If you’ve been following this series of articles, you have probably noticed that a fair number of projects have recently been put in place to support hands-on learners, including everything from construction projects to medical training. For anyone who may be wondering what we’re going to do for other populations within the school, your patience will be rewarded here.

It comes as a surprise to many that a significant number of people who leave high school before graduating have been classified as “gifted” or “talented.” If such students are dissatisfied with the education they’re receiving, it is almost always because they don’t feel challenged: in short, they’re bored. 

For this reason, and for others which will become evident as you continue reading, members of our school administration have been looking into ways we can increase the academic rigor our students encounter.

There is already an array of academically challenging courses in the secondary school. Most departments provide course offerings which range from basic to advanced. The majority of subject areas offer at least one “College Now” class — a semester-long opportunity to earn credit simultaneously at both the college and high school levels. 

We also observe students being challenged daily at our elementary site. Teachers focus on the specific needs of individual students, placing them into groups which will provide appropriately rigorous, differentiated levels of instruction through our Response to Intervention (RtI) program. This targeted teaching happens daily during our math and reading blocks — but wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could expand the enrichment opportunities to those students who are exceeding grade level expectations? This could be accomplished by offering a gifted and talented program at the elementary. 

What we planners envision is a set of designated classrooms where identified students can go for accelerated instruction in math, science, and language arts. For example, while the majority of students in a grade are studying the usual science curriculum, some would report to the appropriate room to study an advanced set of science materials. The teacher in the auxiliary room would cover similar information, but at a pace and level of rigor more suited to the motivation and abilities of the group.

I hope you find the possibilities as exciting as I do. Both sets of students will benefit; neither will have its level of instruction altered by the presence of the other. All groups will be able to receive more precisely targeted instruction which will meet their needs and help accelerate their progress. All will be able to take more pleasure in the material they are covering and in the process of learning. It makes me smile just thinking about the difference these changes could make for our students, both in terms of their learning and in their perspectives about school.

Another change our planning team would like to see is offering pre-kindergarten classes to all four- and five-year-olds in our district. Research shows that, the earlier learning takes place, the greater its benefit and the more lasting its effects, so think of the accelerated learning which could occur if all of our pre-schoolers had the opportunity to lay important foundations before beginning full-time schooling. Right now, Pre-K teaching is already available to three-, four-, and five-year-olds for a fee; I would like to see every youngster receive at least one year without having to pay. The word “kindergarten” is German for “child’s garden,” meaning it was originally intended to be a place where the youngest students would go to play and socialize. We have learned since those early days that the learning instilled at young ages has profound lifelong impact, so a strong pre-school program is vital. 

So what will it take to implement the various elements of this plan? Right now, unfortunately, our elementary site in Ellendale is being used to its limits. There is not one extra classroom, let alone the four which would be needed: one each for accelerated English, Math, and Science, and one for two added sections of pre-kindergarten. Clearly, additional teachers would also be needed. Finally, since pre-kindergarteners attend only a half-day of school at a time, extra bussing would have to be arranged for.

Having considered what types of changes would best benefit our students, and having determined the form those changes should take, the planning committee’s next task is to find a way of implementing the improvements. For the next year or so we will be getting more information about what our parameters are: What extra sources of funding can be found? How will schedules have to be modified to make these plans possible? Where would classrooms be located and what would be their optimal configurations?

Work has already begun to find some of these answers. Please trust that you will be informed as progress continues, and accept my assurance that the financial health of the district will be an integral factor in all decisions. The planning committee continues the challenging task of looking for ways to help meet the needs of every learner in the district; after all, today’s fully actualized children are the foundation of our communities’ futures.