Curriculum/Instruction
Education Services
GATE and Gifted Education
EASTSHORE G.A.T.E. NEWS
Volume II
January, 2011
Happy New Year!! We invite you to read about the opportunities provided at Eastshore for our gifted and talented students.
The Irvine Public Schools Foundation will be hosting this year's GATE Day, an exciting opportunity for IUSD's GATE students in grades 4-6. GATE Day will be held on Monday, Feb. 14th. Registration is available on a first come, first served basis.
Our featured grade levels in this edition are Kindergarten, second, fifth and sixth grades.
Kindergartners are provided differentiated instruction through leveled readers. Extension occurs during sentence writing where students incorporate words learned in isolation into fluent sentences using connecting words during journal writing. Leadership opportunities are many and include Star of the Week and class jobs.
Fifth graders refer to depth and complexity icons throughout their units of study. These icons remind students to ask below the surface questions about what they are learning and to analyze information while finding connections to knowledge they already possess. They are working on advanced vocabulary development as well as exploring enriched reading through novel studies and literature circles. Olympiad Math and Mystery Numbers provide challenges in math while a variety of resources are used to extend mathematical thinking in the form of challenge packets. Fifth grade students are also engaged in developing posters in social studies and science that reference the depth and complexity icons.
Second graders continue to work toward building literacy and higher level readers participate in literature circles, enriching syllabication strategies and book share presentations. They are also provided opportunities to excel in writing through research reports, writer’s workshop and publishing magazines, just to name a few projects. Second graders are encouraged to take on leadership opportunities during demonstrations and as discussion directors and facilitators during small group activities.
Sixth graders are involved in a variety of projects. The Quickscience team and Kids Helping Kids projects are ongoing throughout the year. They participate in novel studies, Math Maniacs, and inquiry based learning labs in Science. Students are often asked to answer essential questions in Social Studies while reading from a variety of sources providing depth and complexity in the subject area. Leadership opportunities often evolve as the year progresses. Students in sixth grade have stepped up to leadership positions on the Quickscience team and Recycling Committee. They will develop an Earth Day event for all students and a group of brave students has decided to tackle our school bathrooms as a site based project.
G.A.T.E Teacher Representative: In case you didn’t know, Mr. Steve Tobenkin, 5th grade, is our site’s G.A.T.E. representative this year. Mr. Tobenkin attends district level meetings to get the latest and greatest updates on gifted and talented education. He also coordinates site based required documentation. Thank you Mr. Tobenkin!!
I would like to take this opportunity to commend the staff at Eastshore for providing an outstanding instructional experience for your children. We are committed to meeting the needs of all students and the teachers and support staff spend a great amount of time planning worthwhile and engaging learning opportunities for our students.
Thank you for the gift of your children! The next edition of Eastshore’s G.A.T.E. News will come out in the third trimester. As always, your feedback is greatly appreciated!
Language Arts Curriculum
Mathematics
Visual and Performing Arts
IUSD Content Standards may be reviewed on-line.
| Language Arts | Mathematics | Thinking & Reasoning | History/Social Science | Science |
A parent-friendly version of IUSD Content Standards for K-6 students may also be reviewed on-line.
| Kindergarten | Grade 1 | Grade 2 | Grade 3 | Grade 4 | Grade 5 | Grade 6 |
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