Forms & Information

Students’ Guide (interactive version)

Students’ Guide (printable pdf file)

Background information about the Guides and detailed directions

It’s enlightening and motivating for students to be involved in developing their curriculum.  By completing the Guide for themselves, they learn their behaviour, abilities, and learning are connected in powerful ways.  In the future they will have the knowledge and skill to advocate for, and perhaps design, appropriate learning experiences if given the opportunity to learn and have an active role in the process.

In addition to these benefits, many students need to have their voice heard in the plans that affect their education.  For others, their teachers might find it difficult to “read” their behaviour while observing them because their background or temperament are so different from the observer’s, or perhaps because they are very subtle individuals.  These include high ability learners who are not completing regular assignments, those with “attitude” (strong personalities), and those with multiple exceptionalities.  Even when students are good candidates for observational assessments of their Brilliant Behaviours, they enjoy the process of completing the sheet and understanding it.  Whatever the reason, this form is provided to enable teachers to offer students the opportunity to be a part of the process.

In the Guide for Students, the self-assessment version of the Brilliant Behaviours has replaced the teacher-oriented language in the Guide for Teachers.  The language in the directions for the Students’ Guide is more student-friendly.  The process for checking off behaviours is the same as that recommended for the self-assessment.   The process for working from the  √s beside the Brilliant Behaviours to the 3 or 4 most recommended strategies is the same for all of the Guides.  The differentiation strategies recommended by the Students’ Guide can be used in place of the teacher’s or blended with input from other Guides (teachers or parents).

Robyn Stuart (10 years old) captured the essences of her experience and the benefits of having students complete the Guide when she described her experience of filling it out the first time:

Filling out the self-evaluation was frustrating at first because I’d never done anything like it before, and I find it hard sometimes to judge myself. Once I got started, though, it was easier because I knew what to do then. I did a lot of re-deciding, though.

When I had filled out the self-evaluation and added up the “X”es, the French word for what I found my results to be is “bouleversant” i.e. deeply moving, because I didn’t know what to expect but I know what I wanted. I agree completely that I need “Self-Selected Format”. It is one thing I find is very important for me at school, because I should learn just as much as another kid who is not gifted like I am, and sometimes if I do the same work as they do I’m not learning anything new even though they might be. However, if I choose my own work, I can choose things I don’t know so I learn something. Unlike some people, I enjoy challenging work over work I already know how to do. When I choose my work, I look for concepts I have heard of but I’m not familiar with or have never encountered.

Directions

1. Fill in the information at the top of the form.
2. Read the list of Behaviors in the form.  If you are completing the form online, let the cursor rest on the name of a behavior and a description of it will appear.  Click here if you want more information about any of them.
3. Do you experience any of those behaviors when you are learning something challenging about a topic you love?  Put a check mark (√) in the column to the left of each Behavior that is consistently, intensely true of you while you’re learning something fascinating.
4. If you are completing the Guide online, it will complete steps 5 to 8 automatically.
5. When you’ve finished, highlight the row of “X’s” to the right of each behavior that you’ve checked.
6. Then, count the number of X’s down each column that are highlighted.  Record the total in the row marked “Number of X’s highlighted” beneath the rows of Xs.  Do this for every column.
7. Compare the “Number of X’s highlighted” to the “Total number of X’s in the column”.  Look for the biggest proportions.
8. In the row labeled “Mark the 3 or 4 strategies with the greatest proportion of Xs highlighted,” put an X at the bottom of the columns with the greatest proportion of the X’s highlighted.
9. Now look at the names of the strategies theGuide is recommending for you.  They are the ones you’ve put Xs beneath if you’re working on a paper version of the Guide or they will be highlighted in green if you are completing the Guide online.  There are brief definitions for each strategy provided on the back of the printed form or you can see them by putting your cursor over the name if you are using the Guide online.  The Guide thinks activities like that involve those strategies will challenge you in ways you’ll like when you are learning about your favorite topic.  Do you agree with what the Guide has recommended?
10. Share your Guide and the results with your teacher.

Printing, Saving and Loading An Online Version of the Guide

The online Guide can be printed, saved or loaded by clicking on the buttons near the top of the page, on the right side. Directions for saving and loading appear below and will also appear online when those buttons are selected.

To Print:

Press the “Print” button at the top of the page and complete the normal procedure to print a document.

To Save:
On a PC:

1. Right click on the word “Download” below.
2. Select “Save link as”.
3. Save the file in a safe place you’ll remember on your computer.
4. As mentioned above, the information you will not be able to retrieve the information you’ve entered after you leave this window. Even if you leave this window open, the information will be deleted by [a date & time].

On a Mac:

1. Press the control button and click on the word “Download” on the screen.
2. From the options that appear, select:
   • “Download linked file as” if you are using Firefox or Safari as your browser.
   • “Save link as” if you are using Chrome as your browser.
3. Save the file in a safe place you’ll remember on your computer.
4. You will not be able to retrieve the information you’ve entered after you leave this window. Even if you leave this window open, the information will be deleted by [a date & time].

To Load your Guide on either a PC or a Mac:

1. Click on the “Choose File” button to search for the file you want to open.
2. Find the file on your computer. The name of the file should end in .pfl
3. Select the file you want to open by clicking on it. After it appears highlighted, click on the “Open” button in the lower right corner of the window.
4. Now click the “Upload File” button
5. The Guide should open with the information you had saved in it.
6. Remember to save the changed file if you want to use it in the future.