How to Support Gifted, Neurodiverse Students

Twice-exceptional — or 2e — students are kids who are gifted and also have one or more learning differences. Their asynchrony is real: they may read three grade levels above their age and still need extended time on a written test. Honoring both halves of that profile is the work.

The most common mistake is forcing 2e learners to choose. Schools accelerate the giftedness and ignore the disability, or they remediate the disability and shelve the giftedness. The result is a student who feels misunderstood at every turn.

A better approach: lead with strengths, accommodate needs, and never use one to invalidate the other. A 2e learner who excels in physics still deserves their reading accommodations on the physics test.