Training analogical reasoning skills in the gifted

This article describes a training program in analogical reasoning skills based on Sternberg's componential processes research. Students are first taught how to apply the processes of encoding, inferring, mapping and applying in the solution of linguistic and nonlinguistic analogies of the A:B::C:D type. Then, they apply these components in the processing of extended linguistic analogies developed in sentence, paragraph, and story form. Finally, several weeks are spent teaching students the utility of these same components and analogical reasoning to their performance in the content areas.