Colsterworth Church of England Primary School Gifted and Talented Policy - 2014 At Colsterworth Church of England Primary School our ethos reflects basic Christian principles such as self-respect, respect for others, love, compassion and forgiveness and fairness. It is also centred on Working Together and each child and adult is valued for the individual talent or talents they bring to the school, thus enriching their own and each other s day to day experiences and their lives. This policy outlines the school's practice and procedures relating to gifted and talented pupils. The policy outlines the way that the school: Identification defines what 'gifted and talented' means. maintains a register and the categories used therein. identifies a pupil as gifted or talented roles and responsibilities understands the impact on teaching and learning The school recognises, in line with DfE guidelines, that: "gifted and talented pupils are those pupils who achieve or have the ability to achieve, at a level significantly in advance of the average for their year group." The school normally expects to identify between 5 and 10 per cent of pupils as gifted and talented. Definitions of Gifted & Talented must be flexible they mean different things in different schools. There is no typical Gifted & Talented child. DfE CATEGORIES FOR GIFTED AND TALENTED: A. intellectual (aspects of English, mathematics, science) B. artistic and creative (art and design, music, drama) C. practical (design and technology, mechanical ingenuity) D. physical (PE, sports, dance) E. social (personal and interpersonal, leadership qualities, working with adults) (These categories are based on the Howard Gardner intelligences.) We will be applying the terminology gifted and talented to the following groups: A Gifted B E (above) -Talented There may also be pupils who are hidden gifted or talented and not reaching their potential.(see Appendix 1 for common attributes of a gifted pupil)
Identification strategies Staff, pupils, parents and carers will all be involved with the identification. Quantitative Qualitative SATs results Optional SATs Teacher assessment Cohort trackers Target tracker Raiseonline Pupils work Classroom observation Examination of work Nomination: self, teacher, parent, peer Discussion with children Through challenging provision Aims of this policy: To ensure that all members of Colsterworth Church of England Primary School have a clear understanding of the school's definition of an able/a gifted/a talented child To ensure that children who are gifted or talented are identified early in their school life at Colsterworth Church of England To provide an accurate recording system of those children identified as gifted or talented and to ensure that this system meets with statutory requirements To ensure gifted and talented children are appropriately challenged and have opportunities for their learning to be enriched To identify areas of special ability and provide opportunities for children to develop specific skills or talents To identify external people/groups who can assist with materials, ideas and support To keep the school's Gifted and Talented Governor informed of our provision and of national developments. Procedures for Identifying Gifted and Talented Pupils: The teacher identifies and discusses child with GAT co-ordinator who will decide whether or not s/he will be included on the register. Identification of a child should focus the teacher's attention on what extra needs the pupil has and how these may be met. Provision is recorded on the class provision map, timetables and planning. An IEP may be drawn up if appropriate. The evidence base may include the following: verbal reasoning tests; non-verbal reasoning tests; standardised tests; SATS results; teacher observation; teacher assessment; parental nomination; external services reports. In addition, talented children may be identified through specialised coaches; after school clubs; holiday schemes.
Teaching and learning: We recognise that it is important for gifted and talented pupils to work at an appropriate pace and in a variety of settings. Some of our able pupils grasp concepts quickly and are ready to move to the next, or more demanding, work; at times they may also require more time than others to complete work to their own satisfaction. Not all of our able pupils will be good at all subjects and this may mean that some gifted and talented pupils will work in different ability groups for different subjects. As appropriate the teachers provide differentiated activities and a range of support and resources for gifted and talented pupils. This may include extension activities that are more demanding oftheir abilities or enrichment activities that provide new and different ways of working. Learning is also enriched through homework activities. Classroom Provision: It is the responsibility of each class teacher to meet the individual needs of every pupil within their class. To do so fully, the special needs of a gifted & talented child need to be considered when planning learning activities. (see Appendix 2 for planning advice) At Colsterworth C of E Primary School our approach is to enrich the child's educational experiences rather than accelerating their progress through school. Children will therefore not usually be placed in classes/sets with older children (this could occur in exceptional circumstances). GAT pupils should be offered opportunities to work with children of similar ability; meet open ended challenges; reflect upon their learning and suggest future developments; undertake personal research; design, plan and experiment External or Out of Class Provision: The headteacher has information about Brilliant Lincolnshire or Shine projects. The school has registered with NACE who have information about external provision.nrich Online e.g. nrich excellence in maths, CAS Network of Excellence for Computing CPD / INSET Training in teaching GAT pupils will form part of the programme of staff development which is in turn related to the School Development Plan. Resources: Each subject area should contain learning materials that are aimed at GAT pupils. In addition, a number of books have general activities which provide appropriate challenges. These are kept in the Headteacher s office. Transition: The GAT co-ordinator will ensure that pupils moving to another school will have details of their place on the GAT register passed on with the main records. Similarly, the co-ordinator will ensure that pupils identified at KS1 will automatically transfer to our register. Roles & Responsibilities: The head teacher is responsible overall for the implementation of the gifted and talented policy. A named governor currently takes specific interest in the school's achievements and arrangements for gifted and talented pupils and works, with the co-ordinator, on review and development.
