Imagine sitting in a classroom day after day, bored, patiently waiting for your peers to learn a concept that you mastered straight away. Enduring the slow pace and lack of challenge daily, your needs remaining unmet. Imagine doing this for years. We know that up to half of gifted students underachieve in schools (Commonwealth, 2001). However…
Do you find yourself pulling your hair out trying to think of ways to provide enrichment for your gifted and talented learners? Challenging gifted and talented students in a mainstream classroom can feel like a daunting task! I am going to show you how to can cater to your high ability students in the classroom…
What do you think of when you imagine a gifted and talented student? Does Sheldon Cooper come to mind? The Senate Inquiry (2001) into Gifted Education found that up to half of all gifted learners underachieve with as many as 20% leaving high school before year 12. There are 6 types of gifted student and…
Are you looking for challenging tasks to give to your gifted and high ability students? Then keep reading… Okay teacher friend tell me if this is you? You have a few clever kids in your class, but you also have a lot of students who need extra support. You know your high flyers need to…
How do I differentiate my teaching for gifted students? What is the best way to support gifted students in my class? Do I need to challenge my gifted students? If you have ever asked yourself a question like this, you’re in the right place! This post shares ideas that help you to effectively help gifted…
This Harmful Quote Do we need to care less about whether a child is academically gifted? This harmful quote is pervasive throughout social media. I’ve seen it shared hundreds if not thousands of times. Every single time I see it my stomach lurches, my blood boils and my pulse speeds up. It infuriates me! And…
Using Traits for Identification Knowing these characteristics will help educators in identifying the gifted students in their classroom. Not all of the traits in this list can or will apply to every gifted child. Each gifted student is unique. They may present with a mixture of these traits or they may only show a few….
What is Twice Exceptional (2e)? Twice exceptional (2e) isn’t quite how is sounds. A twice exceptional learner is one whom not only has the potential for high achievement, but also has a learning disability of difficulty. These disabilities may include dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, auditory processing disorder, physical disabilities, autism spectrum, or other impairments such as…
What is a Problem Solving Mat? A problem solving mat is a useful teaching resource that will guide your students through the 4 steps to problem solving. Each section of the problem solving mat matches a step in the process: How Can You Use a Problem Solving Mat? Why Teach Problem Solving? Problem solving helps to…
In 1945 George Polya published the book ‘How To Solve It’ where he identified four basic principles of problem solving. Polya’s principles are a great scaffold to teach your students how to solve problems. It involves a four-step approach: Step 1: Understand the Problem Where should I start? It seems obvious, but how often do…