GIFTED & LEARNING EXCEPTIONALITIES

Twice exceptional: Intellectually gifted children who have some form of disability.
- dyslexia
- visually impaired
- hearing impaired
- communication disorder
- behavior disorder
- emotionally disturbed
- physically disabled
- learning disabled
- Autism
- Asperger's syndrome
- ADD
- ADHD
-Bipolar disorder
- Depression - Anxiety Disorders
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Effective Practices for Finding and Serving Gifted Students with Disabilities
1. Actively seek gifted students among those with disabilities.
2. Learn the student's symbol system to accurately read intended meanings.
3. Check for understanding of the student's messages.
4. Allow time for communication of messages from students.
5. Make students an active part of the class.
6. Facilitate social interactions first and then allow classmates to take over.
7. Encourage cooperation in learning tasks and change partners often.
8. Modify instruction as needed, but no more than is necessary.
9. Provide many different types of learning experiences through many modalities.
10. Individualize pace and choice of learning activities.
11. Hold high expectations for students with disabilities.
Clark, B. (2002). Growing Up Gifted (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
Ways to Discriminate between Dependence and Disability
Dependence
1. Child asks for explanations regularly despite
differences in subject matter.
2. Child asks for explanations of instructions
regardless of style used, either auditory or visual.
3. Individually administered measures of ability
indicate that the child is capable of learning the
material. Individual tests improve with tester
encouragement and support. Group measures may
not indicate good abilities or skills.
4. Child exhibits "poor me" body language (tears,
helplessness, pouting, copying) regularly when new
work is presented. Teacher or adult attention serves
to ease the symptoms.
5. Child learns only when given one-to-one
instruction but will not learn in groups even when
instructional mode is varied.

Disability
Child asks for explanations in particular subjects
that are difficult.
Child asks for instructions only when given in one
instruction style, either auditory or visual but not
both.
Both individual and group measures indicate lack
of specific abilities or skills. Tester encouragement
has no significant effect on scores.
Child exhibits "poor me" body language only with
instructions or assignments in specific disability
areas and accepts challenges in areas of strength.
Although child may learn more quickly in one-toone setting, he/she will also learn efficiently in a
group setting provided the child's disability is taken
into consideration when instructions are given.

Davis, G.A. & Rimm. S.B. (2004). Education of the Gifted and Talented (5ht ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson
Education. Inc.