Beyond Giftedness XVI Conference
G
Arvada Center for the Arts, Colorado
Keynote Speaker
Jim Delisle
Professor Emeritus,
Kent State University
President,
Growing Good Kids, Inc.
A former classroom teacher,
teacher of gifted children,
and counselor of gifted
adolescents, Jim Delisle
recently retired from Kent
State University where
he served as Director of
undergraduate and graduate
programs in gifted child
education for 25 years. He
is the author of numerous
articles and 14 books,
including The Gifted Kids
Survival Guide: A Teen
Handbook, with co-author
Judy Galbraith.
Parents, Teachers & Counselors
HOLD THIS DATE!
February 20, 2009
Keynote Topic:
Highly Gifted, Barely Served:
Educating Gifted Children in the Era of
Inclusion
Breakout Session:
10 Top Lessons for Teaching & Reaching
Gifted Students
For Additional Information contact Open Space Communications LLC
www.openspacecomm.com / (303) 444-7020 / [email protected]
pen Space Communications LLC
P.O. Box 18268
Boulder, CO 80308
PRSRT STD
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
BOULDER, CO
PERMIT NO. 94
Understanding
Our
O
R
IFTED
Dedicated to helping gifted children reach their full potential
Features:
• Bridging to the Classics
• The Rewards of Writing
Language Arts
• Fast Track: A Language
Arts Program for Middle
School Gifted
Spring 2008: Volume 20, Issue 3
• Gifted Language Arts:
Filling the Canvas with
Quality
...and more!
Change Service Requested
Subscribe
and Read
ONLINE
www.openspacecomm.com
303.444.7020
303.545.6505 fax
1.800.494.6178
pen Space Communications
LLC
www.our-gifted.com
Publisher
Dorothy Knopper
Design/Desktop Publishing
Ann Alexander Leggett
Editor
Carol Fertig
Online Publication
Dana EchoHawk
Publications
for Gifted/Talented Education
Editorial Advisory Board
Understanding Our Gifted Journal Back Issues
Alexinia Baldwin, Professor
University of Connecticut
Julie Gonzales
Educational Consultant / Advocate, CO
Sandra Berger
Educational Consultant, VA
Miraca Gross, Professor
Gifted Education
Director, Gifted Education Research,
Resource, and Information Centre
University of New South Wales, Australia
George Betts, Professor
Special Education / Gifted and Talented
University of Northern Colorado
Barbara Clark, Professor
California State University
Jaime A. Castellano, Visiting Professor
Lynn University, FL
James Delisle, Professor Emeritus
Kent State University
President, Growing Good Kids, Inc.
John Feldhusen, Professor
Purdue University, IN
Maurice D. Fisher, Publisher
Gifted Education Press, VA
Jerry Flack, Professor Emeritus
University of Colorado
Donna Y. Ford, Professor
Betts Chair, Education/Human Development
Vanderbilt University, TN
Pat Hollingsworth
University School for Gifted Children
University of Tulsa, OK
Frances A. Karnes, Professor
Special Education
Director, Karnes Center for Gifted Studies
University of Southern Mississippi
Elinor Katz, Associate Professor
Educational Leadership
University of Denver
Bertie Kingore
Professional Associates Publishing, TX
Joel McIntosh, Publisher
Prufrock Press, TX
Sheri Nowak Stewart
Coordinator, Enrichment Services
Blue Valley School District
Overland Park, KS
Rick Olenchak, Professor
Psychologist
Director Urban Talent Research Institute
University of Houston, TX
Jeanette Parker
Professor Emeritus
University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Ann Robinson, Professor
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
Beverly Shaklee, Professor
George Mason University, VA
Volume 9 




9-1
9-2
9-3
9-4
$14 each
Perfectionism
Gifted Ed. & the Law
Inside Giftedness
Learning Differences
Volume 10 




$14 each
11-1 The Total Child
11-2 Gifted Girls
11-3 Asynchrony
11-4 Teaching Teachers
Dorothy Sisk, Director
Conn Chair for Gifted Education
Lamar University, TX
Joan Franklin Smutny, Director
Center for Gifted
National-Louis University, IL
Susan Winebrenner
Education Consulting Service, CA
Understanding Our Gifted encourages a wide range of viewpoints on education and the gifted. Authors have the flexibility to express individual opinions,
which are not necessarily those of the Editor, Publisher, or Editorial Advisory Board. We welcome reader feedback.
pen Space Communications LLC
Understanding Our Gifted (ISSN 1040-1350) is published quarterly by Open Space Communications LLC, P.O. Box 18268, Boulder, CO 80308. U.S. Subscriptions Individual
$39; Institution $49. Canadian Subscriptions Individual $58; Institution $68. All other International Subscriptions $68. Online Edition and Back Issues available. Third class
postage paid at Boulder, CO. For subscription address changes, notify Open Space Communications. Material in Understanding Our Gifted can be copied for personal use. No
material can be reproduced for publication or distribution without permission. Copyright 2008, Open Space Communications LLC. All rights reserved.
303.444.7020 / 800.494.6178 / fax: 303.545.6505 / [email protected] / www.openspacecomm.com / www.our-gifted.com
Volume 15
Volume 13 
$14 each
Volume 16 




12-1 Millennium
12-2 Levels of Giftedness
12-3 Technology
12-4 Nature vs. Nurture
13-1 Definitions Giftedness
13-2 Addressing Giftedness
13-3 The “G” Word
13-4 Creativity
Volume 14 




$16 each
14-1 Options -Education
14-2 Twice Exceptional
14-3 Social/Emotional
14-4 Critical Thinking








Volume 18 
$16 each
Volume 19 
$16 each




$16 each

16-1 Early Childhood Elem.
16-2 Middle & High School
16-3 Alternative Schools
16-4 Closing the Gap
Volume 17 




$16 each
15-1 Differentiation
15-2 Dumbing Down
15-3 Identification
15-4 Parenting



$16 each
17-1 Professional Development
17-2 Curriculum Possibilities
17-3 Outside Interests
17-4 Technology
18-1 Parenting
18-2 Social / Emotional
18-3 The Arts
18-4 Learning Problems
19-1 Unique Techniques
& Programs
19-2 Revisiting
Differentiation
19-3 Gifted Kids at Risk
19-4 Online Learning
Volume 20


$18 each
20-1 Cultural Diversity
20-2 Acceleration &
Advanced Curriculum
Order ONLINE Back Issues and Read Today!
Special Offer: Volumes 9-19 Three for $30
Request a FREE Sample at: www.our-gifted.com
Joyce VanTassel-Baska, Professor
College of William & Mary, VA
Sally Walker, Executive Director
Illinois Association for Gifted Children
$14 each




10-1 Educational Options
10-2 Intelligence Revisited
10-3 Parenting & Advocacy
10-4 Curriculum
Volume 11 




