1

Dr. Carol V. Horn

Coordinator Gifted and Talented

Programs

Fairfax County Public Schools

carol.horn@fcps.edu

Finding and Nurturing Young Scholars

If you treat an individual as he is,

he will stay as he is, but if you

treat him as if he were what he

ought to be and could be, he will

become what he ought to be and

could be.

Johann von Goethe

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Fairfax County Public Schools• 13th largest school district in the nation

• Serves approximately 165,000 students

• 137 elementary schools

23 Gifted and Talented (GT) Centers

27 school-based GT centers

97 GT Resource Teachers

• 26 middle schools

11 Middle School GT Centers

Middle School Honors Program in 26 schools

• 26 high schools

International Baccalaureate

Advanced Placement

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology

5.3%

Multi-racial

.1%

Hawaiian

FCPS .3%17.8%.3%16.4%10.7%49.1%

Other/

Unspecified

Asian/

Pacific

Islander

Native

American

/

Alaskan

HispanicBlackWhite

Free and/or Reduced Price Lunch 19.79%

3

English Speakers of Other

Languages(ESOL Students)

• 1 in 3 = language minority student

• 1 in 6 = LEP (or ELL) student

• 1 in 8 = ESOL student (receiving

ESOL services)

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Point of View

• Think – How do you define giftedness?

How do you know if a child has advanced academicpotential?

• Pair – Turn to the person on your right and share your thoughts.

• Share – Share your ideas with the group.

How many of you agreed with your partner?

What different perspectives were shared?

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What educators and psychologistsrecognize as giftedness in children isreally potential giftedness, which

denotes promise rather thanfulfillment and probabilitiesrather than certainties about

future accomplishments. How highthese probabilities are in any givencase depends much upon the

match between a child’s buddingtalents and the kinds of

nurturance provided. Passow, 1985

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FCPS provides a continuum of gifted services that

serves 36% of the students K - 12

Based on the work ofDonald Treffinger

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Level I Every elementary school

has a part-time GT teacher

All children, K – 6, participate in model lessons

that challenge them to think and useknowledge in new and different ways. Lessonsthat develop critical and creative thinking skills

in all students are modeled and shared withclassroom teachers.

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Level I

K-2 Response Lessons

• Every elementary school has a part-time

GT resource teacher

• Response lessons are open-ended lessonsdesigned to develop critical and creativethinking skills in all learners.

• Response lessons can be used to identify andnurture gifted potential among students.

• Response lessons can be used with ALLstudents.

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Nine Categories of InstructionalStrategies that research saysenhances student achievement.

Robert Marzano

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29Reinforcing effort and providing recognition

22Cues, questions, and advanced organizers

23Generating and testing hypotheses

23Setting objectives and providing feedback

27Cooperative Learning

27Nonlinguistic Representations

28Homework and practice

34Summarizing and note taking

45Identify similarities and differences

Percentile

GainMarzano’s Categories of

Strategies

From: Classroom Instruction that Works by Marzano, Pickering and Pollock

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Marzano Connection

Summarizing

& Note taking

.34

Identifying Similarities &

Differences .45

Grades 3 – 6Model Lessons to Develop

Thinking Skills in All Learners

12

Cues, Questions, and Advanced Organizers

.22

Nonlinguistic

Representations

.27

Generating & Testing

Hypotheses .23

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Level II

Differentiated Services (DE)

Differentiated instruction provided through morechallenging content, assignments, resources,and flexible instructional groupings in one ormore areas of academic strength.

GT teachers plan, collaborate, and share ideasand resources with classroom teachers andother specialists.

In middle school, students who receive Level IIservices take one or two Honors classes.

In high school, students at Level II take one ortwo AP or IB courses.

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Middle School Honors

(Levels II – IV)

• For students who have demonstrated high

achievement in a specific area(s) of academic

strength

• Potential plus performance

• Provides for Ascending Levels of

Intellectual Demand

• Middle schools identify students through a

review of multiple criteria

• Access and opportunity for underrepresented

populations

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Information Consideredin Placement Decisions

for Levels III and IV

• Ability test scores• Achievement test scores

• Gifted Behaviors Rating Scale withCommentary

• Progress Reports and Comments (2 years)• Additional information (optional)

• Record of previous services• Parent/Guardian Questionnaire• Work samples & certificates (according

to guidelines)• Additional testing

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Level III Gifted Services (SE)

• Students are identified by a local screening

committee through a review of multiple criteria:ability and achievement test scoresreport card gradesa score on the Gifted Behaviors Rating Scale or GBRSstudent work samples, and parent input

• Students are served in one or more areas of academicstrength

• In middle school, students who are receiving Level IIIservices take three Honors classes

• In high school, students who are receiving Level IIIservices, take AP or IB courses.

