ExCEL GT/AP - Program Options 5th-8th Grades

ExCEL-GT Program Options - 5th - 8th Grades

Paula Courson, Principal / Katrina Mills, Assistant Principal / Cari Rector, Counselor

Sandy Roe, ExCEL-GT/AP Director

Jessie Bell, ExCEL-GT Specialist

5th and 6th Grade Send Out

7th and 8th Grade Elective

The ExCEL-GT Program for students in 5th and 6th grades follows the Gifted and Talented Rules and Regulations: Program Approval Standards set by the Arkansas Department of Education. The "send-out" option for these grades is facilitated by a full-time certified Gifted and Talented Specialist. Identified ExCEL-GT students in the 5th and 6th grades are seen for a minimum of 150 minutes per week by the ExCEL-GT specialist. ExCEL identified students receive instructional services different from those normally provided in the general classroom. Our program curriculum is a combination of extension (experiences that supplement the regular curriculum), acceleration (activities that allow students to progress at a rate faster than average), enrichment (topics that are not covered in the general classroom), and guidance/affective needs (planned activities that promote understanding of one's self and one's relationship to others).

5th Grade GT students are working on these units of study: Journey to Topaz, Genius Hour (Independent Study), Create a Sleuth - Mystery Writing, Hands-On-Equations

6th Grade GT Students are working on these units of study: Erie Arkansas, Genius Hour (Independent Study), Socratic Seminar / Persuasive Writing, Hands-On-Equations

Program Options - 7th & 8th Grades

Kelli McNeill, Principal / Forrest Haley, Assistant Principal / Nicole Mitsunaga, Counselor

Jessie Bell, ExCEL-GT Specialist

The ExCEL-GT Program for 7th and 8th-grade students offers two programming options. Jr. High identified ExCEL-GT students can choose to take a first period (for 7th-grade ExCEL-GT identified students) or a 2nd period (for 8th-grade ExCEL-GT identified students) ExCEL-GT elective class with the building ExCEL-GT Specialist. The class is structured to follow units of study with a Seminar curriculum incorporated throughout the entire year. An affective (social-emotional) component is incorporated into this class which works with social/emotional concepts. In addition, in 7th and 8th grade, ExCEL-GT students are strongly encouraged to take Honors courses. Students who choose to not take Honors/AP courses should maintain a cumulative 3.5 GPA for GT identification to remain active. Students taking Honors courses should maintain no lower than a C in Honors classes and no lower than a cumulative 3.0 GPA. Should ExCEL- GT students fall below the GPA criteria, contact will be made with the student and the parent/guardian to discuss the best educational placement and/or a plan to help the student improve. In 7th grade, the offerings are Honors Math, Honors English, and Honors Science. In 8th grade, the offerings are Honors English, Honors Algebra I, and Honors Physical Science. Taking Honors Algebra I and Honors Physical Science in the 8th grade are the first grades that will count toward a student's high school GPA. These two courses do not count toward Honor Graduate.

Students in Jr. High GT will work on Debate, Genius Hour (Independent Study), Holocaust, and Creativity. Seminar- time management, checking grades, study skills, etc. worked on throughout the school year.

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