Talented and Gifted

St. Benedict Elementary School consists of 178 students, preschool through grade eight. St. Benedict School is a parochial school in the Archdiocese of Chicago, in Blue Island, IL. Our overall student population consists of 40 Caucasian, 46 Hispanic, 89 African American, and 3other.

St. Benedict School is a Catholic Elementary School, dedicated to the education and formation of students in Grades Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 8. St. Benedict School, committed to quality education, serves the diverse community of Blue Island and surrounding areas. The school is a vital part of the St. Benedict parish family. As a community founded in the Catholic faith, St. Benedict School speaks to inspire its students and encourage them to live according to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. St. Benedict School accepts and encourages the faith practices of non-Catholic Families. We accept the individual uniqueness of each student and challenge students to grow spiritually, cognitively, emotionally, and socially in a culturally diverse setting. We try to discover strengths and weaknesses so each child will develop to his or her full potential as a contributing member of family, church and community.

The purpose of Gifted Education is to recognize the unique social, emotional, and intellectual needs of gifted and talented students, and provide them with stimulating and challenging opportunities, and enable them to realize their greatest potential and contribute to self and society.

Differentiation is an important component in gifted services. In an instructional program for gifted students, the core curriculum in the fundamental learning areas must be differentiated. This includes Curriculum Compacting and extension activities. In-class differentiation is the service that has the greatest impact, because students spend most of their time in the regular classroom. The gifted coordinator, who is the principal, will provide curriculum and guidance to the classroom teachers. All teachers will continue working on differentiation facilitation. The continuum of gifted services will be provided at all grade levels. To achieve this continuum, there will be identified gifted pull-out classes one afternoon per week for 90 minutes in grades K-5. Groupings will be guided by the needs of the learners. Grade level numbers and combinations will vary from year to year and will be determined by the number of students identified at each grade level. All grades P-5 will have in-class differentiation facilitation for identified gifted students. The pull out groupings will be designed to enhance the regular classroom curriculum in grades K-5. Activities will be varied and include subject areas of Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies. The program will focus on reading, writing, listening and speaking. Higher level thinking will be incorporated into all activities. Thematic learning will take place as the language arts components are integrated with science and social studies units. Often the children will be given opportunities to learn about a particular topic in depth by reading, doing research, and engaging in hands-on learning to enhance their learning. In-class differentiation will provide identified gifted students opportunities to extend/expand learning in areas of high academic achievement. The gifted coordinator will consult and plan with classroom teachers at all grade levels. A Gifted Intervention Plan and ICEP (Individualized Catholic Education Plan) will be written for each identified gifted student.

Gifted services will continue in grades 6-8. Departmental teachers will provide differentiation and curriculum compacting strategies for gifted students. Both can be used successfully in heterogeneous classrooms and with almost any subject matter. Compacting allows teachers to use pre-testing to move gifted students through material they already know and on to curriculum extensions that interest them and still meet academic standards. Curriculum extensions are a form of differentiation and accommodate gifted students' ability to learn new material at a much faster rate than their peers as well as allowing them to pursue their interests within a unit of study. Study Guides and Extension Menus will be used. The gifted coordinator will consult and plan with classroom teachers at all grade levels. A Gifted Intervention Plan and ICEP will be written for each identified gifted student. The implementation of this plan will take place starting Fall, 2008.

"Gifted and Talented Children" means those who consistently excel or show the potential to be consistently superior in one or more of the following areas of human endeavor.

General Intellectual Ability: The child possesses intellectual ability, HIGH LEVEL THOUGHT PROCESSES (e.g. the ability to make valid generalizations about events, people and things), OR DIVERGENT THINKING (e.g. the ability to identify and consider multiple, valid solutions to a given problem) which is consistently superior to that of other children to the extent that he or she needs and can profit from specially planned education services beyond those normally provided by the standard school program. Specific Aptitude/Talent: The child possesses a specific aptitude/talent in a specific academic area, creativity or the arts which is consistently superior to the aptitudes of other children to the extent that he or she needs and can profit from specially planned educational services beyond those normally provided by the standard school program.

All students in grades K-5 will be initially screened for participation in the pull-out program and a classroom Intervention Plan and ICEP. Portfolio contents will include work samples and The Student Profile Packet.

