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Every student learns best when given the proper learning environment; a healthy learning environment ensures that they are given plenty of creative exposure, proper learning tools, and sensitivity toward each of their learning styles.

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Every student learns best when given the proper learning environment; a healthy learning environment ensures that they are given plenty of creative exposure, proper learning tools, and sensitivity toward each of their learning styles. However, for gifted and talented students, creating an ideal learning environment is often very tricky; many gifted and talented students feel "trapped" or stagnant in normal school environments. They will become bored and dissatisfied if not given enough healthy intellectual challenge and stimulation. Sometimes it's difficult knowing exactly what our child needs to flourish. The National Association for Gifted Children explains,

"Effective educators of students with gifts and talents create safe learning environments that foster emotional well-being, positive social interaction, leadership for social change, and cultural understanding for success in a diverse society."

As a parent, it's important to understand what each of these aspects are and how they can be applied to our child's education. Giving our child the right learning environment provides them the tools they need to succeed, not just in school, but in every area of life.

Emotions and self-exploration are tricky aspects of growing up. For gifted students, finding the right avenues of support and counsel are extremely important. Accelerated class pace and advanced learning programs can easily overwhelm even the most intelligent and gifted children. They may begin to feel buried under the load or scared of academic or social pressure.

By providing positive coping mechanisms and showing them where to turn to in times of need, we help our children learn how to handle negative emotions and stress. Although this is the foundation of a proper learning environment within their classroom, this kind of emotional support must first start within our home. Make talking with your child a daily habit and show them that they can always come to you for anything that upsets or worries them.

Gifted and talented students are often stigmatized as "loners" or the "shy" kids. Finding friends that share their love of knowledge and intellectual exploration is a challenge. However, for some kids, too much social interaction is just as painful. School learning environments must encourage healthy social outreach but also respect each child's unique need for personal space. As parents, helping our child navigate the social playing field must be a priority. If you notice your child lacking friends or becoming socially isolated, go out of your way to find new social activities that will help them grow beyond their comfort zone in safe but enjoyable ways. Extra-curricular activities such as robotics clubs, art groups, sports, debate teams, or competitions are some fun but intellectually challenging past-times that help gifted children grow socially.

Gifted children possess enormous potential to become future leaders and humanitarians. Politicians, doctors, scientists, and explorers often trace their roots back to gifted and advanced abilities in school. It's important that we help our children understand their future potential and give them the tools to rise to the occasion. Talk to them about possible future plans, including college and interesting job fields. Don't pressure them to commit to a certain pathway, but help them explore all their options. Schools that use "careers days" and college preparedness programs allow students to begin planning early on for what they want their futures to include.

If your child expresses interest in particular career fields such as biology or robotics, help them expand their curiosity with the appropriate extra-curricular programs such as The Summer Institute for the Gifted. Similarly, themed camps are also great for gifted students to expand socially as well as intellectually. These programs give them a fun taste of what careers and life paths interest them.

Gifted and talented children often express a great deal of natural curiosity over other world cultures and social ways of life. It's vital we foster this diverse curiosity and allow them to experience the world in a variety of ways. Schools that provide information on other cultures and nationalities give children the tools for cultural understanding. This is a great foundation for future relationships and acceptance. As parents, we can also expand our child's world-view by exposing them to new languages and lifestyles. If their school doesn't offer adequate language classes, consider investing in extra-curricular language lessons. Many of these programs also include cultural lessons to enhance the experience.

Although providing the proper learning environment for our gifted children is challenging, the results are well-worth the struggle. Gifted and talented children are naturally very self-motivated and driven, even at a young age. By giving them the right tools and environment, we're allowing them to rise to their greatest level. For more information on how to provide a socially and intellectually engaging environment both at home and in the classroom, please contact us today.

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Creating the Ideal Learning Environment for Gifted and Talented Students

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Every student learns best when given the proper learning environment; a healthy learning environment ensures that they are given plenty of creative exposure, proper learning tools, and sensitivity toward each of their learning styles.

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Teachers should create a safe, positive learning environment that fosters social and emotional development.

"Teachers of gifted adolescents may create classroom environments in which young people know it is safe to be smart and where they feel valued and respected for their intellect, creativity, and passions."

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Flexible seating and collaborative grouping can support communication and creative thinking in gifted and talented learners.

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                                          COURSE 1 RESOURCES

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                                          COURSE 1 RESOURCES

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Project-Based Learning vs. Problem-Based Learning 

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Project-Based Learning vs. Problem-Based Learning 

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Image Credit: John Larmer

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"Gifted students will do fine on their own." "Gifted programs are elitist."
These and other myths prevent our country from appropriately educating millions of advanced students.

