Gifted and Talented

Hoagies' Gifted Education Page, the all-things-gifted site, full of resources, articles, books and links to help and support parents, teachers, and gifted children alike.

Scholastic Learn At Home - A variety of learning resources for students of all ages designed to keep students reading, thinking and growing. It has a Shout Out section, which allows students to see what is new, including virtual author events through Scholastic Home Base.

International Children’s Digital Library (ICDL) is a free online library of digitized children's books in 59 languages from various countries. It is a great site for gifted students to free online read books or students who want to do independent studies.

Storyline Online is a free children's literacy resource featuring the world's best storytellers reading books aloud. It features celebrated actors including Viola Davis, Kristen Bell, Chris Pine, and Lily Tomlin. Each video includes an activity guide with lessons for K-5 students to do at home.

Math Pickle is a wonderful math site that goes beyond practicing facts and offers children challenging problems in a fun way. The site offers curricular games, puzzles, and mini-competitions.

Detective Mystery Brain Teasers for Kids are fun to read and solve. Check out the collection of detective mystery stories for kids. These quiz questions are fun for the brain and will puzzle you. Answers are provided!

Wonderopolis is a fabulous site to visit every day. It presents a different interesting visual “wonder” everyday, and encourages kids’ curiosity and creativity as they find out more about the topic of the day.

The Challenge itself is a wonderful opportunity for gifted kids to put ideas together for a real-world purpose. The site has many engaging interactive opportunities to spark passion and ignite learning.

The Invention of Hugo Cabaret is multidimensional site will allow gifted students to draw on engineering, writing, and thinking skills.

Quiz Hub is a great website that has quizzes about many different subjects. Many gifted kids love taking quizzes on topics they know a lot about.

PBS’s Website for Kids is a site most parents of young children know about. They have resources for all subject areas, connected to kids’ favorite educational TV programs. There are activities for all grade levels. Kids can create a book on their own, play challenging math or phonics games, and much more.

BrainPOP is an animated educational site for kids featuring - Science, Social Studies, English, Math, Arts & Music, Health, and Technology. Most of the material is geared toward older students (upper elementary, middle school, and high school).

BrainPOP Jr. is designed to cultivate critical thinking skills and encourage children to ask questions and make connections. The app is easily navigable by kids ages 5-9 or K-3rd grade. Brain Pop Jr is offering free 30-day access for families affected by COVID -19.

Know it All has fascinating games and activities about specific topics. Kids can learn about topics they have never even heard of before or search for their particular interest. Gifted students can use this resource to explore their interests.

Poetry for Kids is great for students who love language and poetry. There are tons of illustrated poems, including funny poems, which might particularly interest the gifted students. Besides just having poems, there are language games, videos, and more.

The IXL site is divided into grade levels, so it’s easy for students gifted to find challenging math practice activities to do on their own.

SpeedMath Deluxe requires students to create an equation, as quickly as possible, from the four digits the computer gives you. You can use addition, subtraction, multiplication and division to create your equation, but you are not allowed to rearrange the digits.

Kids National Geographic features easy-to-read articles, amazing photos & fun games. Students can read fascinating stories about the world's most amazing wildlife!

Greg Tang Math provides select games and interactive books are available for free, but the site still offers fun math puzzles and challenges.

The American Mensa offers fun and challenging games that are updated either daily or on a weekly basis. Kids can also play previous games as well. Students need to do activities just for fun and not always for an academic purpose. If you need to find your child something to do, take a visit to this website; there is definitely enough here to keep them not only busy, but challenged as well.

ProProfs Brain Games has a number of enriching games that provide great recreation options for gifted and talented students. The range of games on this site include puzzles, logic games, sudoku, word games, and brain teasers.

Fact Monster contains several reference works under one umbrella, including the Columbia Encyclopedia, Random House Dictionary, an atlas and an almanac. It also features quizzes, flashcards, a homework center, and flash-based games.

Ology is science website for kids from the American Museum of Natural History. Choose whichever Ology you're into, e.g. Astronomy, the Earth, Genetics; the list seems endless.

