Cindy Sheets, a resource teacher for gifted children in Shawnee Mission, Kansas. © Cindy Sheets

Devising a dynamic curriculum
Cindy says she began teaching gifted kids because "it's new every day. It's a constant challenge to meet the needs of the kids and keep them engaged." She loves the intellectual stimulation of teaching an interdisciplinary curriculum. Last year her class studied mythology and the Holocaust; this year it's a mock trial and a unit on genetics. "I lean towards a big topic that's pretty rich," she explains. By focusing on one topic, Cindy covers not just science or just social studies, but combines the two, and more. "Deciding the final topics is up to me, but it is usually based on subjects that have interested students in the past, or in which my current students have expressed interest," she explains. "There are also times when we allow the students to choose between two topics."

Cindy also likes playing the role of facilitator. "Students spend a good part of their day working directly with me, doing projects that they've chosen. As a facilitator, I try to help them formulate their plans, and work with them to chart how they're going to progress through their research." She describes it as "kind of a mutual effort. Our students are often teaching us!" This has been particularly true when it comes to technology. "I've learned a great deal about computers and specific software programs from many of my students," Cindy reports. "We always operate on the philosophy that the teacher doesn't have to have all the answers."

Teaching gifted students, in Cindy's words, allows her to "go much deeper into things, rather than teaching things on the basic knowledge level and hoping to get to the application level." Even the basic knowledge among her students tends to be more advanced, which frees up class time to discuss big-picture issues. "For example, when we started an astronomy unit, I had kids who had already thought about such intense questions as, 'What is the shape of the Universe? Where is the edge of the Universe? Is the Universe going to end?' I love that," Cindy says, "because I have to keep thinking, and I can say, 'I don't know,' and they can go look it up. Some teachers don't want to say that out of fear of losing control, but I think it's the other way around. In my experience, kids can lose respect for you for not admitting you don't know all the answers."

Tackling a new topic: genetics
What are some of the challenges of putting together a genetics curriculum for the K-6 age group? "Covering the basics without getting bogged down in too much detail," Cindy replies. Since each of her classes meets only once a week, the semester is only 18 days, "so it really can't be a long unit." Limited class time also makes it harder to address kids' very different levels of knowledge.

Keeping up with the science itself is another challenge, and not only for teachers of gifted children. Staying current is essential, "because there's no way to deal with genetics in the classroom unless you know the facts yourself," Cindy points out, adding that it's not easy to find good, condensed, accurate information at a basic level. She recommends teachers use science magazines, Discover in particular, and also suggests that teachers try to find another teacher with a real interest in the subject with whom to collaborate. "If you do, you might convince the school to let you do a little team-teaching, which will give you a little more time and support to delve into this new and constantly changing science."

When assessing basic knowledge about cloning during a mini-debate in her class last year, Cindy realized that the kids had encountered a lot of misinformation. "They thought that cloning meant that an identical person was suddenly standing beside you. That's one of the challenges of working with really bright kids: they can be too quick to assume they've figured out how something works." In this situation, the teacher's first task is to explore what the students already know. "We'll have a big discussion where I ask questions like, 'What do you know about genes?' 'Ever heard of a chromosome?'" says Cindy. "I often throw in a little teaching in the process, but I get a lot of feedback on where to begin. Then I provide materials and/or activities at the appropriate level."

Cindy guides her students through an activity. © Cindy Sheets

Addressing the ethical issues
Cindy is used to dealing with big topics that involve different points of view, as well as with ideas that can be controversial. "The first thing I do, several weeks ahead of time, is send either a letter or a newsletter to the students' homes about the subject matter we're going to cover in class. The more intense the subject, the further ahead of time I send the letter." She asks parents to call her with any questions or concerns. She figures that when it comes to genetics, "I'm going to have to think about where to draw the line when we get into sex and reproduction. These kids handle that pretty well; they've all had the little sex education talks. But I can see them asking all kinds of question and I don't want to be the one to alter that naïveté."

Finding and creating resources
In her genetics course, Cindy plans to use a Delta Science Kit called The One and Only You, which is designed for individuals or small groups. "That will probably be my primary resource because it's already set up as an activity, with an activity book and a journal." Another activity will be to conduct a survey of genetic traits, which will tie nicely into a unit on genealogy that Cindy's team teacher is planning.

Much of Cindy's teaching also incorporates the Internet. She has worked on creating a "webquest" on the subject of genetics, which could be used by one student or a group of students working together. Webquest is a basic design format for online interactive learning, which Cindy learned about through a Seminars on Science class offered through the AMNH and Connected University. "It takes kids beyond using the computer simply as a resource, like an encyclopedia, towards really using it as a teaching tool—a structured environment, usually focused around a problem or simulation," she explains. "Typically, the teacher compiles a list of Web sites of value where kids can get the right information, then asks the students to find information that can inform their answer to the question." In Cindy's webquest, for example, students are advising their Congressman or Congresswoman of their concerns about the implications of genetic research. A webquest also worked very well when Cindy studied mythology with third graders, who worked in groups of two or three. "They were very excited about using the computers and the Internet; they loved the subject; and they loved putting the PowerPoint together," she recalls. "It was a fairly new skill for most of them." Webquests also work well for mainstream children, and kids can often put the finished product on line.

Connecting with curiosity about life itself
"To me, genetics is the ultimate experience of learning about yourself: how much our behavior, our lifestyles, and how we're going to act tomorrow may have a genetic basis," says Cindy. "It's fascinating. We now know so much about genetics and genomics, but there's still a lot more to learn and uncover. This aspect is fascinating, too. Behind each door is a bigger door. I have a fourth grader who's been studying the cell for a year, who recently said, 'The more I know, the more questions I have.'"

One reason Cindy likes working with elementary school kids is that they're still ready and willing to ask a lot of questions. "I love the 'what if' questions that shows the students are really challenging their ideas, and genetics is full of that kind of thinking," she says. Cindy goes on to say that, "Genetics is a rich topic, with plenty of depth, complexity, and abstraction. I hope that by introducing and studying this and other complex topics, I encourage students to continue to ask questions and seek their own answers, long after their short time with me in the classroom."