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TAAP Program
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TAAP Announcements
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This quarter in TAAP:
2nd Grade
Strategic Thinking: Through a series of puzzles, games, and other fun activities, the 2nd grade TAAP Screening Pool students will learn to think several steps ahead and always keep their goal in mind!
3rd Grade
Logical Thinking: Third grade TAAP Screening Pool students will learn about deduction, inferring, critical thinking, and more as they explore the world of logic.
4th Grade
Patterns, Patterns, Patterns: Fourth grade TAAP Screening Pool students will focus on the theme of patterns while solving complex problems in mathematics.
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Announcing…the Brainstormer!
In the hopes of keeping you better informed, we will be sending home a regular newsletter. The first one is set to go home on Friday, September 12th. In an effort to save trees, we’d love to send you your copy electronically. If you’d prefer to receive your newsletter in an electronic form, just send an email to
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FCCPS' Philosophy Statement for Gifted Education
General
We believe that the education for the gifted must foster achievement, enhance aptitude, and nurture creativity in order to help each child realize his or her potential as a learner. Instruction must be designed and paced to challenge each learner at the appropriate level and to stimulate complex thinking and problem solving.
Identification
The Academically Advanced Program (TAAP), FCCPS’s program for gifted (GT) learners, will be achievement based and inclusive. The goal of identification is to find those students whose achievement indicates that they can benefit from an instructional program differentiated for gifted students. The division will endeavor to provide additional opportunities for identification, as appropriate, for students from groups that are historically under-represented and for students who may have strengths not measured by standard metrics.
Multiple forms of assessment are intended to increase the validity and reliability of the selection process. Indications of a student’s need for differentiated services for gifted learners will be obtained through use of the following:
- Standardized measures
- Data gathered by the classroom teachers and / or counselors
- Data gathered by specialists in gifted education
- Data gathered from parents and / or the student
- Portfolios or work samples (as appropriate)
- Interviews (as appropriate)
Services
Gifted services for students will serve the goal of helping each student reach the proficiency level of which he or she is capable in the identified core area of instruction. The goal is for each student to become an independent investigator and to develop and/or sharpen critical thinking, reasoning, and higher-level thinking skills (analysis, synthesis, and evaluation).
Materials and instruction will provide challenging and stimulating learning opportunities at a level commensurate with each student’s potential and demonstrated achievement. The scope and sequence of instruction will be designed to provide mastery beyond essential content and add depth of understanding at appropriate levels of complexity. Instruction will proceed at a pace appropriate for gifted learners.
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Source: 2005-2010 Local Plan for the Education of the Gifted
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Teacher Bios
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Heidi Lang has been working in Falls Church for twenty years. She holds a B.S.Ed. from George Mason University, an M.Ed. from Marymount University, and has completed extensive coursework in the area of Gifted Education. She received the 1996 Agnes Meyer Outstanding Teacher Award, and was recently nominated for the Disney Creative Teaching Award. She is the co-author of Camp Fraction, a teacher resource book focusing on problem solving using fractions. Ms. Lang works with second, third and fourth grade TAAP Screening Pool students and can be reached by phone at 703-248-5660 ex 3423, or by e-mail at
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Cindie Carlson has been a TAAP resource teacher in Falls Church for seven years. For ten years before that she was a library media center teacher for the Los Alamitos Unified School District in California. She holds a B.S. in Elementary Education from Boston University, an M.Ed. from the University of Southern California and has completed her gifted education endorsement for Virginia. She was the 2000 Teacher of the Year for the LAUSD. Ms. Carlson works with the kindergarten, first and second grade TAAP Screening Pool students and can be reached by phone at 703-248-5640 ex 3363 (M-Th) and 703-258-5660 ex 3423 (Friday) or by e-mail at
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TAAP Testing |
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Monday, 01 December 2008 13:00 |
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TAAP Testing
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Earning Points (PDF): Interested in finding out how your child earns points in the TAAP Screening Process? This is the place to look!
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Testing Process: What tests are used at which grade level? This page will tell you!
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Descriptions of Tests (PDF) : A variety of tests are used in the TAAP Screening Process. See a description of each test here.
