Episode 56: Extensions for Gifted Learners (What They Should and Shouldn't Be)

Let's be honest, good teaching is just good teaching. My hope is that the ideas and strategies shared on each episode will help you find meaning in your mess. Let's do this.

It's just hard to watch them grow up and go do their thing, right? Um, so all of that being said, I've kept myself busy today and I thought I would keep myself busy tonight by recording this podcast. Um, so tonight's podcast or today's podcast, whenever you're listening to this, is actually the beginning of season five, which is crazy. Um, but as I was thinking to myself, how do I

start this episode or start this season. Um, what do I want to talk about? I I thought about something that is really important to me. Number one, as a gifted education. And number two, as a mom of gifts. And I wanted to share something that would, as always, give teachers a return on their investment and also talk about something that maybe we don't consider enough in education or that we don't talk about often.

And as I thought about those pieces, I really kept thinking about the extensions that we designed for gift. and how we extend learning for not just the kids who don't understand, but also the ones that do. And so what I want to spend these next couple of episodes, next few episodes, I don't know. I know that's shocking that I haven't already planned out all the episodes. But look, the podcast is called A Meaningful Mess. This should not be surprising to me.

But seriously, over the next few episodes, I really want to dive into this and share some practical ways that we can extend learning in a way. And as always, just like everything that I share on this podcast, I want to talk about how to do it in a way that is manageable for you as an But also meaningful for your life.

And so today on this podcast, on this episode, we're going to talk about four things that extensions should be. So when you're thinking about extending the learning for the learners that already understand. I believe that extensions should be number one, prioritized. Number two, they should be meaningful. Number three, appropriate, and number four, intelligent.

And so what we're gonna do is go through each one of those, talk about what they look like. I'm gonna share some really practical ideas and some resources for you to explore. And then um Yeah, I just want to challenge you to think about that and challenge you to think about your own classroom. Like, is there one of these things that maybe you haven't considered or is this just a different way to look at it? Maybe it's just a different perspective.

Or maybe what I'll share will just validate what you already think and what you are already doing in your classroom, which is always awesome. All right. So let's start with extensions for gifted learners should be. And I want to be clear here, I'm saying extensions for gifted learners, but the reality is any kid that already understands the content and can demonstrate that deserves an opportunity to experience.

Right. Uh sometimes your struggling learners are going to have days that they already understand something. And I think it's important that if that's the case, they are given the opportunity to work on

Okay, so extensions should be prioritized. And what I mean by that is that they need to be planned and considered on the front end of a learning. They shouldn't be an afterthought. And and look, this may not be the case for you, but I remember when I was in the general education classroom and I was actually at the time teaching fourth and fifth grade math.

And oftentimes my high achievers or my gifted learners, because I didn't design for it on the front end, when they would finish their work or they would demonstrate mastery of what was being learned that day, I would uh end up giving them busy work. Because I was just, I was caught off guard, right? And I don't know why. It wasn't a surprise, but they would come to me and they would say, Okay, I already finished, or hey, I already understand this. And if I didn't already have something in place.

If I hadn't prioritized that on the front end, the reality is that I would have them get on a computer program or I would just give them something. Them busy so that I could work with the struggling learners or do the things that I needed to do. And you guys, that's not okay, right? That's not what should be. That was early in my career, thank goodness. Um, when I was given the opportunity to work specifically with just gifted learners, I realized just

And so I think um I actually recorded a reel on Instagram. If you don't follow me. You should. You can find me at a meaningful mess. I recorded a reel uh this week that just kind of made the point. And I think what I said was something to the effect of gifted learners recognize and resist. And just think about that. Gifted learners recognize and resent busy.

And and what I mean is they know when it's busy work, like it's not you're not fooling them, right? They understand, oh, they're just giving me something to keep me busy so that they can prioritize these other learners. And and they end up resenting that. They end up uh sometimes that'll result in behavior problems, sometimes it'll result in disengagement or just apathy, but it can it can make them really, really frustrated. And so I think it's something that we need to consider.

So how do we do that? What does that look like? And I know a lot of you probably already do this, but if you don't, somewhere in your lesson plan or wherever you design experience. There should be a place for you to consider what you will do when your learners already understand.

In other words, we're not just going to think about what we're going to do if our students don't understand. We're also going to think about what's going to happen if they do. And what that does is it gives us an opportunity to make sure that the extension connects to the content. So we're not just giving them some project that is completely disconnected. We're not just putting them on a computer program. We are prioritizing this as we're designing the experience.

So that we know when they finish their work early or they've already mastered what's being learned, they will be given an opportunity to move from not just learning that content, but actually deeply understanding. So the key here is we want to prioritize it and we want to do it on the front end of a learning experience. We don't want it to be an afterthought. Um I think one way to say to say that would be that we want to be proactive and not reactive, right? That's what we want.

