The District ensures equal opportunity for all students identified as gifted to receive services offered by the District.  Service placement criteria shall be consistently applied as specified in the screening and identification criteria.  The same services will be consistently offered at each grade level and all buildings at those grade levels to all qualifying children.  The criteria used may not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, ethnicity, disability status, first language or socio-economic status.  Placement for District services shall match the service criteria used in determining eligibility.  The Stow-Munroe Falls City School District acknowledges that gifted students have diverse needs and aims to offer a continuum of services as appropriate for students.

All gifted services in the Stow-Munroe Falls City School District shall be delivered in accordance with the Ohio Revised Code and the Ohio Administrative Code.  Districts are required to identify gifted students.  However, school districts are not required to provide gifted education services.  Currently, the state provides school districts with partial funding for identifying gifted students and employing or contracting gifted education staff.  The Stow-Munroe Falls City School District strives to offer a continuum of services to serve the diverse needs of gifted students within the available resources.

 

·  GIFTED SERVICES PROGRAM STANDARDS

 Gifted service has a focus on differentiation in three main ways:

 

Content: Program content will cover the Ohio Learning Standards for all academic subjects but with a greater depth and breadth. Cross-curricular studies may take place to integrate multiple skills and strengthen academic connections within learning. Students may experience curriculum at a faster pace and with more academic rigor.

 

Process: The process of learning is likely to involve a greater degree of complexity and pace. Expectations for these learners are higher. Students may be expected to work independently and collaboratively throughout learning units. Responsibility and choice within learning may take place through Problem Based Learning, cross-curricular units, independent studies and higher level thinking skills.

 

Product: How students demonstrate mastery of knowledge may include a variety of products and assessments. Products may demonstrate independence, creativity, higher level thinking skills and greater depth of knowledge.

 

·  CONTINUUM OF SETTINGS AND SERVICES

* See description in Service Opportunities for program modifications for the Class of 2029

 

·  Service Opportunities – GRADES 4-6

Self-Contained Gifted Classroom:

A self-contained classroom is where a district places students in a classroom with other gifted students and a Gifted Intervention Specialist (GIS) for the entire day, five days a week.  Core subjects (English/Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies) are taught by the GIS.   Specials (art, music, physical education, and lunch) may have students from other classrooms and are instructed by the District specialists.  These students are considered served and will have Written Education Plans.

Maximum class size for a self-contained classroom is 20 based on the Operating Standards for Identifying and Serving Students who are Gifted.

Students must meet one of the following combinations for eligibility. *applicable for the classes of 2027, 2028

• Superior Cognitive Ability Identification

• Mathematics and Reading Identification

 

All placements are final as of June 15th for the upcoming school year (e.g., students who qualify during the school year are eligible for placement the following year). 

Cluster Grouping:

Students in grades 4-6 who possess a gifted identification in Superior Cognitive Ability and/or Mathematics may be cluster grouped in the typical classroom and served by their classroom teacher with support from a GIS. A child who has an aptitude in a specific subject area that is consistently superior can benefit from differentiated instruction. Classwork that is differentiated in process, product and content may provide appropriate educational challenges for these students.

 

Class of 2029:

Self-Contained Gifted Classroom:

A self-contained classroom is where a district places students in a classroom with other gifted students and a Gifted Intervention Specialist (GIS) for the entire day, five days a week.  Core subjects (English/Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies) are taught by the GIS.   Specials (art, music, physical education, and lunch) may have students from other classrooms and are instructed by the District specialists.  These students are considered served and will have Written Education Plans.

Maximum class size for a self-contained classroom is 20 based on the Operating Standards for Identifying and Serving Students who are Gifted.

Students must meet one of the following combinations for eligibility. 

• Superior Cognitive Ability Identification

 

All placements are final as of June 15th for the upcoming school year (e.g., students who qualify during the school year are eligible for placement the following year).

Cluster Grouping:

Students in grades 4-6 who possess a gifted identification in Superior Cognitive Ability (declined tier 1 placement) and/or Reading may be cluster grouped in the typical classroom and served by their classroom teacher. A child who has an aptitude in a specific subject area that is consistently superior can benefit from differentiated instruction. Classwork that is differentiated in process, product and content may provide appropriate educational challenges for these students.

 

· Service Opportunities – Grades 7-8

Gifted services in grades 7-8 are offered through Advanced English Language Arts and Accelerated Mathematics pathways. These course opportunities are available to students who meet the following criteria at the end of their 6th or 7th grade years.

The Accelerated Mathematics 7 course includes content from grades 7 and 8, compacted into one year of study. The additional content, when compared to the non-accelerated course, demands a faster pace for instruction and learning. Continuing on the accelerated pathway, students participate in the Algebra 1 course in 8th grade. This is typically a 9th grade course, thus allowing students to earn high school credit with successful completion of the course.

The Advanced ELA pathway demands a faster pace for instruction and learning while presenting an increased student responsibility and application of knowledge. Students are expected to read critically and analytically, write academically and creatively, and explore the world through reading and writing.  The course is designed to be challenging, but in a way that fosters ability, creativity, and curiosity.

 

· Service Opportunities – Grades 9-12

Gifted service opportunities at the High School level are offered through honors courses, Advanced Placement, and College Credit Plus.