cluster seven
Case Studies
Early Childhood:  Letter P Day Elementary School:  Cheetahs, Lions, and
Leopards
Middle School:  Math Troubles High School:  NSS
Module 22: Intelligence
Outline and Learning Goals 396 What Is Intelligence? 397 Intelligence Measured as IQ 400
Biological, Social, and Cultural Issues 402 Application: Intelligence Theories in the Classroom
405 Summary 409 Key Concepts 409 Case Studies: Reflect and Evaluate 409
Module 23: Giftedness and Creativity
Outline and Learning Goals 411
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C L U S T E R
EARLY CHILDHOOD MIDDLE SCHOOL HIGH SCHOOL
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
learner differences
Giftedness and Creativity: Are They
More Than Just Intelligence? 412 Giftedness 413 Creativity 417 Summary 421 Key
Concepts 421 Case Studies: Reflect and Evaluate 422
Module 24: Cognitive Disabilities
Outline and Learning Goals 424 Cognitive Disabilities in Today s
Classrooms 425 Intellectual Disabilities 427 Specific Learning Disabilities 430 Summary
437 Key Concepts 437 Case Studies: Reflect and Evaluate 438
Module 25: Emotional, Social, and Behavioral Disabilities Outline and Learning Goals
440 Emotional, Social, and Behavioral
Disabilities in Today s Classrooms 441 Characteristics of Disabilities 444 Applications:
Interventions 450 Summary 453 Key Concepts 453 Case Studies: Reflect and Evaluate
454
7
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388
Prepare:
As you read the case, make notes:
1. WHO are the primary participants in the case?
Describe them.
2. WHAT is taking place?
3. WHERE is the case taking place? Is the environment
a factor?
4. WHEN is the case taking place? Is the timing a factor?
It is Monday morning, and the children in Mrs. Anita Cahill s kindergarten class are eagerly waiting to
hear what centers they will be assigned for today s language arts lesson. Anita, who also has taught
preschool and first grade, is a veteran kindergarten teacher who was chosen to be the school s first
teacher for full-day kindergarten this year.
Anita has an interesting way of teaching literacy skills. Each
Monday, children are introduced to a new letter of the alphabet.
Language arts begins with children sitting on a carpet in the reading
corner, listening attentively to Anita reading a nursery rhyme or
tongue twister featuring the letter of the week. Today she is reading
 Peter Piper to introduce the letter P and its sound.
When she has finished reading, Anita announces:  Boys and
girls, I have put name cards at each center. Find your name. That is
the center you will be working at this morn
ing. Craig, Adriana, and Marcie, you look like you re ready to begin.
You may get up and look for your names. Anita continues calling
children. Joanna Gallagher, a parent volunteer, is helping the
children find their center and get started.
Anita has set up four learning centers publishing, art, building,
and science each with different activities. The children are able to
choose which activity they want to do.
n At the  publishing center, Miguel, Darnell, and Pat are drawing
pictures of words that begin with P and writing the words, and Craig
is looking through the book Hop on Pop, by Dr. Seuss, to find words
that contain the letter P. Jillian has started writing a  story in her
daily journal, using her favorite words that begin with P.
n At the  art center, children can make the shape of the letter P using art
supplies.
Sam, Tonya, and Marcie are gluing cotton balls onto paper to form a
puffy P, and Teran and Nicholas are gluing pieces of pink tissue
paper to form a pink P.
n At the  building center, Tomás, Adriana, Peter, and Emily are
constructing letter P shapes with blocks.
n At the  science center, Daniel, Ryan, Cassie, and Marcus are
busy cutting out pictures of objects and classifying them into foods
that begin with P and animals that begin with P.
Anita rotates the children through the centers so that each week they
have a different experience rather than picking their favorites each
time. She overhears some interesting conversations as she makes
her way around the tables.
 I m glad it was my turn at publishing, Pat says excitedly.
 Drawing is my favorite. Pat would rather color, cut and paste, and
build than do many other activities and is able to draw very realistic
and colorful figures.
 Well, I love to write stories, replies Jillian. She typically spends
more time than any other student creating detailed responses to
journal prompts in her daily journal. Jillian can already write in
complete, but short, sentences.
 How s my puffy P? Marcie asks at the art center.
1
Early Childhood
Letter P Day
2
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EARLY CHILDHOOD MIDDLE SCHOOL HIGH SCHOOL
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Assess
 My favorite color is purple, Nicholas adds, as he presses sticky pink tissue to his paper.
Teran, who is very quiet, almost seems to ignore Marcie and Nicholas as she glues pink tissues with the help of
Anita. Her language and fine motor skills are delayed, and she needs extra time to understand and complete most
academic tasks.