And so I want to share with you guys, if you don't have a way to do that or your wherever it is that you design experiences doesn't already have a place for you to kind of think through that, I would love for you to check out my website, andymacnair.com. slash design for depth. So I'll put that link in the show notes, but I just have an example of what that

of how we can kind of design for depth. And what I mean by that, when I talk about designing for depth, I'm talking about considering those gifted learners on the front end. So prioritizing that is key. Make sure you check out that link. I'll say it one more time. Andymacnair.com slash design for depth. I think it can just give you an idea of what that.

So you definitely don't have to use that form if you don't want to or you don't need it. But I think it could give you some perspective and a different way to kind of look at design. Okay, so prioritized extensions should definitely be a priority.

The second thing to consider is that extensions should also be meaningful. And look, everything that I Around this idea. I oftentimes say that if what you're doing in the classroom isn't meaningful for your learners, it's a waste of your time and the But I think sometimes we ask ourselves the questions, um, the question like how do we know if something is meaningful? How would I know if the extension is meaningful? Because isn't every kid different? 100%.

And so that makes it difficult and it makes it challenging. But when we think about extensions and making them meaningful, I think there's three questions that we can consider. I think the first question is how does this extension connect the content to their right now? In other words, how does it give them an opportunity to utilize what they've learned in class beyond the walls of

I oftentimes say that connecting to their right now is so important because you're teaching a generation of learners that when you say to them, you're going to need this later, they instantly think, well, then I'll Google it or YouTube it later. I don't need it right now.

So one of our goals in the classroom should always be to connect to their right now. So in order for an extension to be meaningful, I think that's one question we might consider. How can this extension connect to their right now? I think another question we can ask is how does it connect to their strengths? Um, gosh, I think every learner. Right. And so often we don't give them opportunities to utilize those in the class

And um if you're wondering like, gosh, how would I know what my students' strengths are? Well, number one, you can always ask them, but the problem with that is sometimes they don't know. You'll ask a kid, hey, what are your strengths? What are your weaknesses?

I have no idea. Or they might say, I know my weaknesses, right? I've always been told what I need to fix. I don't really know what my strengths are. And so as we think about that, um, I would like to share another resource with you guys. It's I've talked about it often on the podcast. Um it's called thrively.com and thrively.com is just a website where kids can take a stream.

And that part of the platform is free. And that strengths assessment will give you a dashboard and you'll get to see what all of your students' strengths are, what they're interested in, and what they aspire to be. And so as you think through that, as you consider that, um, those things can be hard to find without a tool to make it. And Thrively.com is exactly that. So again, I'll share that in the show notes. You guys can check it out. But let me share a practical example.

With you. So let's say a student, let's say their strength is they're really good at coding, or maybe they're interested in designing video. You could have, let's say that day you're learning about the water cycle. If they've already, if they already understand the water cycle and they can demonstrate mastery, then they might be given the opportunity to utilize Scratch, which is a place where kids can design video. to design a video game about the water cycle for the rest of the

So everybody's going to get to utilize the website. They're just going to use it in different ways. If they're if they're involved in the extension, they are going to actually be creating the If they're receiving extra support, they would play the video game. So I love that idea because it's not like, oh, you're gifted. So you get to do the really cool thing. It's about everybody's going to get to experience this. We're just going to experience

So I think that's a great way to use a kid's strengths. And the third question to know if something is meaningful is how does it connect to what has been learned? So these are connections, right? We've got how does it connect to their right now? How does it connect to their strengths? And how does it connect to what has been learned in Look, I think extensions, it's important that whatever the extension is, is an opportunity to dive deeper into what they've already learned in class.

I think sometimes when the extension is completely disconnected, we're missing an opportunity. And I don't know if you've seen this. I've seen it before where gifted learners have been You know, acceleration has been something that they've experienced. And look, I think acceleration can be super beneficial. Don't hear me saying But I do think sometimes we accelerate kids along the surface.

Like they've learned it, they've learned it, they've learned it. And then all of a sudden we hit this place where we realize, oh my gosh, they were able to demonstrate that they've learned it, but they didn't really understand. And so I think when we design for depth, when we're thinking through this idea of meaningful extensions, one of the things that we can do is make sure that it connects to the content. So that they're being given that opportunity to deeply understand what

Hopefully that makes sense. So those three connections, how does it connect to their right now? How does it connect to their strengths? And how does it connect to what has been learned in class? I think are three things you can consider when asking yourself, is the extension mean?

