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The state of Maine identifies gifted and talented students “as those students in grades K – 12 who excel or have the potential to excel, beyond their age peers, in the regular school program, to the extent that they need and can benefit from programs for the gifted and talented.” Please note that only 3 – 5% of a population is considered to be gifted and talented.

The mission of MSAD #55 Gifted and Talented Program is to identify and support students who excel or have the potential to excel beyond their age peers in the areas of ability, aptitude, skill, or creativity. MSAD #55 recognizes that these students have diverse learning needs that can be achieved by working within the framework of Maine’s Learning Results in language arts, mathematics, science, social studies, and the arts.

Goal #1: The M.S.A.D. #55 Gifted and Talented Program will provide opportunities for identified gifted and talented students (grades 3-12) to meet their diverse learning needs in lieu of the regular curriculum but still meeting the requirements of Maine’s Learning Results.

The MSAD #55 Gifted and Talented Committee is actively working towards identifying all gifted and talented students in our district. To achieve this goal, we will review all students’ assessment scores in grades 3, through 10. We will use this information to insure that the committee is actively working to identify all Gifted and Talented students in our district. We will accept teacher nominations in October, December, and April.

As a committee, we will streamline our Gifted and Talented curriculum by reviewing different models and deciding which best fits the needs of our students. Curriculum alignment with district and state standards will play a large role in how our program is developed. Lastly, but just as crucial to the success of our program, is to educate staff and parents about the gifted and talented program. It is imperative that if a student is receiving Gifted and Talented pullout services, the teacher understands that the student’s work with the Gifted and Talented teacher replaces classroom work. Development of a strong program is based on teachers using differentiation in their individual classrooms. Our goal is to educate teachers on differentiation strategies that can be used in the classrooms. We also hope to insure effective communication between all parties involved in a student’s Gifted and Talented education.