Middle School Gifted & Talented Program

Parent Orientation September 2009

Challenging ALL Children to Achieve at Higher Levels

Gifted Students

Profile of High Achieving Students

Bright Student Knows the answers Is interested Has good ideas Works hard Top group Learns with ease Enjoys peers Grasps meaning Good at memorization Is pleased with own learning Gifted Learner Asks questions Is highly curious Has wild, silly ideas Plays around Beyond the group Already knows Prefers adults Draws inferences Good guesser Is highly self-critical

Gifted Students the good...the bad…the unique

Learn rapidly and easily/ Get bored easily and disturb others or daydream Are curious about anything and everything through

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Go off on tangents; seldom follow Retain a vast quantity of information/Monopolize discussions Have a long attention span/Resist class routine and dislike interruptions Are alert and observant/Correct adults, often in a way that is or seems impolite Can be individualistic; challenge ideas/Can alienate stubbornness in beliefs

Reflections from Gifted Students

What do you think being gifted means and what is your reaction to the term?

How do you feel when parents or other adults compliment you about something related to giftedness? Is it different if done privately or in from of friends?

How do you feel about accepting compliments from friends or teachers? Do you react differently?

Student Comments

Giftedness means you can think on your feet, be creative and express yourself. Girl, 13 When people ask if I am gifted, I am usually silent because I am ridiculed for being smart. It can get very difficult because I can’t use my entire abilities on a subject. Boy, 13, Iowa from More Than a Test Score, Robert Schultz and James Delisle

Identification of GT Students

96 th percentile on a nationally-normed Aptitude Assessment on the Total Composite Score Or two of the three criteria below: 88 th percentile on a nationally-normed aptitude test 89 th percentile on MAP or PASS tests STAR test (elementary) or final GPA of 3.75 or higher (middle)

Middle School Gifted Program Two Tiers

Bright & Gifted Students Advanced courses in English, math, science, social studies 6-8 Gifted Enrichment 40 minute block for GT students only Possibility of high school credit in 2 or 3 courses Verbal Course – integrates critical reading, writing, and the humanities Quantitative Course – integrates reasoning, problem-solving, and the sciences

Mission of GT Program

To provide identified students with educational opportunities designed to address their academic talents and abilities including the need to learn faster, explore topics in greater depth of content, engage in critical questioning and discussion about content, and explore complexities around topics.

Gifted & Talented Curriculum Framework Real World Applications Communication & Argumentation Critical Thinking & Inquiry Standards & Concepts

Curriculum Map

6 th Grade

Quantitative Integrated Studies

7 th Grade 8 th Grade Fibonocci Sequence Animal Populations Quadrants The Sky is the Limit Local Issues Analysis Math Curse Project Force and Motion Trip of a Lifetime Vacation Project Logic White Rain Fever 1793 Mixtures Mathematics Problem Solving Units “Leaf it to Me” Logic units (bouncing ball, odds, spreading out, hand area v. height) Spacial Visualization Transformations Tower Power Math Around the World Fun with Food Career Projects Strategy Games Pythagorean Theorem Mall Project Animal Adventure Wildlife Web-quest Aerodynamics Linear Programming Earth Ecology Financial Literacy

6 th Grade World History Simulations (Dig, Empires, Egypt, Greece, Maya)

The Curriculum Map Verbal Integrated Studies

7 th Grade 8 th Grade Cultural Universals “Utopian Society” Defining Nations Industrial Revolution World War I Getting to Know Hysteria (Salem witch trials) Jr. Great Books Revolutions Jr. Great Books Civil War Document-based Questions (China, Greece, Aztecs, Black Death, Mongols) 1940’s A Decade of Change The Holocaust The Cold War Threads of Change The Jungle Depression Writing Speech Analysis and Writing The Water is Wide

Screening for Newly Qualified GT Students in MS

Middle School Identification Timeline

June – July August 12 – 19 August 17 September 3 September 7-30 October 12 – 23 January 22 January 26 Review GT list from elementary grades and schedule for MS GT program Notify parents of students who transfer into middle level GT Program Notify all parents of GT program requirements

GT Parent Information Night at home middle schools

Fall MAP test (DIMENSION B screening) CogAT testing for new middle school students who have never taken a nationally-normed academic aptitude test (DIMENSION A screening) GPA reviewed for 6 th grade (DIMENSION C screening) Admittance of newly screened GT students