The Oxford dictionary defines exceptionality as "forming an exception; very unusual; outstandingly good." A thesaurus provides the following synonyms: outstanding, excellent, brilliant, antonym of ordinary. In education and psychology textbooks and journals, however, it is often defined in ways that focus on limitations, with synonyms like disability, special needs, and "at risk." This article focuses on the issue of exceptionality as one that presents issues for the teacher in terms of meeting the learning needs of students.