Twice-exceptional students or 2E students are sometimes referred to as gifted with a learning disability or gifted with a processing speed and/or working memory issue.

Our experience is that twice exceptional students are often gifted with a learning difference, or what we call GOLD Students. Dr. Linda Silverman, from the Gifted Development Center, refers to these students as visual-spatial learners.

The 8 most common challenges we see with GOLD students include:

• Working memory challenges
• Processing speed
• Attention 
• Anxiety or frustration
• Self-esteem
• Visual perception
• Sight word vocabulary.   Your child may have an impressive verbal vocabulary, but the small words often trip them up
• Pattern recognition. Your child may not remember words have previously learned

Too often we see psycho-educational reports for GOLD Students that recommend:

• Activities to improve working memory and processing speed
• ADHD Medication if ADHD is an issue
• Counseling for anxiety

What is often not mentioned are:

• The learning difference that is really the key to the working memory, processing speed, sight word vocabulary and pattern recognition issues

• The visual perception issues. One psychologist who did a thorough report recognized the student was a visual learner, but said it was not possible for a visual learner to have visual skill problems. It is our experience that GOLD Students are several times more likely to have visual challenges than their logical, sequential and auditory peers.

Self-esteem and self-advocacy skills turn out to be two critical areas that are often not addressed for the GOLD Student.

As one mom said, “3D Learner significantly improved my sons’ self-esteem and that was 90% of the battle”,

Kim Fields, mother of twins from Parkland, FL.

We have seen parents try tutoring, which tends not to address the root cause of the challenges.  The moms and dads who have had the most success, took the following three steps:

• Decided that success was the only option. They realized their child had incredible potential
• Assessed for whether their child learned differently and what were the blocking issues
• Partnered with the right professional(s) to make the difference.

We recommend:

• First deciding that that success is the only option for your smart struggling child
• Learning more about the GOLD student and establish if this profile fits your child, and then determining which of the challenges fits your child
• Finding the right professional for your GOLD Student to reach his/her full potential, and to help you to be the coach and advocate your child needs

Mira Halpert M.Ed. developed the 3D Learner Program ® for her daughter who is a GOLD Student.  Mira, who herself was a GOLD Student, is committed to helping GOLD students to reach their potential.  For more insights go to www.3dlearner.com/gold-students and then call Mira at 561-361-7495