be at a certain level in Reading, Writing, Math, Science, Social Studies, Speech, Language. etc at certain grade levels. So we tend to think of students as learning and developing synchronously at predictable developmental levels. However, many students and don't develop synchronously. They don't meet the standards at the exact same times. They're either above or below grade level. Very few students are at grade level in all subjects. So really most students are fairly asynchronous anyway, but one of the characteristics of gifted and talented students, I'm not talking about 2e students yet, I'm just talking about your typical gifted and talented students. One of their characteristics is that they tend to develop asynchronously, anyhow, meaning that they're not following the standards. So if you were to look at different metrics like Math, Science, Social Studies, Reading, Writing, you can even look at metrics like social skills, emotional skills metacognitive ability, musical talents, physical talent, you can look at any metrics you choose but gifted kids tend to be more all over the place. But your typical gifted student will be above grade average in most things typically.

Now, there's a lot of nuance around types of gifted and talented students. In fact, George Betts talks about six different types, I'm not getting into that here, but typically you can think of your gifted students as being strong in multiple subject areas. Now, 2e student is what I would call 'super asynchronous.' They are very all over the place. They develop very asynchronously. They may be an 8th grader who is reading at college-level, writing at 3rd-grade level, maybe they're in 10th-grade level in math, maybe there at the 6th-grade level for science. Maybe they're extremely immature when it becomes too emotional handling things that don't go their way, but extremely mature when it comes to having very very high-level conversations with adults about certain topics. Maybe these kids are extraordinarily off the charts talented in certain areas and their other areas were you just baffled and you're saying " I don't understand why this child is struggling so much in this particular thing." So asynchrony is a key, key, key when understanding twice-exceptional kids. These kids are super asynchronous, they're all over the place. There's a term called neurotypical, a neurotypical is what you would consider your general typical learners. These kids that learn asynchronously, these twice-exceptional kids are neuroatypical, they don't learn and think and feel typically, they're all over the place. So if you're to look at a bell curve in terms of different domains again, in terms of math science, social, emotional, etc and you were to look at it a bell curve in terms of any domain you wanted to examine, you would see that there are people in the middle of the bell curve. The outliers are where 2e kids fit. Be the very definition 2e kids are outliers or they are super outliers. They're outliers in many different domains. How do you know if a student is twice-exceptional or not? The most important thing to know is that there's a lot of misunderstanding around this. There's a lot of over-diagnosis, underdiagnosis, misdiagnosis, misunderstanding, and misinterpretation. So you have to be really careful when you're looking at these things having said, that testing is a great way to do it. You can test for various learning disabilities, you can test for giftedness, etc. A neuropsych is someone who does a wide range of testing, so neuropsychologists do really deep intense tests so that they can get a really deep understanding of all the various aspects of a student. You can also try to figure out if your student is to 2e by listing to your gut. A lot of times parents and teachers know in their gut. " Hey, there's something going on with this kid. I think they might be twice-exceptional." So a lot of times that's a great way to know. You probably just know. Now, you're looking at gifts and you're looking at challenges, and one of the biggest problems that 2e kids face is the discrepancies between their gifts and their challenges. If you have a student this often happens, where there have really incredible verbal ability. These are the kids who can have an adult conversation about a really deep topic in the adult is just going, " Holy cow, this kid is brilliant, and then they can't turn in their homework week after week and they're failing four out of six classes." The discrepancy between executive function and verbal ability is so big that adults are often baffled. They're saying, " I don't understand why the student is failing. It doesn't make sense to me. I know they're smart. I know they're bright. So why is this happening? " And then it gets very convoluted and then we tend to think, okay well this kid must not be trying hard enough. They must not be applying themselves, they must be lazy, they must not care about school, and all these different stories that are based on misunderstanding. So that's one of the biggest challenges with 2e kids is the discrepancy. The discrepancy can be a challenge in another way to and then that is when the disabilities outshine the abilities or the gifts and gifts are not even noticed. This can happen too and then these kids are off and put into remedial classes that may not be appropriate and etc. etc. They're all kinds of other problems that happen with this. But the point is is that a lot of problems with these kids are because of the discrepancies and the confusion that these discrepancies cause adults.

Some common disabilities will be dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, ADHD, autism, Asperger's, speech and language issues, attention issues, executive function issues, brain injury issues, concussions, emotional disorders, depression, anxiety, bipolar, etc. Now some of the gifts that they can have is that they can having a high IQ, they can be artistically gifted, they can be athletically gifted, socially gifted, incredible verbal ability, visuospatial ability, mathematically gifted, great with abstract thinking, problem-solving, they ask ridiculously weird and deep and interesting questions, they're incredibly observant in certain strength areas. They love an intellectual challenge in their strength area. They think can be really funny and have a really deep interesting sense of humor, a really unusual sense of humor. They can remember tons of detailed very easily in certain areas and they can just crave stimulation and learning.

