Identification
How Do I Know if My Child is Gifted?
Gifted students are those children and youth whose abilities, talents, and potential for accomplishments are so outstanding that they require special provisions to meet their educational needs, both in academic and social/emotional realms. Gifted students have abilities and/or talents that lie well outside the norms of the typical learner and, therefore, require significant modifications to the pacing, depth, and complexity of curriculum and instruction. (Colorado Department of Education) Many gifted students are also high achievers; however, many are not. High achievers are not always gifted students. Here are a few characteristics of high achievers, gifted learners, and creative thinkers.
High Achiever | Gifted Learner | Creative Thinker |
Works hard to achieve | Knows without working hard | Plays with ideas and concepts |
Is attentive | Is selectively mentally engaged | Daydreams; may seem off task |
Learns with ease | Already Knows | Questions: What if?... |
Is accurate and complete | Is original and continually developing | Is original and continually developing |
Is highly alert and observant | Anticipates and relates observations | Is intuitive |