This document is intended to assist local school personnel with the implementation of the Virginia State Standards of Quality requirements and regulations governing educational services for gifted students. Preliminary sections present a rationale for the Virginia Plan for the Gifted, a statement of goals, and a definition of giftedness (including…

The New York Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) studies of public schools continue with this report on course work for gifted students and public middle school students in general. Fourteen ACORN volunteers made 52 visits to 28 schools studied in 1996. Findings from these visits and the review of school system documents…

This document consists of the six volume 4 issues of the journal "Understanding Our Gifted." The six issues focus on student research, technology and education, empowering parents, assessing the gifted, collaborative efforts, and family relationships, respectively. Feature articles have the following titles and authors: "Inside…

The Cognitive Education Project centered at the University of Alberta undertook a 3-year longitudinal evaluation of two cognitive education programs aimed at teaching thinking skills. The critical difference between the two experimental programs was that one, Feuerstein's Instrumental Enrichment (IE) method was taught out of curricular content,…

This report provides research-based answers to questions about literacy development from infancy to age 6, with emphasis on the development of these skills in precocious readers. The question-answer format considers the importance of reading with young children, other activities to help young children learn to read, normal development of reading…

This theme issue presents a variety of viewpoints on the topic of educational programs for gifted and talented students, in three papers by Anne Turnbaugh Lockwood. The first paper, "Beyond the Golden Chromosome," reviews the ideas of Joseph S. Renzulli concerning the definition of giftedness, use of the label of gifted, the need for…

This paper considers the importance of caring for gifted children and identifies specific challenges facing Canada as the country tries to provide caring gifted education. "Caring" is defined and the importance of modeling caring behaviors so that children learn to care for others is stressed. The paper summarizes legislation and…

This publication is a comprehensive report on the George Engelmann Mathematics and Science Institute's Science Scholar program (SSP) and its activities in 1993. The SSP provides high achieving high school students an introductory, 4-week summer curriculum designed to demonstrate the connecting thread running through all scientific thought. The 52…

The issue of inclusion has been at the forefront of attention in education, and has been widely discussed and debated. Since teachers will be the primary service deliverers of whatever inclusion practices are adopted, this study was conducted in an attempt better to understand teachers' understanding and perceptions of inclusion. Focus group…

To provide a differentiated language arts program to meet the needs of highly able and gifted readers and to encourage interest in reading and the development of state reading goals, students in the sixth grade of a middle school in Maryland were grouped by ability for their language arts/reading classes. Students were exposed to a wide variety of…

A major effort of Project Synthesis was the analysis of written reports, problem statements, new foundation programs, and current research that provided clues as to ideal state conditions in science teaching. A classification scheme that included five focal areas was used in the Project (elementary science, biology, physical science, inquiry, and…

The learning approaches of secondary students were studied for 495 eighth-, tenth- and twelfth-grade students in Singapore. The focus was on determining: (1) the dominant approach used by students in learning different academic subjects (English, Chinese, mathematics, and science); (2) the motive-strategy consequence in learning these different…

Case studies are used to illustrate issues in the identification of gifted and talented American Indian children and the development of appropriate programs that respond to individual needs and cultural values. Emphasis is placed on the identification of students who do not manifest their high intellectual and creative abilities in ways accepted…

Ten model teaching units are offered for use with academically gifted students at elementary grade levels. The units are interdisciplinary, reflect a concern for basic skills, can be used in a variety of settings, and emphasize development of critical and creative thinking skills. "All in the Family," by Patricia Wofford, acquaints students with a…

The paper considers pressures on bright children and the relationship of such pressures to underachievement. It gives specific suggestions on the prevention of underachievement to both parents and teachers. Pressures often felt by gifted children include pressures to be brilliant, to be creative, to do something spectacular, to find oneself, to be…