The humanities and the gifted

The humanities can provide the means for integrating specialized information while encouraging consideration of alternative solutions to mankind's problems in a curriculum for the gifted.     

The language arts gifted student

Parents who want appropriate educational experiences for their children should provide differential education opportunities for their children at home.     

The anxiety of the gifted

Integrating the study of humor in the classroom is one method to recognize creative talent and to develop that talent.     

Program reevaluation: The gifted controversy

Gifted reevaluations consume an enormous amount of professional time and energy. The purpose of the present study was to survey gifted education teachers' and supervisors' perceptions of current gifted reevaluation practices. Results showed most gifted educators were not in agreement with the practice of using gifted reevaluations to reestablish program eligibility. Instead, they would prefer to get information relevant to program evaluation, program planning, and the need for additional services. Included among the alternatives suggested to replace the present gifted reevaluation practices were consideration of student work products, motivation, and interest; reports by parents and by regular and gifted education teachers; and monitoring the student progress made in achieving the goals of the individual educational program.     

The adolescent dyslexic: Strategies for spelling

The adolescent dyslexic student’s problems with spelling are very different from those of a young dyslexic child, as he already has considerable knowledge of the English spelling system. But this knowledge is very often random and confused, so he needs to acquire a logical structure which will enable him to generate spelling for himself and to communicate effectively in writing. It will be suggested that accuracy is not always attainable, but the student can be taught to recognize and use the main components of the spelling system and can learn to employ all available resources. The general aim is to provide the dyslexic adolescent with the tools he needs to cope with his spelling requirements, both in school and outside; to make informed deductions; to think for himself. In short, to spell independently and logically.     

The spelling strategies of francophone dyslexic students

The development of spelling skill is a very difficult task for students with dyslexia. Spelling in French involves the consideration of various types of knowledge, procedures and strategies. This study aims to describe the spelling strategies of 32 dyslexic students (DYS) aged from 8 to 12 years and to establish links between spelling strategies and spelling skill. Students had to spell 24 dictated words and provide comments on the strategy employed for each word. The performances of DYS were compared to 25 children of the same chronological age (CA) and of 24 children of the same reading age (RA). The results show that phonological strategies are the most commonly used by all groups of participants. If no particular strategy is related to the spelling skill of DYS, visuo-orthographic strategy generally accounts for the spelling skill results of CA and RA.     

The psychological needs of the gifted

The author describes how a community resource program was established in a small city as part of the program for gifted students.     

The mathematical abilities of dyslexic 10-year-olds

Seventy-two items testing various aspects of mathematics were given to 12,131 ten-year-old children. Criteria for specific developmental dyslexia (SDD) and for other groupings are specified. Despite the absence of differences in intelligence level, the mean score on the mathematics test for the dyslexics was not only lower than that of the normal achievers but lower also than that of underachievers believed not to be dyslexic. On some of the 72 items, there was little difference in percentage pass rate between the groups; on others, however, there were wide differences. On the basis of ratings carried out “blind” by a panel of experienced teachers of dyslexic children, and in the light of other considerations, some tentative suggestions are put forward as to what it is about certain mathematical items that makes them relatively hard or easy for children with dyslexia.     

The gifted migrant child: An introduction

This article discusses the need for educators of the gifted to work with educators of the migrant child in order to identify those students who are both migrant and gifted. The Federal definition of migrant, migrant streams, and typical factors that handicap the migrant student are explained. The Migrant Student Record Transfer System is described as a vehicle for nominating and identifying potentially gifted students.