Understanding and working with gifted learners : 'they're not bringing my brain out' / Rosemary Cathcart.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Section I: The issues -- Why bother? They'll succeed anyway, won't they? A reality check! -- So who are they? -- What makes them tick? What makes the gifted gifted? -- Introducing the holistic descriptor -- How will I know one when I meet one? -- How do I teach them when I find them? Setting the scene ... -- Section II: Resolving the issues: a teaching model -- Thinking about attitudes -- Thinking about skills -- Thinking about extension -- Thinking about balance -- Thinking about evaluating one's own work -- Section III: Putting REACH into practice -- Generating a high level of interest in learning -- Developing the tools of thought: observation skills -- Developing the tools of thought: study and research skills -- Developing the tools of thought: communication skills -- Developing the tools of thought: thinking skills -- Developing the tools of thought: organisational skills -- Developing the child's intellectual and creative potential as far as possible -- Using concepts which challenge the child's current knowledge and level of thinking -- Drawing on the arts: for those who are not interested as well as those who are! -- Drawing on the arts: the language of painting -- Drawing on the arts: the language of poetry -- Encouraging original work -- Guiding the gifted reader -- Fostering emotional, social and ethical growth: beginning with the self -- Fostering growth towards emotional and social maturity -- Fostering ethical growth -- Evaluating our own learning, thinking and creating -- Section IV: Resolving the issues: lesson planning -- Conceptual planning: a tool for the teacher -- Conceptual planning: a structure for lessons -- Bringing it all together -- Section V: Giftedness and related different needs -- Gifted children from minority cultures -- The Twice-exceptional child -- The needs of parents with gifted children -- Section VI: Nuts and bolts -- Nuts and bolts: some basics -- On being A REACH teacher -- Endpiece.

Have you ever wondered how to cope with a very bright child when you've got 30 other children in the class? what to do now you're in charge of the gifted programme? what giftedness really is, and what it means? Introducing for the first time in book form, the Holistic Descriptor of Giftedness - a definition for the 21st century, recognising the impact of giftedness on the whole person from infancy to adulthood, providing a deep and satisfying approach to working with gifted learners. Based on this far-reaching approach, this book: sets out five key concepts to help you recognise and meet the needs of gifted learners at every level of schooling (the REACH model) includes a wealth of thoroughly practical teaching strategies to implement the model, with loads of high-interest examples drawn from work by teachers just like you and from gifted learners just like those you know introduces a special three-question conceptual lesson-planning tool to bring all these strategies into highly effective and exciting units of work covers a wide range of supporting topics such as identification, parent perspectives, cultural differences, acceleration, grouping, giftedness with other special needs, and more. This book is written for everyone who lives or works with a gifted young person - classroom teachers, gifted programme coordinators, parents, special needs teachers, counsellors and home-schooling families.

Rosemary Cathcart has been involved in almost every role within gifted education from parent to college of education tutor since the mid-1980s. Founder of New Zealand's first national gifted education centre and One Day School, she now heads an international award-winning consultancy specialising in professional development in this field.

Online resource; title from digital title page (viewed on April 28, 2020).