Twice Exceptional Gifted and Learning Disabled

Presented by: Rebecca L. Mann Coordinator of Gifted and Talented Services Bow Elementary School Bow, NH 1

Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Definition of Giftedness

United States Office of Education definition of Gifted and Talented Students

"those who have outstanding abilities, are capable of high performance and who require differentiated educational programs (beyond those normally provided by regular school programs) in order to realize their contribution to self and society."

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Characteristics of Giftedness

Reasons well Excellent memory Compassionate Morally sensitive High degree of energy Great sense of humor Mature judgment Highly creative Learns rapidly Long attention span Extensive vocabulary Sensitive Perfectionistic Strongly curious Intense Perseveres in interests Prefers older companions Wide range of interests Avid reader Keen observer Tends to question authority Concerned with justice Vivid imagination

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Definition of Learning Disabilities

Public Law 94 - 142 "a child has a severe discrepancy between achievement and intellectual ability in one or more of the following areas: (I) oral expression (ii) listening comprehension (iii) (iv) written expression basic reading skill (v) (vi) reading comprehension mathematics reasoning "disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or using language, spoken or written, which may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell or do mathematical calculations."

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

A Learning Disability is a neurological/physiological difference in the way the brain is organized.

The U.S. Department of Education, in a written response to questions from the Learning Disabilities Association of North Carolina, states that, "...each child who is evaluated for a suspected learning disability must be measured against his or her own expected performance, and not against some arbitrary general standard."

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Characteristics of Twice Exceptional Learners

Signs of Giftedness Signs of Learning Disabilities ~excellent long-term memory ~extensive vocabulary ~ excels in reading comprehension ~excels in mathematical reasoning ~advanced verbal skills in discussions ~facile with computers ~grasps abstract concepts ~performs better with challenging work ~thrives on complexity ~highly creative, imaginative ~reasons well ~is a keen observer ~may have acute hearing ~has very interesting ideas, extremely curious ~had high degree of energy ~perceptive ~insightful (seems "wise") ~excellent sense of humor ~may excel at art, science, geometry, mechanics, technology, or music ~poor short-term memory ~speaking vocabulary more sophisticated than written ~struggles with decoding words ~does poorly at computation ~refuses to do written work ~handwriting is illegible ~has difficulty with spelling and phonics ~struggles with easy, sequential material ~difficulty with rote memorization ~often inattentive in class ~emotions can overpower reasoning ~poor auditory memory ~poor listening skills ~weak in language mechanics ~may be unable to learn unless interested ~performs poorly on timed tests ~hopelessly disorganized ~finds clever ways to avoid weak areas ~may fail at foreign languages and subjects emphasizing audition, sequencing, memory (Silverman)

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Strengths vs. Deficiencies

Strengths Thinking Abilities High Creativity Long-term Memory Abstractions Problem Solving Insight Deficiencies Self Expression Organizational Abilities Short-term Memory Sense Perceptions (distractibility, static on the auditory channel, sensori-motor) Social Interactions Self-esteem (Coleman, 1996) Organizational Difficulties can be: Thoughts going in Thoughts coming out Stuff Time

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Indicators of Ability - Achievement Discrepancy

Look for kids whose performance varies significantly in different areas.

Look beyond test scores.

WISC Studies have shown no consistent pattern in twice exceptional students There may be a discrepancy between Verbal and Performance IQ but it is much more important to look at the subtests.

There is a tendency for twice exceptional children to have: Trouble with: Arithmetic, Digit Span, Coding sometimes: Picture Completion High scores in: Comprehension, Vocabulary often: Information, Similarities, Picture Arrangement, and Block Design Divergent answers bring down the score. Twice exceptional children tend to elaborate during testing. That is their way of demonstrating their knowledge or creativity.

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Categories of Twice Exceptional Learners Identified Gifted - Unidentified Learning Disabled Unidentified Gifted - Unidentified Learning Disabled Unidentified Gifted - Identified Learning Disabled

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Identified Gifted - Unidentified Learning Disabled

~good verbal skills ~poor spelling and/or handwriting ~disorganized in their classwork ~discrepancies between strengths and weaknesses widen as they grow older ~often viewed as "underachieving" ~if identified LD - tremendous weight lifted off their shoulders ~often passed over for LD support because they are achieving at grade level

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Unidentified Gifted - Unidentified Learning Disabled

~bright enough to compensate for their learning disability ~usually appear as average students ~usually recognize their giftedness and disability as adults ~need occasions where they can show their superior thinking in creative ways ~LD masks gifts and gifts mask LD ~often gifts emerge in specific content areas or in learning environments where non-traditional methods are used

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Unidentified Gifted - Identified Learning Disabled

~usually excel in an area of interest ~disability depresses their intellectual performance ~good reasoning and thinking skills detected by teachers and/or parents ~first noticed for what they cannot do ~most "at risk" because the LD label tends to have a focus on deficits ~focus is so much on their disability it is difficult for them to give themselves credit for their abilities ~often have incredible projects in the works at home

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Gifted Learning Disabled or Underachievement?

Just because a gifted student is not producing does not mean he or she is learning disabled.

