During a visit to Stono Park Elementary School, Elizabeth Uptegrove watched a fourth grade student play a round of Apples to Apples, a word-association game.

The boy was better known for his behavioral issues than his academics, Uptegrove recalled, but as he connected words and ideas quickly, she saw a child whose verbal reasoning skills were exceptional.

“He struggled with a lot of things and was never recognized as bright, but I’d tell you, as the director of gifted ed, he was among the brightest kids in the room when it came to that skill,” said Uptegrove, Charleston County School District’s assistant director of gifted and talented services.

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