Gifted Navigation: Finding Support for Your Gifted Child

A Process for Finding Help

Parents of gifted children encounter many different professionals who may assist their families with assessment, education programs, mental health services and other ways to support their gifted children. These professionals may be in the school or community settings.

If you are trying to learn more about your gifted children and their needs, the GCABC would recommend that you start with the professionals you see on a regular basis, and work from there.  For example, you might follow a pathway in the school to contact:

  1. The classroom teacher
  2. A school administrator (like the Principal)
  3. Someone in the School District who takes general inquiries from parents about giftedness

In the community the professional you reach out to would likely be dependent on what you are trying to learn about.  Please see the list below for the types of work that a variety of professionals do.

Professionals Who You May be Helpful to Your Family

The following descriptions were designed to help parents understand the different types of professionals they may encounter, and the type of work each does.  It also contains professional association links so that parents can use the “find a professional” directories to locate someone local to their area, who is also a good match for their family’s needs. Note: Most professional associations have a referral network that might help with finding additional professionals, but “gifted” is not listed as a specialty area on professional directories.

– Professionals That Typically Work Within the School System –

Note: These occupational titles and qualifications are determined by each school district or independent school, and vary widely across the province

District-Level Gifted Specialist Teacher

  • These teachers are hired into a specialist position that oversees gifted students and gifted programming for each school district or independent school
  • Different title examples: Gifted Helping Teacher,  Gifted Coordinator
  • Group of teachers in BC who work at the District/Independent School level: https://lowermainlandgiftedcontacts.weebly.com/
  • BC Teachers Federation special interest association for teaching gifted students:
SAGEBC   Specialist Association of Gifted Educators in BC
Website: sage-bc.com Contact: psac63@bctf.ca

Gifted Contact Teacher

Some school districts have a position for a “Gifted Contact” teacher at each school or cluster of schools.  This would be the local teacher who is involved with Individual Education Plans (IEPs) and sometimes the delivery of some programming or oversight for gifted students in a particular school.  They may work with the students directly, or may work with teachers and administrators only.

Resource Teachers

Resource Teachers have a wide variety of responsibilities within schools or school districts.  Once a referral has been made for a gifted assessment, sometimes the Resource Teachers do the initial assessments within the school.  They also work with students in learning resource centres and on the implementation of the learning needs outlined in the students’ IEPs. They are there to support the students’ learning needs in consultation with the classroom teacher.  They may help the classroom teacher to design projects or activities.  These teachers often have undertaken professional development training for working with the gifted and other special needs, and sometimes have taken a special education certificate after earning their teaching certificate.

Note: These teachers may have different names in different districts, such as LST’s / Learner Support Team Teachers.

Educational Assistants

Education Assistants (EAs) work with teachers to support students with diverse learning challenges, and special needs.  The positions within this classification varies from more general positions to specialized roles such as Autism support workers, severe behaviour worker, and sign language interpreters. The supports they provide include behaviour management, curriculum implementation, social skills development, personal care and physical assistance.

EAs may work with a school-based team including teachers, parents, and medical professionals to support a student’s physical, emotional, and learning needs.  They also help to implement individualized education plans (IEPs) designed to help students thrive in the classroom.

Note: EAs may have been called “Special Education Assistants” or SEAs in the past, and this term may still be used in some places.

School Counsellor

  • A school counselor works in primary (elementary and middle) schools and/or secondary schools to provide academic, career, college access/affordability/admission, and social-emotional competencies to all students through a school counseling program. They are often involved with teachers and participate in school-based team meetings.
  • British Columbia School Counsellors Association:
  • https://www.bcschoolcounsellor.com/

School Psychologist

  • A school psychologist is trained in assessment through a specialized school psychology program. They usually work at the district level, and are sometimes involved in assessing students who have complex learning needs, and that could include giftedness.  Most often it would be a student who has multiple exceptionalities who is referred to a school psychologist
  • British Columbia Association of School Psychologists https://bcasp.ca/

Child and Youth Care Worker

Child and youth (C&Y) care workers directly care for children in a variety of group settings, including schools, early childhood day care, child development programs, day treatment programs, community youth and recreation programs, group homes, residential treatment centers, hospitals and institutions. Some C&Y Workers are hired and work exclusively within the school system, and some work in the schools or community through the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD).  They can work with families in the home or through expanded family networks in foster care or preventive community mental health programs. They also provide support to the child care field, such as administrators, supervisors, educators and researchers.

