Hook: Discussion Questions

1. Turn to the person next to you, and describe the smartest person you
have ever taught.
2. Turn to the same person, and now describe the most disruptive
student you have ever taught.
3. According to your understanding of what it means to be gifted or in
TAG, are the students you described above gifted? If so, which one?
Why?

Who participates in the CISS (Characteristics Instrument

for Screening Students) Process?

1) All certified staff who interacts and sees students will

participate in the CISS process.
2) Its important for ALL staff members to CISS students,
since different strengths and observable behaviors can
be noted in different content areas.

What is the CISS (Characteristics Instrument for

Screening Students) Process?
1) 10 school day observation period to look for any characteristics associated with
giftedness in all students who are currently NOT enrolled in the TAG program.
2) Behaviors should be SUPERIOR and CONSISTENTLY OBSERVED in comparison
to same aged peers.
3) Behaviors will not always be positively demonstrated.
4) Students must receive at least 5 checks in total in order to move on in the referral
process. From there, further supporting data will be needed in order to determine if
testing will occur.
5) This is a legal document that should always remain CONFIDENTIAL. Please keep
this is a safe place throughout the CISS screening period, and do NOT let any
individual other than the staff members required see the form.

When does the CISS (Characteristics Instrument for

Screening Students) Process happen?
1) The CISS screening window will take place between
January 6-20th.
2) TAG Testing window will be February 22nd-March 4th.
3) Make up days are March 7-9th. All testing on students
who meet the referral criteria will be completed by
Spring Break. All TAG classes will be canceled during
this window of time.
4) Eligibility reports sent home April 13th

CISS (Characteristics Instrument for Screening Students)

Identification Form
MOTIVATION

Evidences an intense desire to achieve; Strives to satisfy a need or attain set goals

INTERESTS

Intense(unusual interests); Activities, avocations, objects, etc. have special worth or significance

COMMUNICATION SKILLS

Highly expressive and effective use of words, numbers, or symbols

PROBLEM-SOLVING ABILITIES

Effective, inventive strategies for recognizing and solving problems

MEMORY

Large storehouse of information; Innate ability to retain and retrieve information

INQUIRY

Questions, experiments, explores; Seeks in-depth knowledge or understanding

INSIGHT

Quickly grasps new concepts and makes connections; Sudden discovery of the correct solution
following incorrect attempts

REASONING

Logical approaches to figuring out solutions; Forward-looking, goal oriented thought.

CREATIVITY

Inventiveness; Problem-solving through non-traditional patterns of thinking

HUMOR

Conveys and picks up on humor; Ability to synthesize key ideas or problems in complex situations
in humorous ways

CISS MIGHT LOOK LIKE...

MOTIVATION
Student may
-be persistent in
pursuing/completing self-selected
tasks
-be a self-starter; enthusiastic
learner; aspire to be somebody/do
something

INTERESTS
Student may
-demonstrate unusual or advanced
interests in a topic or activity

-be beyond age-group; pursue an

activity unceasingly; demonstrate
perseverance in pursuit of an
interest

CISS MIGHT LOOK LIKE...

COMMUNICATION
SKILLS

PROBLEM SOLVING

Student may

Student may

demonstrate unusual ability to

communicate (verbally,
physically, artistically,
symbolically)
use particularly clever examples,
illustrations or elaborations

devise or adapt a systematic

strategy for solving problems or
change the strategy if it is not
working
create a new design, invent
understand what questions to
ask to solve the problem

CISS MIGHT LOOK LIKE...

MEMORY
Student may
-need only 1-2 repetitions for
mastery; have a wealth of
information; pay attention to details;
manipulate information; remember
experiences from the past (e.g.,
When I was one)

INQUIRY
Student may
-ask unusual questions for age
-play around with ideas
-demonstrate extensive exploratory
behaviors

CISS MIGHT LOOK LIKE...

INSIGHT
Student may

demonstrate exceptional ability

to draw inferences
appear to be a good guesser
be keen observer
possess capacity for seeing
unusual and diverse
relationships integrate ideas and
disciplines

REASONING
Student may

make generalizations
use metaphors and analogies
think things through logically
think critically
be an excellent planner

CISS MIGHT LOOK LIKE...

CREATIVITY
HUMOR
Student may

Student may
show ingenuity in using everyday exhibit keen sense of humor
materials
gentle or hostile
exhibit wild, seemingly silly ideas see relationships and create
produces ideas fluently/flexibly
jokes or puns
be curious
extreme sense of fairness
sensitive to feelings of others
use inappropriate humor (class
clown)

He was born in New York City in 1971 to black panther activists and
raised by his mother. He attended the Baltimore School for the Arts,
where he took acting and dance classes, including ballet. He
discovered rap and began performing as an MC in New York. In the late
1980s, his family moved to the West Coast. He earned praise for his
musical and acting talent as well as condemnation for his explicit,
violent lyrics. Over the course of his career, he had 18 nominations and
won four awards for his music.

What CISS characteristics does this person display?

Tupac Shakur
What might make it difficult to identify this person as potentially
gifted?

CASE #2
She was born in St. Louis to a pimp and prostitute. She stopped
talking at the age of 7 after being raped, and didnt start again until
she was 13. She attended high school in San Francisco and won a
scholarship to study dance and drama. She published seven
autobiographies, three books of essays, and several books of
poetry, and was credited with a list of plays, movies, and
television shows spanning over 50 years. She received dozens of
awards and more than 50 honorary degrees. She is best known for
her series of seven autobiographies.
What CISS characteristics does this person display?

CASE #2
Maya Angelou
What might make it difficult to identify this person as potentially gifted?

Why do students go through the CISS

process?
1) It gives all students who are NOT currently enrolled in the TAG
program a fair chance to be screened and considered.
2) This is NOT a high stakes component, but it does help take
qualifying students to the next step in the identification process.
3) Once students who have received at least 5 checks are submitted,
further supporting data will be reviewed to determine if they will be
referred for testing to see if they are eligible for gifted classes in the
state of Georgia.

Important Points to Remember

Bring your CISS form to every teacher.

DO NOT give the CISS form to a student.
They should not be aware that the CISS process is happening.
1 check per box.
Use black ink only for consistency. DO NOT use your initials.
ALL children get at least one check. Parents can request to see the
form so be sensitive.
If they have 4 checks, find 5! :)
A child that shows negative behavior(s) may be gifted!
Remember, gifted does not equal smart. A gifted child learns in
different ways and requires specialized instruction to meet their
needs.