This document discusses twice-exceptional learners. It defines twice-exceptional learners as gifted students who also have disabilities. It covers characteristics of twice-exceptional learners, testing and identifying their needs, services to meet their unique needs including modifications and accommodations as specified in their IEP, such as acceleration and enrichment. The document emphasizes that schools must be able to identify and meet the diverse needs of these learners to help them reach their full potential.

1. IDEA Workshop 3:
Twice-Exceptional Learners
Learning Team E:
Yeida Chavez
Shemiah Owens
Melissa VandenBussche
SPE/513
16 May 2016
Claustina Mahon Reynolds

2. Introduction
In this week’s workshop series we will cover:
 Characteristics of twice-exceptional learners
 Testing of gifted and twice-exceptional learners
 Services for twice-exceptional learners, including
LRE
 Modifications and accommodations for the learner
as specified in the individualized education plan
(IEP).

3. Introduction
 A. Twice-exceptional students are gifted students who have
additional disabilities.
 B. Identifying the needs of the twice-exceptional student.
 1. Standardized testing is good for classifying gifted students.
 2. Teachers and specialists should use holistic methods or
classifying a child as twice-exceptional student.
 C. The school community must be able to meet the unique
needs of twice-exceptional students and be able to respond to
the range of diverse exceptionalities and potentialities
manifested by these learners.
 D. The school community must be able to meet the unique
needs of twice-exceptional learners.

4. Twice-Exceptional Learners

5. Twice-Exceptional Learners
 Poor motivation
 Students do not like school making it difficult for them to
concentrate.
 Many are visual learners instead of lecturing they should be
given them projects that allow them to use their hands.
 Behavior problem
 Discrepancy between verbal and written work
 These learners are able to communicate verbally but writing
might be their area that they struggle with.
 They also may be avid readers but be poor spellers.
 Creativity
 Anxiety

6. Assessing Giftedness and Talent

7. Assessing Giftedness and Talent
A. The assessment of gifts and talents necessitates
multifactorial assessment of the student’s strengths, using
both formal and informal measures.
1. Informal measures include: a portfolio of work
samples, anecdotal records, checklists or rating scales
of gifted characteristics, and evaluations by experts of
a pupil’s creative products or performances.
a. A specific example of an informal measure of
giftedness is the “jot-down.” Jot-down forms can be
used to help teachers focus on behaviors that in
combination indicate giftedness.

8. Assessing Giftedness and Talent
2. Formal measures include: Tests of intellectual ability provide a
formal measure of intellectual giftedness.
a. A specific example of a formal measure include Individual
measures of intelligence such as the Wechsler Intelligence
Scale for Children (4th ed.) (Wechsler, 2003) or the Stanford-
Binet Intelligence Test (5th ed.) (Roid, 2003) are preferred to
group measures for their ability to present a more
comprehensive assessment.
b. Off-level testing: The use of assessment instruments
designed for older students when evaluating the academic
ability of a child thought to be gifted.
c. Creativity: A term with multiple meanings, generally
referring to the production of novel or original ideas or
products.

9. Services for Twice-Exceptional
Learners

10. Services for Twice
Exceptional Learners
 Pupils with gifts and talents require exposure to a
curriculum that is rigorous and intellectually challenging.
 A continuum of service delivery options ranging from the
general education classroom to a self-contained classroom
supported by related service professionals.
 A complex, integrated, and interdisciplinary curriculum
because of their unique learning profiles;
 Services and programs that address their social, emotional,
and behavioral needs; and
 Instruction that targets their gifts and talents while
simultaneously providing individualized special education
supports.

11. Services for Twice
Exceptional Learners
 Pupils who are twice-exceptional are not receiving
the services that would allow for the full expression
of their potential
 Their disability masks their gifts and talents.
 Their giftedness allows them to compensate and
achieve at or near grade level so their disability goes
undetected.

12. Modifications and
accommodations for the
learner as specified in the
IEP

13. Modifications and
accommodations for the learner
 A. Most common accommodations for the twice-exceptional learner
are acceleration and enrichment.
 B. Accommodations and modifications for the twice-exceptional may
include:
 1. Access to alternative formats of text such as braille, large print
and audio text.
 2. Differentiation of instruction and student choice, acceleration
and enrichment.
 3. Curriculum compacting and acceleration of curriculum to nurture
challenge and growth.
 a. Acceleration may include: early admission to kindergarten or first
grade, grade skipping, self-paced instruction, curriculum compacting,
mentoring, dual enrollment and early graduation.

14. Transition Plan
Transition plans for the twice-exceptional
learner include:
a. Advanced placement courses, dual
enrollment and early graduation included
in transition plans can help ensure the
individual success of the twice-exceptional
student.

15. Conclusion
A. Twice-exceptional students are gifted students who have
additional disabilities.
B. Identification of the needs of twice exceptional or classifying a
child as twice-exceptional student.
C. The school community must be able to meet the unique needs of
twice- exceptional students and be able to respond to the range
of diverse exceptionalities and potentialities manifested by these
learners.
D. The most common accommodations of twice-exceptional learners
are acceleration and enrichment through dual enrollment, early
graduation and advanced placement courses as written in the IEP.
E. The school community must be able to meet the unique needs of
twice-exceptional learners through the IEP.

16. References