What+can+we+do+about+it?

**__Recommendations on how to cater for gifted students in the early years: __**
 * Catering for gifted students in the literacy classroom **

**//As beginning teachers we have to: //**

**Provide environments that are stimulating, and address cognitive, physical, emotional, and social needs ** of gifted students, letting them move quickly through the required curriculum content and onto more advanced material.

**Differentiate the curriculum; ** to address differences in the rate, depth, and pace of learning. E.g. Students of different ability levels can be assigned different tasks.

**Be flexible with the curriculum; ** take advantage of real life experiences and use them for problem solving activities.

**Make the curriculum student-centred; ** engage students in the decision making process, giving them opportunity to take responsibility for their own learning.

 Have **high expectations** of students; encourage gifted students to advance as quickly as they can.

**Set Individual goals ** that are specific, measurable and realistic. During my most recent rounds at Bellaire Primary School I observed conferencing being undertaken. Each student had their own learning goals for reading, writing and maths that they focus on during all lessons, these goals change frequently. Each student has three conferences per semester where they discuss their learning goals with the teacher, this becomes the content of their reports. As a result learning outcomes are increased and students are aware of what is expected of them.

 Have **gifted children working together** at a table within the regular classroom and utilize advanced materials.

**<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Provide opportunities for gifted children to interact with other gifted children **<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;"> across grade levels and schools.

**<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Don’t place unrealistic expectations and pressure on gifted children, they **<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">are similar in many ways to the average child in the classroom.

<span style="color: #004aff; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">**Address the counselling needs** of each student’s to support emotional growth. Some gifted students have issues with anger, boredom, bullying, isolation, depression, stress, frustration and underachievement.

<span style="color: #004aff; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Remember that gifted students **may not excel in all areas**.

<span style="color: #004aff; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;"> **Provide plenty of opportunities** for gifted children and average children to **engage in social activities.** Some gifted children may need help in developing social skills.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;"> At the beginning of the year, a young prep student was very gifted in mathematics; answering most questions correctly on grade 3 and 5 NAPLAN tests, he lacked social skills and wasn’t coping well with school at all.

<span style="color: #004aff; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;"> **Establish an accepting classroom**; teach students to embrace diversity and honour differences.

<span style="color: #004aff; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[|**(http://www.teachers.ash.org.au**])



//**<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">As teachers spend a greater amount of classroom time with struggling learners, the needs of high-achieving and gifted students are overlooked. **// //**<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Many educators falsely believe that high achieving students can “take care of themselves”. (Jolly &Makel 2010) **//



<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">In literacy, gifted students need ** vocabulary enrichment, opportunities to develop critical thinking skills **, and ** opportunities to be innovative and creative ** (Gregory & Kuzmich, 2005).

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">** Gifted students can possess good social skills and enjoy working in groups .** They enjoy leadership roles and have particular talents that need to be nurtured and furthered. It is important to ** consider each child's unique Zone of Proximal Development ** and incorporate ways to further their learning.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">When tasks given to gifted students are ** not within their zone of proximal development ** (Vygotsky, 1978), the ** passion and excitement they have for learning quickly fades. ** <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">(Zambo, 2009)



** Department of Education and Early Childhood Development **

** Pull out program ** A pull-out program is ** when a small number of students are removed from the regular school program, to work together, with a specialist teacher .** The purpose should be to ** extend ** the work being undertaken in the regular classroom so that the ** level of complexity and critical thinking is increased. **

** Working Groups ** A working group ** consists of a small group of students requiring a differentiated learning program **. These students are placed with a classroom teacher who will ** differentiate the level and pace of the curriculum ** while teaching the remainder of the regular group. The purpose is to bring a gifted group or high-achieving students in a particular area together with the ** opportunity to compact the curriculum or offer enrichment **. Tasks given have more flexible timelines and extension activities which may be more open-ended and self-directed.

** Regrouping for specific subject instruction ** In regrouping, ** students who are gifted and high achieving in a particular subject are grouped together ** with other students who are performing at this level, regardless of year level.

(Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, 2010, Gifted Education).



**<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Acceleration ** <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">is an educational response to the cognitive characteristics of gifted children.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Acceleration ** aims to ** allow gifted children to ** progress at the rate at which they are able to learn **, and at a ** level appropriate ** to their **intellectual development** (Colangelo et al. 2004).

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Academic acceleration in the form of ** early entry to school ** has been found to be an effective intervention with ** positive academic and social outcomes ** for young gifted children (Diezmann et al. 2001; Rogers 1992).

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Gifted children, ** need to have opportunities to mix with other children of like-ability ** in order to develop ** healthy self-concept ** (Harrison 2004).

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Finding ways to ** engage and collaborate with parents to enhance and support ** the prior-to-school experience for gifted children may assist in providing additional support these children require. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">(Walsh et al. 2010)



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