Learning+Disabled+Gifted+Students

media type="youtube" key="z2hLa5kDRCA" width="425" height="350" align="right"

Learning Disabled Gifted Students By: Miranda Gresham ** Who are they? 1.) A student who is identified gifted yet has subtle learning disabilities 2.) A student who is identified as disabled but is later found to have a gift in some area 3.) A student whose gifts and disabilities mask one another causing them to perform at an average level

Identification ​ Identification can be very difficult because these students often use their gifts to compensate for their disabilities. For example, I grew up with Asperger Syndrome, OCD was borderline ADHD, had motor skill problems, and difficulties with visual spatial reasoning. At the same time, I was reading 6th grade level books in 2nd grade and had an IQ of 150. I wasn't identified as LD/G until the end of my 2nd grade year. Thanks to some great teachers, a great OT and medication, I learned how to succeed in school. A few years ago, I met another learning disabled gifted student while I was on a trip with my church. She had a more severe form of Autism and hardly spoke at all and had a lot more difficulty with sensory integration than me. She was very fortunate in that she was identified very quickly as LD/G. However, she was a very talented artist and could draw just about anything. The team and I then figured out that the best way to teach her was through pictures. She learned everything very well once we started implementing this idea. It turned out to be a great experience for me, the rest of the team, and our friend. Many students aren't as fortunate and end up falling through the cracks of the education system. There are however some things we can look for as teachers: difficulty staying on task, difficulty staying organized, poor spelling or math skills, wide variety of interests, and extraordinary talent in some area such as music, art, linguistics or science. If you notice one or more of these characteristics in one of your students, talk to the child's parent or guardian and recommend that he or she be tested. The earlier a student is identified, the better. It is much easier for these students if they start learning how to compensate when they are younger.

Tips for working with students The most important thing you can do for any of these students no matter what type of disability they're facing, is to teach them not to focus on what they cannot do, but what they can do. Help them see their own potential. Show them how they can use their extraordinary abilities to compensate for their disability. Also, give them tools to use. Today's technology can be a great aid. For example, if you have a student who has difficulty writing, a few tools that can help him or her are voice activated software or word processing. If you have a student with dyslexia, it would be to their benefit to have audio taped textbooks. It is also helpful if they have demonstrations and interactive multimedia. The smart board is great for these students whether they have a disability or not. There are also some very simple things you can do to help your students with organization and staying on task. In fact, I imagine that these would also be beneficial to all students. Based on the way that the student's mind works, help them create an organization system that works for them. For example, some students might do better with binders with dividers while others might prefer color coded folders for each subject. The same idea applies to techniques for helping students to stay on task. Some students might find it helpful to have a daily task list to keep them accountable for what they need to get done while others might prefer post-it notes placed in strategic locations. If they complete their tasks in the allotted amount of time, give them some sort of tangible reward such as a sticker (younger elementary students will love that) or a small toy. It is critical that you let your students know when they are doing a good job. In your classroom, you will have a variety of students. You will encounter many different kinds of learners. Some may learn by seeing, others by hearing and even others by doing. Be sure to engineer your lesson plans in such a way that it incorporates activities that accommodate all learning styles. Make sure the students get to interact with the lesson and make connections between what your teaching and real life application. For example if you are teaching your class about functions and relations, have them create their own functions and graph them. In addition, use your students' various gifts and interests in the classroom and always be open to new ideas. For example, if you are teaching a math class, make sure you allow your students to try multiple methods for solving a particular type of problem. Their creativity and high intelligence can be beneficial to the entire class. The video on the right of the page is about a very creative and talented 12 year old boy named Brad who has ADHD. Concluding Thoughts Learning disabled gifted students are more than able to learn and succeed in life. In fact, we can learn a lot from them! They teach us that it is possible to overcome seemingly impossible obstacles with creativity, perseverance and a little extra effort. They teach us not to focus on what we cannot do, but what we can do. We can also learn to use the tools that we have to solve problems. ​ Questions 1.) A tool that can be helpful for a student who has difficulty writing is a.) a daily task list b.) word processing c.)color coded folders 2.) Which of the following can best be used to help a student with dyslexia: a.) audio textbooks b.) post -it notes c.)physical therapy 3.)Students who have difficulty staying on task may benefit from which of the following: a.) a task list and some sort of tangible reward for accomplishing everything in the alloted amount of time b.)voice activated software c.) 3 ring binders with dividers 4.)True or false: It is not important to let students know when they are doing a good job. 5.) True or false: The various gifts and interests of learning disabled gifted students can be an asset in the classroom. Sources 1.) June 22, 2009. Brad's Story: A 12 Year-Old with ADHD. Retrieved Febraury 3, 2010 from [] 2.) Baum, Susan. (1990, April). The Gifted/Learning Disabled: A Paradox for Teachers. The Education Digest, 55 (8), 54. Retrieved March 9, 2010, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 1827577). 3.)Hook, Elaine. I Can't Write. Retrieved March 3, 2010 from [] 4.) December 2009. Wilson, Lawrence. The Gift of Dyslexia. Retrieved March 5, 2010from [] 5.) April 20, 2000. Baum, Susan. Gifted But Learning Disabled: A Puzzling Paradox. Retrieved February 7, 2010 from [] 6.) Maker, June and Udall, Jo. How Does One Identify The Learning Disabled Gifted?. Retrieved February 8, 2010 from [] 7.) M Joy Wright. (1997, March). Gifted and learning disabled. Learning, 25 (5), 49, 51. Retrieved March 9, 2010, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 11291633). 8.) Gifted and learning disabled. (2003, July). Gifted Child Today, 26 (3), 7. Retrieved March 10, 2010, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 381450651). 9.) Silverman, L. (2009). the two-edged sword of Compensation: how the gifted cope with learning disabilities. //Gifted Education International//, //25//(2), 115-130. Retrieved March 11, 2010 from Education Research Complete database.