$14 each
Volume 12 
Call 800-494-6178 / Fax: 303-545-6505 / [email protected]
ONLINE Publications
Subscription:
$29 Individual - Limited
Special (regular $35)
$47 Institution
$________
Subscription
Group Rate:
$47
Plus $11 per ea. user.
# Users____
$________
Online Back Issues
Vol. 13-20 Available
$12 each or 3/$30
$________
(attach list)
Total U.S. Funds
$________
PRINT Publications
Subscription: U.S.: $39 Individual-$49 Institution
Canada: $58 Individual-$68 Institution
Other Countries: $68 U.S. Funds plus S/H
Back Issues: Vol 4-8 $8 ea/ 9-13 $14 ea/ 14-19 $16 ea/ 20 $18 ea
International Vol4-8 $15 ea/Vol9-13 $20 ea/Vol14-20 $25 ea USD
(Attach Back Issue List plus shipping/handling)
Professional Development Series Books
__ Affective Education $14.25
__ Parent Education $14.25 ___Spanish Version $10
__ Teens With Talent $15.45
__ Smarter Kids $15.45
___All 4 Books SPECIAL $49.95
(Add shipping/handling)
Conference CDs
__ Gender and Giftedness - Kerr
__ Tipping the Balance: Risk to Resilience-Neihart
__ Instructional Decisions-Kingore
__ Growing Up Gifted-Galbraith
__ Neither Freak nor Geek- Delisle
__ Culturally Responsibe Classrooms - Ford
Order More than One CD and SAVE!
1 CD $12 / 2 CDs $22 / 3 CDs $32
4 CDs $42 / 5 CDs $52 / 6 CDs $62
(Add shipping/handling)
S/H U.S.:15%-$10 min. /Canada: 20%-$15 min. (all publications)
All other countries: 20%-$25 min. (all publications)
Total Enclosed U.S. Funds
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
Order Form
Name
Institution
Address
City
State or Province
Zip or Postal Code
Country
E-mail
REQUIRED FOR ONLINE SUBSCRIPTIONS
VISA/MasterCard #
Expiration
$________
$________
$________
P.O. #
Mail to: Open Space Communications LLC
P.O. Box 18268, Boulder, CO 80308
Place your order on our web:
www.openspacecomm.com
Language Arts
Contents
Contents
Between the Lines............................................................................................ 2
• Publisher’s Perspective
Dorothy Knopper
Features
Bridging to the Classics.................................................................................... 3
• Consider the purpose of the study of literature
Bob Seney
The Rewards of Writing.................................................................................... 6
• Writing does not always come easily
Mark Overmeyer
Fast Track: A Language Arts Program for Middle School Gifted...................... 9
• Using critical thinking to create a high level language arts program
Jean Schneider
Gifted Language Arts: Filling the Canvas with Quality................................14
• Parents can both assess and encourage a good background in language arts
Lou-Lloyd-Zannini
Classroom Teachers: It Matters What They Know About Gifted Matters....18
• Classroom teachers must become familiar with issues in gifted education
Julie Lamb Milligan
Columns
Musings: Concealment, Camouflage, or Clarity—
Decisions for the Verbally Gifted...................................................................23
• Hiding or revealing one’s giftedness
Miraca U.M. Gross
The Affective Side: Overcoming Obstacles to Writing the College Essay...26
• Understanding potential problems and planning effective strategies
Jean Strop
Software Updates: Role-Playing Software...................................................28
• Motivating students with quality computer software
Gregory C. Pattridge
Surfing the Net: Validity of Internet Sites....................................................30
• Using Internet sites appropriately
Sandra Berger
Book Bag: When Artists Speak......................................................................31
• Discover the backgrounds of book illustrators
Jerry Flack
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
1
Between the Lines
Publisher’s Perspective
Dorothy Knopper
Language Arts....a common term in education....but what does it include,
especially for gifted youngsters? Lou Lloyd-Zannini defines it in his article on
p. 15 of this issue of Understanding Our Gifted, as follows:
“...that broad K-12 overarching nomenclature for studies in reading processes,
literature, writing, grammar, vocabulary acquisition, and even oral expression.”
In Best Practices in Gifted Education (2007, Prufrock), Ann Robinson, Bruce M.
Shore, and Donna L. Enersen state, “Even before 2 years of age, some children
exhibit indications of advanced language development. Throughout their school
years, they excel in language arts: they read widely, write well, and understand
and appreciate the nuances of literary works” (p. 145).
Long before I became a professional in the field of gifted education, I experienced
that scenario with my own gifted children. My three sons read, comprehended,
and had verbal ability several years beyond their age and grade levels. One of
them read fluently at 18 months and at age 3 didn’t understand why the 4th grade
books in the library were on a high shelf where he couldn’t reach them. Another
son, at age 12, flawlessly edited my graduate thesis and typed it on a portable
typewriter (Computers were not yet available for public use.).
In Miraca U.M. Gross’s column in this issue, she discusses verbally articulate
children who felt “uncomfortable with their gifts” and hid their “differences” for
peer acceptance. “To speak out clearly and articulately, in their ‘true voices’ was
just too great a risk” (p. 25).
One of my boys prided himself on his large vocabulary, frequently using “big”
words. However, he soon realized that his 5-year-old age peers did not use or
understand those grownup words, so he developed a plan. With adults or other
bright children, he utilized his extensive vocabulary, but when he was with
friends who were average or slow learners, he dumbed down his word usage.
According to Joan Smutny and Sarah Fremd (2004, Differentiating for the Young
Child, Corwin), “Some children seem to love words from a very early age.
Children who have an environment where books are readily available, where
someone reads to them often, and where opportunities to interact with books and
words are abundant, develop a special interest in all things about language.”
As always, we value your feedback and opinions. Contact Editor Carol Fertig:
[email protected] v
2
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Bridging to the Classics
How can we make the classics relevant to
kids today?
Contents
Bob Seney
I am an enthusiastic supporter of using young adult literature in the
classroom with gifted learners—so much, that I have been accused of
being against the classics. Not so, but I do ask about and challenge
teachers to tell me if our classroom use of the classics is appropriate.
Do the classics provide the kind of interaction that evokes a positive
response from our high school readers? In my classroom experience,
I have not found this to always be the case. So, I turned to young adult
literature. If you have not been keeping up with this growing field,
you will be surprised by the quality and sophistication of this genre. I
believe that it is not only a great source for quality literature, but it is a
rich resource for gifted students. Young adult literature speaks to their
world, reflects their interests, and has the power “to evoke in students
the kind of literary experience that will keep them reading and lead them
to a deeper understanding of literature in general and the relationship
between literature and life in particular” (Monseau, 1996).
The first question that we must ask is: Why are we teaching literature?
Next is: What is the purpose of literary study? Unfortunately, many
high school teachers of English approach these questions as if they are
personally responsible for creating and training the next generation of
literary critics. But few of us will have that honor. I suggest that our
purpose for the study of literature in secondary schools is to create
lifelong readers—those who eventually will build an appreciation for
all literature. Unfortunately, whether we like it or not, the classics are
not the literary resource that will help create many lifelong readers. Too
often, students, especially gifted students, report that they are not only
“turned off’ by the classics, but enforced reading in that category turns
them off to all reading (Carlsen & Sherrill, 1988).
The reasons are fairly obvious. In my workshops I have used the following
list gathered from research, my experience in reading, and discussing
reading with teenagers.
• The classics were not written for adolescents. Our students do not
have the life experiences and literary expertise that help them relate to
the plots, subtleties, and themes of the classics.
• The classics do not speak directly to the developmental needs of
teens and their concerns. Nor do they reflect the reality of the adolescent
world.
• The classics use a language (syntax) and vocabulary that are no
longer commonly used.
• The very element, stylistic prominence, that makes a piece of
literature a classic is the very element which makes appreciation and
understanding unattainable for most young adults.
• The classics do not represent women and minority writers.
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
3
Classics, continued
Bushman and Parks-Haas (2001) point out that many
students are not cognitively or emotionally ready to read
and to understand many of the classics. The case that they
present is well worth considering. They also ask the question,
“Have the classics withstood the test of time because they
are great literature? Or have they withstood the test of time
because they are required reading in college English classes
and because they are included in the anthologies?” The
arguments on using or not using the classics in the secondary
classroom are interesting.
My major concern is to guide our students into becoming
lifelong readers. I have found that the classics are usually not
the best tool for this goal. In short, they come from another
world, and their nature and level of difficulty tend to turn
students off of reading, which is just the opposite of our
goal. This is not to say that for some students, as we guide
them into more sophisticated reading, the classics might not
be appropriate reading. No one size fits all.
“…my suggestion is to read and study
more contemporary literature that
‘bridges’ to the classic piece. “
With all this said, for one reason or other, teachers will
continue to teach the classics in the secondary classroom.
It may be because of district curriculum, personal choice, or
as studies have shown, “great notes from students’ favorite
college English professor.” If we continue to use the classics
in the classroom, my suggestion is to read and study more
contemporary literature that “bridges” to the classic piece.
In this way, students find that they are capable of handling
text in terms of literary analysis, and they have a greater
understanding of the role of theme, style, and symbolism in
literature. We build a positive experience on which we then
base our study of the selected classic.
When we are teaching literature, the first questions that we
must ask are: “Why are we teaching this particular selection?”
“Why have we chosen it, and what specifically do we want
our students to derive from this study?” “Are we looking for
the use of symbolism or the treatment of a particular theme
or period of history?” “Is it the author’s use of character
development or an especially clever plot structure?” “How
are we relating it to the elements of fiction?” We must make
these decisions recognizing that we cannot cover the whole
4
world with just one piece of literature.
Once the “goal” of our study has been identified, we can
begin to design our objectives, secure additional materials
and resources, and create a classroom experience that will
actively involve students and bring the selected literature
alive for them. With that in mind, I suggest the following
general guidelines for bridging to the classics:
• Precede the study of the classic by using a specifically
selected young adult literature novel that is similar in theme
or focus to the classic.
• Provide students with the tools of response analysis
set forth by Robert Probst (1988) in his book about teaching
literature in secondary school.
• Identify as many “parings” or “bridges” as possible.
• Investigate time and place setting of both the piece
and the author. What are the historical, political, and social
issues of the period?
• Use videos, performances, and/or films to help bring
the selection alive.
In pairing young adult novels with classic novels, we look
for books that have similar themes, situations, and issues.
A good source for finding these related novels is Herz
and Gallo’s From Hinton to Hamlet (2005). These authors
provide many connections through what they call “theme
connectors.” Sometimes the bridge book may be an easy
and quick read for many students, thus reducing the time in
preparation for the study of the classic novel.
Table 1 shows several paired pieces of literature that may be
helpful. For example, in a study of Hawthorne’s The Scarlet
Letter, I have used Cynthia Rylant’s A Kindness (1990,
Laurel Leaf) as the bridge novel. In this book, 15-year-old
Chip has a very close relationship with his artist mother,
Anne. His father had left them soon after he was born. Since
his mother is not very good at following through on practical
matters, Chip has taken the responsibility for running their
household. When his mother becomes pregnant and refuses
to tell anyone who the father is, Chip must deal with several
issues: his own anger, his possessiveness of his mother, and
his loss of control over their lives. Rylant has handled this
emotionally demanding and sensitive subject beautifully. The
parallel between The Scarlet Letter can readily be seen but
with a decidedly modern twist. A discussion of A Kindness
leads very well into a consideration of The Scarlet Letter.
The classics can provide important insights into the ways
we view our world and define who we are. If the decision is
made to use them, the teacher should be aware of the hurdles
that must be faced in bringing the literature alive for students.
The teacher’s own personal love of a specific work is not
enough. It must also relate to the world of our students. v
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Classics, continued
Table 1
Bridging to the Classics
Modern
Traditional
House of Stairs (Sleator)
The Giver (Lowry)
Gathering Blue (Lowry)
Eva (Dickinson)
1984
Home Before Dark (Bridgers)
Out of the Dust (Hesse)
Grapes of Wrath
Through the Hidden Door (R. Wells)
Catcher in the Rye
Dear America (Edelman)
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Farewell to Arms
In Country (Mason)
All’s Quiet on the Western Front
Summer of the Swans (Byars)
Of Mice and Men
King of Shadow (Cooper)
Shakespeare
(especially Midsummer’s Night Dream)
A Kindness (Rylant)
Scarlet Letter
The Man Who Was Poe (Avi)
Works by Edgar Allan Poe
The Eyre Affair (Fforde)
Jane Eyre
The Jane Austin Book Club (Fowler)
Works by Austin
References
Bushman, J. & Parks-Haas, K. (2001). Using Young Adult Literature in the English Classroom. Columbus, OH: Merrill, Prentice Hall.
Carlsen, R. & Sherrill, A. (1988). Voices of Readers: How We Come to Love Books. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English.
Herz, S. & Gallo, D. (2005). From Hinton to Hamlet: Building Bridges Between Young Adult Literature and the Classics. Westport, CT: Greenwood Books.
Monseau, V. (1996). Responding to Young Adult Literature. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook .
Probst, R. (1988). Response and Analysis: Teaching Literature in Junior and Senior High School. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook.
Bob Seney is Professor Emeritus in Gifted Studies at Mississippi University for Women.
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
5
The Rewards of Writing
Mark Overmeyer
Contents
Should we be more concerned with process
or product?
In Bird by Bird, Anne Lamott compares writing to a tea ceremony: “That
thing you had to force yourself to do—the actual act of writing, turns
out to be the best part. It’s like discovering that while you thought you
needed the tea ceremony for the caffeine, what you really needed was the
tea ceremony. The act of writing turns out to be its own reward” (Lamott,
1994, p. xxvi).
Lamott’s ideas resonate with me as both a writer and as a teacher of
writing. When I think of the many students I have worked with over the
years, I remember their writing in particular. I remember laughing out
loud when I read pieces by Camden or Rebecca, and I remember being
moved to tears by Hannah’s story about the death of her mother’s best
friend. I often call my friends to share examples, amazed at how writing
from elementary and middle school students can elicit the same reaction
as the writing of a beloved novelist or poet. Lamott is right: The act of
writing is full of rewards, and I think this is true about the teaching of
writing as well.
But I worry a bit in these days of high stakes testing that we are more
concerned about product than process in the writing classroom, and
this can have a negative impact on all our students. I have worked with
hundreds of advanced learners and gifted students over the years, and
the subject they tend to struggle with most is writing. One message that
is clear in every book I have read by novelists and poets is that writing,
even for professionals, does not come easily. Or to state it more clearly:
It does not always come easily. Some days, the words and ideas flow, and
other days they do not. Writing is different from other subjects because
it can be like starting over again every day. One year, my advanced 6th
graders read the novel Watership Down by Richard Adams, and each day
we had rich discussions. Although sometimes we had to work harder to
understand the text, my students were never unable to read the book. But
some days, these same literate, eager students could not find the right
words to express themselves in an essay or a story. It almost seemed
as if they had “forgotten” how to write. I understand now that this is
not because students aren’t trying—it is because we may be too product
oriented.
Writing as a Process
If we forget Lamott’s idea of ceremony—the rituals and routines—of
a successful writing classroom, we may send the wrong message to our
students about the very nature of writing as a process. If we focus our
attention only on the product, we will forget the rich processes that lead
us to a product we will want to share. And since there is not one process
for all writers, we need to build in rituals that enable students to discover
what works best for them.
6
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Writing, continued
I clearly remember over the years some of my more advanced
writers balking at my lessons regarding planning. They just
wanted to begin writing. I realize now that they were right.
While I think it is important to plan, I do not believe that it
is absolutely necessary to the success of a piece of writing,
especially if the genre does not require a plan. Sometimes,
students plan best by just beginning their pieces—by getting
their ideas on the page. Other students plan best by thinking
deeply about a topic for a bit, or by “daydreaming” as my
students like to call it, until an idea comes. Stephen King
(2000), in his powerful memoir On Writing, believes the best
way to write is to just do it. He recommends that you come
up with an idea for a character first if you want to write a
novel, and then see where the character takes you. He does
not always know how his narratives will end, and he keeps a
consistent schedule of writing to make sure his progress can
be measured. Other novelists, especially mystery writers,
advocate for careful planning, but the lesson here is that each
writer must have a process that works.
I was talking with a group of advanced middle school
students recently about their writing processes, and one 6th
grader mentioned that she had a difficult time with planning
because she felt she had to stick with her original plan,
and this caused her to be less creative. She admitted that
she sometimes wrote to the plan even if it was not effective
because she thought she was “supposed to.” In other words,
she did not understand the purpose of the plan. The plan is
meant to be a guide, but if the guide takes you off track, then it
is fine to change the plan. Once her teacher cleared this up for
her, she was relieved. After having dozens of conversations
with students about their processes, I am convinced that one
of the best ways to uncover methods that may help students
become better writers is to talk with them. Some possible
questions that can jumpstart a discussion follow:
• How do you come up with ideas for writing?
• What can you do to effectively get ready to write? Do
you like to create a plan, or do you just like to write?
• In what environments do you write most effectively? Do
you like music, or do you need it to be quiet? Do you like to
be alone, or are you okay with others being around?
• Do you like to talk about your ideas before you write, or
would you prefer to get started first?
• What do you do when you are assigned a piece of
writing to which you must respond, and you do not like the
prompt?
• What do you do when you get stuck while you are
writing?
It is important to keep in mind that when discussions about
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
these topics happen, the teacher must act as a researcher and
then respond to the thoughts students bring to the table. For
example, when I discussed these very topics with a group of
6th graders, the class was split on the idea of music. Some
thought music helped them to think, while others were
distracted by it. We decided together that the most logical
compromise at school was to have no music during sustained
writing times because the music might distract others. Since
some liked to talk prior to writing, and others liked to just
think, we timed the talking block so that those who liked
to talk could do so, and those who needed quiet knew that
their time to think and process would come soon. But since
writing is done at home as well as school, all the discussions
helped students to think about what might help them in
multiple environments.
“One of the worst enemies some of our
gifted students bring to writing is
perfectionism .”
So what do we do about products? How can we help our
students become more effective at producing writing once
they become comfortable with a process?
Writing as Product
One of the worst enemies some of our gifted students
bring to writing is perfectionism. I think one reason many
gifted students are more prone to this difficulty may lie,
paradoxically, in books. Many of my most gifted students
seem to inhale books. They read two or three books a week.
These same students have not necessarily been my best
writers, and I wonder if this is because they don’t allow
