The Accelerated Curriculum & Enrichment (ACE) program at Hagerstown Elementary provides additional support and challenge for students who are identified as high-ability learners.
About the Program
Our program provides different types of support and instruction depending on a student’s grade level.
Kindergarten
The High Ability Assistant spends the first semester of school working with kindergarten students who show potential through NWEA testing and classroom samples. Groups may change based on new data collected by the middle of the school year through NWEA and CogAT. Students receive extended challenges designed to build written and verbal communication skills.
Grades 1-3
In the primary grades, identified students work with the High Ability Assistant four days a week for 30-40 minutes in the areas of English Language Arts and Math. Students who are identified as general intellectual will be placed together with the same homeroom teacher for more opportunities to differentiate during the school day.The High Ability Assistant is trained to lead Junior Great Books lessons, which is part of the replacement reading curriculum. The assistant also works with classroom teachers on skills and standards that need acceleration and enrichment.
Grades 2-6: High Ability/Gifted Grade Level Math Classes
Identified math students participate daily for 60 minutes in an advanced curriculum. The pacing of instruction is accelerated to match the student’s level of readiness and supplemental materials, enhance, or replace grade level curriculum, providing students with math experiences that move them beyond grade level standards.
Grades 4-6: High Ability/Gifted Advanced Language Arts
In the intermediate elementary grades, high ability/gifted learners who are identified based on general intellectual ability or academic aptitude participate daily in a send-out accelerated language arts program (60-110 minutes a day). A variety of supplemental reading, grammar, writing, vocabulary, and spelling materials are utilized to advance reading, writing, and communication skills. The pacing of instruction and the complexity of the content advances students’ skills beyond grade level standards.
Acceleration
Procedures are in place to support the following acceleration options: Grade Skipping and Subject Skipping.