Occupational Therapist

Occupational therapy is a regulated medical profession and occupational therapists are registered with their provincial regulator in order to practice in Canada. School occupational therapists are key contributors within the education team. They serve students by supporting their academic achievement and promoting positive behaviors necessary for learning with a focus on student strengths. School occupational therapists support academic and non-academic outcomes, including social skills, executive functioning, reading and writing (i.e., literacy) and self-regulation. Additionally, they play a critical role in educating parents, educators, administrators and other staff members. They collaborate within the education team to support student success. 

Occupational therapy practitioners are key contributors within the educational team. They help to address both mental and physical health. They collaborate with a variety of partners, such as:

  • Parents, to support their engagement with school activities such as attendance in individualized education program (IEP) meetings with cultural sensitivity, or to assist in homework management issues by teaching emotional regulation and executive function strategies to manage stress and volume of work. 
  • Educators and other school support staff, to offer curricular modifications and accommodations to support diverse learning abilities.
  • Education Assistants, to support child success and promote safety within the school environment.
  • Administrators, to provide training for students, staff, and parents, such as offering recess promotion strategies or contributing to anti-bullying initiatives.

Occupational therapy services for students with special needs are determined through the IEP process. School-based occupational therapy is available for students with a variety of special education designations including high academic potential or giftedness. They collaborate with the educational team to identify goals appropriate to student needs and determine the services and supports to be provided, including addressing students’ mental health. 

– Professionals that typically work within the community –

Clinical Counsellor/Therapist

  • A Registered Clinical Counsellor is a professional who has completed Master’s level counselling education / training and has met the necessary standard requirements to receive the classification as a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) from the B.C. Association of Clinical Counsellors, or a Certified Canadian Counsellor (CCC) from the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association. They are trained to give guidance on personal, social, or psychological problems, working with individuals and families.
  • British Columbia Association of Clinical Counsellor: https://bc-counsellors.org/

Finding a registered counsellor: https://bc-counsellors.org/counsellors/

Psychologist

  • A psychologist studies normal and abnormal mental states from cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior by observing, interpreting, and recording how individuals relate to one another and to their environments. They also conduct psycho-educational assessments for giftedness and other learning difficulties or disorders. To be registered as a psychologist in BC, a professional typically has completed a Ph.D.
  • British Columbia Psychological Association: https://www.psychologists.bc.ca/

Finding a registered Psychologist: https://www.psychologists.bc.ca/find_psychologist

Psychiatrist

  • A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are medical doctors, unlike psychologists, and must evaluate patients to determine whether their symptoms are the result of a physical illness, a combination of physical and mental ailments, or strictly psychiatric.
  • British Columbia Psychiatric Association: http://psychiatrybc.ca/

Pediatrician

  • Physician who is a specialist in working with children.  Often a family doctor will refer to a Pediatrician if they believe a diagnosis of some sort needs to be made.  This may involve giftedness, but more often is related to other types of exceptionalities, such as ADHD.
  • British Columbia Pediatric Society: http://www.bcpeds.ca/

Educational Consultants

  • An Educational Consultant (EC) is a consultant who helps parents/students and organizations with educational planning. They help with informing others about the education system and where to go for certain education needs. An EC offers similar services to school counselors, but is normally self-employed or employed by consulting firms, while school counselors are employed by schools.
  • Some Educational Consultants may belong to the following organization, but they are largely unaffiliated here in British Columbia.  Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA): https://www.iecaonline.com/

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Note: Parents who are looking for additional help for adolescents related to post-secondary education may be interested in a “Higher Education Consultant”

 Higher Education Consultants Association (HECA) https://hecalive.org

  • An organization that has served the professional needs of college admissions consultants since 1997.
  • They have a directory that lists over 1,000 current members of the Higher Education Consultants Association (HECA). Non-USA members are included.
  • To be eligible to join HECA, you must
    • Hold a bachelor’s degree or higher from a regionally accredited, not-for-profit college or university.
    • Demonstrate experience:
  • As an educational consultant for 2 years, or
  • As a high school counselor or college admissions officer for 2 years with the intent of becoming an independent educational consultant, or
  • By providing proof of completion of a practicum-based college counseling program that includes working directly with students under the supervision of an experienced professional. At this time these are the ONLY recognized programs that HECA accepts:  UCLA College Counseling Certificate, UC Irvine Independent Educational Consultant Certificate, UC Riverside College Admissions Counseling Certificate and UC Berkeley Certificate in College Admissions and Career Planning.