themselves time to practice. They are too product oriented
and set out to write the next great Harry Potter fantasy.
Because their vision is so overwhelming, they give up before
they get much of a start.
One of the foundations of good lesson planning is to ask
students to activate schema or background knowledge. Some
students struggle because they have too little background
knowledge, but some of our advanced students may struggle
because they have too much schema about books and writing.
In other words, when a teacher asks them to write a narrative,
they immediately associate fiction with the books they are
reading, and this seems like a nearly impossible task. I am not
suggesting that our students cannot write books. Christopher
Paolini famously began his dragon trilogy with the book
Eragon when he was a teenager and has since become a
very successful writer. However, the reality is that most of
our students, no matter how gifted, will probably not write
novels in our classes, and we are probably not equipped to
7
Writing, continued
help them write large amounts of text.
“The bulk of writing our students do
should be seen as practice.”
So how can we balance this mismatch between what our
students read and what we ask them to do in school?
I turn to writer and teacher Natalie Goldberg for advice. She
recommends that we be kind to ourselves. When we put
too much pressure on ourselves, we often shut down. I do
not believe our advanced writers mean to create a negative
environment for their own writing, but they often have such
high expectations for themselves that they shut down. The
bulk of writing our students do should be seen as practice.
Much like a soccer coach works with a team for weeks before
the first game, we need to allow our students time to engage
in meaningful, short exercises that will help them to become
stronger writers. They should talk about their writing with
others often, write and revise frequently, share regularly,
and publish to perfection only rarely. I am suggesting here
that in the writing classroom we should consider paying
more attention to the rituals of practicing than the rituals of
publishing.
Writing as a Surprise
Above all, we owe our students the truth. We need to let them
know that writing is different from other subjects. Math and
science can help us wrap our minds around the patterns in
the universe, and reading can help us understand the human
condition.
Our surprise that day came from a student who has not lived
in America for very long. She wrote and shared the following
sentence: The flrs r lking for lit (The flowers are looking for
light.).
When I asked this child to share how she came up with this
idea, she was unable to tell me, partially because she had
limited English but also because she wasn’t truly sure. This
student exemplifies one of my strongest beliefs about writing:
Sometimes we not only surprise the reader by what we write,
but we surprise ourselves. We can actually learn what we
really think, or what we really want to say, by writing it
down. We aren’t always sure how the words will fall, and we
may even feel lost, but like the flowers in the 1st grade piece
above, if we know our own process—and if we believe in
writing as ceremony—we can always find our way. v
References
King, S. (2000). On Writing. New York: Scribner.
Lamott, A. (1994). Bird by Bird. New York: Random House.
Mark Overmeyer has taught grades 2-8 for 19 years, and he has
also been Coordinator for Gifted/Talented at the middle school
level. He is presently literacy coordinator for Cherry Creek
Schools in Colorado, adjunct professor at University of ColoradoDenver, and the author of When Writing Workshop Isn’t Working.
But writing is unique because it always involves the creation
of something new. And because writing is always an act of
creation, we may often find ourselves surprised.
These surprises become the norm when students are asked
to practice writing regularly. During one visit to a 1st grade
classroom last spring, the teacher and I took the children
outside and spent time drawing what we noticed. When we
returned, we talked about the many ways we might write
down our thoughts. During sharing time, many students
focused on the concrete nature of their observations with
sentences like these:
I see a tree.
The car is noisy.
I see clouds.
8
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Fast Track: A
Language Arts
Program for Middle
School Gifted
Jean Schneider
What are some specific ways to maximize the
learning environment at middle school?
Conditions at a horse race can greatly alter the outcome of the race. Most horses
are able to maximize their speed on a fast track. A fast track is when the track
is completely dry and firm, without being overly dry and hard, enabling horses
to run most efficiently. Therefore, it is usually on a fast track that horses record
their greatest speeds. If we want gifted students to perform at their highest levels,
we must work to provide a learning environment, rigorous curriculum, effective
instruction, and appropriate pacing that promote maximum development.
Lucy was a 7th grade student who initially resisted entering Fast Track, a
pseudonym for an accelerated, advanced language arts program for verbally
gifted and high potential students in grades 6-8. Her California Achievement
Test score was 150 in the verbal realm—the top score possible. Due to that score,
plus other gathered data, Lucy was invited into the advanced language arts class.
When her signed permission slip wasn’t returned, she was questioned about
it. She explained that she didn’t like the gifted label. The Fast Track teacher
argued, “You might find a good ‘fit’ in the class.” Lucy agreed to give it a try,
understanding that she could transfer to a regular language arts class later, if she
chose. While in 8th grade, she expressed her feelings about the advanced class:
I was wary about coming into the Fast Track program, but now that
I’m here, it’s home to me. I hear some of the things the regular...classes
are doing. I find my subconscious saying, “[I am thankful] you begged
me to come into Fast Track.” I am a lot stronger in all of the areas
of communication now. Acceleration in this area has improved me as a
whole. Not only do I have greater knowledge, but my self-confidence has
risen. I don’t have to feel stupid about being smart anymore.
Lucy’s comments verify the importance of a demanding, challenging language
arts program for verbally gifted middle school students. What does a rigorous,
Fast Track language arts program look like for gifted students, and how is it
qualitatively differentiated from the norm? The skills involved in reading, writing,
listening, and speaking are presented at advanced levels for gifted learners and
at a faster pace than the norm. Although this program is described as a separate,
advanced class, many of the ideas and methods described could also be applied
to more inclusive language arts classrooms through differentiation.
Foundation: Critical Thinking
The central purpose of education is to enable youngsters to think and reason.
Language allows us to develop and express ideas, to communicate with others,
and to enhance critical and creative thinking skills. The critical thinking model
used for Fast Track was gleaned from Coalition of Essential Schools founder Ted
Sizer’s Habits of Mind: significance, evidence, connections, perspective, and
supposition, as practiced by faculty and students at Central Park East Secondary
School (CPESS) in New York City. The habits permeate every aspect of the school,
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
9
Fast Track, continued
from curriculum to behavior management. [Editor’s Note:
Visit www.essentialschools.org/ for more information.]
“That is a significant idea! Can you
provide some evidence that supports
your idea? Can you make some
connections to your own life?”
In Fast Track, students are taught Habits of Mind. They use
them in discussions, in responding to reading, and in writing.
The students learn that the habit of significance answers the
question, “Who cares?” and is the most important habit.
They learn the difference between preference (an idea that
is not arguable, since it is one’s opinion) and reasoned
judgment (an idea that is arguable). Whenever thinking is
assessed in their writing, the significance of their ideas is
given extra weight. Once the students express their good
ideas, they need to support those ideas with evidence. “How
do you know that?” is the guiding question for supporting
evidence of an idea or a position. Students connect ideas to
their own personal lives, families, experiences, and feelings.
Perspective is prefaced with the question, “Whose point
of view?” or “How does this person’s perspective compare
with your own?” Supposition centers on the question,
“What if things had been different?” Creativity was added
as a sixth habit of mind to remind students that originality,
individualism, and uniqueness is valued.
After using the Habits of Mind for three years, discussions
were more student than teacher driven. Similar to Socratic
Seminars, children are not hindered by raising their hands,
but respectfully present their ideas and listen to others. They
discuss their own significant thoughts, often developed
through their reading, and challenge one another to provide
clear evidence for their impressions. They question each
other’s perspectives or ask, “What if….?” Often, without
prompting, students connect ideas to their own lives or
point out unique twists. They learn that thinking people can
change their minds to take new and better positions, given
clear, solid, persuasive reasons. The Habits of Mind help
them realize the power of critical thinking.
District standards for the Fast Track program are based on
those developed by the Northwest Regional Educational
Laboratory (NWREL). For more information, visit
www.nwrel.org/index.php.
10
How does one teach reading to young people who already
perform at advanced levels? The students learn that when
they “read the lines,” they decode conventions and establish
comprehension. They “read between the lines” when they
consider the context and interpret the text. They “read
beyond the lines” when they synthesize and evaluate what
they have read.
Reading the Lines
In 7th grade, young people read The Tale of Two Cities by
Charles Dickens. The class begins with one of the most
famous lines in literature, “It was the best of times; it was the
worst of times.” Together, the class reads and interprets the
meaning for Chapter 1, line by line. For Chapter 2, students
paraphrase each paragraph through discussion. For Chapter
3, they are paired to paraphrase the text together. Significant
points are recorded on each student’s Reading Guide sheet.
At the end of Book One, the class discusses the significance
of the theme, “Recalled to Life.” They are all thrilled to
realize that they now understand the mystery term and its
significance!
All middle school students, including the gifted, need a
supportive environment to tackle challenging tasks. Reading
The Tale of Two Cities is hard. Dickens is not always easy
to understand. So a homework system was developed. Each
night, students read one chapter and answer questions posed
on their Reading Guides. For this homework, they use a
particular pen color for the notes they take independently.
They use a different color ink for notes they add in class
to distinguish between what they have comprehended
independently and the significant points discussed in the
classroom. If the discussion includes something on which
the student has taken notes, he underlines that part with the
“in-class pen” and gives himself a “pat on the back.” If not,
the students add that piece of the story to their notes. This
process allows youngsters to gain confidence in their ability
to read difficult texts and increase their comprehension
skills. They feel proud of themselves when they underline
a significant point they find independently while completing
homework.
Establishing comprehension for easier texts can be
challenging, even for gifted readers. Consider the last major
scene from the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee,
read by 8th grade Fast Track students. In the scene, Scout,
the 10-year-old main character and narrator of the story, is
unable to see through her Halloween costume. She and her
older brother, Jem, are returning home from the school party.
The scene is dark and frightening because the children are
being followed. They are viciously attacked by Bob Ewell,
the book’s antagonist, and he attempts to kill them with a
knife. There is a scuffle, and it turns out that Bob is the one
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Fast Track, continued
who is killed. Scout mistakenly assumes Jem killed Bob, but
the reality is that Jem passed out after having his arm broken
by the villain. When Scout finally manages to discard her
costume, she realizes that another person, Boo Radley, the
town recluse, is present. She sees that he has Jem in his arms
and is carrying him home.
Many advanced readers have difficulty comprehending
the details of the scene. They are asked, “Who killed Bob
Ewell?” Most initially answer incorrectly. Having no clear
consensus motivates a search for the truth. Through guided
discussion and by listing the events chronologically based
on the evidence the text provides, it becomes clear to each
student that Boo Radley killed Bob Ewell with a kitchen
knife, saving the children. At the end of the discussion, every
student is able to answer the question correctly and provide
supporting evidence. Youngsters are given a second chance
to answer the question and observe improvement in their
scores on the rubric for the category of comprehension.
Reading between the Lines
The students read “between the lines” when they realize
context. The Habits of Mind connections are at work here
because the young people are asked to visualize wider
connections to what they read. For Tale of Two Cities, they
are asked to compare the time and setting of the story with
their own time and setting. In To Kill a Mockingbird, they are
asked to discuss the impact that the setting and time have on
the story. Scout and Jem’s father, a lawyer, defended a black
man against a rape charge in their small town in Alabama in
the 1930s. The reason the man was found guilty, despite his
obvious innocence, is strongly connected to the context of
the story.
When students use clues and evidence from the text to explain
what is happening, they are able to better interpret the stories.
These discussions are especially rich. To Kill a Mockingbird
provides an example when young people discuss the
questions, “How does Atticus, the children’s father, interpret
Bob Ewell’s death? Why does he interpret it that way? How
and why does Sheriff Tate change Atticus’s interpretation?
What does Scout think about it?” Atticus thinks that Jem has
killed Bob Ewell in self-defense. He wants Jem to face up to
it as soon as he is able. Sheriff Tate knows the truth, that Boo
Radley killed Ewell. Tate insists that Ewell fell on his knife
and argues with Atticus regarding this interpretation. Only
when Tate shouts that he is not thinking of Jem does Atticus
realize who the real killer is. Then he, too, realizes that the
truth cannot be told. The interpretive levels rise dramatically
in students’ minds as they consider Scout’s interpretation
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
of the metaphor, “to kill a mockingbird.” Telling the truth
would have “killed a mockingbird” by exposing Boo to a
hero’s fame which, with his shy ways, would not have been
kind to a quiet man who saved the lives of two children.
Reading beyond the Lines
The students read “beyond the lines” when they integrate
for synthesis. For this, they need to use multiple elements
from the text to create an integrated analysis. In To Kill a
Mockingbird, they are asked, “Who are most clearly the two
mockingbirds in this story? Why are they the mockingbirds?”
For the purposes of increasing thinking and reading skills, it
doesn’t matter which two characters the students select. What
matters is how well they defend their choices. According
to the rubric, an advanced reader should be able to do the
following:
• Thoroughly answer the question indicating insightful
understanding of synthesis skills.
• Give specific, well chosen examples from the text to
show in-depth understanding of synthesis.
• Use synthesis language to indicate insightful
understanding of trait skills.
Students are asked to critique for evaluation with the general
question, “What is your judgment of this text and the author’s
handling of this topic?” For this trait, youngsters are expected
to challenge the text or the author. Here are examples from
three books, read by 6th, 7th, and 8th graders:
• After reading The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin, how
do you feel about the method Sam Westing used to find an
heir? Do you agree or disagree? Cite references from the
novel to support your answer.
• After reading Separate Peace by John Knowles,
challenge the author’s stereotypes of teenage boys in the
novel, using Gene and Phinny as the basis of your critique.
• Challenge the author of Little Prince, Antoine de Saint
Exupery, on a point you feel strongly about. Evaluate the
author on that point, showing thoughtful judgment. Back up
your opinion with clear evidence or quotes that support your
position.
Much of the assessment is formative and not graded. Jewel
became concerned when she was first exposed to the criteria
on the rubrics. She was relieved to learn that rubrics would
be used to provide criteria to increase skills, not used to
determine students’ grades.
Writing
Both the reading and the writing traits require knowledge
of conventions, so students begin their 6th grade year with
a diagnostic assessment. Joey’s score on the pre-assessment
indicated that he entered 6th grade in Fast Track with a
11
Fast Track, continued
cursory knowledge of conventions. He could not distinguish
between a sentence and a sentence fragment. He took no
care in beginning a sentence with a capital letter or ending
a sentence with a period. Despite Joey’s low starting point,
he thrived under the rigorous, challenging, yet supportive
environment. During his 7th and 8th grade years, he took
the ACT and SAT tests. On the ACT, in the English area,
he improved his initial score from 23 to 32, an increase of
11 points. On the verbal section of the SAT, he improved
his score 100 points. This young man finished the middle
school language arts program being able to communicate
well, which will benefit him in the future, regardless of the
field of study that he chooses.
Elements of Style (Strunk & White, 2000) guides the teaching
of writing conventions. However, the rules and explanations
are simplified. Student “ideas” are emphasized in studentteacher conferences and weighted most heavily when writing
is assessed. After all, if the young person can implement
conventions perfectly, who cares if she has little or nothing
to say? Here, too, the Habits of Mind are reinforced: “That
is a significant idea! Can you provide some evidence that
supports your idea? Can you make some connections to your
own life?” Then, one of the conventions is discussed. When
conventions are the second focus, sentences containing an
error are marked, but the student has to find the actual error
and determine the rule that was broken. Sometimes a student
meets with the teacher several times before the piece is
edited to perfection.
“ Just as a fast track enables the
greatest speed for race horses, a good
language arts program, qualitatively
differentiated from the norm,
encourages top, sometimes awesome
performances. ”
Word choice is coupled with vocabulary study. Often the
vocabulary is based on a book the class is reading. Other
times vocabulary centers on words frequently seen on the
SAT. The SAT words are taken from various books, including
those listed in Up Your Score: The Underground Guide to the
SAT (Berger, et al., 2007-2008).Voice, sentence fluency, and
organization are taught using writing examples from actual
student work.
12
The most difficult writing trait is organization. At the 6th
grade level, students write and revise “perfect paragraphs.”
With an emphasis on the richness of their ideas, they share
their perspectives of the significance of the book, Where the
Red Fern Grows, by Wilson Rawls. Since a well written
paragraph is a mini-essay, the perfect paragraph serves as a
foundation for later essays.
Steven tried his best to write well, but each time he wrote
a piece he either had great ideas not supported by evidence
or plenty of evidence not supporting clear ideas. Midway
through 7th grade, he finally put it all together. Reading his
teacher’s complimentary feedback, he was ecstatic. “I got it!
I got it!” Steven never again needed to be told that he lacked
supporting evidence during his time in Fast Track. He had,
indeed, finally understood critical thinking. During high
school, he wrote a winning essay on the lesson he learned in
Fast Track through the formative assessment approach.
Listening and Speaking
The skill areas of listening and speaking have been addressed
in many ways, from giving oral presentations and speeches
to viewing films. One part of the Fast Track program, Mock
Trial, is rigorous and provides practice in these areas. Formal
Mock Trial competitions are common in many states at
high school level and even middle school level. Fast Track
students take advantage of this program to enhance listening
and speaking skills.
Mock Trial teams are made up of seven to ten students. Three
students take on the roles of lawyers and three assume the
roles of witnesses. At least one student serves as an alternate.
Teams have to prepare the case from different perspectives:
• defense and prosecution for a criminal trial
• defendant and plaintiff for a civil trial
Students learn the complex rules for the competition, prepare
questions, and prepare for their roles. The Fast Track teacher
serves as a coach and, in practice, the judge. Local lawyers
volunteer their time to help students with the finer points of
courtroom etiquette and strategies.
Given learning opportunities that truly challenge, the
responsibility to exercise meaningful choice, and respect for
their ideas and dignity, youngsters are capable of tremendous
commitment and dazzling originality. Fast Track students
become highly motivated to perform at extraordinarily high
levels. Not only do they spend class time on preparation, but
they are willing and eager to engage in extra time in school
and at homework.
On the day of the competition, adults sit in the galleries in
the county courthouse to view the trials while middle school
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Fast Track, continued
teams compete against one another inside real courtrooms.
