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Giftedness is: “Children and youth with outstanding talent who perform or show the potential for performing at remarkably high levels of accomplishment when compared with others of their age, experience, or environment.”
– US Department of Education, 1993

The identification of gifted students is determined by each school district who decide which and how many students they can support, based on the district's own definitions and resources.

A gifted student generally displays unusual talent in one or sometimes two areas. These areas include creative thinking, general intellectual abilities, specific academic abilities, leadership, psychomotor abilities, and visual/performing arts.

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This list contains some common characteristics possessed by gifted students. This is a helpful list because it shows what the student both does and does not do. For example, a gifted student displays unusual academic ability, but may complete work quickly and sloppily.

This is helpful because it gives a bigger picture of what a gifted student is like, which may help teachers spot gifted students more easily. For example, a teacher might think that because a student completes work sloppily they may not be gifted, when in fact the student might actually be gifted.

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How to spot a Gifted Student: TeachersFirst

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Some of these behaviors are listed and described below. Positive traits are included along with those behaviors that may frustrate you as a teacher. If a student in your classroom exhibits these characteristics on a consistent basis, there is a good chance he or she is gifted.

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Working with Gifted and Talented Students in the Classroom

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Working with Gifted and Talented Students in the Classroom

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Gifted students have a high innate intellectual ability, but this does not mean that they perform well. This means that a motivated, hard-working, well-behaved student might not be gifted, but an unmotivated, disruptive student might be. What a paradox!

Teachers need to be aware that classroom and curriculum modifications are just as necessary for gifted students as for disabled students, and that that these accommodations make life in the classroom much better for teachers and students alike!

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Working with Gifted & Talented Students - TeachersFirst

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Working with a gifted student can be both a joy and a frustration. To understand why, we need to be clear about definitions. A gifted student is one whose intelligence - typically described as an IQ score resulting from one or more tests - is 130 or above.

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Meeting the Needs of Gifted Students in the Regular Classroom

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Meeting the Needs of Gifted Students in the Regular Classroom

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This is a list of strategies to help engage gifted students who are in regular classrooms. Some of these strategies include: independent projects, academic competitions, helping them develop critical thinking skills with Bloom's Taxonomy, using technology, incorporating the multiple intelligences, and becoming a "facilitator" rather than an "expert," which allows them to discover and learn independently.

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Meeting the Need of Gifted Students in the Regular Classroom

What sets gifted children apart from other students in a classroom? It is primarily the ability to absorb abstract concepts, organize them more effectively, and apply them more appropriately. The following suggestions will help you develop a classroom environment that will challenge and nurture gifted learners.

You will find that many gifted and talented students tend to have a lot of extra time on their hands in your classroom because they finish their work rather quickly. Use this time to help them develop their creativity by allowing them to explore a special area of interest related to the topic being studied.

These highly motivating events can be held right at your school and have relatively inexpensive registration fees. They are computer driven and test students' knowledge in a variety of academic disciplines. Not only do they challenge students academically, they provide an opportunity to develop skills in leadership and group dynamics. Here are two organizations that can provide competitions and more information for all grades.

The Knowledge Master Open (Elementary, Middle School, and High School)
Academic Hallmarks
P.O. BOX 998, Durango, CO 81302
1-800-321-9218 or 970-247-8738

Thinking Cap Quiz Bowl (Elementary and Middle School)
4220 Park Hill Circle, Urbandale, IA 50322
515-278-5097

with gifted students. Design assignments or projects that go above and beyond what is covered in the regular classroom. Don't just give gifted students "more of the same." There are a number of educational products designed for gifted and talented students that can be easily adapted into regular classroom activities. Here is a list of vendors offering affordable materials that can be used to challenge students in a range of academic disciplines while developing their higher level thinking skills and problem-solving abilities.

Instead, find a mentor who is willing to work with him/her in an area of interest. Start with the parents of students at your school. Ask other teachers. Contact local organizations. The bottom line is that you want to help the gifted student reach his/her potential and tapping outside expertise is sometimes necessary. Gifted children need "tutors," too!

when working with gifted and talented students. Instead of being "the expert," become "the facilitator." Rather than just "giving" them information, help them to discover it!

Bloom's Taxonomy become your guide in working with gifted students. This web site explains clearly and simply each level of Bloom's Taxonomy - a model of critical thinking that progresses from the most basic level to the most complex. Examples of appropriate questions are given as well as illustrations for use in the classroom and ways to use technology within each level on the taxonomy. Gifted students should be asked to utilize the upper three levels - analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. Below are some examples of lesson planning "actions" that should be incorporated when planning activities for gifted students.

