Advanced Academic Programming

K-2 Reading Interventions

Qualifying K-2 students meet weekly with an Advanced Academic Specialist to enhance and refine critical thinking in reading. 

Parent Action Needed:

• Provide previous standardized screening data and/or information on formalized gifted programming from previous district, if available.

Criteria for Screening:

• RPS Teacher Recommendation AND NWEA Reading Score 2+ years above grade level.

Screening Timeline:

• Early Fall- Recommended 1st and 2nd grade students are screened for verbal ability.
• Early Winter- Recommended kindergarten students are screened for verbal ability.

For qualification, all students new to RPS must participate in a screening/assessment set by RPS or submit comparable test data to be approved by RPS. 

Students may be rescreened one time and only after one full year has passed since the previous testing.

3-5 Explore Program

Qualifying students meet weekly with an Advanced Academic Specialist to refine and enhance critical thinking and problem solving skills.

Parent Action Needed:

• Provide standardized screening data and/or information on formalized gifted programming from previous district, if available.

Criteria for Screening:

3rd Grade

• All 3rd grade students complete first screening measure.
• Students moving on to the second screening measure have met specific benchmarks on the first screening measure and district common assessments. 
• All testing data and input from both teachers and parents are carefully reviewed for final Explore placement decisions.

4th and 5th Grades

• One marking period of observation and differentiation is required before a teacher recommendation can be made.
• RPS teacher recommendation based on above level achievement AND ability criteria set by RPS.
• Recommended students complete above screening process.

Screening Timeline:

• Early Winter: all 3rd grade students and teacher recommended 4th and 5th grade new RPS students are screened.

For qualification, all students new to RPS must participate in a screening/assessment set by RPS or submit comparable test data to be approved by RPS. 

Students may be rescreened one time only and only after one full year has passed since the previous testing.

Explore Program FAQs

What does it mean to be an Explore student? 
Your child needs different learning experiences centered around problem solving and critical thinking which cannot be offered solely within the regular classroom. Explore provides extended learning opportunities for students who are capable of high achievement, demonstrate high ability, and possess strong aptitude. 

Will my child have to be tested again next year? No other testing takes place for Explore qualification. Additional testing begins as a child enters middle school, but this testing is only for placement in advanced classes and is optional. 

What is a cluster classroom? Typicaly, one teacher at fourth and fifth grades in each school has the Explore students in his/her classroom. This teacher, referred to as a cluster teacher, understands the unique needs of Explore students and wi l continue to receive support from AAP Staff. Students are grouped together to facilitate more efficient and effective interventions by the classroom teacher and AAP Specialists. Cluster classrooms also provide opportunities for working with like-minded peers.

When do students attend Explore Class? 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students are pulled from the regular classroom once a week for up to 2 hours. Each year, Explore class starts at the end of September and continues through spring. Students who qualify mid-year typically join the Explore group in February. 

What will students miss from the regular classroom while they attend Explore? Schedules are set to prevent students from missing specials, however, students do miss classroom activities. Explore assignments, for the most part, are intended to replace the class work during that time. Class work is not expected to be made up unless the teacher decides that the activity is important to the child’s success or is an assessment that must be completed. 

Will my child receive differentiated learning experiences in the regular classroom? As the classroom teachers get to know Explore students, they look for areas within the regular curriculum in which accommodations should be made. If students show grade level mastery of a particular concept (through pretesting and/or accelerated learning), they will be accommodated with assignments that are rich in depth and complexity and may go beyond the grade level standards.  Parent/teacher conferences provide an important opportunity for parents to inquire about the differentiated learning experiences in which their child may be participating. 

What kind of communication can I expect regarding Explore Class and my child’s progress? In 4th and 5th grades, Explore Progress Reports are emailed each marking period when regular classroom reports are sent.  Information, updates, and snapshots of student progress are emailed periodically throughout the year. Parents of students identified mid-year will be contacted regarding their child’s progress, after the students have had time to adjust.  In 4th and 5th grades, Explore Progress Reports are emailed each marking period when regular classroom reports are sent.  Information, updates, and snapshots of student progress are emailed periodically throughout the year. Parents of students identified mid-year will be contacted regarding their child’s progress, after the students have had time to adjust. 

K-5 Subject Acceleration

Decisions to accelerate a student by grade or by subject are rare, made on a case-by-case basis, and must be supported by significant evidence.

Process for K-5 Grade/Subject Acceleration

• Screening for grade/subject acceleration is initiated by the classroom teacher or AAP staff following the collection and documentation of various interventions and evidence of out-of-grade-level performance. 
• Above-level achievement and/or ability assessments are required. 
• The Iowa Acceleration Scale, a comprehensive evaluation tool for acceleration, is used in the decision-making process. 
• Final placement decisions are made by a team which includes a member of the Advanced Academic Services team, the building principal, the current classroom teacher, the parent(s), and any other school personnel who have been involved with the student’s social, emotional, or academic well-being.

6th Grade Curriculum Support

Students who have previously participated in the elementary Explore program are provided differentiated curricula of greater depth and complexity from the classroom teacher. Advanced Academic Specialists provide support and resources to teachers as they differentiate classroom curricula. There are no regular student meetings with an Explore teacher in middle school.

6th Grade Pre-Algebra Class

Qualifying students participate in highly accelerated and rigorous math course that sets them on a track two years above grade level.

Parent Action Needed

• Contact the middle school counseling office to determine the next step.
  • East Rockford Middle School Counseling Office: 616-863-6140
  • North Rockford Middle School Counseling Office: 616-863-6313
• Provide standardized screening data and/or information on formalized advanced programming from the previous district, if available.

Criteria for Screening

The 6th Grade Pre-Algebra curriculum includes 7th and 8th grade curricula and is intended for the very exceptional mathematician.

Students taking 6th grade Pre-Algebra stay on a highly accelerated math track their entire school career, beginning high school math in 7th grade. Typically, 3-5% (20-25) students district-wide are prepared for this level of advancement.

Successful 6th grade Pre-Algebra students:

• consistently pretest out of most of 5th grade math curriculum
• are approximately 2+ years beyond grade level in math 
• require consistent differentiation, more than one year beyond grade level
• have innate sense of quantitative reasoning

Screening Timeline

Qualification for screening is based on NWEA scores or comparable standardized test scores.

For qualification, all students new to RPS must participate in screening/assessment set by RPS or submit comparable test data to support.

7th and 8th Grade ROCK Program

Students participate in accelerated courses (ROCK courses) in language arts, science and/or social studies. ROCK courses are designed with rigor and increased pacing, exploring curriculum with depth and complexity.

Parent Action Needed

Provide standardized screening data and/or information on formalized advanced programming from the previous district, if available.

Criteria for Screening

• RPS Teacher Recommendation and NWEA Reading, Language and/or Science scores that meet RPS criteria.

Successful ROCK students:

• possess a greater depth of knowledge than typical student
• are insightful and able to transform new learning, no just repeat it
• accurately use advance vocabulary
• think conceptually and abstractly
• demonstrate very strong fiction and non-fiction writing skills

Screening Timeline

Early Fall:

• New 7th or 8th grade students to RPS may submit spring NWEA scores from the previous district, if available.
• New 7th or 8th grade students without NWEA data from the previous district will participate in fall NWEA testing in RPS. Test data, teacher input, and parent feedback are carefully reviewed for final placement decisions.

For qualification, all students new to RPS must participate in the placement process set by RPS or submit comparable test data to support.