Gifted & Talented

Gust offers a joyful, rigorous, and personalized education for students. Gust’s GT Specialist enriches the curriculum as needed for students at Gust, whether or not identified as “gifted” by collaborating with classroom teachers. The GT Specialist provides weekly small-group instruction to all identified gifted students in math and literacy, depending on grade level. Students in the Talent Pool or who are Magnet Eligible (but not yet identified) receive regular small-group instruction as well. The GT Specialist provides after school activities such as Shakespeare club, Pancake Science club and Spelling Bee.  Identified students have a targeted learning goal and an affective needs goal addressed on an Advanced Learning Plan (ALP). Gust’s culture stresses student engagement as the basis for acaGust offers a joyful, rigorous, and personalized education for students. Gust’s GT program enriches the curriculum as needed for students at Gust, whether or not identified as “gifted” by collaborating with classroom teachers. The GT Specialist provides regular small-group instruction to all identified gifted students in math and literacy, depending on grade level. Students in the Talent Pool or who are Magnet Eligible (but not yet identified) receive small-group instruction intermittently through the year. The GT Specialist provides after school activities such as Shakespeare club, Pancake Science club and Spelling Bee.  Identified students have a targeted learning goal and an affective needs goal addressed on an Advanced Learning Plan (ALP). Gust’s culture stresses student engagement as the basis for academic success. Our teachers are actively engaged in growing specific gifted and talented instructional strategies. Teachers build strong relationships with students, and work to build engaging, rigorous curriculum. Our common language stresses personal success factors and relevant tasks, addressing social and emotional needs as well.  This position is .6 part time (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)

Please reach out if you have questions or ideas to catherine_forington@dpsk12.net I am at Gust every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Current GT Happenings:

Read the DPS GT Spotlight for the month of October on this Canva Document.

Professor Christopher Maralli’s Colors of Chemistry

On October 25th at 9:30am, learn about the magic behind chemistry! This show is open to all students, ages 5-18. Parents are also invited to attend. Learn more about the University of Colorado CU Wizards and this event

Experiencing the Wonder of Awe

Discover how finding moments of awe in everyday parenting—from a child’s curiosity to shared wonder in nature—can transform routine days into sources of joy, connection, and meaning.Celebrating Gifted Voices: please fill out this form if you have a student/school celebration to share.

Here are two podcasts you might like to listen to.

🎧 Listening In

In this episode of the Exceptional Girls Podcast, host Julie Withrow is joined by Dawn Friedman, founder of Open Book Parenting, to talk about child anxiety and how families can navigate the challenges it presents.

Exceptional Girls Podcast graphic

Anxiety and anxious avoidance can be tricky to manage, especially in neurodivergent kids. Dawn is quick to point out that parents aren’t to blame and needn’t feel ashamed if they’ve made some missteps along the way. But they do have a responsibility to help their children overcome avoidance and get to readiness. This episode will give them a taste of how to do that.

Special Education Learning YouTube Channel logo

Special Education Learning YouTube Channel: Perfectionism can significantly impact motivation in gifted students by causing anxiety, fear of failure, and avoidance behaviors that hinder learning and emotional well-being. This video explores how high standards and self-criticism affect students’ confidence and engagement, while offering strategies for educators to foster self-compassion, realistic goal-setting, and resilience.

The NAGC website contains Tip Sheets for families. They are also available in Spanish. Topics include Advocacy, Creativity, Giftedness, Giftedness in the Classroom and Social Emotional Development.

More info . . .

Family Rights in Gifted Education

Photo Name Title Department Email
Forington headshot Catherine Forington Gifted and Talented Teacher/Coordinator Gifted & Talented Catherine_Forington@dpsk12.net