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GT Center Program

Level IV Services

Located in 23 elementary and 11 middle schools

22 “school-based” centers at the elementary level

Highly challenging curriculum and instruction

Serves approximately 12% of the total

FCPS population in grades 3-8

Full Honors is a Level IV service at the middle school

High School Level IV consists of full AP, IB, or Thomas

Jefferson High School for Science and Technology.

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Does your current GT programrepresent the demographics of your

school population?

• Think about this.

• Circle a number between 1 – 10 to representyour opinion on this question.

(1 - strongest NO, 10 – strongest YES)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

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Underrepresentation ofEconomically Disadvantaged and

Culturally Diverse Students

Issues

• Biased assessmentmeasures

• Low Expectations

(self and others)

• Fewparent/guardianreferrals

Recommendations

• Multidimensional assessments(portfolios, case studies,anecdotal records)

• Raise expectations throughmore rigorous and challengingcurriculum

• Increase communication/administrator and teacherreferrals/parent advocacytraining

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Committed Professionals

Leadership of School Principals

Collaboration among Teachers and Specialists

Nurture, Guide, andSupport

Cluster Young Scholars

Provide Level of GTService

Challenge ThroughCurriculum andInstruction

Support on MultipleLevels

Find/Identify

Observations/Conversations

Performance assessments

Portfolios

Nonverbal Ability Test

Standard Achievement Tests

Essential Elements

Summer school, After School, and/or Intersession for

Young Scholars

Ongoing Professional Development for Teachers

Culturally Responsive Teaching

Differentiated Curriculum and Instruction for Advanced

Learners

Parent/Guardian Involvement and Support

Young Scholars: A Model for Success

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• Change comes from within

• Change will not necessarily cost more money

• There are no quick fixes

• There is no one best way

No Quick Fix

Richard Allington & Sean A. Walmsley, 1995

Four Principles of Systemic

Change

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Who are the Young Scholars?

Students with gifted potential whomay lack:

•Advocates

•Access

•Affirmation

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1. Short Term

To identify students who may not be considered for

gifted and talented (GT) programs using traditional

methods of identification, and who, without that

opportunity, are less likely to pursue advanced

levels of learning on their own.

2. Long Term

To nurture high academic potential at an early age so

that identified students will be prepared to engage

in challenging subject matter and rigorous courses

in upper elementary school, middle school, and

high school.

Goals of the Young Scholars

Model

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• Ongoing observations of student responses andproducts, anecdotal records, collections of studentwork samples demonstrating advanced academicability (portfolios)

• Gifted Behavior Rating Scale (GBRS)

• Response Lessons/Thinking Skills Lessonsdesigned to elicit critical and creative thinking.

• Collaboration between GT specialists, classroomteachers, and other teachers.

• Review of all standardized test scores (e.g., PALS,DRA, SOL’s etc.)

Finding Young Scholars

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Kindergarten Model Response Lesson

Circles in Your Imagination

• State Standard Objective: K.14 Thestudent will identify representations ofplane geometric figures regardless oftheir position and orientation in space.

• K.15 The student will compare the sizeand shape of plane geometric figures.

• Materials: circular objects, circles,paper, crayons

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SENSE: STUDENTS BEGIN TO THINKABOUT THE LESSON

• What shapes can you find in our classroom?

• Use your hands to make a circle.

• Look through your circle lens.

• What round things do you see?

• What is the biggest circle you can find? Smallest?

• What circles would fit in your hand?

LINK: STUDENTS MAKE CONNECTIONSTO THE REAL WORLD

• Can you name circles that people use? (wheel, sun,pizza, globe, etc.)

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EXPLORE: STUDENTS THINK ABOUT MANYPOSSIBILITIES, REAL AND IMAGINARY

• Imagine lots and lots of round things in your mind.• Describe what you see.• What’s a really large round thing?• What’s the smallest round thing you see in your mind?• Show a ball. What else could this be?

FOCUS: STUDENTS CONSIDER

A NEW SOLUTION TO A SPECIFIC PROBLEM• (Distribute circle sheets and crayons)• Use your imagination.• What are all the things you can make out of these circles?

• Can you think of some unusual ideas that maybe no one else will?

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29

30

31

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PROCESS: SUMMARIZE THE LESSON with thestudents by asking what the lesson wasabout and applying it to their studies

and/or their lives.

Accommodations for ESOL students: Visual aids provided forthe LINK portion of the lesson and posted on Gateways.

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3,748308988151,0628386456506/07

4,683372201,15631,3651,0097537207/08

2,412234645086546254355805/07

2,167167645035165904355404/05

1,627134230644324602893703/04

79660114722032311523102/03

54518188481041961171601/02

35502012115100/01

TotalsMulti-

racial

Un

des

AsianAmeri

Ind.