NAGC compiled a list of the most prevalent myths in gifted education with evidence rebutting each of them. This list was developed from a longer list of myths explored in a special of Gifted Child Quarterly (GCQ) in the Fall of 2009. NAGC Members can read the full issue of GCQ via the SAGE website

How many of these myths have hindered you, your child, and/or your school in the pursuit of a challenging education for advanced students?

Truth:

Although teachers try to challenge all students they are frequently unfamiliar with the needs of gifted children and do not know how to best serve them in the classroom. A national study conducted by the Fordham Institute found that 58% of teachers have received no professional development focused on teaching academically advanced students in the past few years and 73% of teachers agreed that "Too often, the brightest students are bored and under-challenged in school - we're not giving them a sufficient chance to thrive. This report confirms what many families have known: not all teachers are able to recognize and support gifted learners. ¹

Truth:

Average or below-average students do not look to the gifted students in the class as role models. Watching or relying on someone who is expected to succeed does little to increase a struggling student's sense of self-confidence. ² Similarly, gifted students benefit from classroom interactions with peers at similar performance levels and become bored, frustrated, and unmotivated when placed in classrooms with low or average-ability students.

Truth:

Academically gifted students often feel bored or out of place with their age peers and naturally gravitate towards older students who are more similar as "intellectual peers." Studies have shown that many students are happier with older students who share their interest than they are with children the same age. ³ Therefore, acceleration placement options such as early entrance to Kindergarten, grade skipping, or early exit should be considered for these students.

Truth:

Some gifted students also have learning or other disabilities. These "twice-exceptional" students often go undetected in regular classrooms because their disability and gifts mask each other, making them appear "average." Other twice-exceptional students are identified as having a learning disability and as a result, are not considered for gifted services. In both cases, it is important to focus on the students' abilities and allow them to have challenging curricula in addition to receiving help for their learning disability. ⁴

Truth:

While AP classes offer rigorous, advanced coursework, they are not a gifted education program. The AP program is designed as college-level classes taught by high school teachers for students willing to work hard. The program is limited in its service to gifted and talented students in two major areas: First AP is limited by the subjects offered, which in most districts is only a small handful. Second it is limited in that, typically, it is offered only in high school and is generally available only for 11th and 12th grade students. The College Board acknowledges that AP courses are for any student who is academically prepared and motivated to take a college-level course.

View this video on Myths in Gifted Education produced by teens in the Baltimore County (MD) Public Schools for the Maryland State Department of Education
Read an overview of the Myths by Don Treffinger that appeared in the fall issue of Teaching for High Potential.
Read about Jacob K. Javits Grant to Purdue University to extend research showing when gifted students are clustered together, all children perform better.

¹ Farkas, S. & Duffet, A. (2008). Results from a national teacher survey. In Thomas B. Fordham Institute, Highachievement students in the era of NCLB (p. 78). Washington, DC: Author. http://www.edexcellence.net/publications/high-achieving-students-in.html

² Fiedler, E.D., Lange, R. E., Winebrenner, S. (1993). In search of reality: Unraveling the myths about tracking, ability grouping, and the gifted. Roper Review, (16), 4-7.

³ Colangelo, N., Assouline, S. G., & Gross, M.U.M. (2004). A nation deceived: How schools hold back America's brightest students. Iowa City: University of Iowa.

⁴ Olenchak. F. R., & Reis, S. M. (2002) Gifted students with learning disabilities. In M. Neihart, S. M. Reis, N. Robinson, and S. Moon (Eds.), The Social and Emotional Development of Gifted Children (pp. 177-192). Waco TX: Prufrock Press.

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Myths about Gifted Students | National Association for Gifted Children

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“Gifted students will do fine on their own.” “Gifted programs are elitist.” These and other myths prevent our country from appropriately educating millions of advanced students. NAGC compiled a list of the most prevalent myths in gifted education with evidence rebutting each of them. This list was d…

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“The talent development framework emphasizes the deliberate cultivation of psychosocial skills supportive of high achievement, persistence, and creativity rather than leaving these to chance.”

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Check out these resources on intentional and purposeful questioning for a Learner-Centered Classroom!