Developed by Harvard Professor of Education Howard Gardner, this Theory of Multiple Intelligences states that all people possess at least seven different kinds of intelligences - linguistic, logical-mathematical, visual-spatial, body-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. These intelligences exist in varying degrees within each individual. Applying this theory to your classroom activities ensures that every student will be individually challenged in one or more specific area. The multiple intelligences website provides many practical ideas for using Multiple Intelligences across the curriculum. Explore the Multiple Intelligence posters (and comics). Print some to hang in your classroom.

TeachersFirst offers extensive resources and ideas for Nourishing Gifted Through Technology in Any Classroom. Find hand-picked tools and strategies for differentiating academic content, injecting and respecting creativity, helpful gifted students form personal connections in areas of interest and collaborations with other gifted students, and managing the logistics of gifted in your classroom.

In this way, you can explore the same material with all of your students, but require different outcomes depending on the students' individual abilities. This strategy can also be applied to testing. Again, refer to Bloom's Taxonomy and include higher level questions on exams for gifted students.

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Gifted Students in the Regular Classroom: TeachersFirst

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What sets gifted children apart from other students in a classroom? It is primarily the ability to absorb abstract concepts, organize them more effectively, and apply them more appropriately. The following suggestions will help you develop a classroom environment that will challenge and nurture gifted learners.

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6 Ways to Meet Gifted Student's Needs Without Much Extra Work

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6 Ways to Meet Gifted Student's Needs Without Much Extra Work

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1. For part of the day, group students by ability, even if the whole class is working on the same activity.

2. Allow gifted students to propose an alternate assignment idea, or give them an alternate assignment.

3. Occasionally, make gifted students your roving assistant teachers during seatwork time, if it is something that they already understand well.

4. Have them teach a lesson to a group or the whole class.

5. As appropriate, allow a gifted student to join a higher grade level for one or more subjects.

6. If the principal, teachers, and parents are amiable, allow the gifted child to skip a grade.

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Some challenges faced by gifted children include: being correctly identified, being misunderstood, channeling their talents, finding supportive environments, and interacting with the mainstream world.

These students are neurologically atypical; their experience, perception, and processing are extraordinary. They have almost a need to be creative, and they are highly motivated to put their abilities to use and make a difference in the world.

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This is a list of advice given by an institute devoted to helping gifted students. There are a variety of tips for teachers, and many of them involve learning on the part of the teacher. In order to teach gifted students, a teacher must be aware of the characteristics of gifted children, aware of a variety of learning opportunities for her students, and aware of others' experiences. It also helps to be in communication with the gifted students' parents.

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Tips for Teachers: Successful strategies for teaching gifted learners

This article by the Davidson Institute for Talent Development offers a list of tips for teachers. It focuses on suggestions any teacher can use in the classroom to aid their gifted students and promote their achievement in positive ways. Common blunders are also discussed as well as why they can be detrimental to the gifted student.

Being a regular classroom teacher can be both an exciting and overwhelming experience. There are so many curriculums to cover, so many standards to meet, and so many things to learn. It can seem as though you're being stretched in an infinite number of directions. And, the most challenging part generally isn't the teaching; it is managing student behavior. Without a doubt the most difficult student in your classroom is generally the one who finishes every assignment in less than five minutes and requires constant redirection. We hope you will find these tips helpful.

With areas of the curriculum that are sequential, such as mathematics and spelling, how about giving the end of the year test during the first week of school. If you have students who can demonstrate competency at 80 percent or higher, you will save them an entire year of frustration and boredom if you can determine exactly what their ability level is and then offer them curriculum that allows them to move forward. Formal assessments can be extremely helpful, however, they are expensive and there is generally a back log of students waiting to be tested. Conducting informal assessments is a useful and inexpensive tool that will offer a lot of information.

Piaget's Stage Theory of Development
Bloom's Taxonomy

Tip #6: Learn About Distance Learning Opportunities
The choices available to teachers and parents in this area have exploded in the past several years. Distance learning opportunities have dramatically increased options for meeting the needs of gifted students. Programs such as Art of Problem Solving math and the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth Online courses, as well as a myriad of online high school and college courses including online AP classes, are a great way to substitute more challenging curriculum for students who demonstrate proficiency with grade level material. Of course, these classes generally aren't free, but they are an option that many parents are willing to pay for. Search the free online Davidson Gifted Database to find resources recommended by students, parents and teachers.

