Have you ever heard the term "giftedness"? It's a lot more than brilliantly smart students who have success come naturally to them.
LeAnn Campbell, Garfield Re-2’s Gifted and Talented Coordinator is passionate about ensuring all gifted kids in the District flourish -socially, intellectually and emotionally. Contrary to common belief that “giftedness” only entails academic excellence or natural talent, she explained, “That's only one aspect of some gifted kids, but there's so much more!”
LeAnn is in her sixth year of supporting Garfield Re-2’s students identified as gifted and talented - her 4th in the district coordinator role. She began her education journey as an English teacher and taught at Riverside Middle, Coal Ridge and Glenwood High Schools. She also spent time in El Salvador, Venezuela and South Korea teaching English at international schools.
She helps families and teachers of these unique learners in many areas including social growth, academic development and emotional development.
Giftedness, says LeAnn, is more about the way a child's brain works and how it impacts the way a child learns, how quickly they learn, and the way a child processes information.
“I feel like we have a very narrow expectation of what giftedness is, and if we don't understand as a parent or as a teacher what our gifted students are doing, saying or how they're behaving, it’s easy to make assumptions about why. We really have to look at each student as an individual and figure out what their needs are, because the answer is more than give a student more work or an Advanced Placement class and we’ll be good,” she said.
As the Gifted and Talented Coordinator, LeAnn assists teachers with challenging and engaging their gifted students. She also provides resources for students and families to help them explore and understand unique challenges and opportunities that gifted students face.
“I use these strategies with the families of gifted and talented students, and they can be part of excellent instruction. I hope that they can be helpful to all parents as they work to support their child’s social, academic and emotional needs.”
Beginning next week, LeAnn will be sharing a monthly blog with the families of Garfield Re-2 in the Garfield Re-2 News. Topics will range from how to combat perfectionism, how to advocate for your child's educational needs, to the latest research on executive functioning.
She adds that this information may speak directly to the families of students identified as gifted and talented, and hopefully it will clarify myths about gifted students and provide more tools for other families to communicate with and support their children.
Look for LeAnn Campbell’s blog in next week’s Garfield Re-2 News.