It is not likely that any group of educators of the gifted ever sat around a table and came to the decision that a "patch-on" approach to programming for bright learners represented best practice. Nonetheless, it is as common today as 25 years ago that programming for students identified as gifted often represents such an approach. Patch-on…

There is a paucity of research focusing on the needs of gifted children and their families, in particular, there is a lack of empirically supported parenting strategies to help parents in parenting their gifted child. This article provides an overview of the literature on difficulties experienced by parents of gifted and talented children,…

Project PATS (Potentially Academically Talented Students) intended for middle school students, is described in terms of development, cooperation among the district and a local Pennsylvania State University campus, and lessons learned about such aspects as the political and economic reality, material dissemination, and resistance of parents and…

Based on the characteristic of gifted children to master content quickly and on needs of classroom teachers to provide differentiated instruction in content areas, the teacher institute emphasized the role of the content specialist. The highly significant gain from pre- to posttest suggests the institute curriculum was effective. (Author/CL)

The authors describe a procedure, bibliotherapy, for using books to help gifted and talented children discuss and develop alternative approaches for meeting their special challenges and problems. A list of books are offered for the areas of personal problems, social problems, and educational/vocational problems. (SB)

A program for gifted adolescents at Franklin and Marshall College has involved 172 junior high and high school students over a three-year period in seminars. Despite problems, the program has expanded, resulting in five types of benefits, including challenge, basic skills, and research opportunities. (CL)

Six of 509 high schools were identified as having the most successful mathematics programs for gifted students, and key ingredients of these programs were isolated. Key ingredients included: focus on problem-oriented independent study programs rather than texts or tests, dynamic research-oriented teachers, administrative support, active…

Inappropriate expectations, insufficient instructional time, and lack of a support system erode the positive effects of gifted program inservice opportunities. Alternative training experiences are described which emphasize teacher-to-teacher rather than consultant-to-group interaction; focus on a specific objective reinforced by several inservice…

Two New York State County Boards of Cooperative Services, serving small, rural, geographically distant schools, developed a successful program in which fifth and sixth grade academically advanced students from 19 schools were sent one day a week to special sites for advanced level study in humanities and science. (Author/JDD)

A pilot program was developed for gifted learning-disabled students, based on the Enrichment Triad Model. Learning behaviors, time on task, and motivation showed marked improvement as the grade four-five students completed individual creative projects. Described are procedures for identifying program participants, program activities, and program…

A decision of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court set a binding precedent which classifies gifted and talented students as exceptional children and requires that resources already in place within school districts be made available to develop individualized education programs for gifted students. (JDD)

This article discusses the critical elements of educational partnerships including leadership, communication, and planning for program development. The Cooperative Alliance for Gifted Education involving Kent State University (Ohio), Cleveland Public Schools, and International Business Machines is described, especially the Joint Partnership…

A Wisconsin advocacy model for gifted education programs is presented, emphasizing ongoing collaboration and dissemination to most effectively utilize meager resources. Essential elements of the dissemination design are identified, including use of regional sites, requiring participation of an administrator on the team, group problem solving, and…

A Javits grant implemented statewide in Kentucky used innovative curriculum and team teaching to identify and serve middle school gifted students. Project components included interdisciplinary curriculum development, staff development, expanded provision of services, alternative methods for identifying middle school gifted students, and parent…