Students dress up to look as adult as possible. The real
wonder is that the young adolescents sound like adult
lawyers: “Objection, Your Honor! Hearsay!” “Please state
your name for the court.” “May I approach the bench, Your
Honor?” The teens take on witness roles: A “mother” quietly
dabs her eyes as she waits for her turn to testify. A “young
man” appears nervous as he is questioned about his role in a
wrongful death. A “policeman” explains his actions when he
arrives at the scene of the crime.
When the trial is over, the judges comment on student
performances, providing genuine feedback for the young
lawyers and witnesses. The two judges who presided over
the trial complete score sheets to determine a team’s total
score and which team will move on to the next level of
competition. One Fast Track team has won the honor of
advancing to the state level almost every year.
During the Mock Trial competition, students learn to speak
loudly, slowly, and clearly, so their good ideas and points can
be heard by their teammates, competitors, and judges. They
also learn to listen keenly. A lawyer’s question or a witness’s
answer might be worth an objection, might play into trial
strategy, or might solidify one’s own case. They learn to view
critically. What is the body language of the witness saying?
What is the body language of the judge saying? How might
a witness use her body language to convey emotion?
a difference, not just with students’ communication skills,
but within the students themselves, both cognitively and
affectively. v
References
Berger, L., Colton, M., Mistry, M., Rossi, P., Huang, J. (2007-
2008). Your Score: The Underground Guide to the SAT. New York: Workman Publishing.
Strunk, W. & White, E.B. (2000). Elements of Style. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
Jean Schneider is associate professor at University of Northern
Iowa in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction and serves
as Coordinator of the Middle Level Educational Program. She has
been in public education for 20 years, with 9 years as a teacher of
middle school language arts for verbally gifted students.
Most importantly, students gain self-confidence in their
communication skills. When first introduced to Mock Trial,
Callie complained, “I don’t get it.” When asked which parts,
she replied, “All of it.” The Fast Track teacher assured her
that she would understand, and that it would all make sense
eventually. It did. Callie’s team won the honor of competing
at state, and she was proud to receive one of the most
prestigious awards for being an outstanding lawyer at that
competition.
Like a fast track for race horses, the entire Fast Track
language arts program provides opportunities for optimal
performance within a safe environment. Any of these
standards, methods, or materials could be adapted to other
situations or environments to increase language arts skills
in gifted learners. The stories of the students illustrate rigor
within a safe, encouraging environment and the power
of formative assessment. Just as a fast track enables the
greatest speed for race horses, a good language arts program,
qualitatively differentiated from the norm, encourages top,
awesome performances. The Fast Track program makes
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
13
Gifted Language Arts:
Filling the Canvas with
Quality
Lou Lloyd-Zannini
What does a good language arts curriculum
for the gifted look like?
When the curriculum and expectations extend beyond the ordinary, gifted
students truly can make original contributions to knowledge.
Tannenbaum (1981)
“How can I tell if my gifted 10th grade daughter’s curriculum is
appropriate for her needs?” the anxious mother asked me, adding hastily,
“After all, I’m not a professional educator like you.”
“Easily,” I responded almost automatically. “Just check the number of
text messages she sends during classes.” My comment was met with a
look of bewilderment. “Let me explain, I continued,” as I thought back to
the experience that had prompted my response….
Typically, I work one day a week from my home office because there are
fewer interruptions, and I can concentrate on my writing. One day, as I
struggled with a difficult piece, my train of thought was derailed by a
noise from my desk. The cell phone was ringing. As soon as I heard the
tone, I knew that a text message had dropped into my mailbox. I read the
text on my screen: “Hey. Wat R U up 2?” The message was from Josh,
the kid next door, and that made it very curious. At 10:00 in the morning,
Josh should have been in school.
I typed on the tiny keypad: “Not much. & U? No school today?” Within a
minute the response was back: “In school. Death by boredom.”
My response was swift. “Get to work, you clown :0) We’ll talk tonight.”
Josh and I have a strong relationship built on nearly a decade of mentorship.
I knew that our conversation that evening would be frank, interesting,
and informative, and as it turned out, it was all of that and more.
Josh’s message was sent from his honors English class. That was scary
because Josh reads constantly, loves to play with words, and is always
willing to take on writing challenges, whether it is a new type of poetry,
a short story, or even a screenplay. As a young child, Josh was verbally
precocious, and even in his elementary school days, it was clear that his
gift was in language arts. “Death by boredom” in his favorite class? How
could this be?
Initially, I thought that Josh’s experience was an anomaly. After all,
I’m a teacher, too, and none of us has a hit every class. But early in
the conversation that evening, it became clear that there was no honor
in this English course. In fact, as Josh described typical class activities,
I realized that the course really wasn’t appropriate for a gifted kid. It
wasn’t even close. Worse yet, the boredom that day was not uncommon
14
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Quality, continued
for Josh or his colleagues in the class. One of Josh’s friends
had described it as “brain numbing tedium.”
Even more egregious, this lack of challenge had been going
on for years.
Subsequent conversations with Josh and other gifted students
caused me to realize that in many cases, what is presented
as appropriately differentiated language arts curriculum
for gifted/talented students is nothing more than general
education curriculum with additional work at the same
level as the regular curriculum. If everyone else is writing
a 300 word essay, gifted students are assigned 500 words. If
everyone else is reading one book per semester, gifted kids
are expected to read two. Brain numbing tedium indeed, and
hardly appropriate for gifted kids.
Obviously, “more of the same,” “brain numbing tedium” is
not the kind of (allegedly) differentiated curriculum we want
to see in our gifted children’s language arts curriculum—or
any other for that matter. What, then, do we want? What
does a good language arts curriculum for the gifted look
like? How will we know it when we see it—whether or
not we’re professional educators? In order to answer this
question, we need first to get a sense of the overarching
features and components of a quality curriculum for high
ability learners.
For starters, let’s agree on the meaning of a few terms.
Typically, when I talk about curriculum, I’m speaking of
two things: a set of clear learner goals that form the target
at which we aim and the pathway to those goals. I’d like to
broaden the term a bit by including two other pivotal pieces
in the formal learning process: appropriate assessment
and authentic facilitation of learning (what we used to call
“teaching”). So, curriculum is the “where we’re going,” the
“how we’ll know we got there,” and the “road map from
where we are to where we need to be.”
Another term we need to agree upon is language arts.
Let’s consider language arts as the broad swath of learning
experiences focused on mastery of, and facility with, English.
In early grades, these experiences are typically included in
one class. As children grow older, we begin to separate the
contents into different courses so that more specialization
may occur. Language arts, then, is that broad K-12
overarching nomenclature for studies in reading processes,
literature, writing, grammar, vocabulary acquisition, and
even oral expression.
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Finally, let’s agree on a definition of gifted (You may
be participating in a first for our field if you agree to this
proposition!). For our conversation, a gifted learner is one
who has been self, family, and/or teacher identified as a high
ability learner; whose identity as such has been confirmed
by one or more assessments utilizing valid and reliable
instruments; and whose innate abilities and/or productivity
place her within the top 15 percent of age peers—what
Françoys Gagné (1991) calls “gifted and/or talented.”
Now that we’re speaking the same language, let’s take a
moment to think about this thing we call curriculum for the
gifted. What makes a curriculum for the gifted “good,” no
matter what the subject discipline? What criteria should we
utilize in our consideration of quality?
“Classical works should play heavily
within the reading ‘menu’ for gifted
students.”
Over the past 40 or so years, many theories have been
proposed, and many opinions advanced, but for me, the
essential elements of VanTassel-Baska’s (1986, 1996)
Integrated Curriculum Model (ICM) provide the most
comprehensive yet concise framework for considering
curriculum quality. According to the ICM, curriculum for
high ability learners should have three tightly interwoven
dimensions: advanced content, high level processes and
products, and intradisciplinary and interdisciplinary
concepts. In the case of our language arts curriculum, these
three criteria certainly provide a solid basis for distinguishing
a properly differentiated curriculum for gifted learners from
the regular curriculum offered to all students.
This is where it all begins—with appropriate content.
Research tells us that gifted learners need a qualitatively
different learning experience which includes material that
will continue to challenge them.
What might the content include? First, the obvious: reading
and literature. Gifted students often begin reading prior
to kindergarten and read voraciously thereafter. Their
curriculum, then, should reflect the cognitive complexity
with which their minds operate. Classical works should
play heavily within the reading “menu” for gifted students.
Newer books, especially those which have earned awards
for their quality, should also be included. Gifted students
should be prodded to read widely, across disciplines and
cultures, and to dissect and discuss what they have read so
that they become familiar with a broad range of literature.
15
Quality, continued
Remember, too, that students often see reflections and
shadows of their own lives in the characters of literature.
Young people glean encouragement and hope from their
reading, as well as a strong sense of what to do and what not
to do. Maximum exposure to excellent literature is essential
to good curriculum for the gifted.
Another standard aspect of the language arts curriculum
should be writing. Properly differentiated curriculum should
provide regular opportunities for learners to communicate
what is important to them. Assignments don’t all need
to be formal expository pieces; instead, they can include
learning logs or journals, letters to the editor or to elected
representatives, short stories or plays, poetry or narrative.
The point of a differentiated gifted curriculum is the level of
writing quality expected and delivered, across a wide range
of styles and types.
One aspect of the language arts curriculum that has fallen
into disuse, but which is vitally important to gifted learners,
is the study of grammar. Grammarian extraordinaire Michael
Thompson says it best: “Grammar is a way of thinking about
language. It is an untouted, but superb, form of higher order
thinking” (1996, p.151). He is quick to note that grammar for
its own sake isn’t a great benefit, but when grammar is utilized
to analyze word patterns and meter, employed in discovering
and building vocabulary, and used to interpret and clarify
a writer’s intent, then grammar becomes a meaningful and
important tool for the mind and for expression. As Thompson
points out, “…words and sentences are the substance through
which our ideas glide” (p.150).
No good language arts curriculum can be without multiple
forms of oral expression. Gifted learners at all levels need to
develop not only the ability to speak well, but to do so “on
their feet” (extemporaneously) if the situation requires it.
Oral expression not only allows the gifted student to discover
his own voice but also provides an opportunity to learn to
use that voice effectively on behalf of others. A properly
differentiated curriculum for gifted learners will include
not only typical recitations but also improvisation, debate,
theatre, and even mime—a wide range of opportunities
for communicating effectively with a broad spectrum of
audiences.
A good language arts curriculum should also include the
use of music and art. The arts, in all forms, are essential as
a source of enrichment and as a mode of self-expression.
When gifted learners study the literature of the Civil War,
they should be critically listening to the music of that period,
16
viewing and critiquing the art, and reading and seeing the
drama of the time. They should also be encouraged to create
or recreate music, art, and drama in the same style of the
period under study.
“One aspect of the language arts
curriculum that...is vitally important to
gifted learners, is the study of grammar.”
Because the pace of learning is significantly faster for the
gifted, appropriately differentiated language arts curriculum
will be distinguished by careful ability grouping, acceleration,
and compression of content via diagnostic-prescriptive
instruction.
Advanced content and high level processes and products train
our learners to think critically and creatively and to generate
products which are of high quality. But if we restrict these
behaviors to a single discipline, we have only barely begun
to engage the gifted learner.
Thought processes like metacognition (thinking about our
thinking), problem finding and problem solving, critical
and creative thought, and the self-discipline which allows
for excellence, are not discipline specific. Rather, they
are tools for learning in all disciplines. That’s why it is
important for gifted language arts curriculum to be based on
broad, foundational concepts common to all areas of human
learning, and indeed, the human condition. Often, within
the conceptual and thematic crossover between subject
disciplines, learning takes on lifelong meaning.
Obviously, a language arts curriculum for gifted learners that
incorporates these three dimensions—advanced content,
high level processes and products, and intradisciplinary and
interdisciplinary concepts—will be one which consistently
and completely engages its participants. There will be no
text messages going out of class, no “death by boredom,” no
“brain numbing tedium.”
Perhaps the anxious parent’s question at the beginning of
this conversation rings true for you: “How can I tell if my
gifted child’s curriculum is appropriate for her needs?”
Perhaps you’re wondering how you, as one who is not a
professional educator, can tell if your child’s gifted language
arts curriculum meets his needs and what you can do to
encourage your gifted child to excel in language arts.
How can you tell? Investigate. Ask the teacher what your
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Quality, continued
child is reading, what activities go on in class, what sort of
thinking processes are being learned, what type of products
are emerging. Ask whether language arts stands alone, or
whether it is integrated with concepts and vocabulary from
other subject disciplines. Compare what you see and hear to
what you have just read in this article. Is there a match? If so,
great. If not, then your first responsibility is to advocate for
change—to require that your child’s learning needs be met
appropriately—whether or not it’s convenient for the school/
district. v
References
Gagné, F. (1991). Toward a Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent. In N. Colangelo & G. A. Davis (Eds.), Handbook of Gifted Education (pp. 65-80). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Paul, R. (1992). Critical Thinking: What Every Person Needs to Survive in a Rapidly Changing World. Rohnert Park, CA: Foundation For Critical Thinking,
Tannenbaum, A. (1981). A Curricular Framework for Differentiated Education of the Gifted. In A. H. Cramer, D. Biten, N. Butler-Por, E. Evyatar, & E. Landau (Eds.), Gifted Children: Challenging their Potential (pp.155-164). New York: Trillium.
Thompson, M. (1996). Formal Language Study for Gifted Students. In J. VanTassel-Baska, D. Johnson and L. Boyce (Eds.), Developing Verbal Talent (pp. 149-173). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
VanTassel-Baska, J. (1986). Effective Curriculum and Instructional Models for Talented Students. Gifted Child Quarterly, 30, 164-169.
Lou Lloyd-Zannini is a former teacher of language arts and parent
of a gifted child. He is Associate Professor of Education at Regent
University in Virginia Beach, VA.
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
How to Encourage Your Child’s
Excellence in Language Arts
• Support reading. Set aside time in
your life to read so that your child knows you
value the practice. Ask your child for book
recommendations. This not only conveys that
you respect your youngster’s judgment but
also establishes a basis for communication,
allowing you to encourage critical thinking and
expression.
• Play games with words. Words are the
basic unit of language. Facility with words,
coupled with an expansive vocabulary is
often gained through reading widely and
playing with words themselves. The sheer
delight of manipulating language encourages
gifted children to value language and
communication.
• Keep a journal, and promote journaling
by your child. It is the regular practice of the
writing craft which empowers writers to do so
with excellence.
• Go creative. Make time to create original
stories with your child. Start off with a leading
line or two, and then ask your child to take
over. Go back and forth, adding onto what
each other says until you reach a conclusion.
It may be serious, ridiculous, funny or sad,
but it is a shared language experience which
helps build creative expression, promotes oral
language, and gives you insight into how your
child thinks.
One last thing: Check to see how many text
messages your young person is sending during
class time. You might be very surprised!
17
Classroom Teachers: It
Matters What They Know
About Gifted Matters
Julie Lamb Milligan
What are some specific ways to help
classroom teachers learn about gifted
students?
Classroom teachers play an important role in the success of gifted
programs. During the past two decades, researchers (Bigelow, 1993;
Bransky, 1987; Milligan, 2001; Tomlinson, 2001) consistently reported
more support from classroom teachers for gifted programming when the
teachers had a greater understanding of giftedness. On the other hand,
when classroom teachers were unaware of characteristics of gifted and
appropriate program services, the chance for successful cooperation in
matters of identification and services greatly diminished.
In a study by Starko (1990), teachers selected to provide services for the
gifted through enrichment and acceleration strategies reported a lack of
knowledge about giftedness and ownership in the process. The reason for
their selection, given by the administrators, was because those teachers
were creative, young, and or “gung ho.” One teacher reported, “I knew
nothing. I had no preparation. Nobody sent me anywhere. Nobody gave
me any clues” (Starko, 1990, p. 35). According to those same classroom
teachers, the school district was unable to maintain a program for the
gifted due to the lack of teacher preparation and knowledge about
giftedness.
Historically, even when classroom teachers are asked to assist with
identification of the gifted through a nomination process while a
specialist provides all program services, classroom teachers’ perceptions
and knowledge of giftedness greatly impacts programming for the gifted.
In one study (Hickey, 1990) 27 teachers were surveyed and asked to
identify major problems with gifted programs and make recommendations
regarding services for gifted students. Classroom teachers from the study
described problems with gifted programming in the following areas:
• disruptions related to gifted students being pulled from class for
program services
• conflicts about the definition of giftedness
• complaints by teachers and students that program participants behave
arrogantly
• complaints by teachers and parents that tracking is detrimental to
lower performing students
Hickey also reported that when teachers lacked training related to gifted
children, they were less likely to make any accommodations in the
classroom to differentiate curriculum for the gifted.
In a study conducted by Milligan and Campbell (2003), teachers of
a summer program for gifted students reported the positive effects of
18
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Classroom Teachers, continued
communication and co-teaching with other teachers. As they
participated in team teaching, a sense of camaraderie and
security developed. Sharing ideas during planning made
co-teaching more than just shared teaching of a lesson. The
experience became a source of shared decision making and
professional growth.
Classroom Teachers’ Knowledge of Giftedness
Over the past two years, candidates for a master’s degree
in gifted education conducted interviews with classroom
teachers. The purpose of this activity was to assess
and compare the classroom teachers’ knowledge of (a)
characteristics of giftedness, (b) identification procedures
for their school district, and (c) strategies for differentiating
curriculum for the gifted. Over the course of two academic
years, a collection of approximately 200 classroom teacher
responses were compared.
“...classroom teachers were more aware
of identification procedures when they
had been involved in the selection
process.”
Characteristics of Gifted Learners
Eighty-nine percent of the classroom teachers interviewed
reported that gifted students are those who make all A’s, are
highly motivated, self-directed, and outgoing. While this
does fit the profile of many gifted children, not all the gifted
are perfect students (Hertzog & Robinson, 2005; VanTasselBaska, 2006). Using academic performance exclusively as
an indicator of giftedness becomes problematic for those
students who are underachievers, twice exceptional, or lack
the desire to conform.