Another reason that many teachers are afraid to try acceleration is that they are concerned about the student's level of social maturity. Research has demonstrated time and time again that acceleration is effective for many reasons and that social maturity is rarely an issue. Several studies have shown that social age is correlated with mental age -- not chronological age. So, not only is it generally in the student's best interest academically to accelerate, it is in his/her best social interest as well! The same goes for students in high school. If a student is ready for college work, encourage them to take college courses or to consider an early college entrance program. Indeed the student might need a bit of tutoring to get up to speed and/or may need some extra support initially, particularly with writing and/or organization, however, gifted students learn very quickly and my experience has been that these supports can generally be removed after a reasonable adjustment period.

Blunder Number One: Asking Your Gifted Students To Serve As Tutors For Students Who Are Struggling. Gifted children think and learn differently than other students. Asking them to serve as tutors can be a frustrating experience for all parties involved. This should also be remembered when putting together learning teams or group projects. Putting your strongest student with your students who are struggling is likely to be a painful experience for everyone. Imagine developing a cycling team with someone like Lance Armstrong as one member and then selecting other members who have either just learned to ride their bikes or are still relying on training wheels to help them gain their balance. It is unlikely that anyone in this group is going to have a positive experience.

Blunder Number Two: Giving Your Gifted Students More Work When They Finish Early. It is common practice to give students more work if they complete their assignments early. This is counterintuitive if you consider that if the student is completing his/her work in an efficient manner, it is likely that the work is too easy. Let's once again consider our cyclist. Would you have the cyclist who finished the race first continue to ride, on a stationary bike no less, until all of the other cyclists finished the race? What if that cyclist was given an opportunity to participate in more challenging races or had the opportunity to develop his/her talents in related areas -- wouldn't that be a better use of his/her time?

Blunder Number Three: Only Allowing Gifted Students To Move Ahead When They Complete The Grade/Age Designed Work Assignments With 100% Accuracy. It is important to remember that gifted students think and learn differently and can be extremely rebellious. No one -- not adults, not children and especially not gifted children -- likes to be bored! Gifted students, thanks to their ability to reason, will purposely choose not do something merely because they "must" do it, particularly if it seems pointless to them. They would rather spend their time thinking or reading than completing worksheets that are too easy. Focus on your students' strengths, not their shortcomings. Offer them opportunities that are consistent with their abilities -- lead them from where they are. Depending how long they have been in the system, it may take them a while to trust you. So, don't be surprised if there isn't a miraculous overnight change. Be consistent and positive and remember, you may be the first teacher who has offered them an opportunity to actually learn, rather than regurgitate and they may not know how to handle your responsiveness. Don't fall in to the trap of saying, "See, I told you he wasn't gifted, I gave him one tough assignment and he failed." Gifted students generally haven't had to work to succeed. Give them time to build their, often atrophied, wings in a safe environment.

Tip #9: Utilize Outside Resources
There is a lot of information in this article, and it is likely you're feeling a bit overwhelmed! Here is the best news so far . . . you are not alone and you don't have to come up with all of the answers by yourself. There are several national organizations devoted entirely to assisting gifted young people and the professionals who serve them. The three most notable organizations are the National Association for Gifted Children, University of Iowa's Belin-Blank Center for Gifted Education and the Davidson Institute for Talent Development. As a first step, join the Davidson Institute's free Educator's Guild. Members have access to electronic mailing lists and a Facebook discussion group to exchange ideas, locate resources and discuss issues with other educators all over the country. The Davidson Institute also provides participants of the Davidson Young Scholars program and their parents, free services as well. In addition to these national organizations, you may also wish to find organizations at the state and local level that focus on meeting the needs of gifted students. It isn't necessary to turn your world upside down to be an effective teacher of gifted students, you just have to be flexible, knowledgeable, and be willing to try new things. Gifted students cannot fend for themselves and it is up to you to begin the exciting adventure of making a difference to the gifted students in your classroom (if you haven't already done so)! After all, one person can and does make a difference.

Comments

Parent on 10/20/2017

Actually, grandparent. When was this article written? My 7 year old grandson is so bored at school. I have shared this link with his parents and will urge them to advocate for him to be accelerated and challenged. Look at Beast Academy!

