Understanding & Nurturing Nonverbally Gifted Learners

Understanding & Nurturing Nonverbally Gifted Learners

Nonverbal ability does not readily show itself on standardized achievement testing or in schoolwork especially after grade one when students are increasingly asked to show what they know in writing. High nonverbal ability might take a little detective work to discover. These are sometimes the kids who seem pretty typical yet surprise us with an insight, suddenly perform a task beyond their years, or simply seem to know without being able to explain how they know. These are the kids who are often left out of gifted programs in school, yet they offer the sort of 21st Century Learning skills that will make our world a better place. This book is addressed to all those parents who wonder about their child s flashes of brilliance but cannot quite lay a finger on a particular gift. It s addressed to teachers public, private, and home school who see the same gleam in a student s eyes. Finally, it s addressed to parents whose children have already been identified gifted and talented through their school district and whose children may or may not be served by gifted and talented programs designed specifically to meet the needs of nonverbally gifted students. This is a conversation between you and me a teacher and a parent of nonverbally gifted children. Contents: 1 Understanding Nonverbally Gifted Learners 2 Who are Nonverbally Gifted and Talented Students 3 Who are Kids with Exceptional Nonverbal Ability 4 Characteristics of Nonverbal Ability 5 Identification of Nonverbal Ability 6 The Nonverbal Ability Checklist 7 Nurturing Nonverbal Ability in Gifted Learners 8 Educational Methods to Support the Growth of Nonverbally Gifted Children 9 Why Visual and Physical Representations are Effective for All Learners 10 A Cross-Curricular Introductory Unit for Nonverbally Gifted and Talented Groups