ABSTRACT
The fields of special education and gifted education both use the term differentiation to indicate the need to adapt curriculum appropriate for typical students in ways that better meet the needs of students who learn differently. Children who are "twice-exceptional," or gifted children with disabilities, must have the curriculum differentiated for them in multiple and complex ways. The needs of the students drive the curricular and instructional decisions, and so it becomes important to understand the needs of twice-exceptional students. Because twice-exceptional students are gifted and have disabilities, it becomes necessary to differentiate twice—for the ability and for the disability. Understanding the different views of differentiation is necessary for educators attempting to respond to the needs of the twice-exceptional child who requires differentiation twice. Double differentiation involves design complexity that uses the tools of Universal Design for Learning and tiering while adjusting the pacing to ensure appropriate levels of acceleration, and also provides high-level output.
