Application Project

Katrina Bech

Whitworth University EDG 551

There are persistent general stereotypes and attitudes about gifted individuals. These

stereotypes can prevent gifted students from engaging in services that would benefit and support

their talents. Dr. Shelagh Gallagher explained that there is a myth that gifted students do not

need special instruction (Palmetto Scholars Academy, 2009). Subotnik et al., (2011) listed this

myth among others in their examples of attitudes about gifted students,

Some examples of pervasive attitudes include…beliefs that gifted children will make it

on their own no matter what educational environment they are placed in… school

cultures that recognize and revere achievements in athletics, leadership, and the

performing arts while ignoring or downplaying the accomplishments of students whose

talents are academic in nature; and… widespread acceptance of disparaging stereotypes

of academically gifted individuals—such as “nerd” or “braniac”—in schools and popular

culture (p. 8).

Dweck (2006) argued that these stereotypes lead to negative outcomes for gifted individuals,

Many people outside the field of gifted education hold incorrect, negative, stereotyped

views of gifted individuals, including that they are bookish, nerdy, socially inept,

absentminded, emotionally dense, arrogant and unfriendly, and that they are loners.

These negative stereotypes can affect the choices made by students— whether or not to

pursue academics and strive for high achievement—especially on the part of some groups

in our society—most notably, minority children and females. Alternatively, incorrect

positive stereotypes, such as that gifted children are “naturals” and do not need to study
 or practice to reach higher levels of expertise and accomplishment, can result in children

holding deleterious beliefs about the role of effort, which ultimately thwarts them from

reaching their full potential (as cited in Subotnik et al., 2011, p. 10).

It is important that beginning teachers examine their own assumptions about gifted children and

understand the research concerning the needs of gifted students and strategies for meeting those

needs.

This workshop is intended for pre-service teachers starting their student teaching

experience. Exposing pre-service teachers to the research-based needs of gifted individuals

allows these beginning educators to incorporate research-based practices as they develop their

skills and approaches to education. The goals of this workshop are for student teachers to reflect

on their beliefs about giftedness, examine research about the needs of gifted students, review

strategies that support the social and emotional needs of gifted students, and develop a plan to

incorporate these strategies in their classrooms and schools to create a supportive, caring, and

appropriate environment for their gifted students.

The overall goal of this workshop is for participants to recognize that gifted students

benefit from educational programs and activities designed to meet their unique their needs.

Subotnik et al. (2011) highlighted several studies that discussed the importance of supporting

gifted students in the development of their talents, “ability is necessary for giftedness…but not

sufficient for the development of special talent…gifted achievement and eminence also depend

on appropriate teaching or coaching of psychosocial skills that include persistence and exertion

of effort” (p. 7). Along with recognizing that gifted students have special needs, this workshop

will demonstrate that integrating activities designed to benefit gifted students can become part of

their regular classroom routines and also benefit their nongifted students, “research has shown
that some curricula designed for advanced learners and instructional strategies (e.g., classroom

clustering) chosen to meet the needs of high-ability students have measurable benefits in terms of

achievement for students of all levels” (Subotnik, 2011, p. 11).

This workshop will be publicized at local universities and school districts through fliers

and contacts with mentor teachers and will take place on September 15th so that participants will

be able to apply their learning during their student teaching experience. The facilitator is a

teacher at Lewis and Clark High School and will utilize the new commons space to host this

workshop. This space will provide maximum flexibility for participant seating with stadium

seats for presentations, ample wall space for displaying posters and information, and tables for

small group work. The group size will be approximately 30 participants and the facilitator will

set up six round tables for participants to sit at. Participants will choose their own seats with the

expectation that groups have equal numbers of participants. There will be space at the back and

sides of the room for participants to walk around during the workshop as needed. Each table will

be supplied with a toolbox containing pens, pencils, highlighters, markers, sticky notes, and

rulers as well as blank paper for participants to use during the workshop. The facilitator will

utilize the projector and audio system to display the workshop PowerPoint which has participant

directions and video clips.

This workshop will include individual reflections, small group discussions and

presentations, and whole group discussions. Throughout the workshop, participants will be

encouraged to determine ways they can apply what they learn to their own classrooms and