Children at the building center are working diligently on their projects, except for Peter. Anita has noticed, as is
typical of Peter, that he has gotten up from the center twice during the activity and now is making towers of blocks
and loudly knocking them down. She redirects him and heads over to the reading corner, where Nolan is looking at
books. Anita gently taps his shoulder, whispering,  Shouldn t you be making the letter P?
 Mrs. C, replies Nolan,  I already know P and all my letters. This is boring. I want to learn to read.  You ll get to
reading soon enough, says Anita, smiling reassuringly.
Anita makes her way around to the centers, recalling a parent-teacher conference she recently had with Nolan s
mother. His mother reports that when Nolan discovers a new topic of interest, he will spend weeks learning all he can
about it by having his parents read books to him, watching educational programs, and going on  field trips with his
parents. He also likes to spend hours on puzzles and on classifying and counting his dinosaur collection. He is an
only child, and his mom, who does not work outside the home, spends a great deal of one-on-one time with him.
Although she is an experienced teacher, Anita is unsure how to accommodate the varied skill levels of the children,
especially the many students who are still adjusting to the routine of full-day kindergarten.
 1. What are the benefits of Anita s approach to language arts? What are the disadvantages? Would you do
anything differently?
2. What should Anita do regarding Nolan s academic needs?
33. What experiences in this classroom allow the students to express their creativity?
4. How typical is Teran of most young children you may know? Should Anita give Teran any special assistance or
make special accommodations? Why or why not?
5. Did Anita handle Peter s behavior appropriately? Why or why not?
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390
Prepare:
As you read the case, make notes:
1. WHO are the primary participants in the case? Describe them.
2. WHAT is taking place?
3. WHERE is the case taking place? Is the environment a factor?
4. WHEN is the case taking place? Is the timing a factor?
It is 9:00 A.M. on a cold Tuesday morning in February at Glendale Elementary School. Mrs. Fratelli calls a group of
her third graders to a corner of the classroom to do oral reading.  Cheetahs, get your books and come to the reading
circle, calls Mrs. Fratelli.  The rest of you can work quietly at your tables on the phonics worksheets in your folders
until it s time for your group.
Mrs. Fratelli has been teaching at Glendale Elementary for the past 18 years. Glendale is one of nine elementary
schools in a large metropolitan city and serves a diverse population of students. Mrs. Fratelli has a class of 24
students this year, a bit larger than usual. She uses whole-class instruction for most subjects. However, in order to
manage the diverse levels of reading skill among the students, she has assigned students to one of four reading
groups:
AElementary School Cheetahs,
Lions, and Leopards
n Cheetahs, reading books at the fourth-grade level;
n Lions, reading books at the end-of-third-grade level;
n Tigers, reading books at the mid-third-grade level; and
n Leopards, reading at the beginning-third-grade level or below.
As Mrs. Fratelli is reading with the Cheetah group, most of the other children are busy completing their seat work.
Travis is in a dimly lit corner of the classroom working with the help of his aide, Mrs. Cormier. Travis has autism
and is very sensitive to the bright lights of the classroom and
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B
C
the noise of the traffic on the busy street below. Most of his
classmates have gotten so used to Travis s rocking back and forth in
his chair and muttering certain expressions that it hardly distracts
them at all.
By now, Denise has finished her worksheets and leans over to
whisper to Marcela.  I wish I could be in the Cheetah group and read
chapter books like they are. Their stories are so interesting, Denise
whispers.  Not like our books. I could do it if Mrs. Fratelli would give
me a chance. I just don t read as good when I have to do it in front of
the other kids. I get all nervous and make lots of mistakes. Sometimes
I feel like my heart is going to jump out of my chest!
 At least you re not in the  dummy reading group, replies Marcela.
Marcela is in the Leopard group, which is slightly behind grade
level in reading skill. She struggles with reading fluency. She has
difficulty sounding out words and needs some extra help with phonics.
Marcela s family immigrated to the United States from Peru when she
was three years old because her father had landed a prestigious
engineering position. Marcela s parents speak only Spanish at home,
but she quickly picked up English at her new preschool. Despite her
struggle with reading, Marcela is a bright student with a natural
curiosity about the world, especially science.
Carl, who is sitting between Denise and Marcela, whispers,
 Shhhhh! You two are gonna get our table in trouble!
Carl is not at all concerned that he is in the Lions reading group
because he likes that the work is easy for him. He finishes his work
quickly so he can spend time doodling detailed futuristic sketches of
robots, spaceships, and spacemen. Mrs. Fratelli considers him to be
very careless in his schoolwork. To encourage his creativity, though,
she often sends home pencils and paper for Carl s artwork. Carl s
family is struggling financially because his father lost his job when a
large factory in town closed. Carl receives free lunch and has few
school supplies.
