FORMALLY IDENTIFIED GIFTED MODEL: IDEA LAB
Students are eligible for the gifted program through formal identification procedures. The identification process begins mid-year in kindergarten. Identified students participate in the pull-out Idea Lab program that meets 150 minutes per week. Articulated curriculum units focus on one broad theme each semester. The kindergarten unit focuses on a theme of "Explorations". The first and second grade curriculum is titled "Connections". In both cases, the focus of the curriculum is student-centered. The children are encouraged to explore or connect learning by areas of personal interest. The teacher serves as facilitator and consultant as each child creates a timeline, plan, and process for the study. Throughout the units, the children also explore higher-level thinking skills such as analogies, brain puzzles and games, logical reasoning, problem solving, and creative thinking activities. Third graders solve a variety of problems in a Mystery unit and explore topics of interest through an "Inquiry" based curriculum. The semester-long units in fourth and fifth grade, Architecture, Archaeology, Law and Invention, rotate on a two-year cycle. As culminating activities, students design and build structures, research cultures and participate in a "dig", conduct mock trials, and create and market an invention. All units focus on creative and productive thinking, communication, problem solving, and decision making.

Click Here to Visit Mrs. Bancroft's Gifted Page