Questions
1)  What are the characteristics of bright and gifted children?
2)  Where can I find support as the parent of a bright child?
3)  What is the state of Washington's definition of highly capable and how are programs funded?
 
Answers
1)  Q What are the characteristics of bright and gifted children?
A

View the Washington State definition of highly capable and learn more about funding for highly capable programs in Washington.

From Hoagies' Gifted Education Page:

What is giftedness? There is no universal definition. Some professionals define "gifted" as an intelligence test score above 130, two or more standard deviations above the norm, or the top 2.5%. Others define "gifted" based on scholastic achievement: a gifted child works 2 or more grade levels above his or her age. Still others see giftedness as prodigious accomplishment: adult-level work while chronologically a child. But these are far from the only definitions. Former U. S. Commissioner of Education Sidney P. Marland, Jr., in his August 1971 report to Congress, stated:

Gifted and talented children are those identified by professionally qualified persons who by virtue of outstanding abilities are capable of high performance. These are children who require differentiated educational programs and/or services beyond those normally provided by the regular school program in order to realize their contribution to self and society.

No Child Left Behind legislation created a new, achievement-based definition of giftedness, however it does not mandate that states use its definition:

The term "gifted and talented", when used with respect to students, children, or youth, means students, children, or youth who give evidence of high achievement capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic, or leadership capacity, or in specific academic fields, and who need services or activities not ordinarily provided by the school in order to fully develop those capabilities. (Title IX, Part A, Section 9101(22), p. 544)

A group of respected professionals in the field of gifted suggest a definition based on the gifted child's differences from the norm:

"Giftedness is asynchronous development in which advanced cognitive abilities and heightened intensity combine to create inner experiences and awareness that are qualitatively different from the norm. This asynchrony increases with higher intellectual capacity. The uniqueness of the gifted renders them particularly vulnerable and requires modifications in parenting, teaching and counseling in order for them to develop optimally." The Columbus Group, 1991, cited by Martha Morelock, "Giftedness: The View from Within", in Understanding Our Gifted, January 1992

Most definitions agree: gifted children are a population who have different educational needs, thanks to their unique intellectual development. What we're not so sure of, is how to identify them, and what this different education should look like.

2)  Q Where can I find support as the parent of a bright child?
A

There are a number of organizations that support parents of highly capable students - one is the National Organization of Gifted Education. Membership benefits listed on the the NAGC website include the following:

"Parent membership in NAGC offers tools to help you support your child's optimal development and continued growth:

Parenting for High Potential newsletter

Membership Discounts on resources to support parents of talented children:
They Say My Child's Gifted: Now What?
The Gifted Kids' Survival Guide: A Teen Handbook
  Stand Up for Your Gifted Child
A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children

Email NAGCs Parent Resource Specialist  and access a wealth of wealth of knowledge and expertise gained through parenting 3 three gifted children and a PhD in gifted studies.

NAGC works to raise the awareness of the unique educational needs of gifted children and actively lobbies at a national level to secure existing funding and improve available services through our legislative liaison."

Hoagies' Gifted Education Page offers great resources for parents, as well.



3)  Q What is the state of Washington's definition of highly capable and how are programs funded?
A
From the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction:

Definition: The state defines a highly capable student (WAC 392-170-035; 036) as a student who exhibits high capability in intellectual and/or creative areas, possesses an unusual leadership capacity, or excels in specific academic fields, who requires services beyond the basic programs provided by schools. Outstanding abilities are present in students from all cultural groups, across all economic strata, and in all areas of human endeavor.

Highly capable students generally possess these learning characteristics:

1. Capacity to learn with unusual depth of understanding, to retain what has been learned, and to transfer learning to new situations;
2. Capacity and willingness to deal with increasing levels of abstraction and complexity earlier than their chronological peers;
3. Ability to make unusual connections among ideas and concepts;
4. Ability to learn very quickly in their area(s) of intellectual strength;
5. Capacity for intense concentration and/or focus.

To read more information on how to determine whether your student meets these definitions, the National Association for Gifted Children provides information on informal assessments and checklists to help address this. http://www.nagc.org/index.aspx?id=958

School districts in the State of Washington have the option of applying for the State Highly Capable Program (HCP) grant. Districts that apply for and receive HCP funding, must comply with the Washington Administrative Code (WAC) Chapter 392-170 Special Service Program – Highly Capable Students. In the development of program policies, options, and implementation procedures districts have local control. This means that each district has control in developing its own unique Highly Capable program so long as the program complies with the WAC. To find out specific information about a district’s highly capable program, contact the district directly.

Districts that apply for the State Highly Capable Program grant receive state funding for two percent of their total FTE students. The allocation is determined by a formula (two percent of the total district full time student enrollment multiplied by the per-pupil amount for that year equals the HCP allocation). The per-pupil amount is adjusted annually.

The state is not the only source of revenue for the program. Districts can choose to supplement their state program funds through the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Title V and/or funds raised at the local level for HCP programs.

Children do not have to be gifted in multiple areas to be considered highly capable. A child can be identified as highly capable in a single area of acceleration.

Children can experience learning and physical disabilities and at the same time exhibit highly capable characteristics. This phenomenon is widely referred to as twice exceptional, dual exceptionality, gifted and learning disabled, and gifted learning disabled.