Now, as I said before, these kids face a lot of challenges. One of the biggest challenges is that these kids can fall through the cracks. Another challenge is that these kids are often misperceived as being lazy, not caring, not trying, not working hard enough and this can cause a lot of shame. Shame is very internally damaging. These kids can have low-grade which masks their ability. Other challenges that schools often have is that they don't understand 2e, they're not doing training for the teachers on 2e. So these teachers don't even know that they have 2e students in their class, and if they do they really don't know what to do with them or don't know enough about it. The schools are not equipped to handle that. These kids are off and bored and this causes tons of other problems. Sometimes these kids are performing well enough that they can't get the services that they want. They're not struggling enough, even though they desperately need services and parents see it and teachers see it but they can't make it happen because of the bureaucracy and hoops that schools have to jump through. Sometimes pull-out programs can make them feel different. Sometimes these kids are never tested at all and nobody ever finds out that they're 2e.

There's a term called overexciteabilities, which means that these kids can be highly sensitive. They can be sensitive with their senses, smell, touch, taste, vision, hearing but they can also be sensitive emotionally and this can be a great strength, but it can also cause a lot of problems. Their deficits can often overshadow their strengths and their strengths can often overshadow their deficits. They can be difficult to diagnose properly and accurately. These kids often aren't aware of their strengths and their strengths are often not built upon. Oftentimes their weaknesses are so focused on that they start to feel bad about themselves. Standardized tests often don't tell the whole picture of what's going on with kids and these kids off and don't even know how to advocate for themselves. They really don't know what to say. They're not even aware that they're 2e or that the term even exist a lot of times. But there is a lot that you can do as parents and teachers to help support these kids.

One of the things that you can do is help build upon their gifts and their talents and their passions. These are the things that they're going to create careers out of anyhow when they get older. So the more you can build on that whether a teacher or a parent the better. Beware of how much emphasis you put on the challenges are the weaknesses. While it's important to address these things just make sure it's in balance. Project-based lessons for teachers are a great way to allow them to have ownership in choice, in buy-in in the assignments that they're doing so that they can really take it and run with it in a way that's congruent with who they are and what their strengths are. This means that you're going to have to let go of some of the more traditional curricula and find creative ways to build these things into your classroom. Using more experiential learning helps them and also using authentic forms of assessment rather than traditional scores and grades are very important. Authentic assessments are going to give you real feedback, a real understanding of the growth and learning that they're making rather than just giving them a letter grade or a number grade. It's going to give you actual feedback. Being very careful to get rid of pointless busywork, things that actually are not benefiting them, learning about compacting and acceleration in terms of teaching, rethinking homework altogether, and making sure that any homework that is given really has a real purpose, a meaningful purpose for these kids. And for all kids, of course. Give these kids and all kids alternate ways of process. There's content process and product process, the product is how you show your learning, give them other ways of showing their learning than just the typical ones the typical ways of showing learning are tests, papers, and your old school projects. Make sure to support their social-emotional needs, coach them in executive function. The biggest problem that these kids have, the biggest problem that really affects their lives and impacts them negatively is that they struggle with executive function.

All 2e kids who struggle in school struggle with executive function in some way shape or form, so learn about executive function and helping coach them with executive function stuff is critical for these kids. That's probably the number one thing I have to say about how we can support them. Teach them how to learn, not just what to learn. Make sure to teach them self care and catch 'em being good. Use the 3-1 rule, find three positives to every one perceive negative you're going to use with them. Really find the things they're doing well and reinforce those over and over and over and over. Don't focus too much on what they're not doing right, focus mostly way mostly, on what they are doing right, on their effort, not the outcome but the effort. They desperately need that. Give them great role models, older kids that can help them, or teachers that take an interest in them, or relatives that take an interest in them. Parents and teachers, be sure to document interventions that are working, accommodations that work. Keep track of these so that you can communicate these easily from year to year from the new teachers'. Exposure. Give them exposure to a wide range of things that they can learn about of experiences that they can have so that they can really try on a lot of different things to develop their strengths and interests and passions and talents. Learn to co-regulate. So learn about your own emotional regulation so that you can co-regulate and help them when they're nervous system is out of whack so that you're more attuned to where they're at in their nervous system is that you can help them to regulate when they start to become dysregulated. Advocate for these kids, be the squeaky wheel when there is a need don't stop advocating for these kids. They really need you.

