Fox Creek Elementary
Gifted Programming
​
The Workshop Model
Because the direct instruction of a lesson (mini lesson) is focused, intentional, and concise, it allows the majority of class time to be used for students' independent and/or collaborative work and reflection Within this model, teachers are able to conference with students independently or in groups to meet the specific needs of each student. In the case of a gifted learner, this allows teachers to specifically target and push a learner to the next step in his/her learning journey. The workshop model also focuses on student independence and ownership, choice, self-pacing, and critical thinking strategies: all of which are found to be best practices in supporting a gifted learner.
At Fox Creek, our school instructional model naturally lends itself to supporting all learners (including gifted) with their unique instructional needs.
Expeditionary Learning (EL) Education
The hallmark of EL education is to immerse students into complex and compelling topics that create space for students to explore and deeply engage in the world around them. While there are many levels of entry into each topic, there is no limit to the height that students can reach through their expeditions. This allows for our gifted learners to be challenged and pushed to continually grow and learn at their own unique potential. Click here for a deeper description of EL Education at Fox Creek.
​
Social Emotional Learning
Gifted learners often have heightened social emotional learning needs. At Fox Creek, our instructional approach includes three equal dimensions: Mastery of Knowledge and Skills, Character, and High Quality Work. As our work around character is held to be equally important with other areas, we spend a considerable amount of time in our school crews learning strategies and building relationships. Click here for a deeper dive into the EL Design Principles that guide our work as an EL school.