"Each person has the right to learn and to be challenged to learn at the most appropriate level where growth proceeds most effectively." "Building a community of learners into a community of leaders." The 2011-2012 GATE Brochure is now available. |
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GATE News:
Battle of the BooksA sixth grade team from Maryland Elementary School took on the challenge of the countywide Battle of the Books May 16 at the McCoy Center in New Albany. Competing against 18 other teams of sixth and seventh graders from all over Franklin County, the team -- Luke Giannoutsos, Hank Snowdon, Eric Crane, John Corcella, Aaron Touris with alternates Kat Dorochenko and Adam Abou Hashish -- won its first round and came in second to a team of seventh graders from Westerville Blendon in the championship round. Sponsored by the Franklin County Educational Services Center (ESC), the Battle of the Books competition involves participants reading several books representing a wide variety of genres. The students are then asked for details about the book in a competitive academic quiz type setting. Ms. Marantz's students read from a list of some 20 books, including genres such as realistic fiction, memoir, historical fiction, fantasy and the graphic novel. Examples of some titles are Chinese Cinderella, a novel by author Adeline Yen Mah describing her experiences growing up in China during the Second World War; Ender's Game, a science fiction novel by Orson Scott Card; and Touching Spirit Bear about a troubled Minneapolis teen by the American author Ben Mikaelsen. The students who participated are: Adam Abou Hashish, Olivia Anderson, John Corcella, Eric Crane, Kat Dorochenko, Caroline Elliott, Anna Gayheart, Luke Giannoutsos, Ismail Jallaq, Courtney Kondracke, Simon Kroos, Maddie Marsh, Jake Parsons, Alex Shapiro, Hank Snowden, Aaron Touris, Maggie Walker and Lexi Warner. Spring GATE ID Process Highlights (Elementary and Middle School)GATE Language Arts Required critera: In order to participate in GATE Language Arts, students must meet State of Ohio criteria for gifted identification in BOTH Superior Cognitive Ability AND Specific Academic Ability in Language Arts (Reading and/or Language). GATE Language Arts is available for students in grades 4-8. Once a student qualifies for services, they remain eligible for services in following years. Current 3rd graders: GATE staff are in the process of reviewing data for all current 3rd graders in order to identify and place students for gifted services to begin in 4th grade. Students who do not yet meet criteria for services, but who have previous cognitive ability and/or reading/language scores within the district's defined "range for additional assessment" will be offered additional testing prior to the end of the school year. Teachers and parents may also refer students for additonal spring testing by submitting the referral form to the building GATE teacher by Friday, May 27. Early in the summer, parents of all incoming 4th graders will receive a mailing that includes a detailed profile of their child's data, as well as information about any gifted identification areas or GATE services for which their child is eligible. Students in grades 4-7: GATE staff are reviewing recent test data to determine if any students are newly eligible for services. In the event that a student becomes eligible for GATE services, parents will be contacted. Teachers or parents who wish to refer students for testing may do so by submitting the referral form to the building GATE teacher by Friday, May 27. Math Acceleration Required Criteria: In order to participate in math acceleration (skipping a year in math), students must demonstrate mastery of at least 75% of the content, skills, and knowledge representing the full year they would be skipping. This is measured using a district-developed above-grade assessment directly aligned to our adopted Everyday Math curriculum. Screening and Assessment: Students in grades 2-5 who meet State of Ohio gifted identification criteria for Specific Academic Ability in Mathematics are automatically offered the opportunity to take the above-grade acceleration assessment. Teachers and parents of students in grades 2-5 may also refer students for the acceleration assessment by submitting the referral form to the building GATE teacher by Friday, May 27. Although many students may take the acceleration assessment, typically a relatively small number are able to meet criteria for acceleration. Students may take the acceleration test one time at each level. Parents will be notified of assessment results in early summer. Acceleration Placement: Students who meet acceleration criteria will begin their new math placement in the fall. During math time, they will leave their regular classroom to attend math class at the grade-level most appropriate to their needs. In some instances, this may involve attending math class in a different building within our district. Once a student is accelerated in math, the student continues on that track in future years (for example, a fourth grader in fifth grade math this year would move into sixth grade math next year). Click here for information about math class for students who will be in Accelerated 7th Grade Math for the 2011-2012 