OT: Elementary Gifted Programs

[matthew&haleysmom]

Does your elementary school have a gifted program? If yes what do they use to determine eligibility. And is there any type of program for kids who just miss those requirements.

We just had my son's 1st conference for 1st grade and they don't test until January, but at the same time it didn't look like someting was in place for kids who fall just short. From my understanding they use the Cogats and then if they place in the 90th % they are given an IQ test which needs to be 130. I just thought there would be something else for kids just short of this. Besides having the teacher give extra work.

Just curious what other schools do

This is what happens where DD goes to school. If the student scores above the 90th percentile on the Cogat, there is another component of testing. Once they are identified gifted, the student will begin receiving services within the classroom. The students are placed in classroom with teachers who have gifted certifications and the gifted teacher comes in to help with differentiating instruction several times a week. This has worked well for DD. She also participates in an accelerated curriculum in addition to gifted program.

If your child just misses the cut off, there are no services.

 

[victorandbellasmom]

Our school distrcit has a gifted program that starts at 1st grade but testing begins midway through their kindergarten year (and every year there after if you want your child screened). Selection process begins with an application and a screening criteria (3.0 in reading and math for younger grades). Once they pass that they take the IOWA basic skills test at the next grade level (ex: a 1st grader takes the 2nd grade test). They have to pass the IOWA at the 97th percentile to move on to the next level. Once they have passed the IOWA, they take the COGAT and the Renzulli. They need a passing grade of 129 or higher for COGAT and 43 or higher for the Renzulli.

There really isn't any other special services for kids who fall just short. Ds got into our district's gifted program in 4th grade (he tested and was accepted at the end of 3rd grade). Dd tested last year in 1st grade and didn't get in. Her numbers were barely under their minimum. I just speak with her teacher about additional work and also work with her at home. We're having her tested again this year though.

DS goes to a completely differents school now that he's in the gifted program. Our district has 31 elementary school of which only 6 run the gifted program. So there are 6 schools which feed into his current elementary school. Luckily, the district provides bussing for the gifted students, but unfortunately my kids go to 2 different elementary schools.

 

[clori]

My school district only offers a full time gifted program. Basically all kids who request and are qualified (not sure of the logistics) go to the same school and are in the same class. According to dd's kindergarten teacher she would have qualified but we made the decision to keep her in her current school. DD likes having Spanish and she would have lost that if she switched schools etc.

Fast forward to third grade. I just had dd's conference last night. While dd is above grade level in all areas she really stands out in math. She probably wouldn't have been a good candidate for the full time gifted program because she doesn't enjoy writing and that isn't her strong point though she is above average. Unfortunately due to the full time program there are no pull out options nor any options at our own school.

 

[SILLYANDI]

Our district tests (COGAT)in 3rd grade students don't participate until 4th & 5th. It is a "pull out" program (GATE students are spread evenly across all 4th/5th classes and pulled out of class to attend GATE) bi-weekly. One week they will have a classroom lecture type day, then 2 weeks later they go on a field trip for hands on reinforcement of the idea they learned in class. For example, last week they had community speakers come to class and teach them about their jobs. The kids interviewed them, etc. Next week they get to pick one of the speakers and "shadow" them at their job.
Last your DD shadowed a TV producer for the day...Very interesting stuff! They have studied Ancient Egypt then went to the museum to view artifacts and excavate. They have learned about diversity then took the train into downtown LA to tour/sample the different cultural areas and had some cool science days.

GATE was much more when I was a kid, but with budgets the way they are I guess we should be happy it is what it is. I am also glad that it is not a pile of extra work because DD is smart enough to figure out the absolute minimum amount of work to put into everything she does. No pride of workmanship, no cares about accuracy. DONE. That's all that matters to her. If she had extra work to do on top of that I wouldn't survive the whining!

 

[mommytoone]

Does your elementary school have a gifted program? If yes what do they use to determine eligibility. And is there any type of program for kids who just miss those requirements.

We just had my son's 1st conference for 1st grade and they don't test until January, but at the same time it didn't look like someting was in place for kids who fall just short. From my understanding they use the Cogats and then if they place in the 90th % they are given an IQ test which needs to be 130. I just thought there would be something else for kids just short of this. Besides having the teacher give extra work.