Another interesting opinion by classroom teachers emerged
from the interviews described herein. The teachers who used
creativity as an indicator of giftedness linked it to visual
arts. When asked how they determined if students in their
classrooms were exceptionally creative, they mentioned
drawing as the primary indicator. Therefore, when students
were artistically talented, they were labeled highly creative.
Consequently, when classroom teachers limit creativity to
visual arts, there is the possibility of missing students who
are creative problem solvers or think in unusual ways.
Identification Procedures
In interviews with 200 classroom teachers, 15 percent
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
reported understanding the gifted identification procedures.
Of all the teachers interviewed, those who understood the
kinds of assessment tools used to measure potential and
ability had previously served on identification committees.
Further, those same teachers were the ones who knew what
kinds of criteria were used to place students in the program
for the gifted.
Classroom teachers do not always know about assessment
tools or placement procedures unless they are taught
these things. They need to become acquainted with both
traditional standardized and performance based methods.
For approximately half a century from the 1920’s to 1980’s,
traditional assessments or standardized tests were the
predominant tool used to identify gifted students. It has only
been within the past 20 years that researchers and educators
have questioned the use of IQ to determine giftedness. With
expanded definitions of intelligence, broader definitions
of giftedness emerged. Within more current theories, a
performance based identification philosophy is apparent.
Performance based assessment for determining giftedness
includes observation by trained specialists to recognize
certain student actions as above average and examination of
student products as exceptional.
In 2003, Pfeiffer conducted a survey of 64 experts in the field
of gifted education. He asked them about the three greatest
identification, assessment, and/or definitional issues in gifted
education. Interestingly, all of their responses emphasized
the shift from traditional to a more performance based view
of giftedness. With this shift and as gains are made in the
use of performance based guidelines as a viable option for
assessing giftedness, classroom teachers have become our
greatest asset. They are with the students the majority of the
school day and should be instrumental in observing student
behaviors in terms of potential giftedness.
Strategies Used in Programs for the Gifted
In the interviews with classroom teachers, only 8 percent
reported awareness of the G/T frameworks used by the
facilitator of the gifted for program planning and services.
Approximately 12 percent reported the use of some varied
or different teaching strategies for those who were identified
as gifted, talented, or creative.
These statistics are especially disconcerting when we consider
the benefits of cooperative efforts between classroom
teachers and educators of the gifted. When programs are
structured with pull-out options, the teacher of the gifted
may have the students for three hours per week. The rest of
the academic week, the gifted receive academic instruction
from the classroom teacher. Curriculum changes must be
made in the regular classroom.
19
Classroom Teachers, continued
Conclusions Drawn from Interviews
From the interview results with classroom teachers in
this report, some conclusions may be drawn. First, most
classroom teachers used academic success as a key factor
in determining which children might be gifted. While this
may be an indication of giftedness, it is just as important
for teachers to understand that many highly intelligent
and creative children find school boring, uninteresting, or
unnecessary and do not perform well academically. Services
for these children are just as, if not more, important than
for those who fit in with the regular school curriculum and
routine.
Secondly, classroom teachers were more aware of
identification procedures when they had been involved in the
selection process. It may be a good policy to have teachers
serve on the identification committee on a rotating basis so
that more of them have the experience of reviewing student
profiles for placement purposes.
Thirdly, classroom teachers were rarely aware of curriculum
required, mandated, or delivered to gifted children. Teachers
should receive copies of goals, objectives, and frameworks
for gifted education. They should also learn differentiated
strategies to incorporate into their curriculum.
Educating Teachers through Staff Development
In a recent study, researchers (Bangel, et al., 2006) reported
the positive impact of professional development on
classroom teachers’ awareness of curriculum appropriate for
gifted learners. A cohort of preservice teachers were assessed
prior to a practicum. Interviews, classroom observations,
and lesson planning were used to evaluate the preservice
teachers’ understanding of appropriate curriculum for the
gifted. At the end of the practicum, it was reported that an
increased level of knowledge and preparation improved the
comfort level and confidence of teachers to identify and
teach the gifted.
The results of a study by Milligan (2001) revealed that each
teacher in grades K-4 at one elementary school changed
something about the way she defined giftedness following
a yearlong systematic plan for staff development related
to giftedness. In conjunction, each teacher increased the
numbers of students nominated for assessment following
staff development. The staff development included
demonstration lessons presented by the facilitator of gifted
children and four formal inservice sessions presented by a
variety of speakers.
Knowing which students to recommend for assessment and
identification of giftedness as well as how to accommodate
for their learning needs is based on teacher knowledge about
giftedness. Staff development, as a global plan with a specific
process, should be comprehensive, including
• inservice training to expand knowledge and increase
teacher effectiveness.
• organization planning to improve programming and
solve problems.
• consultation in the form of workshops, inservices,
clinics, and special projects.
• provisions for resources, coordination, and assistance
with inter-building communications.
• assistance with researching, implementing,
evaluating new practices and procedures.
• evaluation of staff development efforts and organizing
feedback.
“Building good public relations may
be one of the most important roles of a
gifted facilitator or administrator.”
Educators of gifted children have an obligation to offer
staff development sessions which inform teachers about
characteristics of giftedness, assessment procedures,
identification processes, appropriate curriculum, and
program options. For staff development, gifted specialists
have an obligation to model multiple ways to serve gifted
children in the classroom.
Suggested Staff Development for Classroom Teachers
Regarding Giftedness
• Present a 20 to 30 minute inservice at a faculty meeting
at the beginning of the school year.
• Invite an expert guest speaker from a university, nearby
educational cooperative, or school district to present.
• Have a year-end meeting with all classroom teachers
to receive feedback on the year’s efforts to make G/T
identification and services a cooperative effort.
•
20
and
www.openspacecomm.com
Co-teach with classroom teachers to demonstrate
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Classroom Teachers, continued
enrichment. Provide a newsletter, periodic updates, and
information to all teachers regarding program events or
current issues in gifted education
• Invite classroom teachers to attend state meetings and
conferences related to gifted education.
Staff development about giftedness can occur in several
forms. Teachers of the gifted may discuss assessment
procedures and prospective student nomination and conduct
demonstration lessons while classroom teachers document
potential giftedness. More formal staff development may
occur in the form of inservice sessions providing information
and issues related to giftedness. It is the responsibility of the
teacher or administrator of the gifted to provide this training
to classroom teachers.
Building good public relations may be one of the most
important roles of a gifted facilitator or administrator. The
more comfortable classroom teachers feel working as a
team and the more they know as a result of effective teacher
training, the better the chance that accurate identification and
services will occur. The success of the education of gifted
children is best achieved by gifted facilitators and classroom
teachers working together. v
Pfeiffer, S. I. (2003). Challenges and Opportunities for Students Who are Gifted: What the Experts Say. Gifted Child Quarterly, 47(2), 161-166.
Starko, A. J. (1990). Life and Death of a Gifted Program: Lessons Not Yet Learned. Roeper Review, 13(1), 33-38.
Tomlinson, C. (2001). Differentiated Instruction in the Regular Classroom: What Does It Mean? How Does It Look? Understanding Our Gifted, 14(1), 3-6.
VanTassel-Baska, (2006) Serving Gifted Learners Beyond the Traditional Classroom: A Guide to Alternative Programs and Services. Waco, TX: Prufrock.
Julie Lamb Milligan is an assistant professor in the Department
of Educational Leadership, Curriculum, and Special Education at
Arkansas State University. She has been a public school educator
for 18 years, including a facilitator for gifted children K-12. She
is the author of Assessment of Giftedness: A Concise and Practical Guide.
References
Bangel, N. J., Enersen, D., Capobianco, B., & Moon, S. M. (2006). Professional Development of Preservice Teachers: Teaching in the Super Saturday Program. Journal for Education of the Gifted. 29(3), 339-361.
Bigelow, R. (1993). Developing and Implementing a Program to Improve School Success for Minority Students. Nova University: Practicum Report (ERIC Document).
Bransky, T. (1987). Specific Program Information: A Key to Attitudes about Gifted Education. Gifted Child Quarterly, 31(1), 29-32.
Hertzog, C. & Robinson, A. E. (2005). Metacognition and Intelligence. In O. Wilhelm & R. W. Engle (Eds.).
Understanding and Measuring Intelligence , 101-123. London: Sage.
Hickey, M. G. (1990). Classroom Teachers’ Concerns and Recommendations for Improvement of Gifted Programs.
Roeper Review, 12(4), 265-267.
Milligan, J. (2001). Effective Staff Development in a Low Socio-
economic Rural Setting: A Microethnography of Teacher’s Perceptions of Giftedness (ERIC Document).
Milligan, J., & Campbell, D. (2003). It’s a Fit: Collaboration and Gifted Education. Understanding Our Gifted, 15(3), 18-21.
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
21
22
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Columns
Contents
Musings
Concealment, Camouflage, or
Clarity—Decisions for the Verbally
Gifted
Miraca U.M. Gross
One of my favorite articles in gifted education literature was
written 13 years ago by Mary Ann Swiatek of the Carnegie
Mellon Institute for Talented Elementary and Secondary
Students (Swiatek, 1995). It is as relevant now as it was
then. It outlines the “social coping” strategies used by gifted
adolescents in an attempt to deal with their “differentness”
from others and, if they are lucky, make themselves more
socially acceptable to their age peers.
What do we mean by “peers”? Swiatek points us to a simple
and useful definition which describes a peer group as one
in which “members are of similar (chronological) age and
regard each other as acceptable associates” (Dunphy, 1983,
p. 376). However, as Swiatek ruefully points out, the second
part of this definition may be difficult to apply to gifted
students because they may not always be regarded by their
classmates as “acceptable associates.”
Intellectually gifted students differ from their age peers not
only in the way they think about learning but in the way
they feel about it. They actively seek out and thrive on the
stimulation of learning. Many have a true passion for it—
what Dante called “the mind in love.” That’s so uncool—
not the kind of love that interests most adolescents. While
adolescents may accept high ability in their classmates,
they’re much less likely to accept someone who delights
in using it! Additionally, the interests of gifted students
are often significantly different from those of their age
peers; they delight in problem solving and enjoy exploring
concepts that are abstract and complex. A further problem
arises from the preference of many gifted students to work
and socialize with older students. Classmates can interpret
this as rejection—or even arrogance. Either way it’s not
likely to gain friends.
Many gifted students are caught in what I once called a
“forced-choice dilemma” (Gross, 1989). Does a youngster
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
moderate his achievements and conceal unusual interests for
the sake of having friends, or does he risk social exclusion
and possible isolation by giving way to a passion for learning
and letting peers see how different he is?
Not surprisingly, Swiatek found that gifted adolescents use
a variety of strategies to minimize the visibility of their
differences from age peers. These can include
• throwing oneself into a range of extracurricular
involvements, particularly those that classmates regard
as “cool,” in an attempt to emphasize the similarities and
distract other students from the differences.
• underachieving in the classroom, not dramatically but
enough to bring achievements down to a level where they
won’t stand out as much.
• pretending one doesn’t care about what the other students
think.
• actively denying giftedness to oneself, as well as to
others.
• moderating vocabulary so as not to sound different to
the other students, making it easier to blend in.
Which students did Swiatek find were most likely to deny
that they were gifted? The most highly gifted of all! If this
seems surprising, consider that it is the most highly gifted
students who often experience the greatest difficulty in
social relationships. Swiatek perceptively points out that the
most highly gifted students may feel under the most pressure
to achieve academically. If these two stressors combine, it
might be reasonable to expect highly gifted students to feel
considerable pressure to deny their abilities.
One of the most interesting and disturbing finds of Swiatek’s
research is that students with high verbal abilities reported
lower levels of peer acceptance than students who were
mathematically gifted. When one thinks of it, there is
certain logic in this. If you are mathematically gifted, and
you want to conceal or moderate your achievement for peer
acceptance, you only need to dumb down in math class. You
can be yourself (to an extent at least) in other classes. But if
you are verbally gifted and desperately trying to camouflage
your difference, you have to keep a guard on your tongue
every class period, every day.
Jenny, Who Chose Concealment
When I first read about Swiatek’s study, I was reminded of
Jenny, a little girl I taught some years before. I had a mixed
ability class of 5th grade students who were a delight to
teach and who learned well. I gave them lots of enrichment
activities. I worried a little about Jenny because she so very
rarely spoke but her mother told me that she was shy and
didn’t socialize much with other children. I put her quietness
down to personality rather than to anything in the class or
23
Musings, continued
school environment.
One day, I introduced the class to “Tom Swifties.” Tom Swift
is a boy who always speaks in adverbs and the challenge of
the game is to create dialogue for him. It’s a great vocabularyexpanding exercise and students enjoy it, especially kids
with a talent for language.
“Put the ice cream back in the freezer,” said Tom coldly.
“Pass me the scissors,” ordered Tom cuttingly.
“I hate lemons,” muttered Tom bitterly.
The children enjoyed the game, and Jenny joined in the
laughter and the acclamation of good suggestions. But
otherwise she didn’t contribute. However, a little while later,
when I passed her desk, she slipped into my hand a piece of
paper—and as she did so she caught my eye and mouthed,
“Please don’t read it out.” I was a little surprised but I
nodded and when I returned to my desk I opened the paper
and read Jenny’s amazing Tom Swiftie.
“I am just born,” said Tom, becomingly.
I honored Jenny’s wish and didn’t read it aloud. The next day
I had a quiet chat with her, and she haltingly explained why
she did not feel able to show to the class what I later found
was an amazing talent for writing.
The year before, Jenny had been more outgoing in class.
She was never a “chatterbox,” but she did contribute to class
discussions. Her language was quaint, a little “mannered”
and old-fashioned. The other kids would sometimes laugh at
the things she said, but she adored her teacher and she was
reasonably happy in the class.
One morning she was walking in the schoolyard and
accidentally heard the teacher discussing her with a
colleague. “You know little Jenny Moore? Now she’s a
queer kid. Talks like an old granny. Weirdest kid I’ve ever
taught.” Jenny was mortified and deeply hurt. She saw the
incident as a betrayal by her teacher whom she had loved and
trusted. She responded by drawing into herself and taking
no further part in class activities. She literally did not speak
in the classroom for the rest of that school year. Creating a
Tom Swiftie, which displayed the richness of her vocabulary
and the wealth of her imagination was, for Jenny, an act
of great courage and the beginning of the healing process.
24
Ian, Who Chose Camouflage
A few years later, I completed a masters degree in gifted
education at Purdue University and went on to obtain a PhD.
I had a special interest in highly gifted children and began a
longitudinal study of 60 young Australians of IQ 160, young
people who appear in the population at a ratio of fewer than
1 in 10,000. One of the first children to be identified for the
study was Ian Baker.
I told Ian’s story in my book Exceptionally Gifted Children
(Gross, 1993, 2004). He was an astonishingly gifted young
man who was reading books by the age of 3 1/2. When
he entered school at age 5, he had the reading ability of a
10-year-old. Although he had been assisting his preschool
teacher by reading to the other children, he disliked having
to read aloud in class and would mumble and stumble over
words.
Ian didn’t help the situation by choosing to conceal his
ability from people he distrusted. One day when he was 6,
after his advanced skills had finally been recognized by the
school, I spontaneously said, “Ian, I can’t understand why
your teacher last year didn’t realize that you’re very bright. I
enjoy our conversations so much. It’s like talking to some of
the 6th graders I teach.”
He looked at me in horror. “I didn’t use my real vocabulary
last year. I wasn’t going to do that!”
“Well, what did you do?’ I asked.
“I used my camouflage vocabulary,” he said matter-of-factly,
and then noticing my look of shock, he said, “You know
what camouflage is, don’t you?”
“I’m not sure,” I said, carefully. “Tell me.”
“Camouflage is what an animal puts on when it’s hunted,”
he said, and I had to turn away so that he would not see the
tears in my eyes.
Clarity? Some Things Don’t Change
My longitudinal study is now in its 25th year. The young
people are in their 20s and early 30s. Many of my findings
echo those of Swiatek. One of the things I find very sad is
that my subjects whose talents lie in math and science have
received much more appropriate educational provisions
than those whose talents are in language. In elementary
school and even in middle school, teachers tended to leave
the verbally talented students to “entertain themselves”
through silent reading rather than giving them extension or
enrichment work. The math students, by contrast, went to
special programs or were accelerated.
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Musings, continued
The math talented students who were allowed to accelerate
or who were placed in ability grouped classes thrived both
academically and socially. There was little pressure to “dumb
down” for peer acceptance. Their talents were accepted by
both their teachers and their classmates.
By contrast the students who were verbally articulate very
often felt uncomfortable with their gifts. The pressure to
hide or moderate their “differences” for peer acceptance was
considerable and, for some, overwhelming. To speak out
clearly and articulately, in their “true voices” was just too
great a risk. Concealment or camouflage was so much safer
than clarity. v
References
Dunphy, D.C. (1983). The Social Structure of Urban Adolescent Peer Groups. In W. Damon (Ed.), Social and Personality Development: Essays on the Growth of the Child (pp. 374-
387). New York: W.W. Norton.
Gross, M.U.M. (1989). The Pursuit of Excellence or the Search for Intimacy? The Forced-choice Dilemma of Gifted Youth. Roeper Review, 11, 189-194
Gross, M.U.M. (1993). Exceptionally Gifted Children. New York: Routledge.
Gross, M.U.M. (2004). Exceptionally Gifted Children. London: RoutledgeFalmer.
Swiatek, M.A. (1995). An Empirical Investigation of the Social Coping Strategies Used by Gifted Adolescents. Gifted Child Quarterly, 39(3), 154-160.
Miraca Gross is Professor of Gifted Education and Director of
the Gifted Education Research, Resource, and Information Centre
(GERRIC) at the University of New South Wales in Sydney,
Australia.
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
25
• feel that nothing that he writes will pass the inspection
of his critical mind.
The Affective Side
Overcoming Obtacles to Writing
the College Essay
• overthink the essay topic so that writer’s block sets
in. Or if the essay does get written, it may sound stilted or
overintellectualized.
• procrastinate, thinking, “If I had more time to spend on
the essay, then I would have been admitted, but I am rushed
so it’s not really my fault if I don’t get in.”
Jean Strop
For many bright, high achieving seniors, the college essay
is the bane of their final year in high school. Because of
the competition for college admission and for scholarships,
students often need to complete many applications; this
translates to more essays. The majority of students who
apply to competitive schools have high test scores, good
grades in academically challenging programs, and experience
with community service and extracurricular activities.
Consequently, the admissions essay becomes an important
distinguishing factor in the application process. However, to
write compelling essays, students need to overcome several
emotional obstacles.
4. Lack of Self Esteem—A student with fragile esteem