HispanicBlackWhiteNumber

of YS

Schools

Year

Young ScholarsNumber of participating schools and

ethnic group representation

2000-2008

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Level II Interventions for YoungScholars

Concept-based Instructionpatterns, systems, change, andcycles

William and Mary Curriculum Units

http://www.kendallhunt.com/index.cfm?PID=219&PGI=251

Renzulli Learningwww.renzullilearning.com

Library of Congress Resourceswww.primarysourcelearning.org

Focus on critical thinking andproblem-solving in mathematicsinstruction

Games that strengthen thinkingstrategies and skills

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• Three week session for students

who have been identified

• Multi-age Classrooms/ K, 1, 2 and 4,5,6 Investigations/Field Trips/Guest Speakers

• Summer school lead teachers and classroom teachers are teacher leaders for the model at their school sites

• Concept-based curriculum with focus onreading and mathematics

Young Scholars Summer School

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YS Primary CurriculumWetlands, Body Systems, Cycles, Plants, Your

Story My Story

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Assessing Young Scholars

Pre-test – Wetlands

What do you know about systems?

I’m not 100% sure, but I think a system iswhen one thing leads to another thing.

What are some examples of systems?

TV because when you broadcast a news show,it gets recorded into the TV.

HarleyYoung ScholarGrade two

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Post-test Wetlands

What do you know about systems?

Every system has input, output, elements, andboundaries. Families are systems because theygive money to the world and take in things likefood and clothes from the outside. The elementsare the people who live in the family and theboundaries depend on where their jobs are.

What are some examples of systems?

A system could be all sorts of things. It could bea food drive. That would be a system that givesfood to people that can’t get food. There aremany systems in the world. Some are still beingtested or invented. Harley

Young ScholarGrade two

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YS Upper Grade Curriculum:Chesapeake Bay, Acid, Acid,

The Dig, Investigating Patterns, People Who

Made a Difference

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Field trip experiences

Summer School Students

Learning about Archaeology

Summer School

Students Investigating

the Pohick Bay

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• “Research-based Practices” that promotecontinuous academic achievement for allstudents

• Curriculum and instruction that nurtureadvanced academic potential

• Professional development for a team of 8teachers (classroom teachers, readingspecialists, GT resource, ESOL, specialeducation, and other specialists) from eachschool

• August 20, 2008

Summer Academic Diversity

Institute for Teachers, pre-K - 12

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Ongoing Professional

Development

Must be endorsed (12 graduate level

credits) within five years

Professional development offerings during

the school year with substitute time provided

Monday afternoons

Summer opportunities

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GETncm/justsaycust-recrate-itemcommunittg/stores/dtg/stores/d-favorite-listruejust-say-no

Book Discussion

Groups

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The Model in Schools

Each school tailors the model to the individualneeds of the school and community:

• Cluster the students in classes and co-teach

• Multi-age groupings

• Small group meetings, weekly or monthly

• Looping

• School-wide enrichment challenges

• After-school programs

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Change in GT school-based enrollment byEthnic Group 2000 and 2008

Grades K-8 Level II and III

20,5861,3104,127462,1181,68911,2282008

9,0882331,158273114756,7602000

TotalMulti.AsianAm. In.Hispan.BlackWhite

Change in FCPS District Data

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Change in GT center-based enrollment byEthnic Group 2000 and 2008

Grades 3-8 Level IV

8,6866122,389133213305,0212008

3,429955841166762,5662000

TotalMulti.AsianAm InHispan.BlackWhite

Change in FCPS District Data

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ESOL Participation in GT

2,81199Total

3413CE Level IV

69630SE Level III

1,77466DE Level II

20082000GT Level

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What the Students Say

• “Young Scholars has

helped me to believe in

myself and know that I

can do anything.”

• “I have learned to be

independent and to bring

out my true brain power.”

• “I have learned to love

thinking.”

• “Young Scholars has

helped my mind progress

even faster than usual.”

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What the Teachers Say

I have been convinced that there are many methods one

can utilize to identify giftedness other than merely relying

on standardized test results. I am now a strong supporter

of portfolio presentations and anecdotal records to

illustrate a child’s abilities and talents . . .

Since I’ve worked with Young Scholars, my expectations

have been broader; I have higher expectations for children

who are able to perform better. Everyone has an idea of

what giftedness is, but Young Scholars has broadened my

perspective about who is brought into that category.

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Plus, Minus, and Interesting is a criticalthinking strategy which helps studentsconsider different aspects of a situation,problem, or issue. Students use the PMIframework to identify positive and negativefactors, and to highlight ideas of personalinterest.

What are the plus, minus, and interestingaspects of the YS model that might work inyour school or district?

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ResourcesThinkFun: Younger Players

Webquests K-2 Math

TOPS (Techniques of Problem Solving)

Renzulli Learning

Activities Integrating Math & Science (AIMS)

Marcy Cook Math Fundamentals

Interact Simulations

Primary Source Learning Experiences

Odyssey of the Mind

Destination Imagination

Dust Bowl (W & M, PBL)

Exploravision

Children’s Engineering

Webquests K- 2 Science

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It doesn’t take money to create a climate for

enchanted minds to grow. It just takesinformation, imagination, motivation, and effort.

Marian Diamond Magic Trees of the Mind