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Assessment: Characteristics

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  • Organizations: National

    Alpha Omega Publications - Placement Tests
    For parents unsure of which grade level to use when starting your homeschooler in AOP's Christian homeschool curriculum, Alpha Omega Publications offers homeschool families diagnostic tests for both the upper and lower levels of LIFEPAC Math and Language Arts. Placement tests are provided for 1st through 8th grade as well as 7th through 12th grade.

  • Printed Materials: Books

    "Mellow Out," They Say. If I Only Could: Intensities and Sensitivities of the Young and Bright
    Through some 500 excerpts quoted in the text, Mishow Piechowski illustrates how the intensities and sensitivities of bright young chilren make them more alive, more creative, and more in love with the world than others.
    A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children
    Four experts (Webb, Gore, Amend, DeVries) in the field of gifted and talented provide practical guidance in the areas of: Characteristics of gifted children; Peer relations; Sibling issues; Motivation & underachievement; Discipline issues; Intensity & stress; Depression & unhappiness; Educational planning; Parenting concerns; Finding professional help; and much, much more! Click here to read a review of this book.
    Alternative Assessments With Gifted and Talented Students (The Critical Issues in Equity and Excellence in Gifted Education Series)
    Written by Joyce VanTassel-Baska, Ed.D., this book provides a concise and thorough introduction to methods for identifying gifted students in the school setting. Including overviews of assessment tools and alternative methods of assessment, as well as pertinent discussions concerning the need to identify gifted and talented students, this book combines research and experience from top scholars in the field of gifted education in a convenient guide for teachers, administrators, and gifted education program directors. Click here to read a review of this book.
    Bringing Out the Best: A Guide for Parents of Young Gifted Children
    This is a comprehensive resource guide from Jacquelyn Saunders for parents of young gifted children. It contains information on identification, early enrichment activities, school placement issues, and parenting strategies.
    Essentials of Gifted Assessment (Essentials of Psychological Assessment) 1st Edition
    This book introduces readers to the theory and practice underlying gifted assessment. Steven Pfeiffer, a leading expert in the field of gifted assessment, discusses what it means to be gifted, why we should identify gifted students, and the purposes of gifted assessment.
    Ex-Prodigy: My Childhood and Youth
    Norbert Weiner's out of print partial autobiography of his childhood, youth and education. Includes long discussions and reflections on what it is like to be a child prodigy; radical acceleration; parenting styles; family relationships; publicity; and the social development of child prodigies.
    Genius: The Natural History of Creativity
    In this book, author H. J. Eysenck considers the role of intelligence, social status, gender, and many other factors that have been linked with genius and creativity. His theory traces creativity from DNA through personality to special cognitive processes to genius. Eysenck puts forth the argument is that it may be the fact that they believe that they are geniuses that make them so.
    Gifted Children: A Guide for Parents and Professionals
    Author Kate Distin aims to help children and their families learn more about what is typical or normal for gifted and talented children and to shatter some of the myths about these children and their parents.
    Gifted Children: Myths and Realities
    Dr. Ellen Winner's book focuses on both intellectual and artistic giftedness. This book has a developmental psychology perspective, but also addresses educational issues. Of particular note to those who work with the profoundly gifted, Winner makes a case that public funding for gifted programs should be focused on the most profoundly gifted students first, with higher classroom standards the means for meeting the needs of the moderately gifted.
    Handbook of Psychosocial Characteristics of Exceptional Children
    This in-depth handbook examines the categories of exceptionality most often described in educational, behavioral, and health practices. Here, editors Vicki L. Schwean and Donald H. Saklofske compile valuable information from leading authorities in the medical, psychological and educational fields.
    Identifying Gifted Students: A Practical Guide
    This practical resource by Susan K. Johnsen, Ph.D. offers up-to-date information for building an effictive, defensible identification process. It acts as a hands-on, research-based guide for identifying gifted and talented children.
    Identifying Gifted Students: A Step-by-Step Guide (The Practical Strategies Series in Gifted Education)
    Written by Susan K. Johnsen, Ph.D., this publication will provide directors and coordinators of programs for gifted and talented students with a specific step-by-step plan for developing an identification procedure in a school or school district. While the sections of this publication are laid out sequentially according to the steps, identification is an ongoing process. The goal of identification is to ensure that every gifted and talented student who needs a program that is different from the general education curriculum receives one that is matched to his or her specific characteristics.
    On the Social and Emotional Lives of Gifted Children (5th ed.)
    In this book, the nation’s leading authority on the psychology of gifted children offers advice and encouragement for both parents and teachers. In a thoughtful, conversational style, the author offers an in-depth look at the complex social and emotional issues faced by gifted children. This revised and updated fifth edition of the popular text contains more than 12 new chapters. On the Social and Emotional Lives of Gifted Children tackles important and timely issues dealing with the social and emotional needs of today’s gifted children, including who gifted children are and what giftedness means; how parents, teachers, and counselors can guide gifted children; the issues facing gifted students in the 21st century, such as technology and terrorism; and how the education of gifted children can adapt for the future. This concise, sensitive look at gifted children and their social and emotional world offers unique insights for both teachers and parents who support these special children.
    Parenting Gifted Children 101: An Introduction to Gifted Kids and Their Needs

    This practical, easy-to-read book explores the basics of parenting gifted children, truly giving parents the "introductory course" they need to better understand and help their gifted child. Topics include myths about gifted children, characteristics of the gifted, the hows and whys of advocacy, social and emotional issues and needs, strategies for partnering with your child’s school, and more. Read a review of the book.

