Hesperia Unified School District conducts GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) assessments during the third grade year. Students identified as candidates (based on classroom performance and CST scores) for GATE will take a standardized assessment at school, and a parent survey will be sent home to gather additional information from you. If your child qualifies, you will receive a permission slip that must be returned before your child will be officially identified as a GATE student.
Mesquite Trails Elementary reaches GATE students in all grades through differentiated instruction within the classroom and through our ExCEL model. A number of our upper grade teachers have earned certification in GATE, and these teachers provide leadership and guidance for the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades in designing appropriate programs for GATE identified students and ensuring that ILP goals are met. GATE strategies used within the classrooms include Costa's Levels of Questioning, GATE ICONS for Depth & Complexity, CGI, and group and/or independent projects. Students are given the opportunity to participate in a variety of projects throughout the year, as well as after-school enrichment opportunities. Please investigate the links on this page for additional information and resources for families with GATE students!
Comparison of Bright vs Gifted
Bright Child Gifted Child Knows the answers Asks the questions Interested Extremely curious Pays attention Gets involved physically and mentally Works hard Plays around, still gets good test scores Answers questions Questions the answers Enjoys same-age peers Prefers adults or older children Good at memorization Good at guessing. Learns easily Bored. Already knew the answers. Listens well Shows strong feelings and opinions. Self-satisfied Highly critical of self (perfectionistic)
Source: Janice Szabos as quoted in "The Gifted and Talented Child," Maryland Council for Gifted & Talented Children, Inc. P.O. Box 12221, Silver Spring, MD 20908
