Gifted Education

It’s hard to believe the first quarter of school is behind us. The beginning of the year is always busy in the world of Gifted Education. We have added several new students to our group, and I’m excited to get to know them.

Third, fourth, and fifth grade students in the Gifted program recently selected a goal for their Advanced Learning Plan (ALP). This year students selected one goal that combined their academic and affective (social/emotional) goals into one. We wanted to streamline the process given the uniqueness of remote and hybrid learning. To help select an appropriate goal, students completed three checklists. Based on the ratings they gave themselves on the checklists, they chose one of the following options for their goal: Resilience and Grit, Effort and Motivation, or Self-Advocacy. Students had an opportunity to personalize their goal to make it specific to their needs. Students will revisit their goals midyear and again at the end of the school year to monitor their progress.

I always enjoy meeting with students to write their ALPs (even when it’s done virtually). It is exciting to see students being reflective and setting goals. I truly appreciate their thoughtfulness and motivation. I am fortunate to collaborate with students in the ALP process, and I look for- ward to watching them grow and achieve throughout the year.

Students’ ALPs will be sent home prior to Thanksgiving break.

Two great resources for parents of gifted children are the Colorado Association for Gifted and Talented https://www.coloradogifted.org/  and the National Association for Gifted Children https://www.nagc.org/ .

Marci Kincaid
mkincaid@psdschools.org