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Class information:
In the gifted education program, the following strands are emphasized
within the various subject areas: thinking skills, creativity, interpersonal
skills, self-understanding, interest development, communication, skills of
the independent learner, and achievement.
Reading- Critical reading skills will be utilized through a study of various
genres (such as world mythology, folklore, fairy tales, short shories,
poetry, drama, fantasy, science fiction, and the works of Shakespere) and an
exploration of literary elements within each work. The students will build
vocabulary, and share ideas, reactions to, and opinions about literature,
compare and contrast works, participate in dramatic presentations and
debates, discuss and respond to the author's craft, and analyze and express
ideas through writing or discussion. The students will be involved in small
group and independent projects.
Additional Language Arts Skills
Writing- The students will engage in different forms of writing including narrative,
expository, persuasive, and, and descriptive works, and will incorporate craft devices (ex:
figurative language, mood, dialogue) into their writing. They will be involved in
writing conferences and the use of the writing process. The students will have exercises
in and edit for the following conventions: punctuation, grammar, spelling, and
capitalization.
Communication- The students will be evaluated on their daily participation
and performance. They should engage in class discussions, express ideas,
give appropriate responses to questions, note details, make inferences,
create predictions, draw conclusions, and support their ideas using correct
grammar and usage. Additionally, they should practice active listening
skills.
Study Skills- The students will gather information from a variety of
sources for assignments: dictionaries, thesauruses, encyclopedias, books, the
Internet, etc. They will use conventions for citing references used and use
paraphrasing when compiling information for research.
Math- The students will use the Everyday Math program which includes an
enrichment component, along with additional challenging materials to promote
critical and creative thinking. The students will solve problems involving
number operations, including multiplication and division, algebra, geometry,
measurement, and data analysis and probability. They will be evaluated on
written work and projects.
In developing various critical thinking skills, students may analyze a
problem to determine a solution, arrive at a conclusion by process of
elimination, catch contradictions and inconsistencies, use deductive
reasoning, learn there may be various ways to solve a problem, look for a
logical starting point, organize data so that it can be more easily used,
perceive logical patterns, reason by analogy, weigh given information to
determine truth or falsity, etc.
Current Studies:
3rd grade reading: Music Story; creation of their own god, goddess or creature (narrative writing);
Greek and Roman deities; fantasy novel (outside reading);creating a new Olympic Game; reading
multicultural myths and folktales;poetry; re-tellings of myths; persuasive writing. They gave
play performances of a parody of Hades and Persephone.'
Beginning the new year, we will be reading short stories-- including science fiction-- and doing
several activities with these stories. Students are also working on a book report and presentation for
their historical fiction novel, and are continuing to improve their writing by incorporating imagery,
figurative language, and dialogue into their pieces.
4th grade math: The students are working on Everyday Math, in addition to solving challenging word
problems and puzzles that utilize critical thinking skills. Current topics: measurement and
tessellations. They continue to practice multiplication on a daily basis.
5th grade reading: Symbolism: symbolic collage; Plot Sequence: Picture Story; creation of their own
god, goddess, or creature (narrative writing);Greek and Roman deities; Children's Classics
(outside reading);Norse mythology-map of The Nine Worlds; figurative language; create a new
Olympic Game;reading multicultural myths;poetry; they also gave play performances of
parodies of Greek myths. They watched 'Jason and the Argonauts' and compared and contrasted it to
the myth 'The Golden Fleece'
Beginning the new year, we will be reading short stories-- mainly focusing on the genre of science
fiction-- and doing several activities with these stories. Students are working on writing letters
between characters in their novels, and are continuing to improve their writing by incorporating
imagery, figurative language, dialogue, and new vocabulary into their pieces.
