Make a Twist© is intended to assist teachers in the identification and implementation of appropriate differentiation strategies for gifted students. This can be done within the context of curricula activities and assessment tasks. The following strategies are complex and challenging, therefore appropriate and engaging for gifted and high ability primary and middle school students. Based on June Maker's curriculum differentiation model, developed specifically for gifted students, Make a Twist© provides outlines for differentiating curriculum using higher order thinking skills and problem solving. Modifications can be made to three curriculum-related elements in order to meet the specific learning needs of individual gifted students or groups of learners. According to Maker's Model, gifted students require differentiation in one or a combination of the following areas:  Content  Process  Product In order for successful learning to occur, gifted students also require an appropriate learning environment to be created. Educators are encouraged to place particular emphasis on the student-centered classroom where learner independence, acceptance, and open-mindedness is celebrated. Make a Twist© supports teachers to provide flexible environments for their students' learning, allowing for high mobility and the development of higher-order thinking skills, complex thoughts and abstract ideas. With the aid of Make a Twist©, the teacher acts as a facilitator to help the student select differentiation strategies and in doing so, encourages independent learning. Parental involvement is encouraged to build understanding and meet individual learning needs through specific forms of curriculum differentiation. When used in conjunction with a portfolio of the work produced, Make a Twist© provides a record of curriculum differentiation, where student talent is enhanced and recognised throughout the student's time in formal education. A balanced, well-articulated programme should include a variety of qualitatively different modifications to provide opportunities to challenge the gifted student. All of the differentiation strategies in this resource book have been identified as appropriate, comprehensive, adaptable, and practical for gifted students. It is suggested that specific strategies in each differentiation area, in conjunction with an independent learning programme, should be created to provide an overall education that meets the individual gifted student's learning needs.

Practical strategies for the curriculum differentiation of gifted students. Make a Twist puts educational theory into practice, assisting educators and parents to identify and implement appropriate differentiation strategies for gifted students. Activities, aka ‘Twists’, are readily aligned with curriculum topics, assessment tasks, and student interests. Make a Twist is designed for upper primary to middle school students across all subject areas. The book can be used at hand during lessons to incorporate higher-order thinking challenges and for the creation of extended enrichment tasks. Make a Twist puts into practice the principles of June Maker’s curriculum modification strategies (the ‘Maker model’) in a way that is complex and challenging, therefore appropriate and engaging for high-ability students. “Make a Twist is a wonderful, totally practical way to put the principles in the Maker model into action in a classroom.” C. June Maker. Communication between parents and educators is enabled through use of Make a Twist. The book offers a tool for advocacy, presenting easy-to-use strategies for differentiating classroom practice and for supporting the learning of gifted children. Make a Twist is the perfect resource to enable educator action in all school gifted and talented programs.

This book is a comprehensive study and guide for the classroom teacher, the gifted program coordinator, and the graduate student, who are challenged daily to provide for individual children who differ markedly but come under the umbrella of giftedness. It serves as a wellspring that derives from theory while it offers practical application of theoretical construct in a wide variety of international settings from leaders in the field who demonstrate implementation of proven and field-tested techniques and alternative scenarios to accommodate every classroom situation. Contributors are internationally recognized experts who have come together to provide a sound, reliable source for teachers of the gifted that will be utilized time and time again by practitioners and researchers alike. Among internationally renowned scholars are: Joyce Van Tassel-Baska, Susan Johnsen, June Maker, Belle Wallace, Linda Kreger-Silverman, Dorothy Sisk, Gillian Eriksson,Miraca Gross, Gilbert Clark, Enid Zimmerman,andRachel McAnallen. Hava E. Vidergor Ph.D. is lecturer of innovative pedagogy and curriculum design at Gordon Academic College and Arab Academic College of Education and holds a Ph.D. in Learning, Instruction and Teacher Education with specializationin Gifted Education from the University of Haifa, Israel. Carole Ruth Harris, Ed.D., formerly Director of G.A.T.E.S. Research & Evaluation, is a consultant in education of the gifted in Central Florida who holds the doctorate from Columbia University where she studied with A. Harry Passow and A.J. Tannenbaum. She has served as Associate in International Education at Harvard University, Research Associate at Teachers College Columbia University, lecturer at University of Massachusetts, Lowell and University of Hawaii, Principal Investigator at Research Corporation of the University of Hawaii, and Director of the Center for the Gifted in Ebeye, Marshall Islands.

Provides up-to-date, research-based theory and practical applications to help teachers effectively differentiate instruction with gifted students in mind.

Help your students become 21st century thinkers! This resource provides teachers with strategies to build every student's mastery of high-level thinking skills, promote active learning, and encourage students to analyze, evaluate, and create.

The expert guide to the differentiation of curriculum and instruction for the gifted and talented! Drawing many comparisons and contrasts between gifted and general education best practices, the articles in this volume highlight the many benefits of flexible instruction and curriculum, discuss impediments to the successful adoption of differentiation in classrooms and school districts, and show how educators can overcome these obstacles collaboratively. Key features include: Overview and thought-provoking commentary by Carol Ann Tomlinson, a national leader in differentiation strategies A view of differentiation through multiple lenses, and the actual and potential benefits gifted and general education derive from its implementation Eleven influential articles from leading researchers and educators in the field of differentiation Within this valuable reference guide, readers will also find specific models, general curriculum guidelines, specific instructional strategies, and other tools and methods that will help them monitor learner needs and adapt curriculum accordingly. The ERGE Series: The National Association for Gifted Children series Essential Readings in Gifted Education is a 12-volume collection of seminal articles from Gifted Child Quarterly. Put the knowledge and power of more than 25 years of research on giftedness and talent into your hands with the leading theories, studies, and findings the experts in the field have to offer.