District 196 provides a continuum of services directed to meet the needs of gifted and talented students. Services include curriculum differentiation provided by classroom teachers as well as academic opportunities offered by building GT specialists. Greenleaf's GT specialist is Deb Baker. The GT specialist's role is to support staff and students' needs beyond the regular curriculum.

Our district's Gifted and Talented services are quite broad. We have services for all students (ex. school-wide assemblies, whole class enrichment activities), services for many students (ex. interest based activities such as Math Olympiad, Destination Imagination, Inventors Fair, classroom options such as choice in which novel to read, classroom enrichment assignments), services for some students (ex. flexibly selected enrichment groups, differentiation of assignments, ongoing pullout groups studying interdisciplinary topics with a focus on the components of Creative Thinking, Critical Thinking, Leadership, Problem Solving, Invention, Research, selected special interest topics, subject or grade acceleration) services for a few students (ex. individualized programming, mentoring, subject acceleration, grade acceleration). The classroom teachers, specialists, volunteers, guests and GT specialist all work towards providing enriching opportunities for Greenleaf's students.

Students who meet district criteria for identification as Gifted and Talented (= eligibility for the GT pullout groups) are students the GT specialist will manage on an individual basis. Our district's identification process uses multiple criteria including superior performances on cognitive tests, achievement tests and teacher recommendation scores. When a child qualifies for gifted and talented services, a letter of notification and permission to participate is sent home to the child's parents. Gifted and Talented students meet with the GT teacher thirty to one hundred minutes per week.

All students who meet GT criteria will not need the same school response. It's possible that some GT students have plenty of challenge with the enriching curriculum available within the grade level. That student's classroom teacher and the GT specialist then consult to be sure the GT students is working to meet his/her ability level. Other GT identified students may benefit from the GT pullout class: small group time together for social, emotional and intellectual reasons. In rare instances, students may need further individualized programming to meet social or academic needs.