The Importance of a Challenge for GT Science Students
There are usually one or two…and sometimes a whole cluster! I love the GT kids. We must remember to make special considerations with them in the science classroom. While the gifted and talented student may be a “teacher’s helper” at times and lead their groups, it is crucial that they have their needs met, too. Helping others is lovely, but it’s just not enough to accept that they already know everything about the states of matter, let them make their 100, and call it a day.
We must ensure they are challenged, especially since pull-out GT classes are being cut in many places.
One of the best ways to challenge them is during science station work. If you’ve ever read my blog before, you know I love science stations and use them all the time.
You can engage students in a small-group discussion followed by a meaningful enrichment project.
Part 1: Small Group Discussion
An easy way to differentiate for advanced students is to begin by discussing the topic using targeted questions that encourage deep and complex thought.
Pull a group of five to ten students toward the middle of a unit for small-group discussion. We included photographs with each question to get students thinking.
Discuss patterns, trends, ethical concerns, differing points of view, and more with 11 carefully crafted questions.
Part 2: Research Project
After your discussion, students select one of the questions for deeper study. They research the topic and select a product from a choice menu.
We’ve included printable research pages and choice menus as well as website recommendations.
Choice is at the heart of this assignment, with plenty of questions and products to choose from.
Product choice menus include: videos, creative writing, infographics, comic strips, timelines, PSAs, demonstrations, models, and more.
Our Science Critical Thinking Resources
We’ve done all the work by putting everything together for you! Each topic designed for upper elementary includes:
- 11 Discussion Questions (printable and Google Slides) for deeper conversation
- 10 Extension Projects (printable) for students to dive deeper into the most interesting question
- Each extension project has a choice menu with six product options for the topic
There you have it! I hope this gives you some ideas on challenging your Gifted and Talented students!
Science Enrichment Resources
Click the images to take a closer look!
15 thoughts on “Gifted and Talented Students in the Elementary Science Classroom”
Hi I am a 5th grader and I just wanna say all of this is awesome but, it’s way to easy for me my teacher says I am a senior science level so mabye try making some things harder
Thanks for taking time to comment, Addisyn. What are some challenging but fun activities you might want to do in science?
Excellents Ideas!
I enjoyed the erosion idea. I can see using that as an extension to our lesson.
Students love science workstations.
Thank you for the resources and I like the idea that students select an area of interest.
When they select their area of interest they take ownership and research of that area more seriously.
Thank you for such great ideas, students love science workstations!
Love the resources thank yoiu
Thank you so much for these VERY USEFUL IDEAS. We are discovering ecosystems. Having the kids create their own ecosystems will be a welcome addition to what we are doing already on lab and in class.
Thank you for the resources.
Thank you very much for the resources.
Fun and educational!
Very informative and engaging.
Great resources! thanks!