MISD ALPHA Gifted /Talented

1. MISD ALPHA Gifted /Talented Karen J. Green, M.Ed. Coordinator for Gifted and Talented “Human resources are like natural resources; they’re often buried deep. You have to go looking for them, they’re not just lying around on the surface.” Ken Robinson

2. Why Gifted/Talented

3. Why Gifted/Talented Services Gifted education helps advanced learners with: • Engagement in school • Learning and growing • Social and emotional development • Preparation for college and careers

5. Why Gifted Education “Lack of academic challenge leads to disengaged behavior and underachievement.” Sally Reis and Betsy McCoach CLICK ON PICTURE TO SEE VIDEO.

7. MISD GT philosophy • Gifted students view the world in a nontraditional way, they are divergent thinkers. • Curriculum differentiation is required to address their complex, abstract, and unusual learning styles. • Instructional strategies are necessary to insure engagement. • Variances occur in the gifted population with the same frequency as in the general population. • Students may be gifted in one content area and not gifted in others. • Gifted students need to a) master required content, b) learn basic skills, c) present ideas through traditional product forms, and d) understand how to access and organize information.

9. What are the MISD GT Services

10. WHAT is Gifted Education • Gifted and talented education is the system by which districts recognize and serve this special population of children. • The term also covers the specific services and programs offered as well as the teacher training necessary to provide the academic guidance gifted students need in order to thrive. 

11. What is Gifted Education “For gifted learners, an appropriately differentiated classroom will provide experiences that are complex enough, abstract enough, open-ended enough, and multifaceted enough to cause gifted students to stretch in knowledge, thinking, and production. These classrooms provide consistent expectations for gifted students to work with fuzzy problems, make great mental leaps, and grow in ability to exercise independence.” Dr. Carol Ann Tomlinson

12. State Goal for Services for Gifted/Talented Students • Students who participate in services designed for gifted/talented students will demonstrate skills such as self-directed learning, thinking, research, and communication as evidenced by the development of innovative products and performances that reflect individuality and creativity and are advanced in relation to students of similar age, experience, or environment. • High school graduates who have participated in services for gifted/talented students will have produced products and performances of professional quality as part of their program services.

13. MISD GT Program Goals The goals of the ALPHA (gifted and talented) program are to provide opportunities for developing: • Critical, creative thinking, and problem solving strategies • Strong self-concepts • Intellectual and creative abilities • Self-directed and life-long learning skills

15. What is the Purpose of MISD GT Services The purpose of the ALPHA (gifted and talented) program is: to identify gifted students and nurture their special abilities and needs; thereby, assisting them in translating their gifts of potential into productive performances and products that are commensurate with their abilities.

17. How We serve MISD gifted/talented

18. Texas State Plan for the Education of gifted/Talented FIVE Sections

19. Texas State Plan for the Education of gifted/Talented SECTION 1 STUDENT ASSESSMENT • Assessment instruments and gifted/talented identification procedures provide students an opportunity to demonstrate their diverse talents and abilities. • MISD Assessment • Level I • Referral (Nomination ) Form • Parent Observation Form • Teacher Observation • MAP Screening (90%ile or above) • Level II • CogAT 97%ile or above for placement • NNAT II 97%ile or above for placement

20. Elementary Assessment/Identification Amazing ALPHA Team

21. Elementary Assessment/Identification Exhausted ALPHA Team

22. Texas State Plan for the Education of gifted/Talented SECTION 2: SERVICE DESIGN • A flexible system of viable service options provides a research-based learning continuum that is developed and consistently implemented throughout the district to meet the needs and reinforce the strengths and interests of gifted/talented students. • EXEMPLARY • Services for gifted/talented students are comprehensive, structured, sequenced, and appropriately challenging, including options in the four foundation curricular areas, arts, leadership, and creativity.

23. How We serve MISD gifted/talented • Kindergarten – 2nd grade (1 hour per week) • Lisa Sutton and Lisa Crates travel to 20 campuses per week • Third Grade (Friday 4 hours) • ALPHA teachers Kristin Fawaz, Julie Prince, Heather Elston, Karen McCollister, Frinchie Collins, and Nikki Dressel • All campuses are bused to Webb on Friday for half day of services

24. How We serve MISD gifted/talented • 4th – 5th grade (Two days per week) • 10 campuses are bused to Webb on Monday/Tuesday • 9 campuses are bused to Webb on Wednesday/Thursday • 8 teachers service 20 campuses over a 4 day period • Mechelle Galyon, Team Lead • Emily Dimitt, Testing Facilitator • Karen McCollister • Kristin Fawaz • Julie Prince • Nikki Dressel • Frinchie Collins • Heather Elston

25. Texas State Plan for the Education of gifted/Talented SECTION 3: CURRICULUM & INSTRUCTION • Districts meet the needs of gifted/talented students by modifying the depth, complexity, and pacing of the curriculum and instruction ordinarily provided by the school.

