Decades of research point to the value and importance of spatial skills and have demonstrated the malleability, durability, and teachability of spatial skills across the lifespan. Teachers and caregivers can apply this research in their classrooms or homes through a wide range of strategies. In this article, we offer specific, engaging activities…

"Educating Gifted Students in Middle School: A Practical Guide" (3rd ed.) helps educators with the challenging task of understanding and meeting the needs of gifted students in middle school. This revised and updated third edition: (1) Provides a rationale and framework that middle schools can use to fill the service gap for gifted and…

"Integrating Social and Emotional Learning with Content" builds a framework for creatively and effectively using picture books to integrate social and emotional learning (SEL) with teaching across content areas. Thoughtful book choices in mixed-ability early elementary classrooms have the power to not only support gifted students as they…

Gifted children are often highly sensitive to their surroundings and are able to readily identify potential solutions to challenges that imperil the environment in which they live. Many gifted children are strong advocates of sustainable living, caring deeply about the world around them and its health in the future. For this reason, parents and…

The array of choices for early education can be overwhelming. Learning about the more prevalent approaches and their unique philosophies can help parents select a program that works for their precocious children. Some of these approaches include childcare/daycare, early entrance, Head Start, Montessori, Reggio Emilia, and Waldorf. The National…

The underrepresentation of students from historically marginalized populations--including English language learners, twice-exceptional students, culturally and linguistically diverse students, and economically disadvantaged students--in our gifted programs and services continues to be a critical issue in education. The importance of a caring and…

Education has seen its share of trends and movements that either help or hinder the optimal development of the gifted child. In 2001, Congress passed No Child Left Behind (NCLB) in a concerted effort to reach children who were not meeting minimal standardized goals of achievement. Response to Intervention (RtI) is yet another approach to ensure…

"Developmentally appropriate practice" (DAP) is a term tossed about by practitioners as if everyone understands exactly what it means. DAP seems self-explanatory in that it requires educators to use only those strategies for teaching and discipline that are appropriate for the age of the child. The basic tenet of DAP rests on the assumed knowledge…

This book offers teachers of all grades teaching/management strategies for providing gifted students in regular classes the enriched curriculum they need. Chapter 1 describes the learning and behavioral characteristics of gifted students, especially noting underserved groups such as gifted children from multicultural and low socioeconomic…

This article provides strategies for teaching gifted students who have learning disabilities, including making sure students see the big picture before learning its pieces, teaching students to set realistic, short-term goals, making everything visual, providing hands-on situations, and using musical chants and rhymes. Guidelines for parents are…

Moving beyond the usual genetic explanations for giftedness, Dr. James Campbell presents powerful evidence that it is parental involvement--very specific methods of working with and nurturing a child which increases the child's chances of being gifted. Based on his research with parents of more than 10,000 gifted children around the world,…

The learning disabilities (LD) of some gifted students are categorized as subtle gifted LD, hidden gifted LD, and recognized LD and then discussed. Use of instructional strategies that are effective with gifted students and with students who have learning disabilities is recommended. (DB)

Whether math problems require computation skills, problem solving strategies, inferential thinking skills, or deductive reasoning, mathematically talented students are often able to discern answers with unusual speed and accuracy. Mathematically gifted students are able to see relationships among topics, concepts, and ideas without the…

Parents should encourage schools serving the gifted to establish a futures studies curriculum and should instill positive attitudes about the future in their children. Exercises to help develop foresight and perspective regarding the environment, technology, and human dignity are provided. (JDD)

Fifty-four gifted junior-high students were surveyed to explore their feelings about being gifted, perceptions as to why they do well, the challenge of schoolwork, feelings concerning their classmates' and teachers' views of them, male versus female respect, and preferences among school-based programing options. (JDD)