Now, one of the other biggest problems that these students have, the 2w kids have is resistance and avoidance. Resistance, resistance, resistance. " I don't want to, I don't feel like it this is stupid. This is dumb. I don't care. I'm a failure. I'm just lazy, " whatever the story is they resist, they have stories that help them to not take actions, to not execute, to not use executive function to do things they don't want to do, whether it's because they think it's pointless busywork, whether they're just exhausted emotionally, whatever. So resistance is a huge thing to deal with. It is outside the scope of this video but I just want you to know that resistance is a huge characteristic of to 2e kids and a huge issue that you have to contend with in order to help them be successful. You want to approach it in a really positive, honest, and open way. Finally, we really need, literally, I'm not trying to be cheesy here, the world needs 2e kids. We need them to develop their strengths. They have a very very very unique perspective and approach to life, to thinking, to problem-solving. We need them to develop their strengths and their talents and their passions and their interests. We need them to feel good about who they are, as a culture, as a world we need them. But also just for themselves to have a great quality of life. To be able to self-actualize, to be able to feel happy and successful. That's what we really want for our kids. So, I hope this video helped you, if you like it please click thumbs-up subscribe to my YouTube channel. Share this with somebody and have a great day and take some positive action for the 2e kids you know. Take care.

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IS MY CHILD 2e or TWICE EXCEPTIONAL-The Ultimate Guide

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Parents & Teachers- 2e or Twice Exceptional students are complex kids who are GIFTED & HAVE LEARNING CHALLENGES (adhd, asd, dyslexia, executive function etc

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Some kids with learning and thinking differences have exceptional skills in certain academic areas. These kids are sometimes called twice-exceptional learners. (You may sometimes see this abbreviated as 2e.) Learn more about these gifted students, their challenges, and how to help.

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About the author

The Understood Team is made up of passionate writers and editors. Many of them have kids who learn and think differently.

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Twice-Exceptional Students | 2e Learners | Gifted and Learning Disabilities

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What does it mean to be a twice-exceptional learner, or 2e? Learn more about gifted children with learning disabilities. Find out how to help twice-exceptional students.

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How to Support Twice-Exceptional Students

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How to Support Twice-Exceptional Students

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Common pedagogical practices that benefit all students may be crucial for those who are cognitively gifted and have a form of neurodivergence.

Twice-exceptional (2e) students are students who are cognitively gifted and have some type of neurodivergence, such as ADHD, autism, dyslexia, dysgraphia, or dyscalculia. We don't know exactly how many twice-exceptional students are out there-they're believed to be considerably under-identified-but there's a good chance that many of us have worked, or will work, with students who have this unique learning profile.

Yet, many schools don't understand 2e students-their particular strengths and challenges, how to best stretch and support them. In my own experience as an educator who taught for over 14 years, I hadn't even heard the term "twice-exceptional" until our son was identified as such.

A Challenge for Both Parents and Teachers

To parents of twice-exceptional kids, our son's story is familiar. From a very young age he was incredibly bright and creative, but it didn't take long for problems to emerge at school: in his case, emotional dysregulation-a common issue with 2e kids. Thankfully, we were able to have our son tested via neuropsychological evaluation, which confirmed his giftedness and also diagnosed his ADHD. His ADHD was surprising to us. But as we soon learned, with 2e students, giftedness and neurodivergence often mask each other, which is one of the reasons why it's difficult to identify 2e students.

Thanks to the neuropsych evaluation, we also learned that the behavioral issues that had been cropping up at home and at school were rooted in anxiety. As Dr. Michael Postma writes in ADDitude magazine, for 2e students, "emotions are more intense because the limbic system, the part of the brain thought to be responsible for emotion and other processes, is overloaded by increased sensory input." For many 2e students, this overload of sensory input results in anxiety, and anxiety often manifests as emotional dysregulation.

The challenges didn't stop there. We quickly realized that our son's classroom teachers, specialists, and administrators weren't able to provide the support he needed. Like me, most of them hadn't even heard the term "twice-exceptional" before, much less learned strategies for accommodating students like him. For a variety of reasons, not the least of which was this, our family decided to move. Now our son attends a school that is able to create a nurturing environment for all students, neurotypical and neurodivergent. We consider ourselves very lucky.

But families of 2e students shouldn't have to move or change schools in order to find learning communities that embrace their children. Every school should strive to create classroom environments that fit the needs of 2e students. After all, 2e students are everywhere, and the strategies that they need to fully participate in school benefit most other students as well.

It's also important to note that 2e students bring great strengths to any classroom of which they are a part. As Emily Kircher-Morris, LPC, notes in her book Raising Twice-Exceptional Children: A Handbook for Parents of Neurodivergent Gifted Kids, 2e students are gifted with a quick learning pace, strong verbal abilities, strong logic and reasoning skills, divergent thinking skills, and big-picture thinking. As our son's neuropsychologist told us-and our son-twice-exceptional kids often become adults who change the world.

If teachers and school administrators were to become aware of 2e and engage in conversations with parents or caregivers of students who may be cognitively gifted and/or neurodivergent, they could consider recommending neuropsychological evaluation. Taking these steps would be a move in the right direction.

