K-4 Program Overview
In a child's early years, formal identification of giftedness is very imprecise. A rich home environment, highly verbal children or exposure to more mature learners can often contribute to an early "gifted" identification. However, often these skills level off as other less exposed students quickly catch up by second or third grade. Therefore, the elementary program does not rely on formal identification for participation in in grade K-2, but rather strives to provide academic enrichment for many students to further develop their talents in a variety of curriculum areas. Quarterly referrals are usually made by classroom teachers, but may be made by other school personnel or parents.
Pull-out units
Participation in the pull-out units folow the revolving door model. Many students revolve through the program based on their individual talents or needs. Pull-out units are offered primarily in the areas of reading, math , writing and thinking skills. The goal of the pull-out units is to provide a format for students with particular strengths or talents to work on advanced projects as well as work with their intellectual peers. Examples of pull-out units for K-4 are:
Kindergarten:
Domino Logic
Junior Great Books
Sets and Venn Diagram
Look at the Shape of Things (geometry)
Jacob's Ladder
Grade 1
Magical Fairy Tales
Junior Great Books
Thinking Skills/Logic
Math Blasters
Jacob's Ladder
Grade 2
Math Wizardry
Cinderella Around the World
Chess
Mysteries
Grade 3
Ancient Number Systems
Writers Workshop
m3 Analyze This
DBQ Documents/Common Core readers
Topology
Grade 4
BizMovie
Deductive Thinking/Logic
Mall Madness
Scholastic Common Core Readers/DBQ Documents
Jacob's Ladder
Writers Workshop
Cluster Classrooms
Cluster classrooms are provided at grades 3 and 4. Students are formally identified at the end of grade 2 for placement the following year. Identified students are placed into classroom with trained teachers to better serve their academic needs throughout the day. Students placed in cluster classrooms may be provided with independent studies, enrichment units, differentiated materials and acceleration opportunities. See the identification process tab for more information about the process.
Schoolwide Elementary Enrichments
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Publishing Center
The Publishing Center is a work station where students may submit their literary owrks for local publication. The center is manned by parent volunteers and publishes more than 500 books per year.
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Math Lab
The Math lab is an area in the school that teacher may send students to work on math games, activities and centers. The students work in small groups with a parent or high school student volunteer.
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Battle of the Books
Battle of the Books is a program open to all interested 3rd and 4th grade student to promote reading. The goals of the program are to encourage and recognize students who enjoy reading, broaden reading interests, increase reading comprehension, and promote academic excellence comprehension.