Students in grades 2 through 5 are identified for the PROGRAMS
GATE program based upon their academic ability test performance,
teacher evaluation, and parent/student surveys as outlined by
state and District guidelines.
Classroom teachers provide an ongoing
enrichment program for high achieving and GATE students,
through differentiated instruction, thus encouraging students to
develop to their fullest potential.
Each year, a before or after
School Program, Super Saturdays at colleges, and a
special summer school is organized. GATE students are clustered
into one class per grade level when space is available.
The Learning Center is intended to serve students with
exceptional needs who have been identified as having learning
disabilities, or a physical handicap, which interferes with their
learning.
These students can benefit from the major part of the regular
curriculum, but require some special assistance provided by the
Learning Center Teachers to help remediate their learning problems.
Students who qualify, and are placed, have designated services
specified on an Individual Educational Plan (IEP).
A student with no learning disabilities can also be placed in the Learning Center
as an intervention measure for a specific amount of time if space is available.
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Student Success Teams (SST)
When a student is having a behavioral and/or academic difficulty,
parents may request the student be evaluated by the SST to explore
possible school interventions. Teachers also may recommend an SST
evaluation.
Parents are invited and encouraged to attend SST
meetings when their child is being discussed. SST occurs each
Tuesday morning.
English Language Development
Children whose English language is limited are involved in the ELD
Program at Hickory. All new children who speak another language are
tested during the summer.
If they need additional help with English,
they will meet periodically with the English Language Development
(ELD) teacher or their bilingual aides. The children
continue in this program until tests determine that they are
fluent in the English language.
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School Psychologist/Counselor
A part-time school psychologist and school counselor will be at Hickory on various days.
They are available by contacting the school. They confer with parents,
students, and staff; and conducts psychological testing for students
as needed. Due to time constraints, they cannot meet with adults or
children on a regular basis, but can be an excellent source for
psychological referrals.
Speech and Language Specialist
Students who qualify may receive help from the county speech and
language specialist. This may be for help in speech articulation of
language processing difficulty. Parents may request a
speech/language evaluation by contacting the office.
Search and Serve
State law mandates that all individuals with exceptional needs have a right to
participate in a free appropriate public education with special education and
services when necessary. Assessment for special education is provided for
children from birth to 21 years of age and there are some pre-school programs
for the disabled.
Pillars of Character
Each month we highlight a different Pillar of Character as we participate in the National
Character Counts program. They are
- Fairness
- Caring
- Respect
- Trustworthiness
- Citizenship
- Responsibility
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Gifted and Talented Education