Okay, number three, is the extension appropriate? You know, when I think about this perspective and I think about how do you know if an extension is appropriate, uh respectful tasks come to mind. I don't know if you've heard of that before. That's definitely a popular conversation. Something that's talked about in education often. And I was looking on a website called differentiationcentral.com and they um

They talk about respectful tasks this way. They say that they are challenging, interesting, and worth doing. It like, isn't that what everything should be at school? Right? Like that's just something that we need to consider, is what we're asking our learners to do. challenging, interesting, and worth doing. And again, I'll put their website in the show notes so you can check that out. But as we think about an extension, asking ourselves those questions can make, can help us be sure that it is a

And um I think when it's appropriate, because I often have times people will say to me, like, gosh, Andy, I here's where I struggle with extensions. My gifted kids don't want to do. Right. Or they don't want to do anything else. They want to be done when they're Of course they feel that way if the work isn't meaningful, if it's not appropriate. But if it is challenging, interesting, and worth doing, chances are they're going to want to make that a priority.

And so look, if you listen to the podcast at all or you are familiar with my work, you know that I talk often about passion based learning or genius. And I don't think it's a bad idea for every learner to have a passion project running in the background. And what I mean by that is that you can At the beginning of the year, aka right now, right? Like a lot of you are just starting school. Help kids go ahead and figure out what are you interested in? What are you passionate?

introduce a uh you know, a process that you guys are going to follow throughout the year and then let them work on their genius hour process. as an extension. Now, the key here, because of what I just said, because you might be thinking to yourself, like, Andy, that's a great idea, but you just said that the extension should be connected to the content.

You're right, I did. And there's a way to do that through genius hour. Like you can connect whatever it is that you're learning in class to their project. Better yet, they can You can challenge them and say, hey, somehow today I need you to make a connection between the content or the skills that we used in class. And I need you to demonstrate that as you work on your gene. So I'm a big fan of Passion Project.

simply because they are what we just talked about, right? They are often challenging. They're interesting to the kid who's working on them because it's connected to their passion or interest and they're worth doing because of the purpose. of genius hour projects. So gosh, if you want to know more about those, definitely look through the podcast because I talk about it all the time. You can also visit my website and go to andymacnair.com slash genius dash hour. You can actually just click

hour on my um navigation bar as well. So um appropriate is a big deal. We want to make sure that what we are asking them to do as an extension is appropriate for them.

Finally, the last thing that I think we have to consider is is the extension intentional? And and I looked up the word intentional in the dictionary. I'm a big word person. I always want to make sure that I'm using the right And um the definition of intentional is done on purpose or deliberate. And what that means is we don't want an extension. This is very closely tied to what we talked about the beginning when we talked about it being.

We don't want an extension to feel haphazard or just like here, just do this. We want it to seem like we've actually, and not just seem like we want it to, we want that to be the case, that we've actually thought it out that there was intention or purpose.

behind what we're asking them to do. When that's not the That's when kids don't want to do the extension and don't want to do the work, when they feel like they're just being given something that will occupy them while everyone else gets the attention and gets the you know, while while educators are serving the needs of everyone else in the class. So I think it's important to ask yourself, what is the intention behind

the um extension. These these are hard words. What is the intention behind the extension that you're designing? Like are you wanting them to reach a deeper understanding? That's probably almost always going to be the Intention? Are you wanting them to apply what they've learned? Are you wanting them to create or design based on what they've learned? Like considering the intention, like what is the purpose?

Of what you're designing as that extension can be really helpful. And I think will result in those other three things, right? That will ensure that it's prioritized, that it's meaningful, and that's And so that last key of making sure that it's intentional kind of wraps all of this.

So man, I've said a lot, I've talked about a lot of things. So let me just go back and go over them one more time. Um, and again, we're gonna be diving more into extensions. So if you're thinking I just need some more practical ideas. Those are coming. Stay tuned. But on today's episode, I really wanted to talk through what does an extension need to be? And again, those things are an extension should be prioritized.

An extension should be meaningful, an extension should be appropriate, and an extension should be. And as you think about those things, I would just challenge you to consider your own classic. And is that something that you are thinking about often? Is it something that you're thinking about on the front end of a learning experience? And if not, I don't think there's nothing wrong with that. Just how can we? And so uh

Gosh, I hope that this has just got you thinking. And again, maybe it just validated some things that you're already doing. But if these aren't things that you're considering, I would just remind you that so often. Gifted learners feel like school is not because they just aren't sure how they can invest in the learning if it's something And that's why extensions are so

So I hope this is helpful. I hope as always it helps you find a little meaning in your mess. If you have any questions, you can always reach out to me via my website, andymacnair.com. Thank you so much for listening. I'll talk to you soon.

You can always find tons of resources, inspiration, and information over on my website, andymacnair.com. Be sure to check out my blog, genius hour resources, and so much more. Enjoy the rest of your day, and as always, I hope that today's episode has inspired you to find meaning in your mess.