Gifted and Talented Education Programs

Sixth-Grade GATE Program

The New Vista Middle School 6th Grade Gifted and Talented program’s mission is to provide the opportunity, atmosphere, materials, and instruction to elevate identified gifted learners to a higher level of performance. In addition to the Lancaster School Districts required core curriculum, students will complete cooperative and independent projects to become more effective life-long learners. An emphasis will be placed on developing affective learning and social skills in an atmosphere that is open and accepting of new ideas and opinions. Field trips and guest speakers provide additional enrichment opportunities. Parental involvement in the program is encouraged.

The sixth-grade program is designed to meet the needs of gifted students by using a differentiated curriculum that integrates a process-oriented approach. A gifted student is one who performs or shows the potential for performance at a higher level of accomplishment. An array of learning opportunities allows advanced students in any content area to do work reflecting depth and complexity of the general school curriculum. The program will provide an emphasis on creative thinking, higher level questioning, global thinking development and individual research skills, scientific problem solving and decision making.

Student Goals: Gifted students will:

• Develop higher level thinking skills
• Develop creative thinking and problem solving skills
• Develop research skills as applied to "real world" problems
• Progress at rate and pace appropriate to individual student abilities and learning styles
• Develop effective communication skills
• Create products that are unique and synthesize major concepts
• Develop self-esteem and self understanding
• Work with others of similar ability

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Seventh-Grade GATE Program

While New Vista’s sixth-grade GATE program is housed in a self-contained classroom with a single primary teacher, the seventh and eighth-grade GATE programs have a different format. Primary GATE instruction is centered in the student’s science class: Life Science for 7th-grade and Physical Science for 8th-grade. However, GATE students are evaluated in their math and language arts skills and are placed in appropriate advanced courses and electives.

The seventh-grade program is based on providing a differentiated curriculum that integrates science skills and knowledge with acceleration and/or enrichment. Using an established instructional process call curriculum compacting, students who are able to demonstrate basic science knowledge and skills will be able to work on more advanced laboratory skills, biology research, independent study, illustration graphics, desktop publishing, and other topics.

In addition, the science GATE teacher will be monitoring and communicating with parents about their student’s academic growth in all subject areas.

Student Goals: Gifted students will:

• Develop higher level scientific thinking, problem-solving, research skills
• Progress at rate and pace appropriate to individual student abilities and learning styles
• Continue development and expansion of effective communication skills utilizing computer and Internet resources
• Create products that are unique and synthesize major concepts
• Work with other students of similar ability

English Language Learner Program

The English Language Learner (ELL) Program is centered on assisting limited-English speaking students in getting the developmental language instruction they need. A student's English language use is evaluated and then the student is placed in appropretate language class. Through the use ELL trained teachers, instructional assistants, and computer technology students recieve instruction for one or two periods per day until their English skills allow them to enter regular language arts classes.

AVID Program

AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) is a national college preparatory program designed for middle and high school students who are underachieving or underserved learners. The program assists students attain the academic skills, self-confidence, and motivation to attend and be successful at a four-year university. Students work on enhancing their study skills with the goal of successfully participating in college preparatory classes and eventually attending a four-year university. Students learn how to advocate for themselves in academic and non-academic situations – to help them gain access to the same educational opportunities that already-successful students receive. Teachers promote personal empowerment and encourage students to feel validated and recognized in school settings.

Read 180 Program

The goal of the Read 180 Program is to provide intensive, differentiated skills practice to motivate readers who need additional support. Under the guidance of trained teachers, computers analyzes, monitors, tracks, and reports on student accuracy, noting not only incorrect answers, but also the types of errors made and the time of the response. According to how the student performs, the software continually adjusts instruction offering students immediate feedback. READ 180 goes beyond branched differentiation to offer truly adaptive instruction. Beyond the use of computers, Read 180 students work on teacher-lead small group reading and independent reading .