Gifted and Advanced Learners - Lake Forest Schools

Philosophy of Advanced Learning

District 67 personnel are committed to the educational vision that recognizes the value, needs, and talents of each child and strives to assist children in reaching their full potential. Therefore, we realize that students who consistently exceed grade level benchmarks, need learning tasks that continue to drive their learning forward in a significant way.

District 67 recognizes the diverse academic and social/emotional needs of the gifted child. In response to these needs, we provide a curriculum which is differentiated in pace, depth, and content level, where both enrichment and acceleration are possible. Through the curriculum, academic environment, and various support services, our teachers work to foster a desire within their students for academic excellence, the confidence to take risks, a sense of responsibility, and a healthy self-concept.

Lake Forest District 67 Core Beliefs

Every child has an incredible capacity to learn and the job of educators is to create an environment that maximizes each student's growth.
Students thrive when they are actively engaged in solving problems that matter and when we support them academically, socially, emotionally, physically and intellectually.

An intellectually gifted child generally possesses the following learning characteristics:

An early aptitude for abstract thinking
Significantly high cognitive aptitudes (e.g., Very Superior range)
High levels of thought processes (i.e., the ability to see complex patterns, identify and consider multiple solutions, make valid generalizations, share insightful observations, and draw logical conclusions based on information)
Strong intuitive reasoning skills

Beliefs about educating academically gifted children:

Learning occurs at a different pace, depth, and style for all children.
A curriculum modified in level of content, depth, and pace is necessary for gifted students in their area(s) of strength.
Abstract ideas and complex issues are consistently grasped and can be extended by highly advanced students in a deeper, broader manner than by their age-mates.
Gifted students need opportunities to learn in a variety of ways, including learning with other gifted students as well as with other age-mates.
Students need to have their gifts recognized, supported, and properly challenged as early as demonstrated.
Students who are intellectually gifted are often asynchronous in the development or demonstration of their abilities and require appropriate modification to challenge and grow academically.
All staff need ongoing staff development in the area of gifted education.

Beliefs about testing and determining services:

Enrollment in advanced courses is not driven by numbers or percentages of our population but by students who fit the course definition and demonstrate the need for a highly differentiated curriculum.
Re-evaluation of placement is an ongoing process dependent upon the child’s response to the thinking and skills required by the advanced curricula.
The goal of advanced placement is that the student remains high performing and achieving well beyond grade level. If either of these criteria are missing, the parents will be notified about a recommended change in placement.
Classroom modifications for all children (i.e., enrichment, thinking skills instruction, compacting, acceleration, etc.) are determined by individual student performance, not by the identification process itself.
No child is placed in advanced learning arrangements without objective data, professional judgment, and multiple pieces of information that support the placement.

Service Models and Terms for Meeting the Needs of Highly Advanced Learners

Differentiation is available in every course. Teachers are expected to adjust their lesson plans and instruction to meet the needs of all learners. Differentiation is the term used for the process of matching the academic task to the level of the student. Examples of differentiation involve altering the lesson pacing, depth, and complexity.

Enrichment is available in every course. Once a child has demonstrated high levels of mastery of concepts and skills, he/she is deemed ready for enrichment, if time allows. Enrichment is assisting the child in taking his/her learning to a richer, deeper level. This often includes engaging the child in extending the practice and/or application phases.

Subject acceleration -- Please view Board Policy 6:135 Accelerated Placement Program and D67 Math Acceleration Procedures for more information.

Early Entrance is when a child enters a grade that is reserved for students who are chronologically older. Early entrance is an example of whole grade acceleration. Early entrance into a grade requires District approval, which is based on the child’s proficiency and readiness levels in multiple domain areas.

Cluster Grouping means strategically placing students with similar abilities, in small groups, within the same classroom so that all students have learning partners who function at or near the same performance level.

Differentiated Learning: Tailoring Instruction to Meet Individual Needs

In order to understand how the District meets the needs of learners who are intellectually and/or academically advanced, it is important to provide a context for how the needs of all students are met. Teachers utilize differentiation strategies via the following primary avenues:

Inclusive Lesson Design
Collaborative Teaching Models
Tiered Assignments
Flexible Grouping Arrangements and Criteria
Pacing Adjustments
Project-based Learning/Inquiry-based Learning
Student Choice
Student-directed Learning Tasks
Curriculum Compacting (via Pretesting)
Research and Independent Projects of Interest
Online Learning
Focus on Real World Problems
Increased Complexity of Subject Matter
Subject, Unit, or Grade Acceleration

(This list is illustrative, other methods of differentiation may be employed)

Math Course Sequence

Identification Process for Advanced Math Courses

New Students and Advanced Programming

Grades K-2 All Subjects

Students are placed in heterogeneous (i.e., mixed ability) homeroom classes with some cluster grouping. Cluster grouping means strategically placing students with similar abilities into the same classroom so that all students have learning partners who function at or near the same performance level.

Prior to placing a new student in a homeroom class, an administrator will review existing records and contact a child’s parent to discuss the child’s previous school experience, including participation in accelerated academic programs or classes and/or special supports. This information will aid in cluster grouping.

We do not formally identify students for advanced courses. Each elementary school has an Advanced Learning Specialist who collaborates with homeroom teachers and other academic specialists to determine academic levels and learning capabilities of new students. Throughout the school year, students are given a wide variety of assessments in reading, writing, and mathematics. Teachers review results and co-plan activities for advanced learners. Teachers are expected to differentiate where needed.

Grades 3-4 Mathematics

All new students start Mathematics in their homeroom classes. Over the first 4-6 weeks of enrollment, the homeroom teacher and academic specialists administer baseline assessments as well as curriculum-based assessments and gather observational data to determine a child’s academic needs.

For students who demonstrate highly advanced math skills, the teacher collaborates with the Advanced Learning Specialist to determine next steps. Sometimes, this entails formal screening for inclusion in an advanced math course. This may also entail less formal plans, such as advanced work within the homeroom class or having the child participate occasionally in advanced opportunities in the accelerated math class, when a pre-test indicates a need. For more information on the math course sequence and advanced math placement, see the relevant sections on this webpage.

Grades 5-8 Mathematics

In grades 5-8, students have access to more than one course offered per grade level. Each grade level has a standard math course that corresponds to the grade level number, (i.e., Math 5, Math 6, Math 7, and Math 8). For students who demonstrate a need for an accelerated math course sequence, advanced courses are available.

Prior to identifying a math course for a new student, an administrator will review existing records and contact a child’s parent to discuss the child’s previous school experience, including participation in accelerated academic programs or classes and/or special supports. The student will be invited in over the summer to participate in some preliminary assessments to help determine a suitable course match.