Kindergarten students are required to have:
1. Advanced Accelerated Reading or Math scores.
2. Minimum of 120 on the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test.
3. High score on the Academic Checklist or other Gifted Rating Scale

Students in first grade are required to have
1. Advanced Accelerated Reading or Math scores.
2. Minimum of 120 on the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test
3. Excellent Academic Progress on Report Card / A's
4. High scores on the Academic Checklist or other Gifted Student Rating Scale.

Students in second and third grade are required to have
1. 90th percentile on two subtests of the Terra Nova Achievement Test
2. Minimum of 120 on the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test.
3. Excellent Academic Progress on the Report Card / A's
4. High scores on the Academic Checklist or other Gifted Student Rating Scale

Students in fourth and fifth grade are required to have
1. 90th percentile on two subtests of the Terra Nova Achievement Test
2. Minimum of 120 on the In View Cognitive Abilities Test.
3. Excellent Academic Progress on the Report Card / A's
4. High scores on the Academic Checklist or other Gifted Student Rating Scale.

An identification system is a process used to select students with unique educational needs so that appropriate gifted education programs and/or services can be provided. All students in grades 6-8 will be initially screened for eligibility for differentiated instruction that includes curriculum compacting and extension activities.

Students in sixth, seventh, and eighth grade are required to have:
1. 90th percentile or above on two subtests of the Terra Nova Achievement Test
2. Minimum of 120 on the InView Cognitive Abilities Test.
3. Excellent Academic Progress on Report Card / A's
4. High scores on the Academic Checklist or other Gifted Student Rating Scale

It should be noted that there may be accelerated students who will not meet the criteria for Talented and Gifted Services and an ICEP. In those cases, an Intervention Plan can be written with differentiation strategies.

A gifted pull-out curriculum will be developed for K-5. This curriculum will be designed to enhance the regular curriculum. The gifted coordinator will choose topics suitable for multi-age classes. Thematic learning will take place as the language arts and math components are integrated with science and social studies units. Children will be given opportunities to learn about a particular subject in depth by reading, doing research, and engaging in hands-on activities that incorporate higher level learning and critical thinking.
All identified gifted students in P-8 will benefit from differentiated practices to be employed by classroom teachers. The gifted coordinator will assist regular classroom teachers in providing differentiation of instruction for gifted students. In grades 6-8, curriculum compacting, study guides and extension menus will be used where appropriate. An Intervention Plan will be written for identified gifted students. Differentiated Instruction practices include:
" Provide in-depth study of subject
" Present content that is related to broad-based issues, themes, or problems
" Utilize individual learning contracts (providing opportunity for self-directed activities)

" Focus on open-ended tasks with complex content(asking questions that promote critical and creative thinking)
" Encourage the development of products that use new techniques, materials, and forms
" Assist in implementation of curriculum compacting (assess what is known, teach what is not known, spend freed-up time in enriched study)
" Incorporate higher levels of abstract thinking (encouraging students to participate in hypothetical reasoning, discussing complex issues, make abstract inferences and utilizing systematic procedures)
" Develop tiered assignments with varied activities
" Utilize telescoping (covering the same material in less time, students are required to answer only the most difficult questions)
" Develop learning center areas (provide enrichment for students who demonstrate mastery of required work)
" Encourage students to develop advanced products related to content areas
" Web-Quests
" Infusion of higher order thinking skills into content (emphasize questions that enable the learner to analyze, synthesize, or evaluate)

Although our program premise is that the identified student's educational needs will be met most often with a differentiated curriculum in the regular classroom, we believe that it is important that gifted student have some opportunity to meet with intellectual peers on a regular basis. Having identified students meet in a pull-out multi-age setting allows the gifted coordinator to work with identified students on thematic units, independent research, and other gifted curriculum for K-5. The multi-age pullout program for K-5 will be for 90 minutes per week. No pull-out grouping is planned for 6-8 at this time.

The social / emotional needs of our population will be addressed. The following intensities that are often experienced by gifted student will be covered. They included Psychomotor, Sensual, Emotional, Imaginational, and Intellectual. Explanations of the behaviors and patterns associated by each will be explained. Strategies to facilitate and calm the intensities will be given. Parent Advocacy Group. Parents of identified gifted students will be invited to take part in our parent advocacy and information meetings. Parents will be given a parent guidebook.

