Gifted & Talented

7"The object of education is to prepare the young to educate themselves throughout their lives."

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An Overview of the Gifted and Talented Services at Campus Middle School

 

Campus Middle School has adopted a wide array of research-based practices to meet the needs of our diverse gifted and talented population. Students enter our school with different strengths, talents, and experiences; therefore, our programming continually evolves. To align with CCSD, Campus Middle School use a three-tiered model to support the needs of our gifted and advanced learners.

 

Universal Level (Serves 70-80% of the student population)

At the universal level, all students are provided with high-quality and rigorous instruction in both their required coursework and their elective programming. Teachers support the needs of gifted and advanced learners at this level through pre-assessments, curriculum compacting, differentiated instruction, flexible pacing and grouping, and ongoing progress monitoring, using both formative and summative assessments. After school clubs and enrichment opportunities offer extended support for gifted and advanced learners.

Targeted Level (Serves 10-30% of the student population)

At this targeted level, 10-30% of  gifted and advanced students benefit from additional support to meet their needs. Examples include: advanced or accelerated coursework, specialized electives (Creative Writing, Oral Interpretation, Advanced Options), affective guidance, academic support (AVID, ELA), and school/district competitions (e.g., Spelling Bee, Chess Tournament, Brain Bowl, Destination Imagination, Math Counts, etc.).

Intensive Level (Serves 1-10% of the student population)

This level is designed to meet the needs of 1-10% of the student population. In addition to the programming received at the universal and targeted level, students may be further supported through radical acceleration (subject/grade skipping), dual enrollment (enrollment in middle and high school coursework), independent studies, and targeted coursework such as Honors Language Arts.

An Overview of the Gifted and Talented Services at Campus Middle School
Campus Middle School uses what is called a “push in” model for GT (meaning that students are kept on their grade level teams unless they are accelerated for Reading, Writing, or Mathematics). Of course, students identified as gifted and talented will have their learning needs met in Science and Social Studies, in the form of flexible grouping, curriculum compacting (allowing students to advance to the next learning level when appropriate), differentiated curriculum and assessments, and pull-out sessions for acceleration or enrichment. Students identified as GT at Campus also benefit from the wealth of programming options available at the district level.

The Role of the Gifted Learning Teacher

As Campus’ Gifted Learning Teachers, we support our identified students both directly and indirectly. Here are a few examples of some of the services we provide...

Direct Services

Facilitation of independent study projects
Social/emotional support (holding lunch bunches, helping students to understand their
gifts and talents, etc.)

Informing students of enrichment opportunities both inside and outside of the district
(e.g. chess tournament, Inside/Out enrichment program, summer programs, etc.)

Teaching electives: Creative Writing, Advanced Options, Advanced Humanities,  Oral Interpretation
Indirect Services

Collaborating with teachers in...

• Curriculum modification
• The creation of assessments
• The creation of differentiated learning opportunities:
• Sharing best practices for gifted students
• Organizing enrichment opportunities

If you have a question about the GT identification process, district-level programming, or any other questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Elise Pier: 7th Grade