Bridge to GATE is a program offered at St.Peter that allows advanced second grade students the opportunity for differentiated instruction through advanced content. Students will be pulled out from their classrooms and provided the opportunity to be involved in a community of learners that participate in:
open-ended questions
problem solving
creative and divergent thinking
project based learning
exploration of content at a much deeper level and application to real world scenarios
During students time in Bridge to GATE they will be expected to investigate topics at a greater depths, integrate various subjects to build on background knowledge, think more deeply while making connections, as well as research and explore universal concepts.
Qualifications
Eligibility for 2nd graders will be based on the following components using a rubric system for all students:
NWEA Fall or Winter MAP scores for Math and Reading (93 percentile or above combined average).
Letter of Recommendation *optional for students outside of St.Peter
On-Demand Writing Assessment.
Parent and Teacher observation forms.
A committee will review students portfolios in the spring to make a formal recommendation for the Bridge to GATE program.
Throughout the year there will be ongoing evaluation and progress monitoring every quarter. The teacher will work closely with the parent the entire school year to ensure ongoing communication. The groups are flexible which allows the teacher and parents to make decisions on the best fit for students if needed.
By spring the students will be assessed by taking the CogAT and a committee will review the students portfolio to determine their placement into the GATE program for the following year.
The goal of the program is to meet the individual gifts and talents of participating students academically, socially, and emotionally. Our program will not provide students with more work in these core areas but will instead provide them with a learning environment that would deepen their understanding of curriculum at a faster rate with more focus on creating, evaluating, analyzing and applying their learning.
Students will be pulled from their classrooms for an hour at a time. They will be pulled during classroom instruction time for ELA. They will not miss religion, chapel, or specials classes.