may try to second-guess the admissions committee, writing
an essay that says what she believes the committee people
want to hear. This often leads to a “false voice” in the
writing. Such students frequently resist feedback from
parents, teachers, and/or peers. Consequently, their essays
may lack the polish necessary to captivate the attention of
the admissions committee members.
5. Fear of Independence—Some students fear the
independence that comes with moving away from home.
This can cause the application and essay completion to
stall.
Knowing the Obstacles
For many students, the focus in advanced classes is on
expository writing (i.e., essays, reports, biographies, and
nonfiction). Thus, these young people may have little
experience writing first person pieces, and when the stakes
are high, as in admission to a college of choice, emotional
obstacles are often amplified. Potential college students may
have to deal with the following factors:
1. Concern about Bragging—Many gifted students have
been taught to be humble. They often feel that writing about
themselves, their experiences, and/or their accomplishments
might be perceived as bragging. This concern often
manifests itself in an essay that discloses very little personal
information in an effort to curb boasting.
2. Fear of Rejection—High achieving students may
struggle with exposing their true selves in the college essay,
for fear of rejection. They may be haunted by thoughts such
as, “If I write a truly personal essay, and I don’t get admitted
to the college, I will feel rejected or devalued as a person.”
This fear often results in the inability to complete what is
perceived to be a satisfactory essay.
3. Fear of Failure—For some students, wanting admission
to a certain college causes an intense fear of failure, bringing
about a variety of responses. The student may
26
6. Reaction to Parental Pressure/Expectations—Some
parents have very defined goals for their children (e.g.,
colleges they want their students to attend, professions they
should pursue, etc.). Sometimes these desires are so strong
that students feel pressured and become immobilized in their
efforts to not disappoint parents.
Strategies for Overcoming the Obstacles
The following strategies will assist in overcoming barriers
to essay writing:
1. Practice—Have all senior English students work on
admission essays with editing and feedback from the teacher
and peers. Even better, if students practice and get feedback
at the end of the junior year, they can then spend time on
essays during the summer months. This is especially valuable
if young people plan to apply to several top colleges in the
fall.
2. Self-Esteem Strategies—It is important to work on
building a positive self-image through a personal journal. If
students write daily and list three to five things for which
they are grateful and proud, this positive self-image will,
hopefully, transfer to the college essay.
3. Yearly Counselor Meetings—Students should work
with high school counselors to formalize long-range plans
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Affective Side, continued
and to consider strengths, weaknesses, preferences, goals,
and interests. This will develop confidence when writing
their essays. Young people should also be instructed in
personal time management to aid them in completing
college applications and essays while still maintaining strong
academic work.
4. Parent Programs—Parents can benefit from strategies
on how to support student goals, how to deal with separation
issues, and how to help students move forward if they freeze
in fear.
It is not a question of whether emotional obstacles will arise
during the college application and essay writing processes.
Rather, it’s a matter of which issues will arise and how well
the student is prepared to handle them. A bit of prevention
and preparation will make the essay writing process more
enjoyable and validating, rather than stressful and toxic. v
Jean Strop, long-time psychologist, gifted resource teacher, and
counselor, is currently a consultant and writer in affective education and college planning for gifted students.
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
27
Probability, Algebra, Geometry, and Reasoning and Proof.
Over 600 problems challenge middle school learners.
Software Updates
Role-Playing Software
Gregory C. Pattridge
I spent part of my career as a teacher of gifted students in
a full-time magnet program. Many of the students were
reluctant learners. Much of my planning time was spent on
motivation strategies for these students, and some of the
most successful strategies involved role-playing games and
activities.
The original Oregon Trail software and the Stock Market
Game started my interest in this genre. I ended up creating
many in-classroom games that were received enthusiastically
by even the most underachieving students. The only drawback
I experienced was that some students would come to school
when they were sick because they didn’t want to miss a day
of their favorite role-playing activity.
“Students often do not realize that they
are learning.”
Today solid role-playing software titles continue to inch
their way into homes and classrooms. The prescription is
one that includes continuous elevated challenges, rewards
for making the right choices, and cooperation.
Four good role-playing software titles are Descartes Cove,
Age of Empires, Age of Mythology, and Zoo Tycoon. They
are each available on both Windows and Mac platforms.
Students often do not realize that they are learning.
Descartes Cove (Johns Hopkins Center for Talented
Youth)
Best for Ages 11 -14
cty.jhu.edu/cde/cove/
This is a 6 CD set that uses the scenario of being marooned
on an island once inhabited by Rene Descartes. With clues
left by Descartes, the user solves puzzles and other math
challenges leading up to a final quest to escape the island.
Each of the six adventures is matched to NCTM (National
Council of Teachers of Mathematics). Areas covered include
Measurement, Numbers and Operations, Data Analysis &
28
The program tracks progress and also generates a detailed
report for each student. A personal journal can also be used
to record strategies used to solve each problem.
Much research went into the development of this software,
and new versions will be published as feedback is gathered.
It is not a complete math curriculum, but it does encourage
the user to learn the concepts needed to solve the adventure.
Although it is quite an investment ($150), the time it will
take to get through all six activities will make it seem
worthwhile.
Age of Empires III (Microsoft)
Best for ages 13 and up
www.microsoft.com/games/empires/
There is no denying the success of this series from Microsoft
since it was first introduced in 1997. The numerous awards
and accolades it has received, along with record-breaking
sales, have fueled the fire for continuous sequels.
Players start by building a basic European Colony in the
New World spanning the time frame of 1421 to 1850. The
two main points of emphasis in play are the economy and
military as your empire grows. You play in one of eight
different civilizations that vary in difficulty. Expansion packs
recently released have added six new civilizations.
The game requires good problem solving skills. This is not so
much a game that takes expertise in eye hand coordination;
instead it requires the use of personal cognitive resources to
think things through. Most of the actual game play is a mix
of fiction and history, so don’t expect an accurate curriculum
on European colonization.
The biggest problem with this particular game is the time
spent trying to create a successful civilization. It can be
addictive. A good rule is to alternate the game with physical
activity so that an hour of playing Age of Empire is then
matched with an hour of exercise or other physical pursuit.
Age of Mythology (Microsoft)
Best for Ages 13 and up
www.microsoft.com/games/ageofmythology
Mythology is almost always a favorite of bright, inquisitive
students. One can play as the ancient Greeks, Norse, or
Egyptians (An expansion pack added the Atlanteans.). You
help your side to control the world by arranging armies,
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Software Updates, continued
handling diplomacy, and managing trades. Players can use
mythological creatures like Minotaurs and Cyclopses to
bolster their armies’ strength. Players may also call upon the
gods for assistance in destroying enemy towns with meteors
or harassing opposing troops with lightning storms.
Most of today’s role-playing software can be found in video
games, but thanks to Microsoft and Johns Hopkins the genre
is being kept alive in educational circles, too. These titles are
engaging and worthwhile learning experiences, effective use
of students’ time and effort. v
“A good rule is to alternate the game
with physical activity so that an hour of
playing Age of Empire is then matched
with an hour of exercise or other
physical pursuit.”
Released more than five years ago, this title still generates
much enthusiasm and excitement. The graphics are
spectacular and bring an artistic quality to the screen. The
main knowledge gained by playing this game is about the
various gods of the mythological world.
Gregory C. Pattridge is a consultant working with both school
districts and private schools. He teaches technology classes
nationally for Lesley University and presents on technology, gifted
education, and differentiated instruction through his own staff
development company IDEAS LLC.
As with previous titles discussed, it takes a long time to
play the game and become a ruler of the world. Teens who
are interested in mythology will find this title to be fun and
challenging.
Zoo Tycoon (Microsoft)
All ages
www.microsoft.com/games/pc/zootycoon.aspx
This is a good role-playing game for those with an interest
in animals. In Zoo Tycoon you are challenged to build,
manage, and maintain a zoo with over 200 animals, exhibits,
buildings, scenery, and other zoo materials. The first version
came out in 2001, and a sequel, Zoo Tycoon 2, was released
in 2004. Numerous expansion packs (Dinosaur Digs and
Marine Mania) have kept this title fresh and exciting.
The challenge in this game is to keep the guests happy and
the animals thriving. The animals do well in exhibits that
are planned for their needs. The guests also want amenities
to make their experiences worthwhile in each building or
outside area they visit. Economics plays a big role in the
successful zoo, including lessons on investing money
wisely.
The series is more popular with students up to about 7th
grade but is worth considering for all ages.
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
29
an elephant, held on to a different part of the animal and thus
“saw” it differently, depending on which part he touched. To
find out what an elephant is really like, they had to put the
parts together.
Surfing the Net
Validity of Internet Sites
Sandra Berger
My 10-year-old granddaughter was working on a report for
school and doing her research on the Internet. Her father
remarked that when he was a child, research meant a trip to
the library if one’s parents were available to drive, followed
by a conversation with the librarian and use of the card
catalog. This took time—often hours—because the material
usually had to be carefully copied from reference books. But
not now.
After much work on the part of the National Leadership
Conference, a definition arose: Media literacy is the ability
to access, analyze, evaluate, and create messages in all
media forms (Aspen Institute, 1992). v
Resources for Determining Validity of Internet
Sites
Evaluating Online Resources Notebook
people.uis.edu/rschr1/valid.htm
Evaluating Web Pages: Techniques to Apply &
Questions to Ask
www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/
My granddaughter Googled her report topic. We looked at Evaluate.html
the results together and talked about each reference and its
relevance to the report. Next, she wanted to know how to
tell if her references were accurate. That was an important
question that could not be answered in one evening. In the
mid 90s, we answered such questions by explaining the
URL suffix (e.g., edu, gov, org, com, etc.). Anything ending
in “.com” was suspect. Anything ending in “.edu” could
be trusted as a reliable source. And “.gov” and “.org” fell
somewhere in between.
Today children are exposed to the Internet not only through
informational websites, but also through the use of blogs,
RSS feeds, wikis, podcasts, and social networking websites.
Following the successes of MySpace and Facebook,
similar sites have popped up catering to specific interests,
backgrounds, professions, and age groups. How does one
know which uses of the Internet are valuable education tools
and which are not?
Because of advances in technology, skills in information
literacy/media literacy have a growing importance. It is
not enough for bright children to be able to read several
years ahead of their age-mates or be able to write elegant
prose. They also need to be savvy about the many types of
information that are now readily accessible.
In the early 90s, the National Leadership Conference on
Media Literacy put the topic on the United States educational
agenda. However, there was little agreement on how to
define the term. The Center for Media Literacy (http://www.
medialit.org/) described the disparate views of this subject
by reminding us of the folk tale from India, “The Blind Men
and the Elephant.” Each blind man, when asked to describe
30
Criteria for Evaluating Internet Resources
www.library.ubc.ca/home/evaluating/
The Good, The Bad & The Ugly:
or, Why It’s a Good Idea to Evaluate Web Sources
www.lib.nmsu.edu/instruction/evalcrit.html
Evaluating Internet Sources & Sites: a Tutorial
www.lib.purdue.edu/ugrl/staff/sharkey/interneteval/
Reference
Aspen Institute Report of the National Leadership Conference on Media Literacy. Washington, D.C. (2002).
Sandra Berger is an educational consultant in Virginia. She is
the author of College Planning for Gifted Students.
www.openspacecomm.com
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Book Bag
When Artists Speak
Jerry Flack
Precocious readers often want to learn how artists have
created visual masterpieces; they want to know “how it is
done.” Two new books satisfy such curiosity with profiles of
30 great book artists.
Artist to Artist: 23 Major Illustrators Talk to Children
about Their Art
Eric Carle
New York: Philomel Books, 2008
This book, recommended for ages 9-12, features 23
renowned book illustrators from all over the world. Included
are Mitsumasa Anno, Tomie dePaola, Alice Provensen,
Rosemary Wells, and Paul O. Zelinsky. The artists talk
directly to young people via informal letters about such
topics as their motivation to become artists, techniques and
media they utilize, special challenges they face, methods
and procedures they practice, and how they use their time
to create classic books. They convey all of this information
while never talking down to young readers.
This book’s design is particularly noteworthy. Artists are
represented by four-page features with special gatefold
pages that are highlighted by self portraits. The gatefold
pages open to show childhood photographs of the individual
artists and their earliest artistic efforts. The interior pages
disclose the stages artists use to move from first concepts to
elementary sketches to their final published works. No space
is wasted.
All of the profiles in Artist to Artist are exceptionally colorful
and informative. Jane Dyer’s chapter is one exemplary
example. Dyer notes how much she loved the books her
mother shared. While the stories Dyer’s mother read to her
were grand, the pictures were especially enthralling. “I liked
to pretend I could climb right into them and live in imaginary
worlds” (p. 34). She notes that she was an especially shy
child and that her imagination, fueled by beautiful picture
books, motivated her to dress up as her favorite story
characters (e.g., Mary Had a Little Lamb) and move beyond
her timidity.
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Dyer likes to be surrounded by objects that remind her of
the importance of childhood innocence. In addition to her
professional art supplies, she fills her studio with stuffed
animals, flowers, fun photographs, brightly decorated
pillows, and lots and lots of wonderfully illustrated children’s
books.
The artist’s glowing self-portrait positioned directly opposite
her encouraging letter to young book creators conveys
the sense of innocence that her artwork represents. Dyer
portrays herself at work in her studio using pens, pencils,
and paints to fashion a new picture book painting, and she is
ably assisted by her beloved dog, Scuppers, plus a collection
of helpful mice dressed in colorful costumes. All the while
her craftsmanship is being observed and admired by two
miniature children poised upon her shoulders.
The artist shares the “homework” in which illustrators must
engage. A visual lesson is communicated by three images
Dyer created for Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s Cookies: Bite-Size
Life Lessons (HarperCollins, 2006). An initial pencil sketch
is accompanied by the fully painted book jacket cover Dyer
first created, and the final revision that her editor ultimately
chose. The message is clear. Even professional artists often
have to edit and revise their presumed “best” work.
Readers learn that Jane Dyer began her career as a kindergarten
teacher, moved on to a brief interval as a commercial
artist, and ultimately found her path to becoming a notable
children’s book illustrator.
Artist to Artist is a special book that deserves a prominent
place in the home or classroom and should be read slowly,
deliberately, and purposefully. In addition to sharing the
stories and skills of the 23 artists, the book also encourages
and inspires youth to create their own books.
A Caldecott Celebration: Seven Artists and Their Paths to
the Caldecott Medal
Leonard S. Marcus
New York: Walker & Company, 2008
Leonard S. Marcus is an esteemed historian of children’s
literature. A Caldecott Celebration opens with an introduction
to the origins and history of the American Library
Association’s annual Caldecott Medal, which is awarded to
the illustrator of the most outstanding picture book published
in the United States during the previous year.
The Caldecott Medal is now entering its eighth decade. To
celebrate the previous 70 years of Caldecott Medal winning
books, Marcus selected one notable illustrator from each
decade. He discusses the value of the Caldecott Medal and
31
Book Bag, continued
how books are selected.
A Caldecott Celebration profiles Robert McCloskey, Marcia
Brown, Maurice Sendak, William Steig, Chris Van Allsburg,
David Wiesner, and Mordicai Gerstein. None of these
artists work in precisely the same fashion, so seven unique
approaches to the creative process are highlighted.
Robert McCloskey’s profile is particularly memorable with
the inclusion of anecdotes about how he created one of the
most beloved of all picture books, Make Way for Ducklings
(Viking, 1941). Early in his career as an artist, he took
particular delight in a newspaper story about a mother duck
that stopped traffic as she paraded her young family across
one of Boston’s busiest streets. Here was serendipity boldly
presenting itself to the young artist. He now had a story: the
lives of Mr. and Mrs. Mallard and their search for a safe
home for their eight offspring.
Working as any dedicated creative person should, McCloskey
plunged into an intensive study of ducks. He reasoned that
in order to create a memorable book about the “Mallard
Family” he would have to think like a duck. He needed to
learn everything he could about the anatomy and behavior of
mallards. He drew them from every conceivable angle and
perspective. He consulted noted ornithologists and studied
mallard specimens in the American Museum of Natural
History. He even went to a farmers’ market and purchased
four squawking mallards that came to live with him in a
small Greenwich Village apartment!
His apartment bathtub became his guests’ “duck pond,” but
McCloskey allowed his models total freedom to explore
their new home as he crawled on hands and knees beside, in
front of, and behind the ducks waddling about his apartment.
He made hundreds upon hundreds of sketches from every
conceivable perspective and position.
Today’s gifted readers can learn much from master book
illustrators, but the most valuable collective advice is to
begin creating books, comic strips, graphic novels, and other
artwork NOW. v
pen Space Communications LLC
Jerry Flack is Professor Emeritus of Education and President’s
Teaching Scholar at the University of Colorado. He is a reviewer
of children’s literature and the author of 10 books and numerous
articles on creativity and curriculum development.
32
www.openspacecomm.com
(303) 444-7020
(303) 545-6505 fax
1-800-494-6178
Understanding Our Gifted, Spring 2008
Publisher
Dorothy Knopper
Design/Desktop Publishing
Ann Alexander Leggett
Editor
Carol Fertig
Online Publication
Dana EchoHawk
Publications
for Gifted/Talented Education
Editorial Advisory Board
Understanding Our Gifted Journal Back Issues
Alexinia Baldwin, Professor
University of Connecticut
Julie Gonzales
Educational Consultant / Advocate, CO
Sandra Berger
Educational Consultant, VA
Miraca Gross, Professor
Gifted Education
Director, Gifted Education Research,
Resource, and Information Centre
University of New South Wales, Australia
George Betts, Professor
Special Education / Gifted and Talented
University of Northern Colorado
Barbara Clark, Professor
California State University
Jaime A. Castellano, Visiting Professor
Lynn University, FL
James Delisle, Professor Emeritus
Kent State University
President, Growing Good Kids, Inc.
John Feldhusen, Professor
Purdue University, IN
Maurice D. Fisher, Publisher
Gifted Education Press, VA
Jerry Flack, Professor Emeritus
University of Colorado
Donna Y. Ford, Professor
Betts Chair, Education/Human Development
Vanderbilt University, TN
Pat Hollingsworth
University School for Gifted Children
University of Tulsa, OK
Frances A. Karnes, Professor
Special Education
Director, Karnes Center for Gifted Studies
University of Southern Mississippi
Elinor Katz, Associate Professor
Educational Leadership
University of Denver
Bertie Kingore
Professional Associates Publishing, TX
Joel McIntosh, Publisher
Prufrock Press, TX
Sheri Nowak Stewart
Coordinator, Enrichment Services
Blue Valley School District
Overland Park, KS
Rick Olenchak, Professor
Psychologist
Director Urban Talent Research Institute
University of Houston, TX
Jeanette Parker
Professor Emeritus
University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Ann Robinson, Professor
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
Beverly Shaklee, Professor
George Mason University, VA
Volume 9 




