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Gifted Development Center a service of The Institute for the Study of Advanced Development

1452 Marion Street � Denver, CO 80218 � (303) 837-8378

Strategies for Teaching Underachievers Linda Silverman, Ph.D.

Achieving gifted children are usually good sequential learners, and often have been found to favor the sequential mode of learning or to have balance between sequential and spatial modalities. Underachievers, however, tend to have high spatial abilities and underdeveloped sequencing skills. This means that they will tend to have difficulty with much of the work in the elementary grades. These problems may be masked by obstinance, so that teachers and parents perceive these children as unwilling to do the work rather than unable.

The following characteristics are typical of underachievers with high spatial strengths:

early ability in puzzles and mazes

sophisticated sense of humor

elaborate doodler

creative thinker

high abstract reasoning ability

keen visual memory

avid TV fan

loves computers, particularly computer graphics

highly capable in science

excels in geometry

grasps metaphors and analogies

understands complex relations and systems

enjoys music

rich fantasy life

unusual visualization ability

Their weaker sequential skills are manifested in the following manner:

does not remember three-step directions

has difficulty learning phonics

has difficulty with spelling (may spell words according to their shape, not their sounds)

Strategies for Teaching Underachievers

Linda Silverman, Ph.D.

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http://www.gifteddevelopment.com

has difficulty learning math facts

performs poorly or not at all on timed tests

forgets written homework assignments, or submits short, sloppy work of much lower quality than is capable

has difficulty with handwriting or handwriting is poor

tends to act first and think later

poor at biology, foreign languages, and other subjects which require a great deal of rote memorization

In addition, some of these children are hyperactive, rebellious against authority, highly critical of others, physically uncoordinated and socially isolated. As a group, they seem to suffer low self-esteem, unrealistic self-expectations, and chronic inattention.

The most important way you can help underachievers is to recognize their pain and attempt to get their symptoms diagnosed. The worst thing you can do is call them lazy, and blame them for their lack of achievement. Children want to achieve. Some do not because they cannot learn the way the material is usually taught. Some cannot sit still because of undetected or uncontrolled allergies. Some cannot hear well or process what they hear. And some are rebellious due to emotional pain. Underachievement is a symptom a symptom with multiple causes. The first step is to diagnose the problem. The following chart lists some of the potential causes of underachievement.

Causes of Underachievment

Fear of failure

Fear of success

Fear of lack of acceptance by peer group

Undetected learning disabilities

Lack of basic skills and study habits

Inappropriate educational activities

Lack of opportunity in the society

Too high or too low expectations of parents

Lack of parental support for education

Fear of overshadowing parent

Passive-aggression toward parent

Low frustration tolerance

Lack of impulse control

Low risk-taking abilities

Lack of competitiveness

Guilt for being advanced intellectually

Interests in activities other than school

Cumulative deficits and belief in failure

The second step is to generate solutions. The solutions vary considerably depending on the cause. For example:

give the child a decent breakfast



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provide a support group of achieving peers

introduce him to role models of successful adults with backgrounds similar to his own

help the parents arrange a time and place for homework

make sure the child gets more sleep

get the child a hearing aid or glasses

move the child to the front of the room

let her know it is safe to succeed

eliminate corn or wheat from his diet

get a tutor for gaps in basic skills

reduce the child's after-school responsibilities

provide more challenging educational activities

move the child to another classroom

place her in a counseling group with other gifted students

encourage family counseling

procure a foster placement in the event of physical or sexual abuse

Despite the multiplicity of causes, there is no factor that has been shown repeatedly to make a difference in the life of an underachieving child: a caring, sensitive teacher who recognizes the child's true potential and is determined to help. Children respond to those who believe in them. No grouping strategy, teaching technique, or counseling program appears to be as effective as the teacher/student relationship. But teachers may have to be satisfied with small gains. The older the child at the time of intervention, the more difficult and lengthy the process of reversing the pattern.

The following techniques have been found useful with a number of underachieving children particularly the high spatial/low sequential type.

Teaching Strategies that Work

These children remember what they see and forget what they hear. The trick to teaching them effectively is showing them, rather than telling them. Many cannot take notes or complete written work because their fine motor coordination is so poor. They should be taught to use a keyboard as early as possible. They often understand complex concepts, but have difficulty doing easy, sequential tasks. They are not step-by-step learners. There are great discrepancies between their strengths and their weaknesses. They usually suffer from poor self-concepts. The following simple adaptations can be used at school and home to enable them to succeed in school.

Write directions on the board, on overheads, or on paper.



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Let the child observe others before attempting new tasks.

Use visuals and hands-on experiences.

Touch the child's shoulder to get attention when he does not hear you.

Use a sight approach to reading rather than phonics.

Use a visualization approach to spelling:

s Show child the spelling word s Have her close her eyes and picture the word. s Have her spell the word backward with her eyes closed. s Have her spell the word forward with her eyes closed. s Have her write the word. s Use a kinesthetic approach, such as sand tracing or sandpaper letters, with young children.

Have someone teach the child how to type; let him type assignments on a computer or typewriter.

Use fantasy books rich in visual imagery to enhance interest and ability in reading.

Have the child discover his own methods of problem solving (e.g., instead of teaching division step-by-step, give him a simple division problem, with a divisor, dividend and quotient. Have him figure out how to get that answer in his own way. Don't ask him to show you his steps. When he succeeds, give him another problem with the solution already worked out and see if his system works.)

Give the child advanced, abstract material, even when he has difficulty with easy, sequential material.

Avoid rote memorization. Use more conceptual approaches.

Avoid timed tests. If they are required, allow the child to take them at home or alone, trying to beat his own past record, rather than competing with his classmates.

Use material that has high interest for the child.

Engage the child emotionally through encouragement.

Use humor frequently in instruction (not sarcasm).

Break term papers into segments, and find someone to help the child organize his ideas.

Use computer-assisted instruction.

Concentrate on the child's strengths. Help her find ways to be successful, in spite of her weaknesses. Remediation (repetitive practice of tasks that the child finds difficult) has a poor track record for children over 9.



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Use adaptive techniques that assist the student in devising methods of compensating. The following are some examples of adaptive techniques that work:

s Buy a Perfect Speller as a handy guide to spelling.

s Use a word processor with a spelling correction program.

s Use earphones to block out noise when studying.

s Make lists to help remember things.

s Practice visualization as a memory aid.

s Use rhythm and music to aid memorizing.

s Tape record lectures instead of taking notes.

s Estimate answers before calculating.

Assure these children that they will get smarter as they get older, and as the material becomes more consistent with their learning style. Many spatially oriented learners suddenly blossom in puberty. One possible reason for this miracle is that the material becomes challenging enough to force the integration of the two hemispheres. Most adults compensate well for sequential weaknesses, and excel in areas such as computer technology, aeronautics, physics, art, architecture, music, and research mathematics.

Linda Silverman, Ph.D., is a licensed psychologist and Director of the Gifted Development Center in Denver, Colorado.

whitworth gifted endorsement portfolio - home - gifted ......linda silverman, ph.d., is a licensed...

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