schools.
 What Does it Mean to be Gifted? Exploring at the Social and Emotional Needs of Gifted
Students
Objectives:
1. Reflect on personal beliefs about giftedness
2. Examine research about the needs of gifted students
3. Review strategies that support the social and emotional needs of gifted students
4. Develop a plan to apply learning in current and future classrooms and schools to create a
supportive, caring, and appropriate environment for their gifted students
Materials
• Toolbox for each small group
o pens, pencils, highlighters, markers, sticky notes, rulers, blank paper
• Nametags
• Poster paper
• Tape (to hang posters)
• Copies of Hébert (2011) pages 19-27
• Copies of Hébert (2011) pages 197-205
• Copies of “Play partner” or “sure shelter”: What gifted children look for in friendship
article by Gross (2002)
• Copies Dabrowski’s Overexcitabilities graphic organizer
• Copies of Video reflections worksheet
• Copies of resources of further learning handout
Welcome (7 minutes)
• Greet every participant at the door and ask their name.
• Have nametag stickers for students to write their names so that everyone can use names
when talking with each other.
• Have music playing while participants are entering and getting settled.
• When everyone has arrived, have small groups do the Going to Boston (Hébert, 2011, p.
365) activity to get to know the people sitting at their table and to learn names.
o The purpose of doing this activity is for participants to get to know their
groupmates and to provide them an activity they could do with their students to
create an inviting environment.
o Workshop facilitator should participate in this activity with a group.
• Explain the goals for today’s workshop.
o Reflect on personal beliefs about giftedness
o Examine research about the needs of gifted students
o Review strategies that support the social and emotional needs of gifted students
o Develop a plan to apply learning in current and future classrooms and schools to
create a supportive, caring, and appropriate environment for their gifted students
 • We will be doing a variety of activities throughout the workshop including individual
reflections, small group work, whole group discussions, and team projects.
Reflect on personal beliefs about giftedness (9 minutes)
• 4 minutes → On a piece of paper participants write:
o Their definition of what it means to be gifted.
o Characteristics of gifted people.
o This is an individual activity and we will not share these because I want everyone
to be honest with what they know.
o We will return to these thoughts at the end of the workshop.
• 5 minutes →Ask participants about how gifted people are portrayed in popular culture.
o Show slides with images of movie and television characters who are gifted.
o Discuss with small groups:
▪ What do these depictions say about the social and emotional needs of
gifted individuals?
▪ Do you think these are accurate?
o Youngest member of each group will share a one sentence summary of their
discussion with the whole group.
o Facilitator will write down main ideas on poster paper.
Examine research about the needs of gifted students (27 minutes)
• 15 minutes → Split whole group in half. Half of the participants/small groups will
complete the Dabrowski’s Overexcitabilities activity and half will complete the friends
activity.
o Dabrowski’s Overexcitabilities.
▪ Pass out copies of pages 19-27 of Hébert’s text to each member of the
group.
▪ One person in each group reads about each of the overexcitabilities
(psychomotor, sensual, imaginational, intellectual, emotional) and then
fills out that section of the graphic organizer.
▪ Everyone shares their overexcitability with their group and completes the
Overexcitabilities graphic organizer.
▪ Each group hangs one completed chart on the wall.
▪ The purpose of doing this activity is for participants to learn about the
Overexcitabilities and to reflect on how schools can support these
students. This activity format is also one that the student teachers could
use in their classrooms for group projects or to help students summarize
and apply what they read.
o Friends
▪ Pass out copies of “Play partner” or “sure shelter” (Gross, 2002) and pages
197-205 in Hébert (2011).
• Small groups determine how to split up the reading amongst
themselves
 ▪ As a small group, create a handout about friendship and gifted students
that you could use to help parents understand stages of friendship and why
it may be difficult for their gifted child to find friends.
• Include strategies that could help children find and make friends
o Expected strategies:
▪ Extracurricular activities
▪ Acceleration
▪ Teaching social skills
▪ Hang these handouts around the room when finished
▪ The purpose of this activity is for participants to learn about the
challenges gifted students may face in finding friends and how schools and
parents can help these students. This activity is an opportunity for
creativity. Participants could use brochures, handouts, or posters as one
way for their students to show content mastery instead of using a
traditional paper/pencil test. Participants also are practicing ways to
communicate with parents.
o After 10 minutes, participants should walk around the room to look at the
friendship handouts and Overexcitabilities charts.
▪ Participants can take notes
▪ Participants can ask questions/leave comments by writing on a sticky note
and sticking it on the handout/chart.
• Facilitator will address these questions at the end of this learning
objective.
▪ The purpose of this activity is for all participants to examine the work
done by other groups and have an opportunity to review content that they
did not read. The graphic organizer for Dabrowski’s Overexcitabilities is
a quick reference and the friendship handouts serve as a quick summary of
important information. This activity puts the power of learning and
teaching in the hands of the participants, rather than focusing on the
teacher. This is one strategy for creating a healthy learning environment
where “the teacher clearly strives for student independence” (Tomlinson,
1999, as cited in Hébert, 2011, p. 346).
• 9 minutes →Stories from the Rearview Mirror: Lessons Learned from the Lives of Gifted
Adults
o Researcher interviewed Presidential Scholars, nationally recognized gifted
teenagers, over their lifetimes.
o Show 16:45-21:53 – Being gifted does not make someone invulnerable
o Give 1 minute for participants to write how that made them feel/takeaways
o Give 3 minutes to share responses in small groups
o The purpose of this activity is for participants to understand that there is more to
gifted students than their gift. They have the same need for support and care that
their nongifted peers have. There is a perception that gifted students can handle
anything because they are gifted and this clip gives examples of gifted individuals
