SISD Course Catalog 

Before being assigned to work in the gifted program, teachers who provide instruction and services to gifted students must complete a minimum of thirty (30) clock hours of professional development. This training must cover the following areas: the nature and needs of gifted/talented students, assessment of student needs, and curriculum and instruction for gifted learners (19 TAC 89.2(2)).

These 30 hours are divided into five strands:

Nature & Needs

Identification & Assessment

Differentiating Instruction for G/T Students

Creativity & Instructional Strategies

Depth & Complexity OR Social Emotional

High School Teachers – DID YOU KNOW?

Participation in AP Summer Institute, OnRamps Training, NMSI, or IB multi-day training can count toward your GT hours! These trainings provide 12 GT hours (6 hours in Creativity and 6 hours in Differentiation) and may be applied toward the required initial 30 hours of GT professional development. 

Deadline: December 31, 2025

Nature & Needs

Objectives and Outcomes for Nature & Needs:

• Create and maintain a classroom environment that both challenges gifted students and encourages them to safely explore and express their individuality.

• Recognize and analyze the characteristics of gifted students and examine how these traits influence their academic performance and social interactions. 

• Develop a foundational understanding of gifted education by learning essential terminology, current definitions, and the leading theories and models of giftedness. 

• Identify and address the unique traits and needs of special populations within the gifted community, including twice-exceptional students and those from diverse backgrounds.

Identification & Assessment

Objectives and Outcomes for Identification & Assessment:

• Analyze both formal and informal assessment data to gauge students’ readiness, interests, and learning preferences, using this information to guide differentiated instruction.

• Recognize signs of disengagement or underperformance in gifted students and adjust instruction to re-engage and appropriately challenge them.

Differentiating Instruction for G/T Students

Objectives and Outcomes for Differentiating Instruction for G/T Students:

• Apply the principles of differentiation to modify content, process, product, and learning environment for gifted learners.

• Design lessons incorporating flexible grouping, tiered assignments, and student choice to provide challenge and complexity.

• Incorporate depth, complexity, and higher-order thinking into instructional activities to extend learning beyond grade-level standards.

Creativity & Instructional Strategies

Objectives and Outcomes for Creativity and Instructional Strategies: 

• Recognizes the unique characteristics of gifted and talented students and evaluates how these traits impact the selection and implementation of instructional strategies in GT classrooms.

• Plans and delivers lessons across content areas that integrate methods to foster both creative and critical thinking in gifted learners.

• Finds, creates, and applies resources that support gifted students in realizing and expanding their creative potential.

• Modifies the learning environment to accommodate the diverse learning needs of each GT student, effectively managing whole-group, small-group, and independent learning experiences.

• Selects and applies gifted education strategies that can also enhance instruction in the general education classroom.

Social Emotional/Depth & Complexity

Objective and Outcomes for Depth & Complexity Strategies:

• Use the Depth and Complexity Framework to add layers of abstractness, ethical considerations, and interdisciplinary connections.

• Apply acceleration strategies (e.g., telescoping curriculum, subject acceleration, dual credit opportunities) where appropriate.

Objective and Outcomes for Social/Emotional Strategies:

• Recognize the social and emotional characteristics commonly associated with gifted students, including heightened sensitivity, intensity, perfectionism, asynchronous development, and advanced moral reasoning.

• Analyze how social and emotional traits influence gifted students’ behavior, relationships, and academic engagement in school settings

• Identify risk factors such as underachievement, anxiety, isolation, or twice-exceptional challenges that may impact the well-being of gifted learners.

• Implement classroom practices that support positive social and emotional development, including strategies for building resilience, self-regulation, and healthy peer relationships.

• Collaborate with families, counselors, and other educators to address the social-emotional needs of gifted students and connect them with additional support when necessary.

• Create a classroom environment that values diversity, promotes psychological safety, and encourages students to embrace their individuality while building connections with peers.