Twice exceptional kids can look like a walking contradiction: they have advanced ideas, strong vocabulary, yet reading feels painfully hard. When giftedness and dyslexia show up together, the signals get messy. Strengths can mask needs, and parents are frequently told to wait and see.
What does twice exceptional mean?
The term twice exceptional (often written as 2e) refers to a child who is exceptional in two different area. For example:
1) They have high ability in reasoning, creativity, problem-solving, advanced vocabulary, intense curiosity, strong memory for facts, or amazing visual-spatial skills.
AND
2) They have a disability or learning difference that significantly impacts performance in school or daily life.
In other words, a twice exceptional child might be intellectually gifted (according to IQ) and also have dyslexia, or dyscalculia. They can be gifted and have ADHD. There are many permutations under the term twice exceptional. Now here’s the part that not everyone understands. Being gifted does not cancel out a learning difference. And a learning difference does not negate giftedness. They coexist. And sometimes they collide.
Why twice exceptional kids can fly under the radar
Let’s face it, 2e kids often don’t look like the typical struggling learner. Often, they are missed. Let’s discuss why that happens.
- They can compensate
A bright kid can use context to figure out the words. They can memorize text that was read aloud. They can use charm, humor, and social intelligence to dodge. In younger grades, this strategy works well enough that no one notices. But as they get older, school demands increase. There’s more reading, more writing, bigger textbooks, longer projects. And suddenly, the compensation strategy fails and they hit the proverbial brick wall. I worked with a fourth grade student who was articulate, inquisitive, and could discuss so many topics well beyond the average child of her age. She came to me because her reading was slow and laborious. When we assessed her skills, she had gaps in decoding and spelling patterns that were never fully taught. She had been compensating with context and memory. Once we began structured, explicit instruction her stress dropped, her confidence came back, and she could think deeply. - Their strengths mask their challenges
They might read well enough. Many don’t realize the effort that is required. Twice exceptional kids might write well enough (but only if you sit next to them for two hours!) 2e kids might score average on tests, which sounds great, until you understand where they could be performing. In fact average for a gifted child can actually be a red flag. Following along this line of reasoning, a child who is constantly overwhelmed can look disengaged, defiant, or “not that bright,” when in reality they are smart but they are stuck. - They often internalize their struggles
Instead of acting out, some twice exceptional kids become perfectionists. They stop taking risks because they don’t want to feel dumb. I had one student several years ago. Her IQ was off the charts and I couldn’t get her to read out loud. She knew what it was supposed to sound like and she absolutely refused to allow anyone to hear her read. Pick your battles became my motto and choral reading was the approach that needed to be implemented.
Twice Exceptional Kids at Different Ages
Upper Elementary (Grades 3-5)
- Strong oral vocabulary, but weak reading fluency
- Spelling that is surprisingly messy for such a “smart” kid
- Homework that takes forever even though your child can explain the concept orally
- Big emotions over reading aloud, timed work, or writing assignments
Middle school:
- Grades start to slip because the reading volume increases
- Reading becomes slower, stamina drops, comprehension gets shaky when the text is dense
- Writing becomes the new battleground: organization, grammar, spelling, procrastination, missing assignments, Anxiety spikes, and confidence drops. (This is when sarcasm arrives to mask their real feelings.)
High school:
- The cracks widen quickly because expectations are high and time becomes limited
- Kids might look “lazy,” but they’re often exhausted
- Students rely heavily on SparkNotes, audiobooks, friends’ notes, or just sheer willpower
- They may refuse support because they don’t want to look different
- Students become so perfectionistic they can’t start anything unless it’s guaranteed to be excellent
If any of these generalities made you whisper, “Oh no, that’s my kid,” take a breath. Let’s spend a few minutes expanding upon the challenges.
Challenge #1: Hidden decoding and fluency gaps
A bright student can often “get the gist” without reading accurately or efficiently. But as texts get harder, simple guessing falls apart, comprehension drops because all the brain power is being used just to get the words off the page.
Challenge #2: Twice exceptional kids might have brilliant ideas yet produce writing that looks disorganized, or incomplete. Writing is harder than it looks because it’s not one skill but a series of skills. As a result, parents see a confusing mismatch. Your child can talk like a teen or an adult, but writes like a much younger student because writing involves:
- Generating and organizing ideas
- Holding them in working memory
- Building sentences
- Using punctuation and grammar
- Thinking about Spelling
Editing and revising
Challenge #3: Executive functioning (a fancy term for organization and much more)
Many 2e kids know what to do. They just can’t get started. My daughter Alex talks about staring at a computer screen with a title and being unable to start. Twice exceptional kids may struggle with planning, breaking tasks down, estimating time, remembering steps, and staying with something that feels hard. This last point is really important. Perseverance can’t be underestimated. Some children do not know what to do when the task becomes difficult and may give up too quickly. Because 2e kids are smart, adults often assume they are choosing not to do it. This is usually the farthest thing from the truth. They are overwhelmed but uncertain how to handle the emotion.
Challenge #4: Emotional fallout
When school is consistently harder than it “should” be, kids protect themselves. They avoid. They joke. They argue. They refuse. Or they collapse at home, where it is safe. Many twice exceptional kids hold it together all day at school and then burst the second they walk in the door. Lucky you!
3 Steps to Take:
Now that you have a better understanding of twice exceptional kids, let’s understand what is driving some of the behaviors moving from insight to action.
Step 1: They'll be fine is not acceptable
If you suspect dyslexia or a learning difference, you want a comprehensive evaluation that looks at multiple variables. Seek an expert who understands the gifted profile and doesn’t stop the moment a score looks normal. Dig into the sub scores to see the high highs and low lows. A comprehensive evaluation needs to include:
- Cognitive tests (WISC-V, WPPSI),
- Academic achievement tests (WIAT, WJ),
- Phonological processing CTOPP)
- Gray Oral Reading (GORT)
- Test of word reading efficiency (TOWRE)
- Test of written language (TOWL)
- Test of auditory processing (TAPS)
- Nelson-Denny Reading Test (NDRT)
- OT/PT assessments
- Behavioral/emotional assessments
Step 2: Get structured literacy support for the skills gap
The intervention matters. You want instruction that is explicit, structured, and systematic. You want your child taught how the English language works: sounds, spelling patterns, syllables, morphology, and how to apply that to reading and writing. This is where Orton-Gillingham-based instruction is often a great fit because it is direct and diagnostic. We teach, we practice, we adjust based on what the student demonstrates. It’s about building skills in a way that sticks. In my tutoring practice, I find that 2e kids love to know the “why” behind everything. The more information that you provide, the faster they absorb it. It’s not simply a rule. Twice exceptional kids love to know all the details behind the rule. I will admit this can make for challenging sessions but even tutors need to be pushed!
Step 3: Acknowledge how hard it can be!
It’s true that twice exceptional kids can turn homework into a daily battle. They may shut down when things become difficult. Your job is to acknowledge how hard it is. I had an incredibly gifted student who had hit a plateau in her reading. She was struggling with v-e pattern and needed more practice on this pattern. Just as she was about to melt down, (I could see it in her face and body language) I stopped the lesson to acknowledge how difficult this was. Just validating her struggles made all the difference. Granted, I also said that we would continue working on the pattern in our next session until she mastered it, which wouldn’t always be fun, but I would make sure that she could do it. That was my promise to her!
Twice exceptional kids are complex!
If you suspect you have a twice exceptional child, understand two truths:
- You’re not alone
- There are steps you can take to get the right support.
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