Mission Statement

At Wawasee Community Schools we believe that every student has the right to develop his or her talents to their fullest potential. The school community recognizes that the needs of high ability students differ from other students in their rate of learning, capacity for in-depth learning, and need for diversity. High Ability students come from all cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Therefore, these students need to be provided with an environment that is both stimulating and challenging and that is able to accommodate their diverse abilities. The goal of Wawasee Community Schools is to develop students’ academic, social, technological, and artistic skills so that they will be productive, responsible citizens.  Our High Ability program does this through the following:

• Differentiation or curriculum modifications. The regular classroom teacher is the foundation and the regular classroom provides the support to provide an emphasis on problem solving, decision-making, critical thinking, research, and leadership skills. This is accomplished through enrichment, subject acceleration, and diversification of supplemental materials.

• Parent and community involvement. Their support of the student and school is essential for success.

• Guidance. We believe it is important that each student be given support and guidance in their affective development and leadership ability so that each student will be able to utilize his or her abilities out of a healthy sense of self.

Defintion of High Ability at Wawasee Schools

Public Law 221 says that Strategic and Continuous School Improvement and Achievement Plans “must address the learning needs of all students, including programs and services for exceptional learners.” IC 20-31-5.

At Wawasee Community Schools a high ability student is one who performs at, or shows the potential for performing at, an outstanding level of accomplishment in one or more academic domains when compared to other students of the same age, experience, or environment.

Program Goals

The goals of the high ability program for Wawasee Community Schools will recognize the academic and social needs of the high ability student. To do so, we will:

1. Provide a variety of appropriate services for the high ability student, K-12, including acceleration, cluster grouping within a grade level, and differentiated curriculum based on students’ learning needs.

   1. Determine the students’ needs based on complied information to make decisions about acceleration and differentiation. This will include screening for early entrance to kindergarten.

   2. Determine services based on the classroom curriculum and the level of acceleration for the high ability student.

2. Provide students with learning experiences at an appropriate level of challenge based on current and pre-assessed data.

   1. Support and resources from the high ability coordinator to facilitate student learning.

   2. Provide ongoing professional development to aid in interpreting test data and differentiation options.

   3. Analyze trends in test data to ensure growth of the high ability students.

3. Ensure the curriculum for high ability students is aligned with the state standards and is an extension of the regular classroom.

   1. Differentiation of core curriculum within the regular classroom with support from the high ability coordinator. Some techniques for differentiation are:

      1. Reading Workshop

      2. Accelerated Reader

      3. Accelerated Math

      4. Writing Workshop

4. Recognize and provide for the social and emotional needs of the high ability student.

   1. Cluster grouping of students to provide interaction with peers of like ability.

   2. School counselors are available to meet the individual needs of the high ability student.

Program Description

Elementary

Students who are identified high ability are served through differentiation of the curriculum in the regular classroom with support from the high ability coordinator. 

Mathematics instruction is differentiated by using testing information to determine strengths and weaknesses so instruction and pace can be matched to students' needs.  The Accelerated Math program allows students to advance at their own level.

Differentiated curriculum is used in reading instruction as well.  In Reading Workshop, students are taught reading and comprehension strategies and these skills are further developed at their own instructional level.  Small reading groups are determined by reading level and instructional need.  Students are also challenged in their independent reading.

Writing Workshop allows students to write and then confer with the teacher to enhance their writing skills. 

Middle School

High Ability students continue to be challenged in middle school courses.  Advanced language arts classes compact the regular curriculum so additional time can be spent on vocabulary building, critical thinking, problem solving, writing, and researching.

The math classes are accelerated one grade level with pre-algebra in seventh grade and high school algebra in eighth grade.  Algebra may be offered in seventh grade and honors geometry in eighth grade for double accelerated students.  In addition, other disciplines use differentiated instruction to meet the needs of the high ability student. 

High School

Wawasee High School offers a variety of Honors classes, Advanced Placement (AP) classes, and dual credit courses (ACP). 

They include:

English

9th grade English Honors

10th grade English Honors

11th grade English Honors

IU ACP English W131 & A202

Mathematics

Geometry -- Honors

Algebra II -- Honors

Pre-Calculus -- Honors

Calculus -- AP

Science

Biology I -- Honors

Acceleration to Chemistry and Physics

Biology II -- AP

Chemistry II -- AP

Physics II -- AP

Social Studies

World History and Civilization -- AP

U.S. History -- AP

Economics -- AP

World Languages

Spanish -- AP

Identification Timeframe