McGaheysville Elementary School

Rockingham County Public Schools

Challenge

Krista Miller

Program Overview

McGaheysville Elementary School's gifted program, called Challenge, is integrated into the total school environment. The program serves students identified as having unusually high general intellectual ability, and provides identified students in kindergarten through fifth grades appropriate educational experiences that stimulate achievement.

We have a coordinator that provides appropriate experiences for students in addition to service as a resource for classroom teachers. We seek to ensure that the needs of gifted students are met through differentiation of curriculum and instruction. Teachers receive assistance in understanding and recognizing behaviors associated with giftedness and the implications for curriculum design.

The components of the program include pull-out and in class assistance. An after school program is also offered to Challenge students several times throughout the year. Every effort is made to coordinate the activities of the gifted resource teacher with the activities of the classroom teacher.