This year's schedule is: 3rd grade on Monday, 5th grade on Tuesday, 6th grade on Wednesday, and 4th grade on Thursday.

 The 5th and 6th grade ELP students will focus on Scientific Method. We will will continue to explore Science activities through experimentation, concentrating on the Laws of Physics. We will be using the research and computer experimentation learned about speed, friction, inertia, and gravity for Roller Coaster Design--, our mission, to design the coaster that can achieve maximum thrills and chills without crashing or flying off the track.

Additionally, we will again compete in the international Math Olympiad, which is designed to sharpen critical math skills. Continued concentration on writing, including news and script writing for special presentations at the school, will be part of our language arts study. Computer skills, including honing and extending our present skills and e-mailing international e-pals, will be part of our daily activities. Me and My Shadow, a mentoring program designed to enrich Highland's younger students in K and 1st grade, will again be implemented this year. ELP students will be mentors on a voluntary basis, using their free time during lunch. These students, who are giving up some of their time performing this important service for their school, are much appreciated by administration, staff, and students. Our Spring Literature Study will be The Westing Game. Throughout the year, we will be reading and discussing Time Magazine for Kids as it applies to our course of study and current events.

The 4th grade students will be applying problem solving skills to real world problems in the unit PATTERNS OF COMMUNICATION. This unit integrates art, geometry, written communication, creative problem solving, higher level thinking skills, and will culminate with the development of a photographic essay related to solving a real world problem. Second semester will be spent developing original cultures and related artifacts, in preparation for an archaeological dig, in the unit ARCHAEOLOGY AND ME. Students will examine their own history, as well as indigenous Southwestern Cultures and ancient civilizations, Reading will include Pyramid by David MacCauley. Our literature studies will be Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh, 1st Semester, and The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles, 2nd Semester. Hands-On-Algebra will be used throughtout the year as a tool to advance math skills.

Our 3rd grade students will spend much of the year developing skills in the areas of creative and critical thinking, problem solving, research, inquiry techniques and gain a working knowledge of Bloom’s Taxonomy. Second semester will be spent applying this knowledge in the form of an Independent Study related to ENDANGERED SPECIES that will require students to present a workable solution to a real world problem through research paper, product/presentation format. Our literature studies will be Basil of Baker Street, and The Bookstore Mouse, as well as ZooBooks and National Geographic World, as they relate to the curriculum.

Parents, please free to stop by the ELP room.

 Click here for the Learning Channel Parent Page

FamilyEducation.com

Launched in 1996 as the first parenting site on the Web, FamilyEducation has become the Internet's most-visited site for parents who are involved, committed, and responsive to their families' needs.

Gifted and Talented Children: Websites

KidSource.com

A variety of websites, some rated, for support of gifted and talented children.

Click here for TeachersFirst.com
This is an excellent resource covering many other topics, including Womens' History.

Activities for Brainy Kids -- Test your brain power

Latest Information on Brain Research

Guide to the Exceptional Child

Parents of gifted children, or who think their child is gifted, need special resources. The parents' section of our companion TeachersAndFamilies site offers a neatly organized set of resources that helps explain what giftedness really is, "how to spot a gifted student" (it's not as easy as you think), and offers resourcesparents and students can use. You can find our guide to "The Exceptional Child" at this website.

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