GATEWAY Gifted Program

Here are some websites you might find useful to challenge your student with at-home learning. Be sure to check out the site ahead of time to make sure it is appropriate for your child’s age and skill level.

Be sure to check out the Science Buddies Summer of STEM site each week this summer for fun and challenging STEM activities.

Want to try some simple science experiments at home as a family? From Student to Scientist is a great resource developed by students at the University of Virginia who want to help families with at home learning.

Are you interested in learning more about Astronomy and the night sky? If so, be sure to check out the following resources shared by University of Virginia Astronomy Professor, Kelsey Johnson:

The Astronomical Society of the Pacific is a great resource for astronomy activities designed for PreK – 12 students. Be sure to check out how to translate an alien message.

The Dark Skies Bright Kids program, founded at UVA, also has a number of lesson plans online that you can download for free.

This site also has a Spanish/English astronomy book, created by former UVA students, that you can download for free.

Stellarium is a downloadable software program which is a planetarium you can run on a laptop. Let kids loose with this software, and they will be exploring the universe for hours.

To find out more tips for stargazing and what to look for in the night sky this month, read the full Q&A article from UVA Today.

https://www.sciencebuddies.org/blog/category/doing-science-at-home?from=Newsletter - Science Buddies shares hands-on activities to do at home with your children.

https://www.thegiftedguy.com/enrichment - Learn a new game! These videos teach you how to play Chess & Sudoku.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_zuNdsXRcfMThB81edcSxSYQqG_41JMg - Why not view some Bill Nye the Science Guy old school science videos on YouTube?

http://pblproject.com/page.aspx?pageid=Remote-Learning_STEM-Challenges – 30 STEM Challenges using everyday objects. Are you up to the challenge?

https://www.kenkenpuzzle.com/play_now - Free online puzzles, cool math games, and number games.

https://www.switchzoo.com/ - Build a habitat online, solve animal mysteries, and tour a zoo.

https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/ - This site contains great articles, activities, and games.

https://www.mensaforkids.org/ - Activities, games, and lesson plans for gifted learners. Select the PLAY tab to select games which will challenge your brain.

https://www.sciencefriday.com/ - Science articles and resources.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/zf2f9j6/articles/z3c6tfr - This fun site helps students learn to develop their typing skills.

https://www.timeforkids.com/ - Current events

https://www.poetry4kids.com/ - This entertaining and educational site will help you learn more about poetry. Try your hand at writing some poems of your own!

https://tryengineering.org/ - A great resource for parents, teachers, and students for hands-on challenges to build and research.

https://www.teachengineering.org/ - More great STEM activities that will fill our time and mind with amazing learning opportunities.

https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/sis.html - YES, the Census Bureau has some great resources for parents and teachers. The census is in the news so why not help students make a connection to the census through meaningful activities?

https://www.famlii.com/favorite-childrens-poems-for-world-poetry-day/ - Here is another site to help you embrace poetry!

https://theartofeducation.edu/2018/03/22/the-most-creative-way-to-teach-your-students-art-vocabulary/ - This site is for the student who loves art and a creative challenge-try this activity for teaching Art vocabulary!

http://www.dof.virginia.gov/ Go ahead and peruse this Virginia website for all sorts of great links and opportunities for the student and family!

http://www.dof.virginia.gov/infopubs/Native-Tree-ID-spreads_2016_pub.pdf Even though the leaves are not on the trees yet, they will be soon and this is a great resource to learn how to classify and identify local trees!

https://www.birds.cornell.edu/home/ This is another great resource to learn about local species of birds, their habitat and migratory behaviors. Not only a Science lesson, but Geography lesson as well!

https://www.nasa.gov/kidsclub/index.html If you have a student wanting to learn about aerospace engineering, check out this site! It contains logs of great resources for students and adults to look at, explore, and create amazing learning opportunities.

https://www.makebeliefscomix.com - New York Times learning has cited this as a fun resource where kids can create their own comics. Looks like fun!

http://www.mosamack.com All content on this site is now free. It contains mysteries, labs and engineering challenges for students in grades 4 through 8.

http://www.scratchjr.org This free app for kids 5 to 7 teaches coding in fun and exciting ways!

http://www.tinkercad.com – This is a free app which includes 3D Design, electronics and coding.

The Gifted and Talented Education Program in Franklin County Public Schools provides varied opportunities for identified students with differentiated instruction, accelerated materials and enrichment programs throughout the school year. Our focus includes the enhancement of the academic curriculum, developing creativity, improving problem solving, reasoning and logic, as well as an exploration of the arts.

Students are identified in grades K-12 through the use of a multiple criteria approach. Standardized tests, teacher recommendation, and a cognitive abilities test determine potential eligibility in the formal placement procedure. A portfolio may be included in this process. The gifted program selection screening may be put in motion by teacher nomination, standardized test review, or nomination by a parent or student. A referral can be initiated at any time during the school year until April 1 of that year. After the placement committee has reviewed the criteria at the school level, parents are notified in writing as to the results of the eligibility decision.

The elementary gifted program offers a combination of options including in-class differentiation, after-school workshops, full-day workshops, summer enrichment sessions, and/or field trips. Our middle school program also provides in-class differentiation, after-school programs and summer enrichment sessions. At the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh grade levels, students who qualify may participate in the Summer Piedmont Regional Governor’s School Program in Chatham, Virginia. At the high school level, the gifted student may choose to participate in advanced placement classes, honors classes, a variety of course offerings, as well as apply to attend the Roanoke Valley Governor’s School for Science and Technology and Summer Residential Governor's School.

Our mission is to provide a comprehensive education program for students in Franklin County Public Schools who need and can meet the rigorous challenges of our academics, arts, and technology, now and in the future.

FCPS Local Gifted Plan 2024-2029
Printed copies of the Local Gifted Plan are available upon request from the Gifted Department located at the Franklin County School Board Office.

Virginia Regulations Governing Educational Services for Gifted Students

Understanding the Virginia Regulations Governing Educational Services for Gifted Students

For more information, contact the Gifted and Talented Program personnel at Franklin County School Board Office,
(540) 483-5732.