| What is gifted and talented? And isn’t everybody?
Adapted from Michael Clay Thompson
Every child is a wonderful “gift” to the world. Every
child has valuable contributions to make to our world. Every child
has “gifts,” our colloquial word for strengths. Every
child is not gifted and talented. “Gifted and talented”
is a professional term used to describe a small population of students
who perform or have the potential to perform significantly beyond
their age peers.
One of the hallmarks of a gifted and talented child is asynchronous
development. That is, their physical, emotional, social, and cognitive
development is out of sync, it is uneven. This characteristic is
distinctly different than the development of high achievers and
the majority of children. While the 6 year old gifted and talented
child may be able to think like a 12 year old, he/she may write
like a 6 year old, relate to others like a 7 year old, and have
reached the emotional maturity of only a 4 year old. Asynchronous
development creates special challenges for gifted and talented children.
Some gifted and talented children are also high achievers. Many
are not. Therefore, many of them do not strive for straight A’s
and honor roll accomplishments. Instead, they are driven to learn
more about subjects and topics of special interest to them, regardless
of what’s being assigned by the teacher and going on at school.
They are intrinsically motivated, so the usual reward and punishment
systems that work with most children do not work with gifted and
talented children. This makes gifted and talented children difficult
to parent.
While I encourage you to nominate your child for the Fort Bend
ISD Gifted and Talented Program, we want you to be aware of the
above information. Gifted and talented programs serve eight to ten
percent of the school population. Most of the students we test are
not gifted, but are high achievers. High achievers are very successful
in school and beyond. Their needs can and should be met by their
classroom teachers. If you decide to have your child tested for
our program, please keep the above in mind when you receive the
results. At that time, if you have questions, I encourage you to
arrange a conference with campus counselor, as that is the person
who will have the most information regarding your child’s
testing.
Thank you,
Jeannette Spain, Director of Gifted/Talented and Academy Programs
Definition:
"… 'gifted and talented students' means a child or youth
who performs at or shows the potential for performing at a remarkably
high level of accomplishment when compared to others of the same
age, experience, or environment and who:
(1) exhibits high performance capability in an intellectual, creative,
or artistic area;
(2) possesses an unusual capacity for leadership; or
(3) excels in a specific academic field."
Characteristics:
General Intellectual Ability
Comprehends abstract ideas and concepts
Considers concepts and situations in which he/she has no personal
experience
Makes quick and valid generalizations and uses them in new situations
Demonstrates skills in reasoning and evaluating situations
Sees cause and effect
Chooses and enjoys challenging tasks or problems
Generates sophisticated and creative ideas and solutions
Demonstrates great curiosity; asks how, why, and what if
Chooses original methods and produces innovative products
Is keenly observant
Social/Emotional/Behavioral
Sense of Self
Perfectionism
Strong Ideas/Beliefs/Opinions
Questions Authority
Motivation for and Intense Focus on Tasks
Withdrawal from Peers/Prefers Adults
Subtle Sense of Humor/Original Jokes and Puns
Boredom with Routine
Sensitive to the Needs of Others
Critical of Self and Others
Special Populations
Texas State Plan for Gifted and Talented Education
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