The Importance of Questioning
https://www.edutopia.org/blog/importance-asking-questions-promote-higher-order-competencies-maurice-elias

Five Powerful Questions
https://www.edutopia.org/blog/five-powerful-questions-teachers-ask-students-rebecca-alber

Questioning and Discussion Techniques
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1QVIcDsnEg&feature=youtu.be

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What does a successful gifted learning environments look like? Published by Anne Wender

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Gifted kids can be a joy to teach when you know how to identify what engages them. These 50 tips and tricks come from my own experience and from around the Web. They're good to have in your bag of tricks whether you're a newbie or an old hand at teaching these high-level thinkers.

Every year, I start by having my students complete an interest inventory. This helps me ensure that curriculum is personalized to their interests.

Share what you are reading with gifted students. Often, these students experience a reading lag where they can't find a sweet spot because it is hard for high-ability students to understand what is both challenging and appropriate.

Gifted students often need to have the ability to move when learning ... pacing, flapping and bouncing are parts of their thinking process.

4. Offer Flexible Seating

A window seat is my favorite place to read, so I keep that in mind when offering seating. Try to offer different seating options for students: beanbag chairs, carpet squares, pillows, director chairs ... the list can go on and on.

SOURCE: kindergartenisgrrreat.blogspot.com

5. Model Social Situations

Social situations can be challenging for some gifted students as their ability to understand social cues can be underdeveloped. Team up with other teachers to model the proper way to start conversations.

6. Share Current Events

Current events are important to incorporate into gifted programming. We want these students to be thinking about how they can use their talents to solve real-world problems.

As important as current events are, it is also just as important to understand that gifted students internalize global happenings on a very personal level. Kids do not have the experience with the world to understand that despite there being a war or attack, there are still good things happening in the world.

SOURCE: Reddit

Not all gifted students are meant to be the project manager. Allow students the opportunity to work alone or in a group. Even cross-grade groupings work well with gifted students.

9. Mind the Child Labor Laws

Gifted students who finish early should not automatically be the teacher's helper. Gifted students can be some of the worst students to assist others because their brains often work very differently. Having a gifted child help a student who is struggling may do more harm than good.

My grandmother always said, idle hands are the devil's workshop ... so keep some key things in the back for busy hands. LEGO bricks, cardboard and masking tape, and Snap Circuits are some of my favorites!

11. Introduce Minecraft Edu

SOURCE: http://education.minecraft.net/

Provide gifted students with clear endpoints on projects and assignments. Gifted students can create unusually high expectations and never see an end in sight; a book reflection can easily become a 10-page paper, a PowerPoint can become an intensive course on the topic. Letting students know where to stop can be helpful.

Use FutureMe.org and have students write a letter to their future selves. Once students have written the letter, you can set the date for it to be sent to their inbox. What a great way for students to set goals and create natural check-in points.

14. Teach Decision-Making

Gifted students can have a huge case of FOMO: fear of missing out. They understand that decisions have consequences, and sometimes they need to be given an inordinate amount of details about their options. Allow for the gifted student to fully understand the pros and cons of a decision.

Gifted students are processing a lot in their minds. Be patient and give them the time to reflect on what they need to come to a consensus they can live with.

16. Assign Expiration Dates

My gifted students walk into class with exploding folders and binders. They keep everything because there is a fear of being unprepared. Just like expiration dates for food, think about adding a footer to your handouts: "This handout expires on April 15."

17. Model Organization Strategies

Or at least model how you organize life. Gifted students like options and seeing how they work in the "real world" is very helpful. I show students how I use notes to organize things, how Google Calendar is my lifeline, and what I do for physical notes. I have used planners in the past and show those examples as well.

We also review different apps that could be helpful. I urge students to find what works for them. No system is not an answer. We all need a system to help us be productive. When I taught younger students, we would all try different systems together as our end-of-the-day procedure.

Offer gifted students a hobby that can help calm their busy minds. Teach them how to Zentangle, breathe, meditate, make friendship bracelets, knit, color-anything that allows for them to focus carefully on details can help them quiet some of the extra noise.

SOURCE: http://teachertothecore.blogspot.com

19. Explore Their Passions

Some gifted students don't have a passion yet because they haven't found it. Provide exposure to as much as possible. are one way to help students think about different topics. even has created teaching enhancements. I heart TED.

20. Read Tons of Biographies

Reading, watching or listening to the lives of others can help gifted students develop a plan of action and see what others did to accomplish goals.

21. Read Lots of Everything

It is true, so many gifted students have found a book that becomes so much a part of them, they can discuss it at length. Bibliotherapy is a great way for students to experience how to deal with issues and learn tactics and strategies.

