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HES Gifted & Talented

Grades K-6 Quest: The Tri-District School-wide Elementary Enrichment, Exploration, and EXCELLENCE Programming 
 
Quest is a multi-layered approach to enrichment and gifted education that includes enrichment and accelerated instruction opportunities for all students. It is an inquiry and interest-based approach to education. The three core components of Quest are Enrichment & Innovation, Explorations, and EXCELerate. 
 
Enrichment & Innovation

Grades K-6 Enrichment & Innovation programming will include weekly interest-based and problem-based learning opportunities for all students. This replaces technology or i-Lab with additional push-in enrichment opportunities during center time or social studies/science. This curriculum focuses on critical thinking, problem solving, inquiry and research, strengthening communication, and collaboration. 
 
Explorations
 
Explorations is a voluntary self-paced program open to all students in grades 2-6. Students identify what they want to learn about, how to research, discover the topic of interest, create a hypothesis, and generate new knowledge, ideas, products, or solutions. These can be individual or small group passion or capstone projects. Students will engage in self-paced full-year or half-year projects with support from teachers and experts that they choose. Culminating presentations will occur at the end of the school year. 
 
EXCELerate
 
EXCELerate includes more intensive accelerated learning opportunities for identified grades K-6 students. Core content will be presented in a way that promotes critical thinking, collaboration, problem solving, and more authentic application. 
 
Students will be identified via multiple measures for the 2023-2024 school year.
 
 
 
Round 1:
The following assessments will be used to identify students for the EXCELerate Program, as grade level appropriate: 
 
Round 1: 
iReady Diagnostic
Dibels 
Fountas & Pinnell
 NJSLA 
Marking Period Grades 
 
Round 2: 
SAGES K-3 
SAGES 4-8
Parent/Teacher Recommendation
Push-in programming for identified grades K-2 students will occur 1-2 times per week, and pullout programming for identified grades 3-6 students will occur 1-2 times per week. Programming will not be subject-specific. Instead, programming will be multidisciplinary with cross-content standards. The focus is on accelerated application of higher academic standards, exploration, research, communication, problem solving, and critical thinking. Students will set individual S.M.A.R.T. goals for learning and work with teachers to customize individual learning plans during instruction. Students must maintain certain benchmarks and criteria to remain in the program based on prescribed rubrics.
 
Any individual who believes that the district has not complied with the provisions in the law or administrative code related to gifted and talented services may file a complaint with the Board of Education. The complaint shall be submitted in writing to the Board of Education office. The Superintendent or designee shall take the necessary actions to correct or remediate the complaint and report such actions to the Board of Education. The Board of Education shall issue a decision, in writing, to affirm, reject, or modify the district’s action in the matter.

If the complaint is not resolved to the individual’s satisfaction or the individual is not satisfied by the written decision of the Board of Education, the individual may then file a petition of appeal of the Board of Education’s written decision to the Commissioner of Education through the Office of Controversies and Disputes in accordance with law (
N.J.S.A. 18A:6-9) and the procedures set forth in the State Board of Education regulations.