Just curious what other schools do

We do have a gifted program, my DD is in it. In our School system they are tested in K using Cogats. If they receive a highe enough score, they are then tested to enter the program. The student must pass with 99% in all levels. Then they can enter the program in 1st grade. For the students who score high but not high enough to enter the program full time, there is what they call a pull out program. This is when they stay at their regular school for 4 days a week and go to the program 1 day a week. The day is determined by grade. I am not sure if they can go more days or just one.

I would ask the district if they have some kind of program in place. I know with my DD she was just bored in school, and did not want to go. I had a hard time getting her to school in K, I was dreading the next 12 years. Sometimes she is bored in the program, but she loves it. I was worried because she had to switch schools, and leave her friends. But, boy am I glad I did. I can really see the difference, and so can she. This is her second year, she is in 2nd grade. The bad thing is the program stops after
6th grade. We are working on getting the studens in 7th grade some programs that would further the gifted education.

Good Luck!!

 

[Vickie46]

our school so far has only pulled out the kids reading above grade level.. I think they have maybe 6 or 7 1st graders pulled out to read advanced and do extra work that challenges them... its great! I love it.. and my daughter really loves it.

I think SEARCH starts later maybe 3rd grade for those that test and score for it.. I am not really sure of all that.

 

[cmaee]

Our schools gifted program does not start until 3rd grade. At the beginning of the year, the gifted teacher sent home a note with the K-2 grade students telling us even though the school district does not have a gifted program for the early grades that the classroom teacher would be choosing up to 5 students per class for her to pull out once a week for an enrichment time. She would work with those students for two weeks and then the teacher could recommend the same students or new students...just who the teacher felt needed the enrichment time. My DS is in 1st grade and only he and one other student get pulled out. They have been the only two to get pulled out of his class all year. The gifted teacher was just going to pull them out for reading enrichment, but my DS is quite advanced in math too that she is pulling him out twice a week...once for reading and once for math. We think that this is appropriate for his level. His teacher is individualizing his classwork since he is ahead of the rest of his class. I am not sure if he is "gifted".

I don't think that just because someone is working above grade level doesn't automatically make them gifted. I also think that K or 1st grade is too soon to determine if one is gifted or not. I truly believe that what the student has in terms of a homelife and instruction before school years will help them start off at an advantage that will be equalized by the time the students get to 3rd grade. Just looking at the requirements you need to leave Kindergarten are not that stringent. My 4 year old already meets all of the goals except for reading. He will be starting Kindergarten next fall at an advantage. I have taken the time to work with him on those things, but there are many parents who don't (for various reasons) work on these things so they are starting school with no background. When you would take a snapshot of them mid-K you would probably think my DS would be gifted and the other not. Check those same two students in 3rd grade and the picture could be totally different after the other student has received quality instruction. I think for the early grades differienated instruction is what is called for. That way you aren't labeling kids too early...and dissapointing a kid (and lets face it...his/her parents) if the kid was "gifted" in 1st grade and then when they are in 4th, 5th, etc. are not performing well because they can't handle the work.

 

[K and K's Mommy]

I don't think that just because someone is working above grade level doesn't automatically make them gifted. I also think that K or 1st grade is too soon to determine if one is gifted or not. I truly believe that what the student has in terms of a homelife and instruction before school years will help them start off at an advantage that will be equalized by the time the students get to 3rd grade. Just looking at the requirements you need to leave Kindergarten are not that stringent. My 4 year old already meets all of the goals except for reading. He will be starting Kindergarten next fall at an advantage. I have taken the time to work with him on those things, but there are many parents who don't (for various reasons) work on these things so they are starting school with no background. When you would take a snapshot of them mid-K you would probably think my DS would be gifted and the other not. Check those same two students in 3rd grade and the picture could be totally different after the other student has received quality instruction. I think for the early grades differienated instruction is what is called for. That way you aren't labeling kids too early...and dissapointing a kid (and lets face it...his/her parents) if the kid was "gifted" in 1st grade and then when they are in 4th, 5th, etc. are not performing well because they can't handle the work.

You are exactly right, and that is why I love that our schools use nonverbal tests to show ability. The kids are not given achievement tests at kindergarten. My DD's first grade class this year started with some who were not reading. She had a kindergarten friend reading chapter books who did not get into the program. I also like that the initial test includes all kids.

In my son's fourth grade class, he has only had one student drop the program because she was so stressed. The teacher's are supposed to individualize and reach kids different ways even in the gifted class.

 

[Wee Annie]

I completely agree with cmae's observations.

Our district has a G & T program, but no real funding, of course, so it really is not very substantive. They are not even pulling children out -- the teachers are just supposed to supply these students with extra challenges inside the classroom in the course of their regular "differentiated" instruction plans.

