All third-grade students in Petaluma City Schools are given a GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) qualification assessment. A parent may request testing for an older student during the district-wide window. Students identified as GATE will receive adjusted instruction and assignments within their regular education classroom. GATE instruction varies by teacher. All Grant upper-grade teachers have been trained in GATE teaching strategies and methods. They continue to receive training to keep current on the most effective ways to meet the needs of GATE students in a General Education classroom.

 

Teachers and administration work to ensure that the needs of all GATE students are being met.

 

The cycle for GATE identification includes information gathering from multiple sources. Students are qualified through a committee process that analyzes multiple criteria including standardized test scores, teacher and parent observations and anecdotes, the student profile, and the results of the CogAT (Cognitive Abilities Test).

 

GATE testing for all third graders will occur at all Petaluma City Schools in January 201p.