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Last Updated on Tuesday, 12 January 2010 12:41 |
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TAAP Forms |
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Tuesday, 25 November 2008 11:50 |
| Referral Form (PDF) : Students in the TAAP Screening Pool, students with high standardized test scores, and students referred by teachers will go through the screening process in the spring. If your child isn’t in one of those groups, but you would like him / her to be considered, just fill out this referral form and send it in to Ms. Lang or Mrs. Carlson. | | Parental Permission (PDF) : Have you lost the permission slip sent home with your child’s placement letter? Get another copy here! | Parent Observation Rating Scale (PDF): If you would like us to know more about your child than his / her test scores and report cards might reveal, fill out this form and return it to Ms. Lang or Mrs. Carlson. |
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Last Updated on Monday, 01 December 2008 13:00 |
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Special Programs |
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Tuesday, 25 November 2008 08:54 |
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Links to Special Programs
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UVA Summer Enrichment Program
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| Students in the fourth grade TAAP Screening Pool are invited to apply for the Summer Enrichment Program at the University of Virginia. The TAAP specialist sends out information to Screening Pool students in January. To find out more about this program, visit their web site. |
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George Mason University Summer Enrichment Camps
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| Nearby George Mason University has an extensive offering of enrichment opportunities throughout the summer months. To learn more about their summer camps and classes, visit their web site. |
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National Geographic Geography Bee
Each year Thomas Jefferson fourth graders participate in the National Geographic Bee using materials prepared by the National Geographic Society. The contest is designed to encourage teachers to include geography in their classrooms and to spark student interest in the subject. Accessing the National Geographic Bee web site will give you a chance to learn more about the program and to take the GeoBee Challenge. |
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Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth
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| In the fall, the TAAP specialists send information about the Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth to select students in grades 2 – 4. Those students who have received scores at or above the 95th percentile on certain subtests of the Stanfords or CogATs are invited to apply to the Center for Talented Youth. JHU has an excellent web site with a great deal of information available to you! |
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| Prufrock Press is one of the premiere publishers of materials for teachers and parents of gifted students. This site contains a wealth of information and resources. |
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Fourth graders are invited to try out for the Math Olympiad team. Qualifying students participate in a series of practices and contests throughout the year. Interested in finding out more? Click here! |
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Last Updated on Thursday, 16 September 2010 22:13 |
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TAAP Program Outline |
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Monday, 24 November 2008 16:51 |
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The Academically Advanced Program (TAAP) at Mt. Daniel and Thomas Jefferson strives to support and enrich the general education program. The TAAP specialists help the classroom teachers with the process of differentiation and are available to model lessons, create learning centers, and help plan lessons that will extend the understanding of the Screening Pool students. Additionally, the specialists work with the Screening Pool students for approximately one hour each week.
Kindergarten is a time for teachers and children to get acquainted. There is an emphasis on working together while improving listening skills and following multiple step directions. The TAAP specialist visits with each class weekly – sometimes in a small group situation, at other times sharing a story with the whole class. The TAAP specialist administers the Screening Assessment for Gifted Elementary Students (SAGES) and the Raven Progressive Coloured Matrices test to all Mt. Daniel kindergarten students in the early spring as part of the process of developing the matrix used in selecting students for the first grade TAAP Screening Pool.
First grade TAAP Screening Pool students meet on a weekly basis. They begin to expand their thinking by considering the other side of various historical events and making connections between these events. They also spend time learning more about the world and their place in it through the use of maps and other documents. They listen to many biographies and are encouraged to see how each person they hear about is connected to their lives.
The goals of the second grade program are to develop students who are strategic thinkers and to help the students learn to be more aware of the world around them. Through a variety of games and activities, second grade Screening Pool students are taught to think carefully about what they do and say, to slow down, and learn the value of reining in their impulsivity. They expand their knowledge of the world by reading about current events in Time for Kids, as well as taking a peek into various cultures around the globe through stories, research and other activities.
Third graders in the TAAP Screening Pool spend part of each year learning the components of logic. They discover how to solve problems using both deductive reasoning and inferring. The students make use of Venn diagrams to unravel problems, and begin to understand how to crack various sequencing problems. The Screening Pool students in third grade read a number of biographies, as well. As the students read about gifted people in the arts, sports, and politics, they learn about the traits that can contribute to success and how to use their gifts in a positive way. Third grade Screening Pool students end the year by exploring a number of algebraic concepts.
A child in the fourth grade Screening Pool will read a number of complex short stories which contain metaphoric and symbolic elements. The students learn to pull apart a story and search for hidden meanings and greater depth. For each unit in math, students take a pretest to determine an appropriate class placement. Those students who are placed in the enrichment class(es) will spend a significant portion of time on mathematical problem solving and explore the concept of patterns in mathematics. Academic contests available to all fourth graders include the National Geographic Geography Bee and the Science Olympiad. Some students might be interested in trying out for the Math Olympiad team.
The TAAP specialists also help to make parents aware of special programs, such as the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth, the University of Virginia Summer Enrichment Program, and the George Mason University Summer Enrichment Camp. |
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Last Updated on Thursday, 16 September 2010 22:20 |
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TAAP Message |
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Written by Alane O'Neill
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Monday, 24 November 2008 16:50 |
PARENT MESSAGE
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Dear Parents,
We hope that you will find the TAAP web site to be both helpful and informative. It contains a number of features that we think will be useful for you. First, there is a general outline of the TAAP curriculum at Mt. Daniel and Thomas Jefferson. We have also provided you with access to a number of our most often requested forms. A description of the various tests used in the identification process is now available to you through this site, as well as a slide show presentation outlining the identification procedure. Finally, a collection of links has been created to help provide you with more information on such special programs as the Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth and the University of Virginia Summer Enrichment Program. Enjoy!
Mrs. Green - Grades K-2
Ms. Lang - Grades 2-4
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Last Updated on Monday, 22 October 2012 13:17 |
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About TJ
Summer Info
School Hours
8:35 a.m. - 3:35 p.m.
8:35 a.m. - 1:15 p.m. Wed Only
Phone
Main:
(703) 248-5660
Fax:
(703) 248-5666
Attendance:
(703) 248-5662
Health Room:
(703) 248-5664
Contact
Principal:
Robert Palermo
Assistant Principal:
Mary Kay Howard
Principal's Secretary:
Barbara Cooper
Address
601 South Oak Street
Falls Church, VA 22046
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