Educator on 1/30/2017

Although somewhat useful (I saw my sixty years ago self often in the article), I would find it more persuasive if it contained footnotes supporting some of its assertions. For example, the idea that one whose brain is more mature in its ability to absorb information and to reason from that information is also more advanced socially and can handle a two grade (or more) advancement seems suspect. The article states that studies back this assertion up, I would have liked to have a citation or two supporting this assertion which, in my experience, is usually not correct.

Educator on 9/8/2016

I am going to major in Business ed, and minor in Physical education. Is there any pointers to keep in mind with gifted/talented students in PE?

Educator on 8/11/2015

Pair up gifted students who "get along"and challenge them to a creative project of their interest that requires research and teamwork. Set a date for the project to be shared with the class.X: build a computer, write and act out a skit, make-up a song on the guitar or piano, create a poem or rap, design a basketball play, demonstrate the effects of gravity, conduct a survey on why some bullies don`t receive counseling at an early age, paint a picture expressing classical music emotion and meaning, invent a spelling game that students will love, study teachers of the year and discover why hands-on education is so successful, create a fun commercial of their favorite product, or make a video of a band!

Educator on 7/29/2015

This article should be mandatory reading for all teachers!! My sons are very gifted but tend to be on the rebellious side. Most teachers would say see they aren't gifted when they didn't get 100% on an exam. One of my boys is a distracted gifted learner. He has to do other things during instruction but is able to reiterate what was said. The other one chose to "dummy down" as I call it so he wouldn't be forced to tutor others or singled out. Teachers please watch for students who do well on exams (80% +) and don't turn in assignments, they are possibly gifted.

Educator on 5/10/2015

I found this to be a very eye-opening article. As I read the article there were many points discussed I felt guilty because I had used them. One of the points that stand out for me was, I had been giving a pre-test before each skill I taught; but I never thought about giving the whole year's test. I will implement this idea to check for understanding. Another thought I liked was to accelerate the students learning by putting them in a higher grade's learning on the skill. I think many teachers feel that if the students learn a higher grade's skill, what they will learn the next year. I see that I need to work on getting out of the box more often, thanks to this article. I thought the Individual instruction plan menu was very helpful to help me think of other ideas to accelerate the students' learning. There were so many great ideas in all areas of learning. The article has helped me to research activities that will broaden students thinking in all areas. The article gave me many activities ideas I could use to challenge the students.

Educator on 2/5/2015

Thanks for the information - a lot to read and understand.

Educator on 1/19/2015

Great article! This was very helpful and I especially like the resources provided.

Educator on 12/4/2014

Thank you for this information! It is helpful in understanding gifted students.

Educator on 8/11/2010

Thanks for your article. Measurement of one's academic competence and advancement is certainly one lens through which to view "gifted." However, there is also the non-measurable and non-quantifiable observation that a gifted person sees the world and makes sense of the world differently and in surprising ways (which may or may not translate into expected academic performance). Also, in discussions of giftedness, I suggest adequate attention to areas of athletics, art, music, dance, et. al. (How do we value giftedness from the perspective of what it means to be human as opposed to what it means to succeed in and advance through school curriculum?)

Other on 1/3/2009

Thank you for your wonderful information. As a highly-gifted student, I agree that it is horrifying that we are treated like our average/below average classmates. Thank goodness I have an amazing TAG teacher who I can count on for brain stimulation! Thanks also for not layering on about all kids being gifted. Yes, all people are different, but only intelligent people are considered GIFTED!

Parent on 10/15/2008

My daughter is in GATE and was allowed to work ahead in math (4th Grade). She and 2 others worked ahead by 1 year. She went from saying that Math was her worst subject (her perception) to it being her favorite subject. Her confidence level has improved. The teacher told me that the three highest 5th Grade math students were 4th Graders.

Student on 9/2/2008

As a profoundly gifted 14 year-old, I would like to thank the author of this article. I took the SAT in 7th grade and scored a 1460, in the 99th percentile of all students. I still have to take the same classes as everyone else. Having more busywork shoved at gifted students is not helpful. Neither is "clustering-" putting one gifted student in a group of average or less than average students. I almost always complete group projects single-handedly. Last year, I was so bored in my Science class that I wrote a novel in my notebook to pass the time. Thank you so much for sharing this with the public.

Educator on 6/8/2008

Kudos for speaking out against heterogeneous grouping when it is often considered politically incorrect to do so. As one of those gifted students, I was always furious when asked to help someone who was on the low end of the scale. It felt like punishment.