But until the world of K-12 education better understands and supports 2e students, I've learned that I'm going to have to fiercely advocate for my son and others like him. Accordingly, I'd like to share some pedagogical approaches that are crucial for 2e students but also support other students in the classroom.

What educators can do

Prioritize student choice: 2e students often have a much more difficult time focusing on topics and tasks that don't interest them. When they're provided with opportunities to study topics about which they are naturally curious-or to show their knowledge in ways that they find engaging-these students are much more likely to fully engage.

Strive for a 4:1 ratio of praise to redirection: Because of their area(s) of disability, 2e students are often quite accustomed to criticism from adults. Not only that, but these students are usually well aware of their deficiencies and extremely frustrated with themselves for not being able to measure up. A 4:1 ratio of genuine praise to direction can help build much-needed confidence in 2e students while also showing them that you see them as worthy of praise.

Build movement breaks into the school day: In many schools, students don't have enough opportunities to move around, and 2e students require movement breaks in order to recenter themselves, relieve stress, and improve focus. Depending on grade level, movement breaks will look different in terms of type and frequency, but the important part is making sure they are built into each school day.

Differentiate as often as possible: 2e students have both exceptional strengths and exceptional challenges (a combination often described as "asynchronous development"). There's a pronounced discrepancy between their strengths and their weaknesses, as well as between their abilities and what they achieve. So when educators truly differentiate their instruction, they help 2e students build on strengths and develop areas of weakness so that the gap between their abilities and achievement becomes smaller.

Explicitly teach SEL skills: Social and emotional learning is a high priority for 2e students because it's an area that's often quite challenging for them. The more that educators explicitly teach 2e students a vocabulary for their emotions and practical ways to self-regulate, the better able 2e students are to understand, and eventually control, their intense emotions. And when 2e students are better able to control their emotions, they are able to more fully participate at school.

Build perseverance: Because of their giftedness, 2e students aren't usually pushed to the edge of their understanding. So when they do find themselves at the edge, they become anxious. Explicitly teaching a growth mindset helps 2e students understand that new skills can be developed over time. Praising even the smallest of successes during the learning process can make a big impact for these students over time.

Each of these pedagogical approaches is usually considered a hallmark of good teaching. But the important distinction here is that for 2e students, they're not just helpful-they're essential. When we create school communities that accommodate 2e students, we help them become the best versions of themselves. And that's truly a gift that will keep on giving.

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How to Support Twice-Exceptional Students

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Common pedagogical practices that benefit all students may be crucial for those who are cognitively gifted and have a form of neurodivergence.

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Illinois Association for Gifted Children

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Illinois Association for Gifted Children

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Amends the School Code. In provisions concerning restrictions on prekindergarten through grade 2 assessments, provides that the term "diagnostic and screening purposes" includes to determine eligibility for advanced academic programs, as defined in the Gifted and Talented Children and Children Eligible for Accelerated Placement Article of the Code. Effective immediately.

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Illinois Association for Gifted Children - About the IAGC

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Amends the School Code. In provisions concerning restrictions on prekindergarten through grade 2 assessments, provides that the term "diagnostic and screening purposes" includes to determine eligibility for advanced academic programs, as defined in the Gifted and Talented Children and Children Eligible for Accelerated Placement Article of the Code. Effective immediately.

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Springfield, IL  Gifted and Talented Program

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Springfield, IL  Gifted and Talented Program

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While Jacksonville and surrounding smaller towns do not have gifted and talented programs, there is one in Springfield, IL. Their school district has a comprehensive website with resources for parents to learn about the identification process and about what is available for their students.

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Gifted and Talented programs often get phased out or are considered unsuccessful because of issues of access and equity. Facilitating admission and success for students with other disabilities, such students, known as twice exceptional, can find an environment where their strengths are nurtured and they learn to work with their disability.

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Students who are gifted may also have a special need or disability. The term "twice-exceptional," also referred to as "2E," is used to describe gifted children who have the characteristics of gifted students with the potential for high achievement and give evidence of one or more disabilities as defined by federal or state eligibility criteria.

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Hoagies' Gifted Education Page has a plethora of resources for all matters in gifted education. If you are interested in a comprehensive list of books to help you learn more about your 2e child, this is the list for you! This list includes books on ADHD, ASD, Dyslexia and more, for the the gifted child and their parent.

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Hot Topics! On Being Gifted | Hoagies’ Kids & Teens

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Hot Topics! Books On Being Gifted / Gifted Social Stuff, in fiction and non-fiction for readers of all ages, plus books by gifted young authors…

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Free access to the documentary 2e: Twice-Exceptional

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Free access to the documentary 2e: Twice-Exceptional

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Kanopy - Stream Classic Cinema, Indie Film and Top Documentaries