Gifted Reading

Are you always looking for new ways to support your gifted and talented students? I’m sure you are! However, finding quality strategies to implement directly in the classroom can be challenging. Sadly, this often causes students not to receive the extra push they deserve. Teachers and students have so much to handle already. Thankfully, there are strategies to support gifted reading with your students! Best of all, they are quick and easy to implement with powerful results! 

gifted reading

 

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#1: Teach Greek and Latin Roots 

Now, you may be thinking that this strategy is ideal for middle school and high school students. While this is true, it is perfect for younger students! Here’s why! When students are gifted readers, they read books that are above grade level. However, those books have complex words! So, students need strategies to help them read the appropriate books while understanding the vocabulary. Teaching Greek and Latin roots is the ideal way to help students develop strategies to figure out the meaning of unknown words! 

By teaching Greek and Latin roots, students will immediately see the benefits. First, they will develop an above-grade-level vocabulary. They will be able to break down words to build a firm idea of what unfamiliar words mean. Second, learning these roots will allow students to read higher-level books. Gifted readers can handle the longer chapters, complex plot, and character development. The aspect they need help with is how to understand the tougher vocabulary they will read. This is precisely why they need instruction on Greek and Latin roots! Best of all, they will also apply this knowledge to other subject areas! So, when seeing new words in science and social studies, they will break them down and keep reading! 

task cards

If you’re unsure where to start, there are tons of resources to help! Check out Teacher Pay Teachers for ready-to-go activities to use in the classroom or to send home. 

#2: Multiple Intelligences for Gifted Reading 

As we know, there are lots of ways to express learning! Students can read, write, draw, sing, dance, and create artistic displays. So, teachers can allow gifted students to show their knowledge differently than the rest. Yes, I understand that this format does not work for every lesson. But, we can easily embed the components of multiple intelligences into specific assignments or activities. Our gifted students will then have opportunities to show their learning more profoundly. 

Students LOVE this gifted strategy! Most times, our gifted students are intrinsically motivated to learn. They do not need bribes or extra persuasion to complete an assignment. Instead, they love to work hard and learn everything they can. Multiple intelligences allow students to have options! The teacher may provide 2-3 opportunities and then give students time to run with their ideas.

Additionally, multiple intelligences allow teachers to learn more about their students. I LOVE learning about my students, such as what they like to do outside school. Lastly, multiple intelligences take learning to an advanced level without giving MORE work or work outside their grade level. Yes, our gifted students will not just walk around the classroom to help other students! They will be learning the content on a deeper level! 

#3: Use Playlists for Gifted Reading

This strategy can completely transform how you support your students. To understand this strategy, think about a song playlist. You may have a summertime playlist or a Christmas playlist. Instead of songs, think about a list of multiple activities to complete in a set order. This will be a differentiated list that allows students to work independently through a particular standard or skill. As they are working, they are progressing towards mastery. So, this means the easiest activities are at the beginning, and the hardest ones are at the end. The playlist will focus on teaching students the skill, practicing it, and showing their understanding. This may be watching a video about types of conflict, creating a poster to explain the types, and then analyzing fairy tales they know to show which kind of conflict occurs. 

Playlists are amazing because they do not waste students’ time. Your gifted reading students should not be sitting there bored through lessons because they already know the material. Playlists allow them to work independently while other students listen to the lesson. Students also have the flexibility to learn at their own rate. They can dive deeper into the material and really explore the content. Playlists also support differentiation without loads of help from the teacher. This means the teacher does not have to create many small group lessons to accommodate gifted readers. Yes, there will be check-ins throughout the playlist, but students can work at their own pace on their own activities. 

Playlists are a new, inventive way of supporting our gifted readers. While playlists take time to build, they will last for years! As a helpful way to get started, check out these incredible Task Cards. They are self-differentiating and allow gifted students to skip through what they already know. I love how this means they can spend time on the more challenging and advanced questions! For a way to revolutionize how you utilize task cards, be sure to read Task Cards Revolutionized

Gifted students should not just spend time helping other students. They deserve to be challenged and supported with activities just right for them. Thankfully, the three strategies above help ensure that gifted readers will learn on a deeper level in your classroom! For more helpful tips, watch the Strategies for Gifted Students video! 

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I’m a wife, a mommy of 3, blogger, and a full time teacher author and presenter. I love to read, shop, and spend time with my family! My hands are always busy, but my heart is so full!

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