Gifted Females

Malaina Simms
Shalisa Gee
Jovonna Rodriguez
Melissa Jones

Activity
Real Life: Stories of Gifted Females
Each group will be given a
description of a gifted female.
Read over the description with your
group and discuss the questions.
Use the sticky- notes to write down
your thoughts. Post them on the
back.
Be ready to share your response with
the class.

Our Definition of Giftedness

Individuals who are
exceptional in the areas of
creativity, intellect,
curiosity, alternative
thinking who are generally
considered to be different
from the norm.

Characteristics of Gifted
Females
Academic Behaviors
Reads voraciously and retains what she reads
Communicates ideas well both verbally and in writing
Possesses superior analytical and conceptual abilities
Explores issues from multiple points of view
Creative Behaviors
Expresses unusual, out-of-the-ordinary points of view
Demonstrates special ability in the visual arts
Shows promise in performing arts (music, drama, dance)
Manifests improvisational ability in a variety of contexts

Famous Gifted Females

Susan B. Anthony:
advocate of womens
right
Emily Dickson: writer
Oprah: philanthropist
Barbara Walters:
reporter
Condoleezza Rice:
politics
Mae Jemison: astronaut
Whitney Houston:
music

Maria Curie: Polishborn French physicist

and chemist best known
for her contributions to
radioactivity.
Aretha Franklin:
musician
Florence Nightingale:
nurse
Peal S. Buck: writer
Michelle Obama

Gender Bias Issues

Many gifted women may have
constraining experiences because of
gender, such as being seen as
threatening to some men - and other
women - in positions of authority.
Some may feel pain at being different
from "the way women are supposed to
be" and have a need to hide their
abilities to "fit in" with more "normal"
society.

Gender Bias Issues

Differential treatment is started at an
early age starting with parents.
Gifted women in the workplace they seem
to lose their sense of confidence and tend
to shy down from those higher positions.
Gifted women in school tend to face many
pressures in school which forces them to
shift their priorities which shys them
away from their real talents.

Barriers
for the Gifted Female
I was never called by my own name until my
husband died. As a young girl, I was always
Arthur's daughter. When I married, I was Charlie's
wife. When I had children, I was Sarah and
David's mother. It was only after my children
grew up and my husband died, that I was called
by my own name. I realized I had lost my sense of
self as a young girl, and only regained it as an
older woman. (Unknown, Reis 1998)

External Barriers

Lack of support from family

Stereotyping
Acculturation (home, school, society)
Finances

Internal Barriers

Self-doubt/low self-esteem (The Great Impostor Syndrome)

Self-criticism
Lowered expectations
Attributing success to effort rather than ability
Apathy (feelings of inferiority)
Acceptance
Conflict between cultural identity and school achievement
Fear of success
Poor planning
Not putting self first
Perfectionism
Loneliness/Betrayal
Physical Attractiveness

Parenting a Gifted Female

Help develop and support your daughters
academic and extracurricular interests and
talents
Develop independence
Encourage interests, humor, positive risktaking
Refrain from making unreasonable demands
Withhold criticism on weight and appearance
Foster a secure sense of self

Programs for Gifted Females

Conferences
Scholarships
Educational Programs
STEM

Conferences
Purpose

Special conferences
for gifted girls are
organized in various
states to enable
students to meet
nationally, recognize
other professionals,
and develop a career
path.

Gifted Girls
Conference
Example
(Southern
Methodist
University)
Young, Black &
Gifted African
American Young
Womens
Conference
Educating Gifted
and Talented
Children

Scholarships & Educational Programs

There are a lot of scholarships for gifted and talented students.
Many of the scholarships are based on gender, age, and location.
The following offer examples and resources of different scholarships
for gifted students and gifted females.

Davidson Young Scholars

Summer Opportunities for
Gifted Students
:
WISE Summer Camp
(Denison University)
Ross Mathematics Program
(Ohio State University)
GRASP Summer Camp
(Ohio State): centered
around physics activities
Summer Programs on Davidso
n Website
are listed by topic of interest
ranging from Arts to Science.

TAG Summer Scholarship

s
( Texas)
25 Scholarships for Gift
ed Students
Davidson Fellows Scho
larship
(ceremony in D.C):
Students receive
$10,000- $50,000;
application categories
include Science,
Technology, Engineering,
Mathematics, Literature,

Science. Technology. Engineering.

Mathematics (STEM) Programs for
Women
National Girls Collaborative
Project (NGCP)

The NGCP brings

together US
organizations that
focus on motivating
girls to pursue careers
in STEM fields. The
program directory
currently lists over
2,000 organizations
and programs by
geographic location.

Girls Electronic Ment

oring
in Science,
Engi
GEM-SET
is part of the
neering
and
Technology
Women in
Science
&
Engineering program at the
University of Illinois at
Chicago. The goal of GEMSET is to connect young
girls in middle school and
high school with
professional women
mentors in the STEM fields.
Girls must be affiliated with
a partner organization.

Science. Technology. Engineering.

Mathematics (STEM) Programs for
Women
Association for Women in Ma
thematics

(AWM)

The
AWM Mentor Netwo
rk
matches mentors
with girls and
women who are
interested in
mathematics or are
pursuing careers in
mathematics

My Gifted Girl
My Gifted Girl is a
community for gifted
girls and women in all
subjects, including
STEM fields. They
serve as a resource for
parents, educators,
mentors and other
organizations that
support talented girls
and women

Q/A
Which is an academic
characteristic of a Gifted Female?
a) Reads voraciously and retains what
she reads
b) Communicates ideas well both
verbally and in writing
c) Possesses superior analytical and
conceptual abilities
d) All of the above

Q/A
What is the main purpose of
conferences and other
extracurricular opportunities for
gifted females?
a) To develop gifted females
academically.
b) To develop gifted females socially.
c) To develop gifted females on a
career path.
d) All of the above.

Q/A
What should parents do to
encourage their gifted female
child?
a) Foster a secure sense of self.
b) Encourage creativity.
c) Develop independence
d) All of the above.

Q/A
When boys called out, teachers listen,
when girls called out, they were told to
raise your hand if you want to speak.
True or False
Teachers call on and interact with boys
more than girls (Sadker & Sadker,
1994).

Q/A
Teachers often give girls less meaningful and less
critical praise than boys. Boys' work is described as
unique or brilliant, while girls' work is often
undervalued, critically ignored, and praised for its
appearance. True or False

This aspect of teachers' behavior is particularly

detrimental to girls because it means they do not
receive feedback on their work that could help them
develop deeper understandings of concepts (Liu, 2006).

Resources
http://www.smu.edu/simmons/communityenrichment/gsi/studen
tservices/girlsconference
http://sdvoice.info/young-black-gifted-women-are-empowered
-and-equipped-at-inaugural-african-american-young-womens-c
onference/
http://www.world-gifted.org/sites/default/files/2013WorldCon
ferenceProgram.pdf
http://www.warrencountyesc.com/docs/Summer%20Opportuni
ties%20for%20Gifted%202014.pdf
http://www.nagc.org/index.aspx?id=1104
http://www.davidsongifted.org/db/Articles_id_10171.aspx
http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/general/faculty/reis/Internal_Barr
iers_Gifted_Females.html
http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/general/faculty/reis/External_Barr
iers.html