Richardson Gifted Discussion Board

I just finished touring the Harmony Science Academy in Dallas for two hours. They are a math & science school located in North Dallas, just off of Forest Ln. It is a free public charter school that goes from k-12.

My main concern was the GT program and trying to make an informed decision on what was best for my GT kids attending a public school. I was a little taken aback by the layout and size of the library. But, aside from that, I was very pleased with the visit and was very informed on every question asked. The staff and teachers are very educated and familiar with GT children.

They have the ability grouping in place for the more advanced children in the upper grades (4-6). For instance, they have a 4AB class with gifted & honors students working at a faster pace & then a 4CD with the general ed students. Once they get to 6th grade, there are 4 classes- 6A -gifted, 6B-honors, 6C-general, 6D-lower. The GT children will be challenged daily and not only once a week. Usually the gifted & honors students are working on a grade level higher. 4th grade does 5th grade, 5th does 6th & so on. They offer additional after school classes for GT kids as well which are free. They have after school clubs for a nominal fee. They also use the curriculum from the College of William & Mary which is the same as Carrollton/FB.

For the k-3 students, they have a pull out program based on what the students' strengths are. This would be 2-3 times a week. If a child is really far ahead of the game, they will actually do a grade level acceleration! Currently they have an 8 year old in 5th grade who is actually on an Algebra I math level. They are giving him extra enrichment since a skip to 7th or 8th grade wouldn't be good for him emotionally.

The students were very respectful and it was a very peaceful atmosphere. I was impressed with all areas of this school. In my opinion, please see the following pros and cons.

Pros
Differentiated Instruction in Accelerated Programs on a daily basis
Grade level acceleration
Assessments of Each Child
Extra Curricular Activities for GT kids
Understanding of GT kids
Principal has GT child
Some teachers are GT themselves
Home Visits

Cons
Layout
Library