We had a meeting about the program on Wednesday at the school. The district has decided that the program was too inclusive previously -- over 20% of the class was in the program in past years!!!! There is no way that many children are gifted. This year they made the requirements more stringent to reduce the numbers. The selection process is based on multiple factors, including standardized test scores (top 5%), Renzulli (score must be over 50), and consistently top (and I mean the absolute top) grades on report cards. With the more stringent selection criteria, there are still on average 14% of the students considered "gifted"!

So the district has decided that, in the younger grades (K - 2), the students must be working AT LEAST two grade levels above. This is to try to sift through those students who just happened to read early, etc. (and have possibly been exposed to more academic enrichment at home), and those who are truly gifted. What has been happening is that early readers, etc., have been chosen for the program in K, but are no longer so accelerated by 3rd grade, then are dropped from the program. Can you imagine how a child must feel to be told that they were "gifted" last year, but are no longer? I've heard from parents that it is crushing. I feel so bad for those students.

So, sorry about the LONG post, but I think districts needs to be extraordinarily selective about inclusion in these programs in the youngest grades. What is "gifted" at these ages vs. academically advanced? I don't know that my children, who are in the program, are gifted. I actually think that the one who gets slightly better grades is just plain old very smart, and the other one may in fact be "gifted."

To the OP: good luck with everything re your son. I hope that they are able to supply him with academically-challenging work!

 

[pednurse]

Our schools offer a program for the gifted children (up until this year it was called Gifted & Talented...GT for short....then this year they changed the labeling to "Highly Able"...or HA for short). When DS entered the program (he is in 5th grade now) it started at the 3rd grade level (but that was the first year it was offered at that level....previously it had only been offered at the 4th & 5th grade levels). Now they are offering it down to the 2nd grade level as well. So now they will start testing the first graders in January. The program in our schools is considered a "self-contained" program...in other words, the GT/HA kids are in separate classrooms from the other kids....they are not pulled out at certain times for it....they are constantly immersed in it. The first year was a bit rough for DS (but then I think it might have also had something to do with it being the first year for the 3rd graders being in the program and the first year for that teacher teaching it...they were still fleshing out the details of it for that level). Last year & this year have been awesome. They have had so many great opportunities that wouldn't have happened in the regular classroom. DS has definitely not been bored, but he has not been drowning in work either....and the teacher has made everything fun (well, almost everything...DS still doesn't like spelling! LOL). Currently they are doing an in-depth study on NASA and space....and recently had an awesome field trip to the nearby Challenger Center to do a space shuttle flight simulation (challenger.org).
As for the testing and such to get in.....they looked at teacher & parent recommendations, ISTEP test scores (annual standardized testing scores), as well as a non-verbal test (can't recall the name of it) that supposedly gives good indicators towards whether or not a child is "gifted/highly able" or not. Our DD is now in 1st grade and will be tested in January to see if she will enter the program next year for 2nd grade. As she is now participating in a pull-out program for enrichment for kids who are working beyond their grade level, and based on things that are indicators so much the same as what DS was showing at this same age...and even more so in many ways....we expect that she will enter the program as well.
As for the question about those who "just miss" making it in.....our school has an awesome track record of enrichment for all levels in many areas (math & reading especially).....where the kids are tested and "leveled" and then put into groups to work at their levels across classrooms (so you may have Mrs.C for your regular teacher, but be in Mr.G's classroom for math). So there is a lot going on for meeting those kids' needs who are working at a higher level, just as they work with the kids who need extra help. We have been very pleased with our school, as have most other parents regardless of whether their kids have been in the GT/HA program or not.

 

[pooh4evr]

We have one- some kids are flagged as early as preschool and can go to a summer program called Sparklers- basically a more enriched preschool for a week or 2- then in K they are selected by their teachers, the gifted teachers then take these kids starting 2nd quarter maybe and work with them 1 day a week for 2 hours or so- then the kids take IQ, logic, creativity and amybe 1 other test after they turn 6 - their scores on those qualify them for the program. IF they do not pass in K they can take it again in 1st but after that they have to wait a yr between retesting- once they are in the program they meet twice a week for 3 hours total perweek in elem. in middle school and high they have SPECTRA as one of their elective classes.

