Mr. C is a gifted learner, and that makes finding curriculum for him a challenge. His giftedness is most apparent with language arts because he’s reading several grade levels ahead of where he “should be”. The simple answer would seem to be to skip a few grades, but it’s even better to have a curriculum that’s specifically designed with gifted learners in mind.
Gifted Language Arts For Homeschoolers
(This post is sponsored by Kendal Hunt Publishing. I was given a sample of this curriculum to try and I was compensated for my time, but I was not required to give a positive review. all thoughts and opinions are my own. Please see my full disclosure here.)
What is “Gifted” Anyways?
Gifted is a word that can spark an argument in many mom-groups across the country. You have some moms claiming their child is a baby genius because they winked, moms shouting that “every child is gifted“, and moms who have gifted kids who are desperately trying to explain that not all gifted learners are like Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory.
By definition, a gifted learner is one “who give evidence of high achievement capability in such areas 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”.
Mr. C is a gifted learner. He started reading at three, and now at 6 years old he’s doing 3rd-4th grade level academics. We’re constantly looking for new ways to keep him challenged and interested in our homeschool.
Why it’s Important to Challenge Gifted Learners
It may seem like gifted learners would need less of a challenge. Like they are already so smart, why try to push them further? But that’s a bad idea for several reasons.
First, gifted kids thrive on challenges. If they’re not being challenged and learning new things, they get bored and they tend to get destructive! These kids often have an innate sense of curiosity, and their millions of questions need answered.
Next, gifted learners need to learn a growth mindset even more than other kids. If they’re never challenged because lower-level work comes so easy for them, they get used to being great at everything they try. Then when something challenging does come around, the kids are shocked and give up easily because they feel like a failure.
When you consistently challenge gifted learners they stay engaged in their education and learn to work through challenges and grow.
Why You Shouldn’t Always Just Use a Higher Grade Level
This is another question that I get often. Why can’t you just use a higher grade level work for gifted learners? Well, it’s a complicated question. Some kids do great with just accelerating their classes. For others, though, it can be a temporary solution at best.
Some reasons to avoid just accelerating grade levels are
- Many kids aren’t ready to graduate early even if they can handle the courses early.
- Gifted kids don’t just learn faster, they learn differently. They need to examine material deeper, not just quicker.
- Some topics that are appropriate at later grades are not appropriate for younger kids, even if they can technically read it.
William & Mary Center for Gifted Education Language Arts
The area where Mr. C’s giftedness is most apparent is definitely language arts. He blazes through chapter books designed for kids years older than him and then begs for more. But like I mentioned above, I can’t just keep giving him more advanced chapter books. I need to dig deeper into language arts with him.
Thankfully, we were able to try a gifted language arts unit from the William & Mary Center for Gifted Education, and it was a game-changer in our homeschool! We were able to read a novel that was at a good reading level but still age-appropriate, and we had a lot of fun reading poems and really analyzing literature.
Our Gifted Language Arts Unit
Our gifted language arts unit, “Beyond Words” from the William & Mary Center for Gifted Education was designed for gifted 1st and 2nd graders. It focused on really diving deeper into language arts and literature. We read the novel Frindle, which Mr. C absolutely loved and several poems that he really enjoyed.
The unit focused a lot on starting to analyze literature, rather than just reading it and regurgitating facts from what they read. This was really helpful for Mr. C because he reads so fast that sometimes his comprehension isn’t always there.
We also really enjoyed working on persuasive writing. Mr. C struggles with writing unless there’s a clear purpose, and he loved that he got to use his writing to “argue” his point. It shared the hamburger model which helped to organize his thoughts for his persuasive writing.
What We Loved About Our “Beyond Words” Language Arts Unit
The “Beyond Words” gifted language arts unit was comprehensive and well thought out. I loved how thorough the teacher’s guide was. It even included the specific learning goals that each lesson worked towards.
The student’s book was wonderful and allowed plenty of space for responses. This is really important for us because Mr. C really struggles with fine motor skills, so his handwriting takes up a lot of space! He also loved that the instructions weren’t “dumbed down” like a lot of books geared for kids his age.
I really appreciated that this language arts unit challenged him. It was difficult and interesting enough to keep him engaged, but it wasn’t so challenging that he got overwhelmed and gave up. It’s really hard to find curriculum that is at his exact level, and this curriculum fit just about perfectly!
How to Get Gifted Language Arts Homeschool Curriculum
You can get the “Beyond Words” gifted language arts unit study, and many more, from the William & Gary Center for Gifted Education. You can also keep up with them on Facebook or Twitter! I’d highly recommend it for any moms trying to teach their gifted kids, and the lessons go up through twelfth grade!
