7 SGallagher for nis training 8/21/2014

Level 1 SARAH

Sarah, the first child, is a newly identified gifted 13-year-old, who has been in traditional classrooms where little, if any, self-directedness is allowed. However, as a somewhat typical gifted student, she has shown signs that she would like to work more independently. Sarah never has to be redirected during seatwork time, instead, she works quietly and consistently on her own. However, Sarah is also fond of attention from her teacher and will sometimes draw his attention when she doesn’t really need help.

During her first few weeks in school, Mr. Jones, observed that Sarah worked best when she was given tasks with a sequence of steps to follow, and that she was less independent when assignments were a bit more open-ended and would ask for help from Mr. Jones, requesting ideas for things to do. Mr. Jones decided to start working with Sarah to increase her skills in self-directed learning. The first thing he wanted to do was to encourage Sarah to broaden the range of activities she would select as independent learning assignments, including some that were a little more open-ended. At the same time, he wanted to try to get Sarah to work independently for slightly longer periods of time. Mr. Jones worked with Sarah to develop a two-day plan for learning center time. He gave Sarah a list of six possible activities that could be done at the learning center or at her desk. She was to complete four of the activities, including written assignments, charts, and so forth. Mr. Jones let Sarah know that he was available if she really needed help, but that she would be rewarded for avoiding asking for help when she didn’t really need it. At the end of the two days, Sarah and Mr. Jones were to have a conference to discuss the activities, Sarah’s progress, and any problem she might have encountered.

After the first day, it was clear that Sarah was having a little trouble. She kept coming to Mr. Jones to ask where to get materials, to ask about specific steps in the brief assignments, and to ask for advice about which activity she should try next. Mr. Jones thought he should help her plan more carefully at the beginning so she would know in advance what to do. Mr. Jones predicted this might happen, especially since some of the activities were designed to stretch Sarah’s skills in independent learning. He sat down with Sarah and developed a two-day “contract.” Together they reviewed all the choices decided all of the activities Sarah would complete. Mr. Jones gave Sarah all the time she needed to ask questions; they agreed that Sarah would gather all the materials she needed at the beginning of class and then attempt to work entirely independently. They set a date for their next meeting, and both signed the contract. At the end of the two days, Sarah came back to talk with Mr. Jones about her successful experience. She was proud and happy that she was able to complete two days of assignments on her own. They discussed the results of her work and reviewed what she did well and what challenges she faced working on her own. Together they identified some solutions to these problems and decided to develop a contract for a longer period of time.

Contract for SARAH

I agree to do the (number of activities) ____marked with an X below at the learning center. I will work on my own as much as possible until I am finished. I have created a list of materials I need, and I will try to find anything else on my own before I ask my teacher.

____X___	Look at an onion skin under the microscope. Draw a picture and label its parts, paying particular attention to detail. Describe the onion skill, making a parallel between onion skin and human skin.
_________	On a day the teacher is available to supervise, melt some sugar cubes. What happens when the sugar cube is exposed to extreme heat? What happens when the sugar cools? Draw a parallel between the sugar and what happens when sedimentary rock is exposed to heat and then cooled.
___X____	Put some chocolate chips in the mystery substance and record data describing what happens. Observe the changes over time by taking notes every 3 minutes for 30 minutes. Make inferences about the cause and effect relationship between the chocolate chips and the mystery substance (note: ask teacher for chocolate chips and mystery substance).
________	Use the pH strips (ask teacher for strips), to test the pH of lemon juice, cola, water, and water with baking soda. Try two ways to reduce the pH of the lemon juice and describe your results using appropriate language of the discipline.
_____X___	Take three balls of different-colored clay and make a snowman-shaped figure. Press down on the “snowman” and create a three-layered “pancake.” Use a plastic knife to cut the pancake in half. Observe the cross section and draw a parallel with foliated metamorphic rock.
____X____	Make a clay boat that will float and carry at least five marbles without sinking. Draw a picture of the boat and write how long it floated and how many marbles it held.