After all reading groups have had a turn in the reading circle, Mrs.
Fratelli collects the worksheets and announces that it s time for
science.
 Boys and girls, we are starting a new science unit today on
solids, liquids, and gases, says Mrs. Fratelli.  Our first experiment is
to test which materials dissolve in water and which don t. Each of you
has a cup with water and a plastic spoon. On each table there are
several materials for you to share.
Mrs. Fratelli passes out small plastic containers of sand, flour,
lemon juice, vegetable oil, and sugar. She explains what to do and
tells the students to record their results on their worksheets so they
can discuss their findings when everyone is done. As students begin
the activity, chatter spreads through the classroom.  I want to try the
lemon juice, exclaims Marcela.
 I want the sand, Denise states.
 I like it when we do experiments, Carl adds.  It s more fun than worksheets!
1. Based on this case, what are areas of strength for Denise, Marcela, and Carl? How do you think
Mrs. Fratelli would rate their capabilities?
2. Which students, if any, do you think could be considered gifted? Why?
3. In your opinion, does Mrs. Fratelli provide her class with many opportunities to be creative? Explain.
4. What characteristics would you look for in third-grade students
when trying to identify students with a specific reading disability or
math disability?
5. Should Mrs. Fratelli include Travis in the science experiment with the other children? Why or why not?
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EARLY CHILDHOOD MIDDLE
SCHOOL HIGH SCHOOL
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Assess
392
Prepare:
As you read the case, make notes:
1. WHO are the primary participants in the case?
Describe them.
2. WHAT is taking place?
3. WHERE is the case taking place? Is the environment
a factor?
4. WHEN is the case taking place? Is the timing a factor?
It s first period at Chesterfield Middle School, and Miss Elizabeth Barton is teaching the order of
operations in seventh-grade pre-algebra. Elizabeth has a diverse class in many respects, especially with
regard to ability.
Lindsey struggles with math. She repeated first grade because of
difficulties in both reading and math. Even though Lindsey was able
to improve her skills with extensive private tutoring and does well in
most subjects, she still is easily frustrated and often will not
participate in math class. In other situations, Lindsey is very outgoing.
She takes on leadership roles in group projects, designs sets for
school plays, and is the seventh-grade vice president.
Sam, on the other hand, loves math and is very good at it. In
math class, Sam is easily distracted, likes to finish work quickly to
talk with friends, and seems to be a step ahead of the other students.
When Elizabeth is reviewing problems with the class, Sam will ask
about problem 6 while Elizabeth and the class are on problem 3. This
behavior often annoys Elizabeth and breaks the other students
concentration.
Today Elizabeth has assigned students to work on practice
problems in groups of four and has begun moving around the room to
monitor their progress.
 Did everyone try the first problem on the page? Elizabeth asks
as she approaches the first group.
Derek and Emma already have the question correctly done,
while Lindsey and Jessie are still working. Elizabeth notices that the
students seem to be working indepen dently and are not helping
each other. She had hoped that group work would help Lindsey with
her math skills.
 Do you two have the answer yet? Elizabeth asks.
Lindsey doesn t reply.
 Let me see what you ve got there, Lindsey. That s actually
incorrect; you needed to multiply before you added those two
numbers. Do you understand?
 Yes, Lindsey nods.
 Let s all try the next problem, says Elizabeth.  It follows exactly
like the first. Emma and Derek finish it quickly. Jessie takes a bit
longer. She has always struggled academically in most subjects and
is a bit slower at mastery of concepts than her peers. And, again,
Lindsey is the last one done. Everyone got the correct answer except
Lindsey. While Elizabeth tries to explain the problem to Lindsey, she
notices Sam fooling around.
Elizabeth approaches Sam.  Has your group finished all the
problems already, Sam? she asks incredulously.
 No, but I m already finished, Sam quickly responds.
 But you know you should be working with your group members,
says Elizabeth.  Yeah, but working with them is boring, Sam
responds.
A bit exasperated, Elizabeth keeps Sam busy by assigning some
extra math problems and begins circulating around to the groups
again. She returns to Lindsey s group and notices that Lindsey and
Jessie are talking and not concentrating on the problems. Elizabeth
gently redirects them.  Lindsey and Emma, she asks.  Are you
talking about math? Please get back to the problems.
Middle School
Math Troubles
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B
+
EARLY CHILDHOOD MIDDLE
SCHOOL HIGH SCHOOL
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
 Why should I? Lindsey mutters to herself as she begins
doodling.  I m sure I ll get the answers wrong anyway, she sighs.
