Gifted & Talented Program

The purpose of the Lakehurst School District’s Gifted and Talented program is to encourage and support academic excellence for students and to assist them in developing their unique abilities, social and emotional growth, and their intellectual capabilities. In order to do so, students who have been identified as ”students who possess or demonstrate high levels of ability in one or more content areas when compared to their chronological peers in the local school district and who require modifications of their educational program if they are to achieve in accordance with their capabilities” N.J.A.C. 6A:8-1.3  are provided with programs that modify content, process, products, and learning environment to meet the needs of these students.  The identification process for the Gifted and Talented program includes a yearly review of multiple measures of students. 

LES offers a Continuum of Services 

• Cluster grouping
•  Accommodations in the regular classroom
• Curriculum compacting 
•  Differentiated and tiered instruction 
•  Pacing (less repetition for gifted learners, even on new content) 
•  Access to higher level materials 
•  Push-in: enrichment lessons, tier 1, tier 2, tier 3 (Renzulli) 
• Formats: provide multiple options for programming (not a single program) 
• Cluster group with teacher who is trained in gifted and talented instruction
• Show modifications in lesson and unit plans 
•  Pull-out (can be G & T specialist, area specialist, media specialist, tech teacher, guidance counselor) 
• Need time in homogeneous group to address social and emotional needs 
• Competitions 
•  I & RS teams consider matching services to needs of gifted students, 
• including social and emotional 

Elementary School

Students at the elementary level are identified for the gifted and talented program through multiple measures. They are then invited to participate in pull out programs run during the typical school day.  The activities are designed to promote critical thinking and accelerate understanding of content and skills.  See below for detailed gifted and talented screening procedures.  

• Elementary School Screening Procedures
• Multiple Measures 

Middle School

At the middle school level, identified students are invited to participate in the Gifted and Talented program that runs during the normal school day.  Students meet daily to work on enrichment curricular activities designed specifically for them.  See below for detailed gifted and talented screening procedures.  

• Middle School Screening Procedures 
• Multiple Measures 

To File A Complaint for Non-Compliance of the New Jersey Department of Education’s Strengthening Gifted & Talented Education Act:
Individuals who believe that the school district has not complied with the provisions set forth in the New Jersey Department of Education’s Strengthening Gifted and Talented Education Act in regards to G&T may file a complaint with the District’s Board of Education.  The Public Complaint Policy (Policy 9130) outlines the processes necessary to file a complaint.