Designing and Developing Programs for Gifted Students

Book excerpt: Designing and Developing Programs for Gifted Students presents the insights and experience of practitioners in the field of gifted education to explore how gifted programs work, what they can do for families, and the steps others have taken to develop successful programs in different environments. This joint publication with the National Association for Gifted Children provides readers with the information and tools necessary for designing and developing gifted programmes in any school district. The chapters are compiled in such a way to be accessible by researchers, non-specialists, teachers and administrators. Gifted programmes are a lot of work and often require great vision and resiliency to sustain, however, they have the potential to change lives. When managed and developed properly, gifted programmes can create changes in their students that endure beyond the length of the programme. Children can begin to take hold of their own talents when they gain confidence in themselves and their interests. Families can assume a stronger leadership role in advocating for the needs of their children once they understand what practical steps they can take and how to take them. Designing a.