Middle School Gifted & Talented Program Parent Orientation September 2009 Challenging ALL Children to Achieve at Higher Levels
Apr 01, 2015
Middle School Gifted & TalentedProgram
Parent Orientation
September 2009
Challenging ALL Children to Achieve
at Higher Levels
Gifted Students
Profile of High Achieving Students Bright Student
Knows the answersIs interestedHas good ideasWorks hardTop groupLearns with easeEnjoys peersGrasps meaningGood at memorizationIs pleased with own learning
Gifted LearnerAsks questionsIs highly curiousHas wild, silly ideasPlays aroundBeyond the groupAlready knowsPrefers adultsDraws inferencesGood guesserIs highly self-critical
Gifted Studentsthe good...the bad…the unique
Learn rapidly and easily/ Get bored easily and disturb others or daydream
Retain a vast quantity of information/Monopolize discussions
Have a long attention span/Resist class routine and dislike interruptions
Are curious about anything and everything/Go off on tangents; seldom follow through
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
96th percentile on a nationally-normed Aptitude Assessment on the Total Composite Score
Or two of the three criteria below:
88th percentile on a nationally-normed aptitude test
89th percentile on MAP or PASS tests
STAR test (elementary) or final GPA of 3.75 or higher (middle)
Middle School Gifted ProgramTwo Tiers
Bright & Gifted StudentsAdvanced courses in English, math, science, social studies 6-8
Possibility of high school credit in 2 or 3 courses
Gifted Enrichment40 minute block for GT students only
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.
Standards & Concepts
Critical Thinking & Inquiry
Communication &
Argumentation
Real World Applications
Gifted & Talented Curriculum Framework
Curriculum MapQuantitative Integrated Studies
6th Grade
Animal Populations
Local Issues Analysis
Trip of a Lifetime
White Rain
Mathematics Problem Solving Units
“Leaf it to Me”
Math Around the World
Strategy Games
Animal Adventure Wildlife Web-quest
7th Grade
Quadrants
Math Curse Project
Vacation Project
Fever 1793
Logic units (bouncing ball, odds, spreading out, hand area v. height)
Tower Power
Career Projects
Mall Project
Aerodynamics
Ecology
8th Grade
Fibonocci Sequence
The Sky is the Limit
Force and Motion
Logic
Mixtures
Spacial Visualization
Transformations
Fun with Food
Pythagorean Theorem
Linear Programming
Earth
Financial Literacy
The Curriculum MapVerbal Integrated Studies
6th Grade
Cultural Universals
World History Simulations (Dig, Empires, Egypt, Greece, Maya)
Jr. Great Books
Document-based Questions (China, Greece, Aztecs, Black Death, Mongols)
Writing
7th Grade
“Utopian Society”
Defining Nations
Industrial Revolution
World War I
1940’s A Decade of Change
The Holocaust
The Cold War
Speech Analysis and Writing
8th Grade
Getting to Know Hysteria (Salem witch trials)
Jr. Great Books
Revolutions
Civil War
Threads of Change
The Jungle
Depression
The Water is Wide
Screening for Newly Qualified GT Students in MS
Middle School Identification Timeline
June – July Review GT list from elementary grades and schedule forMS GT program
August 12 – 19 Notify parents of students who transfer into middle level GT Program
August 17 Notify all parents of GT program requirements
September 3 GT Parent Information Night at home middle schools
September 7-30 Fall MAP test (DIMENSION B screening)
October 12 – 23 CogAT testing for new middle school students who have never taken a nationally-normed academic aptitude test (DIMENSION A screening)
January 22 GPA reviewed for 6th grade (DIMENSION C screening)
January 26 Admittance of newly screened GT students