Gifted Programs
Where am I?
Gifted Program Mission
The mission of the Kirkwood School District, a leader in individualized education, is to instill in each student a passion for learning and the academic and social skills to excel in a global society. This will be accomplished by a system that meets the unique needs of each student through high expectations, innovative instructional strategies, and partnerships with parents and community, in an atmosphere that ensures a sense of belonging.
Rationale
The Kirkwood REACH Program is designed to support the learning needs of students who possess significantly advanced knowledge and highly developed learning capabilities. These learners demonstrate the capacity to handle curricular content at a rapid pace and at advanced levels of abstractness, complexity, and independence, the desire to explore open-ended problems in significant depth, the tendency to ask difficult questions and to imagine new possibilities. Such learners are found in all of our schools and in all cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. These students require rigorous and challenging curriculum and learning opportunities that match their advanced learning potential in order to achieve the personal goals and academic success of which they are capable.
The primary purpose of our REACH program is to support high levels of student achievement as defined by the Kirkwood Curricula and the Missouri Show-Me Standards. The REACH program will address this purpose by facilitating opportunities for students with advanced learning capabilities to
- engage in expert-like inquiry, research, problem solving, and creative production related to rigorous multi-disciplinary curricular content
- explore personal interests, passions, and talents at a depth of knowledge beyond what can be experienced in the general classroomdevelop an understanding of self as well as the similarities and differences among all learners
Program Goals
- Support mastery of district curriculum at a pace and depth appropriate to the capacity of advanced learners
- Facilitate essential understandings of curricular-based systems of knowledge, macro-concepts, issues and problems that frame the external world
- Develop advanced levels of communication skills
- Provide learning experiences which stimulate advanced levels of divergent thinking and critical reflection
- Develop research skills and methods progressing toward professional expertise
- Provide a community where advanced learners develop self-awareness of their unique social-emotional needs and learning passions
Services
K-5 Level of Service Model
Any student who demonstrates advance learning capability will be considered for personalized support through the REACH Level of Service (LoS) Model. Nominated students are administered a series of assessments from each of the following areas: academic achievement, creativity and reasoning skills, performance (Gifted Rating Scale), and cognitive capability. These criteria are required by the state of Missouri for gifted identification. Assessment results are used to determine the level of service most appropriate to the student’s needs.
Level I services: Level I services are provided through differentiated instruction within the general education classroom. Classroom and REACH teachers collaboratively plan creative and critical thinking exercises for whole group and flexible small groups within the general education classroom.
Level II REACH services: Level II services include all Level I services in addition to curriculum enrichment provided in specific content areas and higher level thinking opportunities. These learning opportunities are typically provided in flexible small groups within the general education classroom.
Level III REACH services: Students eligible for Level III services receive all Level I and II services in addition to 150 minutes a week of advanced, fast-paced instruction based on content-area extensions defined within the REACH Challenge curriculum. This instruction is provided within the REACH Challenge classroom.
Level IV REACH services: Students eligible for Level IV receive all Level I, II, and III services in addition to a Personalized Learning Plan which may include subject or grade acceleration and interest-based learning opportunities. Personalized Learning Plans are developed by the building’s ASSIST problem-solving team. Parents are encouraged to participate in this planning.
Eligibility
All students are considered in the screening process for REACH. Classroom teachers observe student performance both in and out of the regular classroom for signs of highly advanced readiness and learning potential. Grade level teams and REACH teachers review available achievement scores and other examples of student performance to determine the appropriateness of further assessment in the areas of creativity, reasoning, problem solving, achievement, cognitive/mental capability, and gifted characteristics. Assessment results are used to determine a student’s eligibility for each level of service.
Screening and Evaluation Timeline
Screening
Grades K-5: August - October
Evaluation
Grade K: October - November 30
Grade 1: November - December 22
Grades 2 thru 5: August - October 31
* Students may be evaluated for REACH eligibility twice within the K-5 grade span. Generally, students will not be evaluated twice in consecutive years.
Kirkwood resident students who attend non-public schools may be referred for REACH services by submitting a REACH nomination referral and supporting documentation of gifted learning potential (e.g. cognitive and/or achievement assessments, students work samples/portfolios) to the REACH teacher in their Kirkwood neighborhood school. This information will be reviewed to determine if additional eligibility assessments are appropriate. Contact the REACH teacher in your Kirkwood attendance area school for more information.
Contacts
Matt Hayman
Keysor Elementary School
Synthia Skousen
North Glendale Elementary School
Amy Winegar
Robinson Elementary School
Cindy Coronado, Lisa Grommet
Tillman Elementary School
Christy Berger
Westchester Elementary School
Melissa Shadburne
Nipher Middle School
Bonnie Nicholas
North Kirkwood Middle School
For more information contact:
Thurma DeLoach, Ph.D.
Executive Director of Special Programs
11289 Manchester Road
Kirkwood, MO 63122
Tel: 314-213-6106 fax: 314-984-0002
REACH Brochure Grades K-5 (pdf, 109.73KB)
KHS Gifted Resource Services Brochure (pdf, 201.75KB)
REACH/SOAR Evaluation (pdf, 3.39MB)
REACH/SOAR July Board Update (pdf, 355.77KB)
Helpful Links
National Association for Gifted Children
http://www.nagc.org/
Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Gifted website
http://www.dese.mo.gov/divimprove/gifted/
Gifted Resource Council
http://www.giftedresourcecouncil.org/
Center for Gifted Education. The College of William and Mary
http://cfge.wm.edu/curr_science.htm
The St. Louis Association for Gifted Education
http://www.giftedsage.com/
Articles
The Joy and the Challenge; Parenting Gifted Children
The Joy and the Challenge (pdf, 395.26KB)
District To Make Changes to Gifted Program
District to Make Changes to Gifted Program (pdf, 14.43KB)
National Assocation for Gifted Children
NAGC Gifted Program Standards (pdf, 86.57KB)
Parents Ask: How hard should our child strive for perfection?He's extraordinarily talented. Should we push him to excel? (pdf, 637.03KB)
"The Kirkwood School District does not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, religion, age, national origin, handicap, or disability in admissions or access to, or treatment or employment in its programs and activities. Any person having inquiries concerning the District compliance with Title IX and Section 504 should contact Dr. Jeanette Tendai, Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources and Administration, by calling (314) 213-6103.