LearningPlanet.com offers a library of unique and fun learning activities and games.

Education.com - Educational Games for Kids contains online game and learning materials developed by educational experts.

Education.com – Free worksheets and Printables for Kids provides enrichment worksheets for students in Preschool – fifth grade.

Show Me is a collection of critical thinking games, videos, stories, and homework help for students.

Jigzone offers Sudoku, fun puzzles, and more for any age student.

Internet4Classroms is awesome! It has interactive websites grouped by grade level (K-8) and content area. Students click on their grade-level and complete activities specialized just for them.

Ink Heart Editorial allow your gifted child to explore his own voice through this interactive editorial workshop from Ink Heart by Cornelia Funk.

10 Easy STEM Activities for Kids To Try at Your Next Family Night

100 Resources for Gifted Kids consists of resources for gifted students from the arts to the sciences and everything in between.

National Association for Gifted Children – Resources for Parents works to provide you the tools you need to help your child succeed. The site provides definitions of giftedness, frequently asked questions, glossary of terms, myths about gifted students and more.

Mississippi Association for Gifted Children – Resources and Links for Parents provides parents with the resources and links to a wealth of information for parents of gifted children.

JPS Open Doors Gifted Education Program

Fifty Essential Links for Gifted Parents provides free/low cost online resources in ten areas of common interest to gifted children.

Create an Invention Box

Gifted kids thrive in activities that allow them to use their expansive capacity for creativity! Help your child create an “invention box”, which is a box packed with fun supplies that can be made into anything your child’s mind can imagine!

Fill the invention box with supplies like yarn, googly eyes, pipe cleaners, pom poms or cotton balls, large beads, popsicle sticks, and any other crafts you or your child loves! During play, encourage your child to use their creativity to “invent” or build something using the supplies in the box. Both you and your child will be amazed at what your child can create!

Tangram Puzzles

Tangram puzzles are an important tool in any teacher’s classroom, but can also be used at home to challenge young minds! Tangrams are puzzles made from different shapes and are turned and organized to create a picture.

Tangram puzzles can easily be purchased in sets online, and challenge kids to think creatively to solve each puzzle. Better yet, tangram puzzles help develop your little learner’s visual spatial skills, while allowing them to practice strategy and logical thinking skills! Here is a link with step by step directions on how to make your own Tangrams at home.

Strategy Board Games

Board games aren’t created equally. Some games are great for family engagement, but don’t do much to allow for critical thinking. But some games challenge minds, both young and old! Here are some of the most well-known strategy board games:

• Quirkle is a game that task players with observing shapes and colors and arranging game pieces in a pattern.
• Blokus gives the players rules for placing game pieces on the board, while players strategize how they can place their blocks while still following those rules.
• Sequence also requires players to use strategy to complete the winning amount of sequences on the game board.

All games mentioned above require the player to utilize logical reasoning and creative skills to play, making these games the best choices for challenging gifted minds!

Window Pane Sudoku

Gifted kids love puzzles, so why not introduce your early learner to puzzles well-loved by people across the globe? A simple search online will give you the best Sudoku puzzles for kids of all! But let’s not stop there; let’s make your child’s first game of Sudoku even more exciting by playing in a fun and interactive way! Pick up a pack of washable window crayons and draw your child’s Sudoku puzzle on a large window in your home!

That way your child can complete the puzzle throughout the week, keeping him or her challenged for days on end! When completed, simply wash it off and start a new one. Get the whole family in on the fun by completing a new puzzle every week!

Create a Stop Motion Animation Video

Wonderful for kids who love technology and want to make their own, help your gifted child create a stop motion animation video!

• Сreate a stop motion animation studio space where you and your child plan to film the video.
• Challenge your child to create a script.
• Find their favorite objects, dolls, or toys to star in the film.

Using a stop motion animation app widely available on both Google Play and the App Store, help your child to film their video and view the results! Best yet, creating a stop motion animation video is a process; your child can find enjoyment and stimulation every step of the way, from planning the script, building the studio, to the final production of the video! Who knows, your child might create the next big Youtube Kids video!