McDougle Middle School

~Gifted Education~

Never stop learning. Never stop growing.

Contact: csweat@chccs.k12.nc.us

Catherine Sweat- Gifted Education Specialist


Do you have questions about gifted services? This document will help answer your questions.

~ Clubs & Extracurricular Activities for Students~

2022-2023: This school year we will have various club options for students to join. Students will be informed of these clubs and activities through advisory and school email.

Many of these clubs will begin after the first nine weeks.


SEP- Student Exploration Projects- Read Below!

We had about 55 students involved in SEP last year!!! Please consider joining SEP this year! Information for SEP will be coming in the first few weeks of school.

Advisors: Mrs. Sweat, Mr. Buttner, Mrs. Jennifer West


SEP (Student Exploration Projects)

This is the third year that SEP will be implemented for ALL students at MMS that choose to be a part of it. SEP is similar to Project Based Learning, but students have complete choice in the topic that they want to discover. Students may work solo or they can collaborate with a partner(s) of their choice. SEP will begin when the clubs begin in September and will end in late April. I strongly encourage students to be a part of SEP this year and discover/explore a topic that they are passionate about. A final presentation will be shown at the end of the year for parents and students to view!
SEP Video (2).mp4

So...what is SEP?

Note: Video might only be viewable with a CHCCS account.


This is a video that was created last year by one of our very own SEP students. It explains a little bit about SEP and some of the various projects that students created. You will notice a wide variety which is what makes SEP so engaging- STUDENTS get to choose what they research, discover and what the final project will look like. Please take two minutes to watch the video and learn more!
SEP Video.mp4

SEP Example project on Climate Change

Note: Video might only be viewable with a CHCCS account.
This student also wrote an essay of his finding to go with this video. This is just one example of the work that students work towards all year long. Some of the other topics that students researched last year were:
  • How Can We Improve Emergency Services in our Community
  • Gerrymandering and the Efficiency Gap in NC (compared to national trends)
  • Immigration in the US and Mexico
  • Spreading Awareness- Child Abuse and Foster Care
  • Epicurean Philosophy and its Relevance in Modern Society
  • DIY Dual Language experiments

Resources for Students to Explore and Work on Various Skills:

-Do you need to take some time to just relax? Check out this website full of calming activities and ideas

-Our school is lucky enough to have "adopted" one of the Argo floats which are collecting the data. Back in 2019, our student body voted to name our float "Cheerwine." Click on the resource below to learn more about it!

Adopt a Float How this Project was Started

-A FREE one-page weekly “newspaper” to help inspire kids to engage with STEM in the real world. Each issue can be printed or shared digitally. Literacy & STEM…better together! STEM News to Read About

-Sadlier Vocabulary Writing, and Math Practice a wonderful website where students can practice vocabulary, writing and specific math skills. There are also SAT/ACT practice questions available when students click on the higher grade-level work.

-iCivics helps students to become better educated and comfortable with the functions of the United States government.

-Science Journal with Google is an interactive site where students can turn their phones into a lab sensor to collect and analyze data.