{"id":238805,"date":"2022-12-12T20:55:35","date_gmt":"2022-12-12T20:55:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buoyantbloomer.com\/?p=238805"},"modified":"2022-12-12T20:55:37","modified_gmt":"2022-12-12T20:55:37","slug":"gifted-programs-in-elementary-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buoyantbloomer.com\/gifted-programs-in-elementary-school\/","title":{"rendered":"4 things to assess in gifted programs in elementary school"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Gifted programs in elementary school\u00a0<\/a>should serve kids who often learn in a different way and at a different rate than other children. The whole point of gifted education is to provide children with appropriate opportunities to meet their needs so they can reach their full potential. So what should parents look for?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#1 An education that fits their intellectual level and talents<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In point #3 below, I run through the different ways gifted education approaches play out in America. The gold standard is the rarest: individual subject acceleration (which I don’t even cover below because it’s basically a unicorn). Gifted students need and deserve to learn something new every day, to be challenged, and to be understood and valued in the classroom.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So what if you’re in the situation where there are no gifted programs in elementary school? At a minimum, the regular curriculum needs to be adjusted or differentiated to be effective for high performing kids. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In many school tours, what I\u2019ve heard is that teachers will differentiate. In practice, when I go into classrooms on those tours, I see none of that. Either that school has no gifted students in any of their Kindergarten classes or I\u2019m being lied to or the truth is being stretched. It’s probably a function of the latter two, TBH. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, just allowing a kid to do extra reading while the rest of the class learns something he\/she has mastered is not doing parents a favor. I love how parents are forced to accept this option as a solution. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While it is true that curriculum and programming for gifted students is good for all students, gifted students can handle more complexity, greater depth, and faster pacing than their classmates can.\u00a0So here’s an unpopular truth:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A curriculum that truly meets the needs of gifted students would leave many classmates struggling.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

This is not good or bad. Dem\u2019s the facts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By differentiating the curriculum, educators argue that gifted students are served. Maybe. But the reality is that most classroom teachers, faced with 20 students (best case scenario), are not equipped to provide personalized or small group learning at many different levels simultaneously or<\/strong> consistently<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finding appropriate instruction for a talented student is hard during the early years, and rare for gifted programs in elementary schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#2 Learning with their true peers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A 6 year old with an IQ of 180 is intellectually basically on the same level as an 11-year old. But of course emotionally the 6 year old is not an 11-year old, and physically, he is not a teenager. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If there are no gifted programs in elementary schools near you, it\u2019s important to look to special programs outside of school to find true peers. Gifted children typically report they feel greater peer acceptance, social comfort, and self acceptance when they are in programs with similarly inclined peers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The NYC gifted and talented program has diluted the quality of the students<\/a> being accepted thanks to the subjective nature of evaluations, so in this case, parent beware. Your child may not find true peers even if he\/she is deemed eligible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#3 A supportive, responsive learning environment<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Programs should be matched to the needs of gifted students by providing a spectrum of options. This happens in a variety of ways across gifted programs in elementary schools:<\/p>\n\n\n\n