Parent Awareness of Gifted and Talented Program - Definition of a Gifted Child - Assessment Process

Oct 5, 2026

Highland ISD provides parent-focused information on its Gifted and Talented (GT) program, explaining what qualifies as gifted and talented, including high performance capacity in intellectual, creativity, or artistic areas, unusual leadership capacity, and excellence in a specific academic field. It contrasts typical high achievers with gifted learners, and outlines program design and services by grade level. The document describes referral, permission to test, yearly assessment in November–December, key quantitative/qualitative tools, placement review, parent notification, and resources and contacts.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages10

Reading Time25 min

AccessFree to download

Deﬁnition of a Gifted Child

Characteristics of Gifted Students

Program Design and Services

Referral Period

Assessment Process

Determination of Need

Parent Notiﬁcation

Student Served

Parent Resources

Highland ISD Parent Awareness of Gifted and Talented Program Deﬁnition of a Gifted Child “Gifted and talented student” means a child or youth who performs at or shows the potential for performing at a remarkably high level of accomplishment when compared to others of the same age, experience, or environment and who: 1. exhibits high performance capacity in an intellectual, creativity, or artistic area; 2. possesses an unusual capacity for leadership; or 3. excels in a speciﬁc academic ﬁeld. TEC 29.121 Characteristics of Gifted Students High Achiever ● Knows the answers ● Learns with ease ● Completes assignments ● Enjoys school ● Absorbs information ● Good memorizer ● Pleased with own learning VS Gifted Learner ● Asks the questions ● Already knows ● Initiates projects ● Enjoys learning ● Manipulates information ● Good guesser ● Is highly self-critical Program Design and Services Elementary students in the Gifted and Talented program are served in a pull-out program one day per week. Junior High students will be served one to ﬁve days per week. Highschool students are served in a pull-out program one day per week. The program is taught by a teacher who has received thirty hours of training in gifted education, and a yearly six-hour update. Referral Period Parents, faculty, students, and community members may refer a student in grades Kindergarten through 12th grade for Gifted and Talented testing by ﬁlling out a referral form. The forms can be ﬁlled out online on the district website. The form can also be picked up at the campus administration oﬃce. Assessment Process Once a referral form has been received for a student, a letter of parental permission to test for academic giftedness is sent home. Once parental approval is obtained, the students will begin the assessment process. Testing for the Gifted and Talented program is done during November and December each year. Students are assessed with quantitative and qualitative assessments such as the NGAT, Torrance Test of Creativity, COGAT, and parent and teacher behavioral checklists. Determination of Need The selection committee will review the data gathered during the assessment process and recommend placement for students whose data meets the criteria for placement in the Gifted and Talented program. Decisions are based on multiple pieces of quantitative and qualitative data gathered during the assessment period. Parent Notiﬁcation Once the selection committee has determined which students met the criteria for placement in the Gifted and Talented program, written notiﬁcation will be sent out to the parents of all the students that participated in the GT assessments. The notiﬁcation will tell the parents whether or not their child qualiﬁed for placement in the Gifted and Talented program. If the student qualiﬁes for the program, parental approval or denial of their child in the Gifted and Talented program must be obtained before services begin. Student Served Once parental approval for placement in the Gifted and Talented program has been obtained, the student will immediately begin being served in the Gifted and Talented program on campus. Parent Resources State GT Curriculum ● Texas Performance Standards Projects ● [http://texaspsp.org](http://texaspsp.org) Parent Group ● Texas Association of Gifted and Talented ● [www.txgifted.org](www.txgifted.org) TEA Gifted and Talented ● [www.tea.state.tx.us](www.tea.state.tx.us) ● Search for Gifted and Talented

FAQs

What does Highland ISD consider a “gifted and talented student”?

A gifted and talented student is a child or youth who performs at, or shows potential for, a remarkably high level of accomplishment compared to peers, and who exhibits high performance capacity in an intellectual, creativity, or artistic area, unusual leadership capacity, or excels in a specific academic field.

How does the referral and testing process work for GT placement?

Parents, faculty, students, and community members can refer a student in grades Kindergarten through 12 by completing a referral form (online or at the campus administration office). After the referral is received, a letter of parental permission to test is sent, and students begin assessment after approval.

When are students assessed, and how are placement decisions made?

GT testing occurs during November and December each year. A selection committee reviews quantitative and qualitative data from assessments (including tools such as NGAT, Torrance Test of Creativity, and COGAT, plus behavioral checklists) and recommends placement for students whose data meets the criteria.

Oct 5, 2026

Uploaded by Taylor Morgan