Later in the teacher s lounge, Elizabeth shares her experience
with Dexter Sharp, who teaches the eighth-grade algebra classes.  I
feel like I m losing some of these kids, she says.  I have a few
students who struggle with the concepts and others who don t. And I
have one student who is completely bored because he is not
challenged by the work we are doing. I need to find a way to keep
everyone engaged.
Dexter pauses to think for a minute before he replies.  Last
semester I created a Most Creative Word Problem contest, he
explains.  If students finished their work and had a little time to spare,
they could develop a word problem, and the answer, using our math
concepts from that week and submit it in the problem box on my desk.
They could also create problems at home to submit. The rules of the
contest required that students write out the problem and the correct
solution. Every other Friday I created a review sheet with the
problems they had submitted, excluding the answers, and let the
students vote on the most creative problem.
1. In your opinion, is finishing one s work quickly a sign of being  smart ?
2. Should Elizabeth give Sam more challenging work or treat him
differently than the rest of the class? Why or why not?
3. How successful do you think the Most Creative Word Problem contest would be in Elizabeth s class?
4. In your opinion, what are Elizabeth s expectations of Lindsey?
5. Should Elizabeth give Jessie any special attention academically?
Assess
%
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394
Prepare:
As you read the case, make notes:
1. WHO are the primary participants in the case?
Describe them.
2. WHAT is taking place?
3. WHERE is the case taking place? Is the environment
a factor?
4. WHEN is the case taking place? Is the timing a factor?
Mr. Beau Hardy is starting his second year at Shreveport High School, where he teaches ninth-grade
U.S. history. Students typically enjoy Beau s classes because he is an enthusiastic and charismatic
lecturer. From time to time, he has been known to begin class by reenacting a famous event dressed as
an important historical figure. Students in his classes take notes on the lectures and have an exam on
each unit.
The bell rings for fourth period. Beau begins by collecting
homework. Noticing that Jason has not turned in his homework, he
asks,  Jason, why didn t you turn in homework today?
 I don t know, Mr. Hardy. Guess I forgot about it.
 You know that you ll need to attend Noon Supervised Study today,
says Beau. Jason replies,  But I m already in there for two other
classes from yesterday!
 Jason, Beau explains.  You re just going to have to start doing
your work at home then. It s critical for you to have your assignments
done in time before each class period. How can I be sure that
everyone is reading and understanding the material if I don t check
homework?
 But Mr. Hardy, you know I understand it! Jason argues.
Beau gives Jason a slip for Noon Supervised Study, called NSS
for short. As Jason leaves the room, Beau is disturbed at the many
times he has sent Jason to NSS. Jason is an active and energetic
participant in class. Although he takes few notes, he enjoys analyzing
historical events and discussing alternative routes that history could
have taken.
Later at NSS, Jason sits for 40 minutes attempting to finish his
homework assignments. He has one from Beau, two from his English
teacher, and one more from his health teacher. All of them are past
due, and he s not sure where to start or even what the instructions
were. He realizes he cannot possibly get all the assignments done in
40 minutes, so he starts his health assignment that was due three
days ago. He looks around and notices that Tommy, Gabe, Anthony,
and Sarah are all back in NSS with him. After NSS is over, the
students head to lunch.
Throughout the day, Beau can t stop thinking about Jason,
Anthony, and Sarah all U.S. history students from fourth period
whom he has sent to NSS several times for not completing their
work. At the end of the day, perplexed by this situation, he decides to
look through their academic records for answers.
According to Jason s records, he excelled all through elementary
school, but his school performance began to decline in fifth and sixth
grades. Beau wonders why. Anthony, an African American student,
was identified as eligible for special education in third grade for a
reading disability. Beau is aware that Anthony received extended
time for tests but had no idea about the extent of his disability.
Anthony s disability has not hampered his social prowess. He has
many friends and is captain of the freshmen football team and vice
president of the freshmen class.
Beau is not surprised to find that Sarah, who gets As on quizzes
and tests despite not doing her homework, skipped first grade and
was in a gifted and talented program for mathematics in grades three
through six. Her record states that, on transferring to Shreveport
High, Sarah chose a lower-level track for math and science, which
meant that
NSS
High School
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Assess
EARLY CHILDHOOD MIDDLE
SCHOOL HIGH SCHOOL
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
all other subjects also needed to be basic level to fit into her schedule.
Beau wonders why she would choose this track.
1. Which students in your own high school did you consider to be
 smart ? What characteristics made them smart?
2. Why do you think Jason and Sarah don t do homework?
3. Recall your own high school experiences. What types of
assignments did you have, and what were the expectations of the
teachers? How did this affect your motivation and behavior in
school?
4. What types of learning accommodations do you think high
school teachers need to make for students with disabilities?
5. What types of emotional, social, and behavioral problems do
you think high school teachers face with their students?
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