school year. Upcoming Enrichment Opportunities This summer, Cassingham Elementary will host Camp Invention from June 13-19. This unique, hands-on science enrichment program is open to students who will be entering grades one through six. Students who register before March 30 will recieve a $25 discount off of the $220 registration fee. Click here to learn about some specific ways that Camp Invention benefits gifted learners. Click here to download a flyer and registration information. Online registration is also available at http://www.campinvention.org. The Columbus Young Authors' Writing Project Summer Camp will be held on June 13-24. Geared toward students in grades 4-12, this camp features unique lessons to help students find their own "voice" in writing. Writing activites in multiple genres with be integrated with activities including the arts, author visits, field trips, and other activities to foster a student's love of writing. The camp runs Monday through Friday, 1:00-4:00 p.m., at 1100 Kinnear Road, Columbus. Registration is $200. For more infomation, contact Melissa Wilson, Program Manager, at mwilson@ehe.osu.edu. 4-H Camp Paws, Claws, Feathers & Friends 4-H Camp Tech Questions can be directed to Sally McClaskey at mwilson@ehe.osu.edu or 614-247-8141. Classroom Antics Summer Tech Camp, for students ages 9-14, will be offered at several central Ohio locations this summer. This one-week camp offers students and adventure in applied technology, combining three popular programs: Video Game Design, LEGO Robotics, and Stop-Motion Animation. Dates vary by location. To register or learn more, visit http://ClassroomAntics.com, or call 1-800-595-3776. On July 25-27, a Lego Robotics Summer Camp will be held at Westerville Christian Church. During this 3-day camp, students will learn how to design, build, and program a working NXT robot. Cost for 3 days (3 hours per day) is $95. To register or learn more, please visit http://mindstormtroopers.org/roboticsreg.htm. The Columbus School for Girls will again offer the ATLAS Summer Program (Academically Talented Learners Achieving Success) this summer from July 12-30. This camp is designed for identified gifted students who are currently in grades 3-6. More information and nomination forms are available on the ATLAS website, http://www.atlas-summer.com/.
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District Vision
Bexley City Schools value a warm, safe, nurturing environment for children and adults collaborating in the teaching and learning process. Educational experiences will be developed and sustained based on a deep and abiding respect for individuals and their learning styles. These experiences will promote innovation, independent initiative, leadership development, and creativity, thus maximizing human potential and sustaining a climate for growth and balance in the lives of students and teachers.
Bexley City Schools value an educational system that supports a development of the individual. Educational experiences will foster a respect for diversity and an understanding of individual differences and cultures. The community of learners will strive to appreciate their own and others' achievements and challenges.
Bexley City Schools value that high quality exists throughout the school system. Students, staff, parents, and other community members will be included in the process to implement continuous improvement and research supported "best practices".
Gifted Education Mission
Our mission is to ensure that gifted students realize learning success by developing and sustaining equitable educational experiences based on a deep and abiding respect for individuals and their unique learning needs and styles.
Our vision is to intentionally support all areas* of giftedness by developing a continuum of services for grades K-12, which includes appropriate classes, educational settings, identification, and administrative support.
*As defined by the Ohio Department of Education (1999), these are: Superior Cognitive Ability; Specific Academic Ability in Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, or Social Studies; Creative Thinking Ability; and Visual and Performing Arts Ability in Art, Music, Drama, or Dance (ORC, Sec. 3324.03).
Program Goals
1. To provide an opportunity for gifted students to learn with peers of similar interests and abilities (Rogers, 2002)
2. To provide gifted students with curriculum that is specifically differentiated in difficulty, coverage, pacing, and expectations for performance (Rogers, 2002)
Guiding Principles
The above mission and goals provide the basis on which we have determined the following:
Encourage children to consider what they do for the world, rather than what they show to the world. Based on the belief that all children have a responsibility to contribute to society, we intend for our students to develop and demonstrate leadership skills.
We recognize that the unique characteristics of gifted children necessitate a differentiated program. These special characteristics may include precocious insightfulness, uniqueness of response, and the ability to integrate several levels of thinking and reasoning.
The Bexley City School District will provide differentiated learning experiences for those children identified for gifted education services.