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GATE
Gifted and Talented Education in CUSD
| | WELCOME ... to the Chico Unified School District Gifted and Talented (GATE) website. Check here for information concerning the district's GATE programs, parent committee meetings, newsletter information, upcoming events, and links to related sites that may be of interest.
CONTENTS ... This site includes this HOME page, with information about the program, and latest news, a CALENDAR of important dates, and LINKS (below)
WHAT IS GATE? ... CUSD supports four self-contained classes, one each for grades 3, 4, 5 and 6, located at Marigold Elementary. A half-day per week "pullout" program for grades 2 - 6, taught by Janet Carroll, is housed at Chapman Elementary. Middle school GATE programs consist of teams of students grouped together for three classes per day, usually English, science and history. High school students have numerous options, depending on the campus; including Honors, Advanced Placement, Butte College Connection, High School Scholars (CSUC), and International Baccalaureate.
GATE classes seek to enrich and extend the education of students identified as "gifted" in a variety of ways, including adjusting the pace and depth of instruction, additional thematic investigations, and courses in areas of particular interest. See also CUSD's GATE Handbook and the 3-year 2007-2010 GATE plan.
WHO ARE THE GIFTED? ... Statistically speaking, "gifted" students are those who score in the top 2% on tests of intelligence. In California, school districts determine their own eligibility standards for GATE programs (so "giftedness" is sometimes a matter of geography!) CUSD uses a matrix of information including ability (intelligence) test scores, achievement test scores (STAR), and a rating scale and other information from parents and teachers.
LINKS ...
Click here for the 2007-2010 GATE plan
WEBPAGE ... maintained by Pamela Beeman, consulting school psychologist with the GATE program. Email comments, questions and suggestions to pbeeman@mail.chicousd.org
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| | NEWS! Updated 24 October 2008 Parent Committee Meeting Date Set
Parent surveys from 2007-08 are being compiled for review by the CUSD Parent Committee. A meeting will be held TUESDAY 13 JANUARY at 6:30 PM in the CUSD Large Conference Room, aka "out back". This date should give us plenty of time to plan ahead --plus, the holiday season did not seem like a good time to schedule a meeting. You do not have to be a member of the parent committee (or even a GATE parent or teacher) to attend this meeting; it is an opportunity to have input regarding the program and to have questions answered.
2009 GATE Nomination Timeline Elementary:
5 January - 30 January: Public awareness/Publicity
12 January - 30 January: Nomination period. Students may be nominated by teacher, parent, staff member, or themselves
2 February: completed paperwork to GATE office
23 February - 20 March: Testing at school sites
30 March - 3 April: Make-up testing
18 May - 22 May: 1st grade achievement testing as needed
1 May - 29 May: Final determinations made by GATE Review Board
18 May - 29 May: Parent notifications sent
Junior High:
Nominations: 26 January - 20 February
Paperwork to GATE Office: 23 February
Testing: 9 March - 3 April
18 - 29 May: Parent notifications sent
Johns Hopkins Talent Search
Each year the GATE office receives information regarding the Johns Hopkins University "Center for Talented Youth" academic talent search. At least one CUSD parent has, in the past, taken advantage of this program. Benefits include assessment, recognition, programs, and courses offered in summer and online. Any student eligible for GATE in Chico Unified is a potential nominee for this program, based on GATE test scores. Applications are available at the GATE office, or online at www.cty.jhu.edu/ts/benefits.html
Some more interesting web sites...
Duke University's Gifted Letter (I just subscribed)
Also the National Association for Gifted Children, NAGC
Parent Workshop Held on 3 April 2008 THEORY INTO PRACTICE: THE SCIENCE OF RAISING HAPPY KIDS PARENT EDUCATION WORKSHOP Dr. Christine Carter of the U C Berkeley Greater Good Science Center spoke to approximately 100 parents and teachers on Thursday 3 April at 7 PM in the Bidwell Junior High multi-purpose room. Dr. Carter is a sociologist (click here for bio) who excels at translating scientific theory into practice when it comes to raising happy, successful children. Check this web link for more on “the science of raising happy kids:” http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/half_full/ You can also sign up to receive emailings on timely topics from Dr Carter.
