S.T.A.R.T.

Strategies for Teaching and Reaching for Talent

Grades K-3

Services and Curriculum

Students in kindergarten through third grade receive services on Thursdays at Montclair. The time per class varies according to grade level from 45 to 90 minutes. The goals of the START program are to promote critical and creative thinking, problem solving skills, and independent learning skills. Students engage in cooperative group learning in START units. These units extend the grade level content in Math, Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies as well as addressing thinking and learning skills. Identified students also receive enrichment and extension daily in the regular classroom during content instruction.

Identification

Students participating in the START program are identified as potentially gifted. This identification, once established, lasts through the end of third grade. At that time, children are re-evaluated for placement in the SIGNET program (4th - 12th grade). 
        Prince William County has established a multiple criteria screening process which takes into account several aspects of a child’s performance, including testing, parent and teacher narratives, grades, and classroom work samples. No single area either includes or excludes a child from placement in the gifted program.

A student may be nominated by a teacher or a parent, as well as other school staff or individuals in the community. Referral forms are available on the Prince William County Schools website under gifted education.