Read More
Talented and Gifted (TAG)
Richard Johnson
TAG Coordinator
Welcome TAG Families
Welcome to Heather Hills Elementary School's Talented and Gifted (TAG) Center Program! We are so excited that you have taken the time to visit our TAG website to get to know us.
Excellence in Gifted and Talented Education (EGATE)
Heather Hills is an EGATE (Excellence in Gifted and Talented Education) TAG Center (2012, 2019). This prestigious Maryland State Award is given to schools that service gifted students. In 2018/2019 we submitted a comprehensive portfolio that provided documented evidence of different criteria directly related to gifted best practices. As an EGATE school, we serve as a model for other schools seeking to achieve EGATE and/or improving their TAG programs and services.
TAG Information Presentation
Description:
Learn more about our Talented and Gifted programs.
TAG Model
Your child will engage in project-based learning, independent study and inquiry-based learning. These approaches allow students to take ownership for their learning, which allows for deeper degrees of understanding as they are able to make connections to previous skills and extend their knowledge.
Small group instruction will be implemented in the Reading Language Arts and Mathematics classes. Up to seven students will be placed in a group to work on common goals or objectives. Some groups will be teacher-led and some groups will be student led, depending on the complexity of the activity.
Differentiated instruction will be implemented to meet the needs of all students. Differentiated instruction is an approach that the teachers will plan lessons tailored to the students' abilities and interests.
General Characteristics of TAG Students
Understanding Gifted Characteristics
General Characteristics
Source: Clark, B. (2008). Growing up gifted (7th ed.) Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Cognitive
- Keen power of abstraction
- Interest in problem-solving and applying concepts
- Voracious and early reader
- Large vocabulary
- Intellectual curiosity
- Power of critical thinking, skepticism, self-criticism
- Persistent, goal-directed behavior
- Independence in work and study
- Diversity of interests and abilities
Creative
- Creativeness and inventiveness
- Keen sense of humor
- Ability for fantasy
- Openness to stimuli, wide interests
- Intuitiveness
- Flexibility
- Independence in attitude and social behavior
- Self-acceptance and unconcern for social norms
- Radicalism
- Aesthetic and moral commitment to self-selected work
Affective
- Unusual emotional depth and intensity
- Sensitivity or empathy to the feelings of others
- High expectations of self and others, often leading to feelings of frustration
- Heightened self-awareness, accompanied by feelings of being different
- Easily wounded, need for emotional support
- Need for consistency between abstract values and personal actions
- Advanced levels of moral judgment
- Idealism and sense of justice
Behavioral
- Spontaneity
- Boundless enthusiasm
- Intensely focused on passions—resists changing activities when engrossed in own interests
- Highly energetic—needs little sleep or down time
- Constantly questions
- Insatiable curiosity
- Impulsive, eager and spirited
- Perseverance—strong determination in areas of importance
- High levels of frustration—particularly when having difficulty meeting standards of performance (either imposed by self or others)
- Volatile temper, especially related to perceptions of failure
- Non-stop talking/chattering
TAG Program Curriculum Overview
TAG Center School Curriculum Overview
Reading/English/Language Arts
- English Core Curriculum
- 1st and 2nd Quarter PGCPS RELA Curriculum Framework Guide – compacted – differentiated instruction
- Curriculum Compacting
- Pre-assessment
- Enrichment
- Acceleration (pacing and instructional level)
William and Mary Language Arts Curriculum
- Lesson 1 – Pre-assessment
- Lesson 2 – Concept Lesson (Change or Utopia)
- Incorporate William and Mary Instructional Models with Houghton Mifflin/Language of Literature Anthology when appropriate
- Concept of Change
- Paul’s Reasoning Model
- Hamburger Writing Model
- Literature Web – analysis
- Vocabulary Web – analysis
William and Mary Language Arts Textbooks
- Grade 2 - Beyond Words
- Grade 3 - Journeys
- Grade 4 - Literature Reflections
- Grade 5 - Autobiographies
Instructional Models
- Paul’s Reasoning Model
- Hamburger Writing Model
- Research Model
- Literature Web – analysis
- Vocabulary – analysis
Supplemental Curriculum Resources/Opportunities (optional)
- Junior Great Books (shared inquiry/high level thinking strategies) -trained teachers
- Novel and Author Studies (advanced/accelerated reading materials)
- Independent Study/Research