Other on 5/6/2008

I was one of those gifted students - tested in the 98th percentile. Until reading this article, I never realized my rebellion choices in life were actually responses rooted in my intelligence. The education system would benefit the gifted far more if they were to concentrate on the social aspect of intelligence rather than trying to cram more "knowledge" into kids.

Parent on 2/1/2005

My son is in a G&T program here in Texas--the sad part is that it is severely limited and not very challenging. He taught himself pre-algebra last summer, then last fall had a horrific time with his math teacher. Finally, the school gave him the 6th grade math TAKS, which he aced. Over the X-mas holidays he studied the first five chapters of the 7th grade pre-algebra, now, having been moved to 7th grade math, he is already at the head of the G&T section! He should be in algebra. Here is a potentially gifted mathematician/scientist being tortured by conformity and mediocre teaching.

Parent on 1/21/2005

Although magnet programs are a positive step, selecting 3-5% as Gifted and then treating them alike isn't a solution. Any two students with test scores 2 standard deviations apart will have different educational needs - whether (-2,0) or (0, +2) or (+2, +4). Profoundly gifted kids may have problems in a program aimed at the 95th percentile kids. Those kids become known as "difficult" since they are not thriving in the "gifted" classes. My daughter is quite bored by the math offered to her, but the teacher believes that all students in the classroom must follow the standard curriculum at the same pace.
Gifted kids have strengths and weaknesses, and shouldn't be expected to perform at the same level in all areas of the curriculum. My son leads his class in math and science. However he struggles with the language arts curriculum and would fit better into a class aimed at the 90th percentile than the top 2%. He could handle a much more difficult science curriculum, but the administration doesn't wish to outpace the language-oriented students who are the majority of the class.

Educator on 1/5/2005

Previous posters: You speak of "gifted" students as though they are a different species. I would challenge you to consider the studies of multiple intelligences and realize every child has strengths that could be addressed and developed in the same way we envision teaching gifted or special needs students. What a wonderful experience education could be if each student had her own IEP.

Educator on 10/24/2004

I have to disagree with the last poster. The students I have seen "self-select" out of gifted class because they were incorrectly placed suffer a signficant blow to their self-esteem and self-confidence due to their being unable to succeed in the gifted class. How would you like to play tennis against a pro? Or a duet with a virtuoso? Or have a bicycle race against Lance Armstrong? Now imagine you're nine years old.

Educator on 8/21/2004

Allowing'normal' students to access gifted programs as a result of parent pressure is not harmful. My experience in this area has shown these students usually self select themselves out of the program and parents are happy for this to occur once they see the differences between their child and gifted students.

Educator on 4/20/2004

Very good article, it makes some excellent points. But I do miss one thing, though: Advice about how to detect it when ambitious parents wish to "pace" a child of normal intelligence, by requesting that he be placed among gifted children. Letting them have it their way would cause no harm to the gifted ones, but it will be a painful experience for the normal child!

The appearance of any information in the Davidson Institute's Database does not imply an endorsement by, or any affiliation with, the Davidson Institute. All information presented is for informational purposes only and is solely the opinion of and the responsibility of the author. Although reasonable effort is made to present accurate information, the Davidson Institute makes no guarantees of any kind, including as to accuracy or completeness. Use of such information is at the sole risk of the reader.

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Tips for Teachers: Successful strategies for teaching gifted learners

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This article by the Davidson Institute for Talent Development offers a list of tips for teachers. It focuses on suggestions any teacher can use in the classroom to aid their gifted students and promote their achievement in positive ways. Common blunders are also discussed as well as why they can be detrimental to the gifted student.

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Teaching/Learning Strategies for Gifted Learners

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Teaching/Learning Strategies for Gifted Learners

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1. The first strategy I plan to use is to divide the students into ability-level groups for some activities. This is a very simple yet effective way of helping students to collaborate well and build off of one another. This could be done easily, especially if one has not had time to prepare specific differentiated work.

2. Another strategy is to include the multiple intelligences. If we have a project, I will allow the students to be creative in a variety of ways, and even allow them to suggest original project ideas if they have one. They will be able to make a project that highlights their own interests and abilities.

3. A third strategy is to become a "facilitator" rather than an "expert," especially if a student is highly gifted in a specific subject. I would give them independent project opportunities and find ways to channel their abilities, while allowing them to discover and learn independently.