Gifted Children (continued)

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Two techniques used to allow gifted children to learn additional content are “compacting the curriculum” and “tiering assignments.” Compacting the curriculum is a process in which students are allowed to show what they know at the beginning of a unit. This is typically done with a pretest. Children are not asked to learn what they already know; rather, they are asked to learn extra content while the rest of the class works on the topics they have mastered. Tiering assignments involves creating several activities that all lead to the achievement of a single standard. Some “core” activities are required of all students. There are, however, several other activities at various levels of difficulty. Children with learning disabilities might be asked to complete the simpler ones while gifted students pursue the most difficult.

Modifications in Instructional Processes

Differentiation in instructional processes involves using more challenging materials, providing more critical thinking activities, and planning more creative activities. Just as children with learning disabilities need simpler, easier-to-read materials; gifted children can be asked to read more difficult books. Also, gifted students can be asked to explore a wider range of reference materials, especially Websites.

Gifted children typically thrive on activities that require critical and creative thinking, solving problems that are open-ended and interdisciplinary. Critical thinking activities allow gifted children to enhance their abilities to locate, analyze, and present information. In our unit on the American Revoultion, one critical thinking activity planned for gifted students asked them to answer the question, “What would have happened if the British had won the Revolutionary War?” The focus would be on the political, economic, and social history of the American Colonies with this revised scenario. Students would need to study the history of parts of the 18th century British empire that did not become independent until later, like Canada or Jamaica.

Modifications in Student Work Product

The most notable modification in this category is the increased autonomy teachers should afford gifted students. Two aspects of autonomy to consider here are iniative and direction. One way to accomplish this is to allow student initiative. At times, gifted students should be encouraged to choose the extra topics they pursue. For example, a student who is talented in music may want to learn more about and eventually perform the songs of the best-known American composer of the era, William Billings (who, interestingly enough, had one blind eye, a crippled leg, and a crippled arm!). Another student, more interested in the visual arts, may want to analyze Emanuel Leutze’s famous painting Washington Crossing the Delaware and create a more realistic depiction of the event (perhaps General Washington should be seated, not standing; and did Leutze paint the appropriate American flag?).

Autonomy should also be accomplished by providing gifted children less direction. On many tasks, gifted children will be impatient to begin and the instructions offered to the rest of the class will be unnecessary to them. One format for “tiering” the directions for a task is to provide a “core” set of instructions for all students. Then allow those students who want to get to work to do so while at the same time asking students who would like more direction to gather with the teacher in one of the corners of the classroom.