For the love of anything that is holy, this should probably be no. 1. Research states that most gifted students do not learn new information until January. Don't make a student who has already mastered a concept sit through the lesson again.

Let gifted students pursue their interests. If they want to let everything be about dinosaurs, more power to them! We need paleontologists. As mentioned in , it takes over 10,000 hours to be an expert. To get that many hours on a time card, students have to be allowed to focus.

We need to allow students to hyper-focus but also then be the "guide on the side" that helps them make connections from one area to another. Perhaps we can get our dinosaur expert to use Scratch and make a "Dino Dig" math game?

Gifted students need mentors within their interest areas. Mentors can teach students how to navigate through professions and can even be gatekeepers to additional opportunities.

26. Practice Like Professionals

27. Locate Authentic Audiences

The work students create should have a real audience and be appreciated by those who authentically would benefit from its completion. Younger students are a great first authentic audience.

28. Put Them in Escape Rooms

I love The Mind Research Institute, which challenges students in grades K-12 to design their own mathematical game.

32. Check Out Local Happenings

Do you live in the middle of nowhere? Me too! But I was surprised to learn there were still a TON of events happening on the weekends. If you are in the urban areas, you are rich in opportunities. Look to local libraries, museums or universities.

33. Send Them to Summer Camp

Some of my closest childhood friendships started at summer camp. These times allowed for encouragement and allowed kids to be nurtured in an environment where trying something new was the goal. Summer camp allowed me to be myself and try new things.

34. Solve Local Problems

"With great power comes great responsibility," says one of our favorite superheroes, and he is correct-kindness counts. We need to do good with the gifts and talents we have been given. Give gifted students the opportunity to solve local problems and see the need for change in their own community. Allow a book to inspire this mission: Summer I Changed the World in 65 Days.

What do friends all have in common? Interests!! We are attracted to those who think similarly and those who challenge our beliefs. Book clubs make for a great space for likeminded students to come together to discuss a common theme ... in this case a book, which serves as a great discussion starter.

36. Allow for Voice and Choice

How many of you hated a certain book in high school only to read it as an adult and see how wrong you were? The moment we lost choice (of what to read in this case), we also lost joy. Allowing gifted students to have choice in the classroom allows them to feel empowered and engaged. Choices do not need to be huge either, small choices are just as important.

No one wants to only be the big fish in a small pond. We want to be around people who will make us better and want to achieve more. Allow your gifted student to be challenged by participating in academic competitions such as National History Day. Your students will see what true competition is.

This is one of the best ways to develop critical thinking. Show a picture of clouds ... what do you see? This type of activity develops fluency, elabora tion, originality and abstract thinking, which are all integral parts of being a creative thinker. Try Google's It's a great tool for getting students to think rapidly-it's also a gem for indoor recess.

When the students ask a question you don't know, look it up with them. As librarian media specialist Melissa Thom says, "the smartest people are the people who know how to find answers to their own questions." Follow her on twitter at .

Flocabulary creates content-rich raps (yes, as in hip-hop) about just about ANYTHING. There are so many wonderful resources embedded within-contests, lyric labs, lyric notes, connections to primary sources, teacher plans, corresponding handouts, questioning and so much more! This will quickly become your favorite teaching resource. I promise!

41. Let Them Read Below-Level Books

Why do we expect every book gifted students read to be 1.5-2 grade levels above their reading level? I say, if a student is enjoying a book, read it! Yes, challenging books are needed to develop reading ability but don't discount a book just because it is below a student's level. Reading a book for a different purpose can increase the difficulty of a book without changing the text.

42. Connect Globally

Global Read Aloud is a program where one book is used to connect the world. Pernille Ripp founded GRA in 2010 with the simple idea to read a book aloud to her stude nts and during that time try to make as many global connections as possible. This mission has grown exponentially and has reached over two million students. Collaborating with students in other states and countries will help a gifted student think empathetically.

43. Incorporate Mythology

If you know a gifted s tudent, then you know that mythology can be a huge interest-often spurred by the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan. Allow students to build a better understanding by incorporating mythology into different curricular units.

Provide a safe space for gifted students to take risks without being put down. Gifted students are often timid to answer something they are unsure about because of the social stigma attached to not answering correctly. Create a classroom culture where wrong answers become an opportunity to celebrate different thinking. Check out Nancy Anderson's book, What's Right About Wrong Answers? Learning Math From Mistakes.

QR codes add an interactive component to your classroom. Create a QR Code Museum or Gallery or even a QR scavenger hunt on one of your classroom bulletin boards.

