Gifted at Landstown

WELCOME TO THE GIFTED EDUCATION DEPARTMENT AT LANDSTOWN HIGH SCHOOL

The mission of the Virginia Beach City Public Schools Gifted Programs is to challenge students with differentiated interdisciplinary opportunities, to provide a flexible, innovative curriculum which promotes self-efficacy, productivity, creativity, and leadership, and to develop individual talents, special abilities, and a commitment to excellence. Gifted students, because they learn quickly, require school experiences that are differentiated from the experiences provided for other students. They need learning experiences that provide deep and complex content, accelerated and enriched processes, and authentic and relevant products. These experiences need to be based on their readiness level, their interest, and their learning preference. Dynamic curriculum that deals with complex issues and requires probing for depth of learning provides the framework for gifted students to reach their academic potential. Gifted students need support, encouragement, and opportunities to interact with other gifted students who naturally challenge one another. They require opportunities to pursue their particular interests, to share the results of these pursuits with real audiences, and to have products of their learning critiqued. For gifted students, this philosophy of empowerment through skills and knowledge demands curricular experiences designed to enhance the students’ thinking abilities, academic proficiencies, and special talents. The educational program for gifted students in Virginia Beach City Public Schools is based on the belief that gifted students need a dynamic learning environment. The values and beliefs reflected in the mission statement of the gifted program are realized through the program goals.

High school gifted students are clustered in several of their core subjects in grades 9 and 10, where possible. Juniors are intentionally clustered in AP/US History and VA/US History and naturally clustered in other AP classes, Math Analysis and Physics. The gifted cluster teachers receive training from the Gifted Resource Teacher in the characteristics of gifted students, gifted benchmarks and gifted pedagogy. They appreciate the strengths of gifted students and challenge them to think creatively and critically.

If you have any questions regarding gifted resource at Landstown, feel free to contact me at heidi.calma@vbschools.com.