Older DD is in the program DD#2 is in Firecrackers (the kindergarten program) at first we were so excited and proud that DD#1 was chosen but we have been VERY disapointed to say the least in the program- they have tons of resources, computers a smart board in the room but we don't see much going on- they write plays alot, and have just finished learing about caves which they began in JULY! we had hoped the program whould be one that pushed them into harder work or at least higher order thinking/reasoning skills maybe a bit more math and science but no. So I am not sure it is worth it for us.

 

[koolaidmoms]

Our district has no G&T. Heck we have a 46% graduation rate. There is no money in the budget for G&T. They just are trying to raise the lower stuggling kids forget about the top! I just went to a conference on G&T and they said that 20% of hs drop outs are G&T. I worry about my son in the future.

He has me as an advocate but he is 5 reads at almost a 4th grade level, is doing 2nd grade math and I had to finally tell his kindergarten teacher to please stop sending home work home that was circle the pig and color it pink. She knew this was below his level but just because the "others" were doing it she sent it to him too. He is now doing 2 book reports a week - one typed and one written; she found him a second grade math workbook for homework and he does other reading comprehension work in addition to reading 20 minutes a night. I worry about the other kids who don't have a parent advocating for them. That is where I see this 20% come into play. Do they just give up? How sad and unfair.

 

[ERMama]

our elementary school has a chess club you an join as a K5 kid which I think its nice too to help challenge the kids.

 

[carj]

We have GT beginning the second semester of Kindergarten. The students go to a central location once a week for an entire school day. Referrals can be initiated by the parent, teacher or student.

We had my son tested in K and he did not qualify. I was willing to let it drop. This year in second grade he asked me if I would "sign him up" for GT. I told him that it was not just something that you sign up for and he would have to take a test.

He took the test and qualified. He loves going to the GT center once a week and I pleased with the variety of learning that takes place there.

Even if he weren't in GT, he is being challenged at school. The curriculum is very challenging and the expectations are very high. I LOVE our school!

I was in GT in school as well. The program was similar to the one my son attends. In middle school, things change and the individual classes are GT. The kids do not spend an entire day somewhere else.

 

[Hyonlyf]

Here everyone is tested at end of 1st grade with pull-out beginning in 2nd. Here is the criteria from school website

"students must meet the state criteria of 119 or higher on a single section of a standardized measure of intelligence and the district criteria of a rank of 90th percentile or higher on a nationally normed achievement measure."

This is Mississippi where the qualifications are a lower than what others are posting, I wish it was a little more stringent and selective. I guess in my dd's classes about 20% qualify and it seems you NEVER get booted out, once you're in, you're in

The program stops once you reach high school, 9th grade here, where students may then begin the IB program or take AP and accellerated classes. Our school district is very proud that they are one of the very few to get International Baccalaureate designation.

 

[StephMK]

Our particular school has some grade level pull out programs and Spanish club. There are no self contained classes but they do a great job tailoring to the student's individual needs. There are also some accelerations & enrichments done in the classrooms & small group or individual pull outs with specialty teachers. The district offers one elementary, middle & HS IB school. In middle (6, 7, 8), they start offering Honors vs. regular classes for the core subjects. And in HS, they can take Honors, AP & dual enrollment with a local college.

 

[dislal]

Our school has a very good gifted program. Then they also have an Enrichment program for the kids who just fall short. My kids are always going to other schools for math 24 competitions and just today my DD went to one about presidents.

I am very pleased with the program at our school.

 

[taximomfor4]

up till this year, our district's criteria was IQ 135+. (that kept it really small). The kids were bused to one school, one day per week, to be together for enrichment activities. It was for grades 3 to 6. My oldest was in it. She liked it ONLY because it was "one less day per week that we're doing the same, exact things over and over."

Now, they have one hour per week when EVERY employee in the school has a small group of students. They are all "enriched", specific to their needs/abilities. For some kids, it's extra reading. For some, it's...I don't know. I just know some kids get extra help, others get extra work (at a more advanced level). Basically, I think budget cuts had to eliminate the bus, GT teacher, etc.

 

[okeydokey]

Here in FL you must score 130 or above on an IQ test. My son was given the WISC in 2nd grade. The program pulls him out of class for 4 hours once a week, a couple of hours before lunch and a couple hours after. There are maybe 6 or 7 kids in the program in a school of 550 kids. He really enjoys it.

 

[kcromley]

for at-home enrichment of your child. I suggest singapore math. at their website, you can test your child to see what level to start working at, and use their books for a more rigorous and thoughtful mathmatical education than is found in most American schools. It is at least one, and often more than two years ahead of the American curriculum. Good luck!