9-1
9-2
9-3
9-4
$14 each
Perfectionism
Gifted Ed. & the Law
Inside Giftedness
Learning Differences
Volume 10 




$14 each
11-1 The Total Child
11-2 Gifted Girls
11-3 Asynchrony
11-4 Teaching Teachers
Dorothy Sisk, Director
Conn Chair for Gifted Education
Lamar University, TX
Joan Franklin Smutny, Director
Center for Gifted
National-Louis University, IL
Susan Winebrenner
Education Consulting Service, CA
Understanding Our Gifted encourages a wide range of viewpoints on education and the gifted. Authors have the flexibility to express individual opinions,
which are not necessarily those of the Editor, Publisher, or Editorial Advisory Board. We welcome reader feedback.
pen Space Communications LLC
Understanding Our Gifted (ISSN 1040-1350) is published quarterly by Open Space Communications LLC, P.O. Box 18268, Boulder, CO 80308. U.S. Subscriptions Individual
$39; Institution $49. Canadian Subscriptions Individual $58; Institution $68. All other International Subscriptions $68. Online Edition and Back Issues available. Third class
postage paid at Boulder, CO. For subscription address changes, notify Open Space Communications. Material in Understanding Our Gifted can be copied for personal use. No
material can be reproduced for publication or distribution without permission. Copyright 2008, Open Space Communications LLC. All rights reserved.
303.444.7020 / 800.494.6178 / fax: 303.545.6505 / [email protected] / www.openspacecomm.com / www.our-gifted.com
Volume 15
Volume 13 
$14 each
Volume 16 




