Glimpses of a highly gifted child in a heterogeneous classroom

This article reports on the activities and interactions of a highly gifted 9‐year‐old boy as he functioned in a fifth grade classroom with 28 other students of mixed ability levels. His asynchronous development, with intellectual ability exceeding social and emotional development, created difficulties for him in the school setting. School modifications took little account of affective needs and resulted in limited success in the cognitive area despite considerable efforts on the part of staff. Suggestions are offered for helping highly gifted students achieve greater academic and social success when they are placed in heterogeneous settings.