    Scales for Rating the Behavioral Characteristics of Superior Students - Renzulli Scales
    Note: This item is only available for purchase by educational institutions. The Scales for Rating the Behavioral Characteristics of Superior Students are commonly referred to as the Renzulli Scales or Renzulli-Hartman Scales. In its third edition, the Renzulli Scales are the nation's most popular tool for identifying gifted children. Supported by 40 years of research, the Renzulli Scales are used by gifted and talented programs across the country. This standardized instrument is completed by teachers and provides an effective method for identifying gifted children. The Renzulli Scales are designed to obtain teacher estimates of a student's characteristics in the following areas: Learning, Creativity, Motivation, Leadership, Artistic, Musical, Dramatics, Communication (Precision), Communication (Expressiveness), Planning, Mathematics, Reading, Technology and Science.
    The Edison Trait: Saving the Spirit of Your Nonconforming Child
    Author Lucy Jo Palladino defines the Edison Trait (named after Thomas Edison) as divergent vs. convergent thinking. Edison Trait kids - one in five children - have the qualities that make innovative leaders, inventors, explorers, yet they often have a hard time in school where their personality traits may be seen as weak or negative. Palladino recasts these children in a positive light and gives specifics on understanding and becoming an ally for your Edison Trait child.
    The Survival Guide for Parents of Gifted Kids: How to Understand, Live With, and Stick Up for Your Gifted Child
    This book by authors Sally Yahnke Walker and Susan Perry offers up-to-date, authoritative information about giftedness, gifted educucation, problems, personality traits, and more. You'll learn what 'giftedness' means, how kids are identified as gifted, and what's good—and bad—about the label. You'll find out how to keep from raising a 'nerd,' how to prevent perfectionism, and how to advocate for your child at school.
    To Be Young and Gifted
    This book offers insights into the intellectual and emotional development of exceptional children. Contributors explore the nature of giftedness and how to recognize it in youngsters; the complexities of the creative process; standardized tests and their effectiveness in asserting potential; and developmental theories and how they relate to the identification of gifted children. Several chapters also examine young prodigies and the diversity of personalities and talents that exist among the gifted.
    You Know Your Child Is Gifted When . . . A Beginner's Guide to Life on the Bright Side
    This entry level book is written by Judy Galbraith for parents of children ages 2-8. It includes characteristics of gifted, descriptions of terms used in gifted education, perfectionism, parenting the gifted child, working with the schools and the rights of parents.
    Your Gifted Child: How to Recognize and Develop the Special Talents in Your Child from Birth to Age Seven
    An estimated 500,000 potentially gifted children are born each year. Since most schools don't begin to test for giftedness until about age 8, it is left to parents to recognize and nurture their children's special talents and abilities in the early critical years. Written by Joan Franklin Smutny, Kathleen Veenker and Stephen Veenker, this intelligent, insightful, and useful book is a complete guide to identifying gifted children and helping them develop to the fullest.

  • Printed Materials: Online Documents

    Gifted or ADD?
    This article thoroughly discusses the issue of ADD and how it relates to giftedness. It goes into detail about key characteristics of gifted children, how "gifted" is defined, and offers advice for parents.

  • Websites & Other Media: Informational

    Assessment 101: Choosing the Right Evaluator
    Assessment 101 is a series of three articles about developmental assessments by Dr. Aida Khan, clinical psychologist and neuropsychologist and Lecturer in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This article provides advice on choosing the right evaluator.
    Brain Food
    This site includes topics related to gifted children including testing, disabilities, education, and what it means to be gifted. Aalso has links to physics demonstrations, elementary science experiments, book links, and the Schonell Reading test (a simple test to determine your child’s reading age).
    BrainConnection.com
    BrainConnection.com is dedicated to providing accessible, high-quality information about how the brain works and how people learn. Many discoveries are being made in areas that relate to the human brain, including language, memory, behavior, and aging, as well as illness and injury. We believe that access to this information can provide practical tools for teaching and learning as well as valuable insights into almost every aspect of our daily lives.
    Characteristics and Behaviors of the Gifted
    This website has a variety of resources for educators, parents, students, and couselors that may be helpful in learning the various characteristics of gifted individuals.
    Characteristics Checklist for Gifted Children
    This checklist hosted by the Austega.com webite provides a characteristics checklist for teachers and parents looking for signs of giftedness in young children. Characteristic traits are listed by broad category of giftedness and include general intellectual ability, specific academic aptitude, creative thinking and production, leadership, psychomotor ability and visual and performing arts.
    Gifted People and their Problems
    In this article, Francis Heylighen identifies the social issues gifted people struggle with, which leads to them being misunderstood and underestimated by peers, society, and even themselves. He explains the cognition, perception, emotion, motivation, values, activity and social relations gifted people experience.
    Table of developmental milestones contrasting normal children with gifted children at 30% advancement
    This is a great site that gives parents of young children a great source of information about the developemental milestones while contrasting normal children with gifted children.
    The Blame Game: Are school problems the kid's fault?
    This article, by Pamela Darr Wright, M.A., discusses the frustrations parents of special ed kids feel when their children are blamed for certain problems that arise in school.
    The Gifted Identity Formation Model
    The Gifted Identity Formation Model, presented here, helps bridge the theoretical with the practical, includes identity and its formation as crucial variables in the counseling process and uses identity as the baseline for intervention. The model aids with assessment and helps deliver counseling related interventions that explore and strengthen the identity and identity formation of gifted people, in turn enhancing the health and development of the self.
    VeryWell: Gifted Children
    The VeryWell Family site about gifted students is filled with articles, a blog and other useful information. Topics include how to identify gifted young people, their educational needs and parenting help.
    What does 'gifted and talented' mean?
    This information is provided on the website of The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, located in the United Kingdom, which maintains and develops new curriculum for teachers and administrators for differentiating the classroom experience for gifted children.