The gifted coordinator will complete all requirements for a Master's Degree in Gifted Education from Northeastern Illinois University by December, 2008. The coordinator, who is the principal, will provide staff development to the faculty on gifted education as well as differentiation strategies for gifted and regular education students. Teachers will receive staff development on compacting strategies and the use of extension menus and student contracts. The gifted coordinator will attend state Gifted Conventions and will join gifted organizations.

The gifted coordinator of St. Benedict School has a Masters Degree in Gifted Education and Type75 Certification. Her master's degree is from Northeastern Illinois University. (To be completed December, 2008). She also holds a Masters Degree in Curriculum and Instruction.
Within the administrative design, the gifted coordinator will work with teachers who have identified gifted students in their classrooms. She will assist teachers in the identification process. St. Benedict will provide brochures which include information on all aspects of the gifted program for the school. The brochures will include information on identification, delivery, curriculum, and a listing of resources. The brochures will be available to all parents. The school will also provide a parent handbook to each parent once their child has been identified for the gifted program services at the school. Several events will be held for parents such as parenting workshops, informational workshops, and special speakers. National and state information regarding legislation will be shared with parents.

BUDGET

Expenses: Material already available / cost of thematic unit materials $250 / year
New Materials: $300
Brochure and Parent Handbook / $225.00
No teacher cost / principal is the teacher of pull-out and coordinator

Parents of gifted students, teachers, and gifted students will receive a survey. The following are some items that will be included in this survey:
1. Do you feel they are challenged in the regular classroom?
2. Do students believe that the assignments and activities in the gifted pull-out are challenging and interesting?
3. Are parents, students and teachers satisfied with the gifted program?
4. Do teachers believe they have been appropriately trained to meet the needs of gifted students in the regular classroom?
5. Do teachers believe the school provides sufficient resources and materials to provide advanced and challenging work for gifted learners?
6. Do teachers believe they differentiate instruction for the varying needs of learners?
7. Do teachers believe they effectively use flexible grouping arrangements with the regular classroom to ensure that gifted students learn with intellectual peers?

Student progress will be evaluated annually in May on the ICEP. Eligibility to continue in the talented and gifted program will be determined at that time. Input of parents, teachers and administration will determine the decision for continued services. Parents can request services to end at any time during the school year.

Pull-out classes to challenge Gifted and Accelerated students is an integral part of our Talented and Gifted Program. A group of students in Grades 1-2 and another group from Grades 3-5 meet with Mrs. Rys for 80 minutes per week. The purpose of the class is to provide thematic learning on topics suited for multi-age classes. Language arts and math components are integrated with science and social studies. Students are given opportunities to learn about a particular subject or topic in depth by reading, doing research, and engaging in hands-on activities that incorporate higher level learning and critical thinking.

Grades 1-2 are working on the Faces Unit. Students learned the definition of “façade” in relation to concrete objects and people. Students learned about attributes and how the visible numbers of faces on a cube change as you build towers. They learned about emotions and the many different faces we have and that faces change depending on the circumstances. They learned about mixed emotions. Students learned about symmetry and that human faces and geometrical faces have common attributes, such as fractional proportions and symmetry. They learned about proverbs and how appearance influences how we feel about something.

As they learn, they use higher level thinking to organize, display, compare and contrast, judge, decide, create and develop.

Grades 3-5 are working on the Explorations Unit. Using higher level thinking skills of analysis and synthesis, students learned about Marco Polo and how explorers transfer parts of their culture to other cultures. Students explored cultures and civilizations and recorded the cultural aspects they would take with them if they moved to another country. Students learned about cultural borrowing and why cultures tend to borrow from one another. Students learned about space explorations and Robert Goddard, the “Father of the Space Age.” They explored the time line of space exploration and researched the milestones in the history of manned space flight. Students will explore continental drift. They will use the scientific method to draw conclusions about the continental drift theory and Pangaea. Students will also explore nutritional habits and the systems in the body. While exploring, students brainstorm, research, inquire, evaluate situations, make generalizations and inferences, create and draw conclusions. Higher level thinking strategies are evident.