Read This Article
If you only read one article this year related to GATE, click this link and read about praise, intellectual ability, effort, and students' belief systems.
Good news: The Chico USD GATE plan for 2007 was approved at the three year, EXEMPLARY level. This is believed to be a first time for “exemplary” status for CUSD. Many thanks to the dedicated parent committee that worked on the plan! The plan is available by clicking here. Additionally, in the 2008 Program Compliance Review, the CUSD GATE program was approved with no corrective actions. Eligibility Decisions for 2009
Nominations for testing for the 2009-10 school year program will begin in January 2009. The timeline is listed above.
Speaking of eligibility and testing...
Many factors affect group test results ( the GATE testing is group testing), including age and experience of the student, work speed, and attitude toward testing, so scores may not always reflect a student's true potential. CUSD attempts to adjust for these inequities when possible, but individual testing is not possible for the number of students referred (usually more than 500 per year). The GATE psychologist can return calls to answer questions about your child's GATE test scores; call 891-3000, ext 157.
BJHS GATE Teachers Meet
Bidwell Junior High School GATE teachers met during the Wednesday Collaboration Period on 19 December 2007 at 8:00 AM. This team of teachers exchanged information and successful practices regarding teaching gifted students, developed a parent information brochure regarding BJHS GATE, and made plans for staff development
TIME Magazine Article
Click this link for an interesting article in a recent issue of Time magazine. The article focuses on acceleration more than grouping gifted students with age peers, but raises a number of interesting issues. Thanks to an interested GATE parent for sending this information.
Link
Try www.giftedbooks.com, the site for Great Potential Press, for titles that include Smart Girls, Smart Boys, Raisin' Brains, Intelligent Life in the Classroom, Cradles of Eminence, Helping Gifted Children Soar, Misdiagnosis and Dual Diagnoses of Gifted Children and Adults, Being Smart about Gifted Children, Losing our Minds: Gifted Children Left Behind, and Some of My Best Friends are Books.
California Association for the Gifted (CAG)
If you are interested in getting more information about CAG, including scholarships and grants, click on www.CAGifted.org
INFORMATION PROGRAMS
School starts for traditional-calendar classes on 13 August 2008, including the four GATE classes at Marigold. These are Mrs. Henry's 3rd grade, Mrs. Sloan's 4th grade, Janelle Wolsberger's 5th grade, and Mrs. Schoenthaler's 6th grade. Click on teachers' names to leave an email message.
The Pull-out GATE program begins Tuesday, 2 September at CHAPMAN ELEMENTARY, taught by Janet Carroll in room 8. A back-to-school parent meeting was held 27 August to orient families to the pullout program and provide time to arrange carpools. Units of study for the 2008-09 school year include the following: - IRELAND
- ENDANGERED SPECIES
- ALASKA and the IDITAROD
The pull-out schedule is as follows; classes meet each week from 11:30 to 2:50 in room 8 at Chapman: - Mondays: 2nd / 3rd grade
- Tuesdays: 3rd / 4th grade
- Wednesdays: 6th grade
- Thursdays: 5th / 6th grade
- Fridays: 4th / 5th grade
PARENTS
If you are new to the GATE program, and would like your email address to be included on a list of parents to receive occasional updates and requests for feedback, please send your email address to Pamela Beeman.
Likewise, if you are interested in serving on the Parent Advisory Committee, send an email. The Parent Committee provides input on the GATE plan and program, reviews survey and needs assessment information, and consults regarding staff development, parent education, and community partnerships. | |
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| | Old News!
The "FIRST-EVER ANNUAL GATE-DEPARTMENT TEACHER MEETING"
was held on Tuesday 14 March 2006. Teachers from every grade level, second through 8th, attended a meeting to share how the GATE program is implemented on different sites and at different grade levels. Teachers also completed staff development needs assessments.
More teacher collaboration is planned for 2006-07.
GATE PARENT MEETING WAS HELD TUESDAY 7 FEBRUARY 2006
The topic was "Raising Tomorrow's Leaders," focusing on the 40 Developmental Assets. To get more information on this topic, click on this link to peruse the Search Institute's website.
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