The Headteacher supports the Gifted and Talented Co-ordinator, Mrs McGhie. The leader must: Exemplify best practice for GAT learners in the classroom. Lead training and developments in learning and teaching to raise the expectations, challenge and achievement of GAT learners. Coach colleagues to improve teaching strategies, learner engagement/ student voice and outcomes. Leads, manages, and identifies GAT opportunities beyond the classroom. Monitors data to evaluate the progress of individual GAT learners. Acts as an advocate for GAT in the school and community. Works with the SLT, governors and subject leaders on whole school, subject strategies and the IQS (Institutional Quality Standards) and CQS Classroom Quality Standards). Make sure that the GAT population in the school is representative especially for looked after children, dual multiple exceptionality, black and minority ethnic and all social and economic groups. Develops, monitors and updates the GAT register. Monitors and evaluates provision for gifted and talented pupils. The school register: Pupils who have been identified as being gifted and talented are registered onto the school MIS and Target Tracker. The area of ability is recorded. The register is updated annually. Each GAT pupil has an individual record which records the provision made and the impact. Both are reviewed termly by the class teachers and the GAT coordinator and SLT through Pupil Progress Meetings (PPMs). It is vitally important that staff, the nominated governor, pupils and parents are kept fully informed of the identification and registration process throughout. Monitoring: The class teacher monitors the progress of each pupil in his/her class, but in addition the coordinator will monitor the progress of pupils on the GAT register in comparison with that of the main cohort of pupils. Teachers will complete the CQS (Classroom Quality Standards) audit by the end of Term 1 each year and pass on an updated version to the Headteacher. The Headteacher will update the IQS (Insitutional Quality Standards) in term 1, 3 and 5, based on monitoring of provision and School Development Plans and targets. The governor with responsibility for G & T will liaise closely with the Headteacher / GAT coordinator and monitor the provision for and the progress of this group of learners. Policy approved by staff: November 2014 Policy approved by Governing Body: November 2014 Date of Review: November 2017
Appendix 1 Common Attributes of the Gifted Child: o moving from non-speech to sentences and then progressing at an advanced rate and being able to hold a sustained conversation with an adult at an early age; o working with abstract thoughts; o being extremely curious; o showing a preference for complexity; o retaining information and then using it at a later date; o being, or seeing themselves as, more mature than their chronological age; o adopting a directness of approach that can infuriate others, making them seem cheeky; o teaching themselves (e.g. to read, count, write, use ICT, develop new skills); o having few friends within their age range and sometimes an inability to socialise within a group; o displaying a preference for working with older pupils and wanting to achieve at their level; o finding play activities limiting at a young age. This can frustrate leaders or teachers as these children demand more than they are able to deliver; o regarding learning as play or 'fun'. They are happiest when there is structure, purpose and progress; o having tremendous energy, thirst for knowledge, and the ability to concentrate for long periods; o often using higher level thinking skills (analysis or synthesis). o may at some time be behind in e.g. social skills o may misbehave if bored / behavioural problems if not picked up i.e. high ability but poor motivation o may want to hide abilities so as to fit in
Appendix 2 Planning Checklist for GAT