26. SECTION 3: CURRICULUM & INSTRUCTION

27. SECTION 3: CURRICULUM & INSTRUCTION DEPTH • Know and use the language of the discipline. • Use detailsto elaborate in the discipline. Details are very specific, not general. • Look for patternsof recurring elements (identify, predict, generalize). • Look for trendsor forces that shape a body of knowledge (literature, history, prior knowledge).

28. Curriculum & Instruction: DEPTH • Identify the unanswered questionsabout issues/concerns in the discipline. • Identify and explain the rules or how information/events are organized in the discipline. • Be sensitive to the ethical considerationsin the problem/issue/discipline. • Look at big ideasthat can be supported by the evidence from a body of knowledge, including: facts, rules, trends, and patterns.

29. Curriculum & Instruction: COMPLEXITY • Look at ideas/information over time (Past-Present-Future) • Look at ideas/information from different points-of-view (Interdisciplinary) • Look for connectionsamong/between ideas/information (Integrated Curriculum)

30. MISD Curriculum and Instruction: Grades 3-5

31. Math Science Social Studies Secondary ALPHA ELAR Middle School Gifted Program

32. Secondary ALPHA • Cluster Grouping - Gifted and talented students are grouped within a class to be instructed by a teacher that has had specialized training in differentiating for gifted learners. • Diversity – Academically gifted students are able to interact with other gifted students, including those with different cultures, experiences, and learning styles. • Sheltered – Students are scheduled with identified gifted peers.

33. Middle School ALPHA ELAR 6-8 • Sheltered PreAP/GT Science 6-8 • Sheltered PreAP/GT Math 6-8 • Clustered PreAP/GT Social Studies • Clustered 6-7 • Sheltered 8

34. Math Field of Expertise Science Social Studies Secondary ALPHA ELA High School Gifted Program

35. High School ALPHA 9th Grade PreAP English I GT (Humanities I) Prerequisite: Identified gifted and talented Recommended Co-requisite: PreAP World Geography GT PreAP World Geography GT (Humanities I) Prerequisite: Identified gifted and talented Recommended Co-requisite: PreAP English – Humanities I

36. High School ALPHA 10th Grade AP/GT English Language and Composition Humanities II Prerequisite: Identified gifted and talented Recommended Co-requisite: AP World History GT Humanities II AP/GT World History Humanities II Prerequisite: Identified gifted and talented Recommended Co-requisite: English Language and Composition Humanities II

37. High School Science Clustered 9th Grade: PreAP Biology 10th Grade: PreAP Chemistry 11th Grade: PreAP Physics or AP Physics B 12th Grade: AP Physics C: Semester 1: Mechanics Semester 2: Electricity & Magnetism AP Chemistry AP Biology AP Environmental Science Astronomy Anatomy &Physiology Scientific Research & Design Earth & Space Science (Dual Credit)

38. High school graduates in this program will exceed the MISD graduate profile with products and performances of professional quality.

39. Secondary ALPHA “Many highly talented, brilliant, creative people think they’re not — because the thing they were good at school wasn’t valued, or was actually stigmatized.” Ken Robinson

40. Texas State Plan for the Education of gifted/Talented SECTION 4: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT • All personnel involved in the planning, creation, and delivery of services to gifted/talented students possess the knowledge required to develop and provide appropriate options and differentiated curricula.

41. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: 30 Hours Institute A minimum of thirty (30) clock hours of professional development that includes; • Nature and needs, (6 hours) • Social and emotional (6 hours) • Law, identification and assessment (6 hours) • Curriculum and instruction: differentiation/instructional strategies (6 hours) • Curriculum and instruction: creativity (6 hours) Teachers are required to have completed the thirty (30) hours of professional development prior to their assignment to the district’s gifted/talented services (19 TAC §89.2(1)).

42. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Annual 6 Hour Updates Teachers who provide instruction and services that are a part of the district’s defined gifted/talented services receive a minimum of six (6) hours annually of professional development in gifted/talented education that is related to state teacher education standards.

44. Texas State Plan for the Education of gifted/Talented SECTION 5: FAMILY/COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT • The district involves family and community members in services designed for gifted/talented students throughout the school year.

45. SECTION 5: FAMILY/COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT www.alpharesources.weebly.com

46. ALPS Parent Group • Student Scholarships • Camp Scholarships • Parent Conference • Parent Training • Teacher scholarships for professional development

48. Where are we going • Click on sign to view “ Teachers are like gardeners”.

49. challenges • Gifted children and adults are often surprised to realize that they are different. It is painful when others criticize them for being too idealistic, too serious, too sensitive, too intense, too impatient, or as having too weird a sense of humor. ~ James Webb • Gifted students are significantly more likely to retain science and mathematics content accurately when taught 2-3 times faster than “normal” class pace. ~Ian Bryd from Dr. Karen Rodgers research • Adolescence is a time when gifted students make choices about engaging on several fronts including school, family, and community. ~Barbara Clark and Sylvia Rimm

50. Interventions increase the further you move away from the middle.