12-1 Millennium
12-2 Levels of Giftedness
12-3 Technology
12-4 Nature vs. Nurture
13-1 Definitions Giftedness
13-2 Addressing Giftedness
13-3 The “G” Word
13-4 Creativity
Volume 14 




$16 each
14-1 Options -Education
14-2 Twice Exceptional
14-3 Social/Emotional
14-4 Critical Thinking








Volume 18 
$16 each
Volume 19 
$16 each




$16 each

16-1 Early Childhood Elem.
16-2 Middle & High School
16-3 Alternative Schools
16-4 Closing the Gap
Volume 17 




$16 each
15-1 Differentiation
15-2 Dumbing Down
15-3 Identification
15-4 Parenting



$16 each
17-1 Professional Development
17-2 Curriculum Possibilities
17-3 Outside Interests
17-4 Technology
18-1 Parenting
18-2 Social / Emotional
18-3 The Arts
18-4 Learning Problems
19-1 Unique Techniques
& Programs
19-2 Revisiting
Differentiation
19-3 Gifted Kids at Risk
19-4 Online Learning
Volume 20


$18 each
20-1 Cultural Diversity
20-2 Acceleration &
Advanced Curriculum
Order ONLINE Back Issues and Read Today!
Special Offer: Volumes 9-19 Three for $30
Request a FREE Sample at: www.our-gifted.com
Joyce VanTassel-Baska, Professor
College of William & Mary, VA
Sally Walker, Executive Director
Illinois Association for Gifted Children
$14 each




10-1 Educational Options
10-2 Intelligence Revisited
10-3 Parenting & Advocacy
10-4 Curriculum
Volume 11 




$14 each
Volume 12 
Call 800-494-6178 / Fax: 303-545-6505 / [email protected]
ONLINE Publications
Subscription:
$29 Individual - Limited
Special (regular $35)
$47 Institution
$________
Subscription
Group Rate:
$47
Plus $11 per ea. user.
# Users____
$________
Online Back Issues
Vol. 13-20 Available
$12 each or 3/$30
$________
(attach list)
Total U.S. Funds
$________
PRINT Publications
Subscription: U.S.: $39 Individual-$49 Institution
Canada: $58 Individual-$68 Institution
Other Countries: $68 U.S. Funds plus S/H
Back Issues: Vol 4-8 $8 ea/ 9-13 $14 ea/ 14-19 $16 ea/ 20 $18 ea
International Vol4-8 $15 ea/Vol9-13 $20 ea/Vol14-20 $25 ea USD
(Attach Back Issue List plus shipping/handling)
Professional Development Series Books
__ Affective Education $14.25
__ Parent Education $14.25 ___Spanish Version $10
__ Teens With Talent $15.45
__ Smarter Kids $15.45
___All 4 Books SPECIAL $49.95
(Add shipping/handling)
Conference CDs
__ Gender and Giftedness - Kerr
__ Tipping the Balance: Risk to Resilience-Neihart
__ Instructional Decisions-Kingore
__ Growing Up Gifted-Galbraith
__ Neither Freak nor Geek- Delisle
__ Culturally Responsibe Classrooms - Ford
Order More than One CD and SAVE!
1 CD $12 / 2 CDs $22 / 3 CDs $32
4 CDs $42 / 5 CDs $52 / 6 CDs $62
(Add shipping/handling)
S/H U.S.:15%-$10 min. /Canada: 20%-$15 min. (all publications)
All other countries: 20%-$25 min. (all publications)
Total Enclosed U.S. Funds
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
$________
Order Form
Name
Institution
Address
City
State or Province
Zip or Postal Code
Country
E-mail
REQUIRED FOR ONLINE SUBSCRIPTIONS
VISA/MasterCard #
Expiration
$________
$________
$________
P.O. #
Mail to: Open Space Communications LLC
P.O. Box 18268, Boulder, CO 80308
Place your order on our web:
www.openspacecomm.com
Beyond Giftedness XVI Conference
G
Arvada Center for the Arts, Colorado
Keynote Speaker
Jim Delisle
Professor Emeritus,
Kent State University
President,
Growing Good Kids, Inc.
A former classroom teacher,
teacher of gifted children,
and counselor of gifted
adolescents, Jim Delisle
recently retired from Kent
State University where
he served as Director of
undergraduate and graduate
programs in gifted child
education for 25 years. He
is the author of numerous
articles and 14 books,
including The Gifted Kids
Survival Guide: A Teen
Handbook, with co-author
Judy Galbraith.
Parents, Teachers & Counselors
HOLD THIS DATE!
February 20, 2009
Keynote Topic:
Highly Gifted, Barely Served:
Educating Gifted Children in the Era of
Inclusion
Breakout Session:
10 Top Lessons for Teaching & Reaching
Gifted Students
For Additional Information contact Open Space Communications LLC
www.openspacecomm.com / (303) 444-7020 / [email protected]
pen Space Communications LLC
P.O. Box 18268
Boulder, CO 80308
PRSRT STD
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
BOULDER, CO
PERMIT NO. 94
Understanding
Our
O
R
IFTED
Dedicated to helping gifted children reach their full potential
Features:
• Bridging to the Classics
• The Rewards of Writing
Language Arts
• Fast Track: A Language
Arts Program for Middle
School Gifted
Spring 2008: Volume 20, Issue 3
• Gifted Language Arts:
Filling the Canvas with
Quality
...and more!
Change Service Requested
Subscribe
and Read
ONLINE
www.openspacecomm.com
303.444.7020
303.545.6505 fax
1.800.494.6178
pen Space Communications
LLC
www.our-gifted.com