Transcript GATE/SAS PRESENTATION

GATE/SAS
Gifted and Talented Education and
School for Advanced Studies
Cowan Avenue Elementary
Cowan Avenue Gifted Magnet

Beginning 2009-2010 School Year

Focus on International Humanities

Applications beginning in December 2008
– Child must be identified as gifted by December
2008 to apply to the Magnet for the 2009-2010
school year
Frequently Asked Questions…

GATE program in Cowan’s Community
school still exists
– If a child is not admitted to the Magnet, they
will be placed in a Gifted cluster class in the
community school

Admission based on lottery system
– Cowan resident applications carry more
magnet points
Is my child gifted?
Parent observations tend to
provide a fairly accurate
indication of early giftedness.
Is my child gifted?
Cognitive
Social and Emotional
Language
Additional
Gifted and talented students
will demonstrate many but
not all characteristics listed in
each area.
Cognitive
Social and Emotional
Language
Additional
Cognitive
Social and Emotional
Language
Additional
Cognitive
Social and Emotional
Language
Additional
Cognitive
Social and Emotional
Language
Additional
Is my child gifted?
Ways in which students are
identified for GATE
High Achievement
 Specific Academic Ability
 Intellectual
 Visual and Performing Arts
 Creative Ability
 Leadership Ability

High Achievement

Identified in 3rd through 5th grade

Two consecutive years of high scores in
both Language Arts and Math
Specific Academic Ability

Identified in 4th and 5th grades

Three consecutive years of high scores in
Language Arts or Math
Identification Criteria

CAT6 test (1st & 3rd grades)– composite
score of 78th percentile

CST test –
Language Arts
Math
2006
392
401
2007
425
450
2008
425
450
Intellectual

All grades eligible for identification
– Additional documents required for grades K – 2
(i.e. Teacher recommendation, parent
observation, work samples, etc.)



Recommended by Teacher and Parent
Shows ability to identify patterns and
recognize spatial relationships
A psychologist will come to school to test
Visual & Performing Arts

Identified in 3rd through 5th grades

Drawing, Painting, Drama, Dance, Voice
– Student Work Portfolio
– Teacher Inventory and Observations
– Parent and Student Questionnaires
– Talent Assessments given 3rd Saturday of
November and May
 Referral packets must be submitted to the district
3 weeks before assessment date
Creative & Leadership Ability

Identified in 4th and 5th grades

Creative Ability
– Produce unique alternative solutions to problems
– Challenge assumptions

Leadership Ability
–
–
–
–
–
Show confidence and knowledge
Influence others effectively
Have problem-solving and decision-making skills
Express ideas in oral and written form clearly
Shows a sense of purpose and direction
Criteria for Creative &
Leadership Categories
78% or above on standardized rating
assessment scale for Creative and Leadership
ability from the district
 Portfolio assessment of student work
 Documentation of outstanding ability, or the
potential for such ability through community
recognition
 Teacher evaluation and observations

Referral Procedure

Type letter stating category of identification
for your child
– Submit copies to Mr.DaSylveira, Ms. Moore, and
child’s teacher
Once My Child is Identified…
Then What?
GATE/SAS Programs

Science Fair
– Focus on scientific process and generation of
science project ideas

Academic Challenge
– Challenges in Spelling, Geography, Public
Speaking, Math, Reading, and Science

United Nations
– Learn about issues concerning various
countries (I.e. health care, politics, poverty)
What is Differentiation?
Differentiated instruction occurs when the
core curriculum (Language Arts and Math) is
modified.
 Occurs at all grade levels
 This includes acceleration/ pacing, levels
of complexity, depth, and novelty with
the expectation that students will produce
work that is appropriate to their individual
learning interests, assessed needs, and
abilities.

Differentiation Strategies
Differentiation occurs when the core
curriculum is modified to include
 Acceleration
 Depth
 Complexity
 Novelty
Acceleration

Acceleration
– individual pacing
– adjustment in time
– more advanced resources and experiences to
the gifted learner
Depth

Depth
– allows students to “dig deeper” into the
subject matter through the use of various
strategies such as: understanding big ideas
and the rules that govern a system,
recognizing patterns and trends, determining
unanswered questions, and identifying ethical
issues.
Complexity

Complexity
– The idea of guiding students to understand
complex concepts and generalizations at a
more sophisticated level.
– Gifted learners see multiple possibilities and
are interested in seeing how things relate to
the real world.
– The dimensions of complexity include looking
at issues over time, and seeing connections to
other areas of study.
Novelty

Novelty
– The state or process of being new, unique, or
unusual.
– A common characteristic of gifted students is
the need to incorporate original
interpretations of existing information by
utilizing their personal views and interests.
Meeting this need allows gifted students to
construct unique meaning of the concept and
allows them to recreate old systems and
ideas.
What Does This
Look Like in
Cowan’s Classrooms?

Language Arts
– Inquiry and Investigation research related to
unit theme, Challenge homework, Centers

Math
– Real-life math applications, Enrichment
homework, Word problems, Centers

Science
– Challenge/extension questions, Experiments

Social Studies
– Challenge extension questions, Socratic
Seminars (Ethical Discussions)
Cowan is striving to meet the
special needs of gifted children.
There are things you must do
outside of school.
Be involved in the GATE
programs at Cowan.
Staying Involved in Your Child’s
Gifted Program
Attend Follow Up Meetings
January 2009
May 2009
Q&A
Any Questions?