A frog jumps into the pond, splash! Silence again. This is Basho Matsuo's famous haiku. Use haiku as a way to challenge gifted students to summarize chapters, current events, biographies or vocabulary words. Haiku are student-friendly yet force them to be concise and purposeful with their word choice.

Action is powerful for gifted students. Allowing students to find solutions to problems they see in their school, neighborhood or community will allow them to understand that they can make a difference. Internalizing that they can be the change in the world is transformational. Watch these TED Talks to show them what kids like them are doing to change the world.

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50 Tips, Tricks and Ideas for Teaching Gifted Students - We Are Teachers

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Gifted kids can be a joy to teach when you know how to identify what engages them. These 50 tips and tricks are great to have in your back pocket.

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"Promotion of intellectually gifted children is simply another way of attempting to match the curriculum to the child's abilities, not to accelerate those abilities."

https://www.hoagiesgifted.org/elkind.htm

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Understanding the Unique Needs of Gifted Students

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Understanding the Unique Needs of Gifted Students

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A Slideshare by Carolyn Bellotti

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Understanding the Unique Needs of Gifted Students

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What all teachers of Gifted Students should know!

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What all teachers of Gifted Students should know!

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Listed activities to incorporate STEM literacy and other activities into your classroom!

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STEM Classroom Archives - STEM Activities for Kids

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If you are looking for some simple but fun Valentine STEM activities to try in your classroom or with your kids at home, I've got some great ideas for you. But first, let me share my opinion on conversation hearts. Thanks Grumpy Cat. I really do not like them.

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Having an adequate, diverse, and well-trained supply of scientists and engineers depends, in part, on what thousands of high-ability students decide every year to do with their lives, which is influenced by access to varied, challenging coursework taught by highly skilled teachers.

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Many highly able and motivated students have a wide range of interests that make selecting a career difficult. Having an adequate, diverse, and well-trained supply of scientists and engineers depends, in part, on what thousands of high-ability students decide every year to do with their lives, which is influenced by access to varied, challenging coursework taught by highly skilled teachers.

Although the recent concern about the nation's ability to meet its economic and security needs has led to an increased focus and investment in math and science learning and teaching skills, few of the classroom and teacher training initiatives are focused on top students. Providing challenging coursework means ensuring opportunities for advanced classes beginning as early as the elementary years. Currently, most gifted children spend the majority of their time in regular classrooms without access to challenging coursework or teachers knowledgeable about the special learning needs of our most highly able learners.

Not all teachers recognize the classroom indicators of giftedness, and even those teachers who are aware that there are high-ability students in their classrooms report that they don't have the time and their schools don't encourage them to spend time working with these students.

And, even where teachers have time, the National Research Center on Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT) found that 61% of classroom teachers had no training in teaching highly able students, limiting the challenging educational opportunities offered to advanced learners. Highly skilled teachers must be not only competent in the content area in which they teach, but also in the education strategies necessary to support advanced learners including differentiation, acceleration, and curriculum modification.

What We Can Do to Help Gifted Students Achieve STEM Excellence

Create specialized classes to provide rigorous and challenging material to our most capable learners.

Expand the number of selective math-science high schools.

Train teachers to recognize giftedness and address the unique needs of gifted and talented students.

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Many highly able and motivated students have a wide range of interests that make selecting a career difficult. Having an adequate, diverse, and well-trained supply of scientists and engineers depends, in part, on what thousands of high-ability students decide every year to do with their lives, which is influenced by access to varied, challenging coursework taught by highly skilled teachers.

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Teaching Gifted Children in Regular Classroom in the USA

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Teaching Gifted Children in Regular Classroom in the USA

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Research indicates that throughout the last thirty years, most of gifted students in the USA receive basic education in the regular middle schools. During this period a number of strategies have been developed to meet the unique academic needs and interests of high-ability learners.

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Teaching Gifted Children in Regular Classroom

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For the teacher who loves seasonal activities!
Credit: Pinterest- Brooke Brown

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Gifted 101: Unlocking the Mystery of Academically Gifted Education

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Gifted 101: Unlocking the Mystery of Academically Gifted Education

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Includes the comparison of Bright Versus Gifted Learners. Do you know the difference?

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Gifted and Talented Learners : Creating a Policy for Inclusion-- 

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Gifted and Talented Learners : Creating a Policy for Inclusion-- 

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Giftedness Defined

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It isn't uncommon for gifted and talented students to go unnoticed because of specific disabilities outshining their talents.