WELCOME
Welcome
to Nine Mile School District’s Highly Capable Program. We are
passionate about serving the needs of gifted and potentially gifted
students. We are proud of our students’
academic potential and the bright future they represent. Working together, staff, administration,
students, teachers and parents are collaborating to help these exceptional kids
stay challenged at the appropriate level during their regular school day, as
well as offering some after school enrichment and summer opportunities for
continued depth and rigor. We are
committed to reaching all students where they are, and customize learning opportunities that are
optimal for their abilities. Thank you
for your interest and support!
MISSION
It
is our mission to identify and provide, through a variety of instructional
strategies, for the unique intellectual, social, and emotional needs of our
highly capable students to help ensure their college and career readiness.
SERVICES
Highly
Capable Services are designed for students identified as advanced learners
through cognitive and/or academic performance. According to Washington State
law, students identified for Highly Capable Program services are those who
“perform
or show potential for performing at significantly advanced academic levels
compared with others of their age, experiences, or environments. Outstanding
abilities are seen within students’ general intellectual aptitudes, specific
academic abilities, and/or creative productivity within a specific domain.”
Combined
with the commitment of our Board of Directors and instructional staff, State
law ensures high-quality HiCap services for eligible students; here in Nine
Mile School District, we offer a continuum of appropriate Highly Capable
Program services.
GUIDING PRINCIPLES
●
Whole-child focus: Support for academic,
creative, and social-emotional development, fostering a growth mindset.
●
Different work, not more work: Developing innovative,
creative, and critical thinkers through access to advanced learning standards
with appropriate depth and rigor.
●
Not a one-size-fits-all: Highly Capable
qualified students have diverse needs and unique challenges, in addition to
high cognitive capability and/or academic achievement. Often this requires the
collaboration of teams across programs to meet the needs of individual
learners.
● Equitable access: Ability and
talent are equally distributed, opportunity is not. All students, regardless of
race, income, culture, special needs, or support program, have the potential to
qualify for advanced learning services when given equitable opportunity with
culturally and linguistically accessible instruments and an unbiased
qualification system.
PUBLIC NOTICE
Washington
Administrative Code (WAC) 392-170-042 requires school districts to annually
make public notification to parents and students before any major
identification activity for Highly Capable services occurs. Next month, Nine
Mile Falls School District will engage in preliminary identification activities
of those who may show potential for performance significantly above grade
level. This helps us provide daily services within the regular classroom
(including differentiation of instruction, special awareness regarding the
social-emotional needs of gifted kids, and more). Secondly, it opens the
opportunity for certain higher-performing students to participate in
after-school enrichment programs. We have several grade-level opportunities
available year round.
Some
examples of criteria used to identify students are in-district assessments like
MAP, state assessments like the SBAC, curriculum or classroom-based assessments, teacher
recommendations and parent nominations. If you believe your student clearly
displays significant above average ability and may benefit from adjusted class
activities or more challenge and rigor, you may fill out a Parent Nomination
form and submit it to Peter Elzey at the administration building.
You
may submit these forms any time throughout the year. Contact Peter Elzey at
509.340.4305 or [email protected] if you have questions.