The staff at Buffalo Ridge works very hard to meet every child at his/her "point of entry." We take great pride in ways that we meet the unique needs of all students. When working with our gifted student population we recognize that students need to be challenged at their level to feel valued. We provide a continuum of services that are respectful of individual student differences and mindful of classroom and community resources, including (but not limited to) differentiation of curriculum and instruction, varied grouping strategies, and a menu of enriching and challenging programming options.
The identification process here at Buffalo Ridge is a team effort that is on-going throughout the year. We examine the whole child in a body of evidence (BOE) before a determination is made. The body of evidence used for identification includes:
• Three or more pieces of qualifying evidence
• Data from more than one source
• All data points aligned to one or more areas of strength
• Both quantitative and qualitative data
• All assessments and instruments reliable and valid
• All assessments and instruments culturally fair
If you suspect that your child might be gifted, please complete the referral form (link found below) to begin the identification process. The gifted education facilitator will be in touch at that time to further explain the process.
All students who are identified as gifted will work with an Advanced Learning Plan (ALP). The ALP is written specific to the child's needs and is comprised of standards based goals that support the child's gifts and talents. We will be revisiting all existing ALPs as the school year begins and monitoring progress as the year progresses.
Please see below for forms, recent newsletters, and helpful website links.
For questions, please contact Buffalo Ridge Elementary School's Gifted Education Facilitator, Sarah Gatewood.