who struggle too. This is a reflection and discussion activity so participants who
 are verbal processors can talk through their thoughts on what they just watched.
Participants can use a similar format with their students when teaching about or
discussing social and emotional issues with them.
• 3 minutes → Facilitator can answer the questions from the gallery walk directly or by
addressing them to groups that completed each activity.
BREAK (7 minutes)
• Participants can chat, look at information posted around the room, speak with the
facilitator, stretch, etc.
Review strategies that support the social and emotional needs of gifted students (16
minutes)
• 2 minutes → Do Schools Kill Creativity?
o 15:15-17:50 – Story of Gillian Lynne who was fidgety and lousy at school; when
taken to a dance school she found people who were just like her and she thrived.
o The purpose of this clip is to show that gifted students thrive when given
opportunities to pursue their talents. This clip also illustrates the power in gifted
students finding others like them.
• 5 minutes → Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance
o 1:31-6:12 – The most successful people are those who are the grittiest.
o The purpose of this clip is to highlight that talent does not guarantee success and
to introduce or remind participants of the principles of growth mindset.
Participants need to understand that gifted kids need to have their talents
nurtured and build their capacity to persevere.
• 4 minutes → Complete reflection after each clip (2 minutes each)
o The purpose of this activity is for students to tie what they have seen and heard
from the clips with what they can do in their classrooms to support the needs of
their gifted students.
• 5 minutes → Whole group discussion on strategies to support the social and emotional
needs of gifted students.
o Remember that we cannot control everything. Educators influence only a fraction
of a child’s environment, but what we do with that space can impact the other
spheres.
o What are some ideas for supporting the social and emotional needs of gifted
students?
▪ Possible responses – Facilitator can add any strategies that the group does
not mention as needed
• Build relationships with students as individuals
• Connect students with others who share the same passions
o Peers or mentors
• Talking with students about their feelings
• Allow time for reflection and class discussions about social and
emotional issues
 • Create spaces for high energy kids to productively expend energy
• Teach social skills such as how to talk with peers
• Use films and literature
• Organize community service projects and/or extracurricular
activities
o Facilitator writes ideas on poster paper so participants can reference for the next
activity.
Develop a plan to apply learning in current and future classrooms and schools to create a
supportive, caring, and appropriate environment for their gifted students (21 minutes)
• 12 minutes → Work together with small group to develop an ideal plan for supporting the
social and emotional needs of gifted students.
o This can be within the confines of a traditional school setting or it can be an
independent, specialized school or classroom.
o What resources would be available to teachers? What resources would be
available to students? Why would these be helpful?
o What activities or programs would be established to meet the needs of gifted
students? Why would these be beneficial to students?
o What would the physical school or classrooms look like?
o The purpose of this activity is for participants to apply what they have learned
about the needs of gifted students to the real schools and classrooms that they will
be returning to. How can they use this information to improve the school lives of
the gifted students in their classes? Participants can think about programs and
initiatives they should advocate for in their building and activities where they may
want to volunteer.
• 9 minutes → Each group will put their plan outline on a poster
o Small groups will briefly share their plans with the whole group
o Whole group participants will be able to ask follow up and/or clarifying questions
o The purpose of this activity is for participants to hear ideas from their peers and
to learn from them. Participants can use student presentations to teach material
in their own classrooms. Student presentations celebrate student learning and
contribute to an inviting classroom environment.
Wrap Up (3 minutes)
• Look back at definition and characteristics of giftedness from the beginning of the
workshop.
o Would you change your definition?
• What are important characteristics of gifted children that teachers need to understand to
effectively nurture and support these kids?
Take Home Resources for Participants
• Resources for further learning handout
o List of resources that participants could use to continue their learning
o Includes links to all references and videos used during the workshop as well as
additional resources
• Pages 19-27 and 197-205 from Hébert (2011)
o Copies of text on Dabrowski’s Overexcitabilities and friendship
• “Play partner” or “sure shelter”: What gifted children look for in friendship
o Article about friendship and gifted children
• Dabrowski’s Overexcitabilities graphic organizer
o Summary of the overexcitabilities
o Participants determined specific ways that schools can support these students
• Video reflections worksheet
o Individual reflections on how participants could incorporate strategies in their
own classrooms
References
Duckworth, A. L. (2013, April). Grit: The power of passion and perseverance [Video]. TED.

https://www.ted.com/talks/angela_lee_duckworth_grit_the_power_of_passion_and_perse

verance

Gross, M. (2002, May). “Play partner” or “sure shelter”: What gifted children look for in

friendship. http://www.davidsongifted.org/Search-Database/entry/A10255

Hébert, T. (2011). Understanding the social and emotional lives of gifted students. Prufrock

Press Inc.

UGA Mary Frances Early College of Education. (2015, October 28). Stories from the rear view

mirror: Lessons learned from the lives of gifted adults [Video]. YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Seyb9YmSFgc

Palmetto Scholars Academy. [palmettoscholarsacad]. (2009, November 26). Dr. Shelagh

Gallagher on Palmetto Scholars Academy’s gifted and talented curriculum [Video].

YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPjjgD-qMyc

Robinson, K. (2006, February). Do schools kill creativity? [Video]. TED.

https://www.ted.com/talks/sir_ken_robinson_do_schools_kill_creativity

Subotnik, R., Olszewski-Kubilius, P., & Worrell, F. (2011). Rethinking giftedness and gifted

education: A proposed direction forward based on psychological science. Psychological

Science in the Public Interest, 12(1), 3-54.