Other reasons for underachievement: Unrealistic expectations by others May seek rewards in different environments Motivation, interest, and specific aptitude influence the amount of effort Student's self-expectations can be too high (a task may never be able to be completed to perfection) Student may have a conflict with the school value system i.e. grades are trivial May have never learned study skills due to ease of curriculum in earlier grades Social or emotional problems (Baum, 1991)

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

ADHD vs. Gifted

ADHD (DSM-IV, 1994) G/T (Silverman, 1993) ~difficulty with sustained attention, daydreaming ~failure to concentrate unless in one-to-one ~failure to complete independent activities ~ability to listen attentively seems diminished ~poor attention, often due to boredom, daydreaming ~lack of persistence on tasks that seem irrelevant ~task completion often reliant on personal interests ~often appears bored during discussions ~messy, disorganized environment ~impulsivity, poor judgment in situations ~problems adhering to rules for regulating behavior ~intensity possibly leading to struggles with authority ~activity level often heightened ~frequently high activity ~trouble following directions ~possible disinterest in organization ~judgment lags behind intellectual development ~questions rules, directions

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

ADHD ~often fails to finish tasks, especially those demanded externally ~distractible but not in all situations ~frequent shifts in activities ~does not appear to listen ~daydreams ~often misplaces items needed for work completion ~difficulty organizing work ~needs a lot of supervision in order to meet deadlines ~excessive activity ~often engages in challenges without considering consequences ~frequently acts without thinking ~solitary activities often preferred ~social interactions may be negative ~talks while tackling tasks ~prone to rapid changes in mood HIGHLY CREATIVE ~broad range of interest often prohibits task completion ~great attention in self-selected work ~labile and sometimes erratic ~hypomanic to the point of not listening ~imaginative ~so preoccupied as often to overlook the concrete ~finds order amidst chaos ~freedom of spirit that rejects externally imposed limits ~high energy level ~willing to take risks in order to satisfy plans for creative pursuits ~often impulsive in actions ~independent often preferring to be alone ~little interest in relationships ~self-talk during creative work ~often experiences emotional variability

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(Cramond, 1994)

Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Is it ADHD or Giftedness?

Does the child show these behaviors at home?

Could a lack of interest or relevancy play a part? Is the child unable to concentrate even when interested in the subject?

Have any curricular modifications been made in an attempt to change the behaviors?

Has the child been interviewed? What are his or her feelings about the behaviors?

Does the child feel out of control? Do the parents perceive the child to be out of control?

Has the child been taught strategies to limit stimuli and deal with stress? Has the child been taught appropriate social skills?

Can the "inattentive" child repeat the instructions?

Do the behaviors occur at certain times of the day, during certain subjects, with certain teachers, in certain environments and not in other circumstances?

Is the child getting the appropriate amount of teacher attention? Does the child demand constant attention from the teacher?

Is the child just demonstrating his or her personality, type of giftedness, or intensity?

(Lind and Silverman, 1994)

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Strategies for Teaching the Twice Exceptional Student

NURTURE GIFTS, RESPECT CHILD Curricular Needs Differentiation Challenging material at advanced level Interdisciplinary Don't make everything a secret Language Arts lesson Make the curriculum relevant Provide an individually paced curriculum in areas of giftedness and disability Using strengths to compensate for weaknesses Find a mentor in the child’s area of interest who likes child Find the child’s interest area and use that area to remediate Love sharks + poor reader = start with books about sharks

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Strategies for Teaching the Twice Exceptional Student

Accommodations Books on tape AlphaSmart or other word processor Spell checker/spelling guide Inspiration software Assisted note taking Computers for instruction Study guides Highlight in different colors Yellow for spelling errors Pink for grammar errors Gather information through interviews, videos, experiments, visitations Options for communicating ideas Slides, models, speeches, mime, mural, video production Avoid rote memorization and timed tests Tape lectures Calculator Oral tests Abbreviate written assignments Allow extra time for assignments and tests

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Strategies for Teaching the Twice Exceptional Student

Teaching Strategies Equate success with effort Promote active inquiry involving discussion and experimentation Provide open-ended challenges that require divergent thinking Offer options that enable child to use his strengths and learning style Incorporate projects that investigate real problems and have real audiences Highlight abstract thinking Design enrichment activities to circumvent weaknesses Provide options to all students so child doesn't feel singled out Encourage looking for relationships and patterns Create a supportive environment Model celebrating individual differences Minimize "teacher talk" Use mnemonics for concepts requiring recall Encourage visualization Get eye contact before speaking Teach goal setting Independent Projects in area of interest Teach child how to break down project into parts Allow child opportunity to share with class - showcase the talent

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Strategies for Teaching the Twice Exceptional Student

Counseling Provide emotional support Teach child to be his or her own advocate If possible, have child work with group of other twice exceptional students Help child become aware of strengths and weaknesses Teach social skills Find role models Organizational Strategies Color code book covers and notebooks Graphic organizers Create flow charts Colored stickers on desk Red for turn in homework Yellow for put homework in backpack Blue for take lunchbox home

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Twice Exceptional - Gifted and Learning Disabled

Strategies for Teaching the Twice Exceptional Student

Time management How long do you think it will take? Have student time himself or herself.

Use egg timer Get watch with alarm Strategies for parents Take photos of things to remember and tape to the back of the door or mirror Rearrange room to make it practical Find a tutor - don't be the homework heavy - celebrate child's gifts Work with the school to create a supportive team Be a role model Focus on effort, not grades Do not allow child to use learning disability as an excuse Expect child to use skills; have child do practical tasks (I.e. thank you notes)

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