Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Regions Rocky Mountain School for the Gifted, Boulder, CO?

Hi Branwen, I doubt that we'll be moving ahead with Broomfield Academy for this year. I was surprised that they were starting school so soon as my DD's current school doesn't start until the 24th. It didn't leave much time think about switching. I think the biggest problem we have is the tuition...it's a lot of money for us. I didn't discuss accelerating my DD with the principal, but I probably should have. We ran out of time since she was needed for some summer camp duties while I was there. I was sad to see that their pool was unavailable until they make upgrades in it. I did like the school, and I liked the principal...she really seems to 'get it'. She said that each class was 50-90% gifted students, and that is very attractive to me. It would be nice for DD to be around other gifties.

I'm still fairly set on the idea of having her do half days for this coming school year though. She occasionally throws out random comments like "I love Wednesdays because I don't have art class and I get to stay with you." She loves her art class, but she also loves time at home. (She's taking art this summer twice a week.) The principal mentioned that if I was set on half days, we could enroll her in junior K and she could subject accelerate math and reading. But given her age and how accelerated she is already I think that would be an even poorer fit than standard K at the school we currently have her enrolled in. We will continue to look at BA and see if we can make it work for 1st next year. Maybe by that time she will need 2nd, I don't know.

My understanding is that if you start K early, it really eases the whole acceleration issue because she will be following the normal progression and not be moving away from friends and she won't miss anything either. Of course, you might still need to accelerate her later on anyways, but that's a whole 'nother can of worms. If I had known that early K was even an option, I would have pursued that. I just wasn't aware that people could even do that. She was definitely ready for K last year. It sounds to me like you've made a well-considered decision. I hope that it works out great for your DD! I think you have stacked the deck for her success by choosing BA...the small classes will help her adjust quickly with so much individual attention.

Coconut, Welcome! I appreciate your insight on the area schools! I can't believe your DD only had 21 days of math in an entire school year at boulder country day!! You're right, that is appalling. Unfortunately, Flagstaff is too far for us to seriously consider, though I have heard good things about it. I liked what I saw at Peak 2 peak, but I haven't looked at it from a GT perspective yet. We were 200 on the wait list for K, so about a snowball's chance in you know where to get in there unless we move to BVSD. I have heard some negatives about it, but nothing concrete, so it is still on my list. I will look into Superior elementary, thanks for the tip!

Does anyone out there have any knowledge of gifted friendly schools in northern Jefferson county? Our PS gifted program is at Hackberry Elementary, but I have heard really mixed reviews of it.

Since you do not have time to enroll in a new school, why don't you sign her up for private math tutoring once a week? The reading and language arts can be done at home with activity books from Barnes and Noble. You can even order TAG activity books or buy activity books several grades higher. You can purchase Core Knowledge "What Every First Grader (Second Grader, Third Grader, etc.) Should Know" books and accompanying handbooks, for History, Science, Literature, Composers, Fine Artists, etc. These books are easy for kids to read to themselves.
Good Luck!

Also, other excellent excellent schools in BVSD:
Bear Creek Elementary
Southern Hills Middle (win lots of Math awards)
Fairview High (No. 2 in Colorado after P to P)
Horizons Charter
Manhatten Middle

Hi Coconut, I hadn't thought of doing tutoring, I will have to look into that! I was planning to do some 'afterschooling' type activities with reading, math, history and science. She's really not into workbooks anymore...I think she burned herself out on them a year ago. Not sure how I'll handle that with math. I will try letting her read "what every First Grader needs to know" since I have that out from the library now. She seems to go for those big compendium type books, so maybe she will like it.

Thanks so much for the schools to look at! Hopefully we will get something good lined up for next year.

Still hoping someone out there knows about gifted options in Jeffco schools? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Hi all! I'm a first grade teacher in BVSD, and since the first day of school was today, I have not been online in a while. The last few weeks have been hectic. We got the e-mail that RMS was closing also. I'm so sorry for all of you who had children there. That must be so traumatic.

My son started Westgate this week. We went through the whole Stargate/Westgate application process. Honestly, I'm not looking for the most top notch, high pressure education for my five year old (I'm really laughing as I write this). I just want him to be happy. He is quirky and stands out. He had a hard time in preschool and I would like for him to want to go to school rather than whine and say, "What's the point?"

We definitely had a negative impression about Stargate. As someone else mentioned, I wanted to be sure that my son's needs were met. He scored 149 on the WPPSI and is just a little "out there" in personality and intensity. They told us that their school is designed for a child with an IQ of around 130--enough said. Even though my son got in, we turned them down.

Westgate, while it cannot exclude based on IQ, is claiming to meet individual children's needs, which is more than I heard at Stargate. I guess I firmly believe that a school's philosophy and its teachers can make all the difference, regardless of the students it has in its classrooms. I teach in a VERY diverse school in BVSD. It is not best for all kids (my oldest son is not going there, but my other two may), but I had a PG student in my class last year and have his brother (who skipped K) in my class this year. And their parents have been very happy. I think knowing your child's personality and what type of environment would suit him/her best is more important than the selective (or not so selective) criteria of the school. That is why I did not think Peak to Peak would be a good fit for my son. I think there is too much pressure. I've heard that the teachers put tremendous pressure on the students, and I think my son would cave in that environment. A friend of mine interviewed there and said that during her observations and trial teaching assignment the students were afraid to speak up and seemed totally traumatized. She was shocked. My son is a perfectionist, and I think he would always think he wasn't good enough. He needs nurturing, encouraging teachers to bring out his highest potential. At least that's my opinion now--he's just 5.

I will let you all know how things go at Westgate. Since my son has only been there 4 days, it is hard to tell. Good luck as you all get settled into the school year!

Coconut - I'm pretty surprised by your comments about Boulder Country Day - we've been there for 6 years and I can definitely say that my daughter doesn't do 21 days of math (were you in the preschool perhaps?) I'd say in general it operates at a grade level above the better public schools in the area for their normal curriculum in elementary school and easily accommodates SOME differentiation with the 16 students in class. It's by no means perfect. My daughter was about 5 grade levels higher in reading when we joined, and while they did differentiate - it wasn't great (it certainly didn't help that I frankly didn't want her grade skipped or with kids that much older for a reading group) They have had an easier time with math, where she's only 2ish grade levels higher. I would also say that as you progress through the school, there is MORE differentiation. The middle school is fantastic and they're operating at an incredibly high level. Most of the students I know that have gone on to the IB programs at Niwot and Fairview claim that high school is EASIER than middle school.

They do have a lot of emphasis on specials - french, art, music and latin. I think it's great. But if you are looking for the three Rs and little else, it's a horrible fit. I was attracted to the diverse curriculum, but I understand people are all looking for something different.

Hi Debbie 1996 - I did have a very bad experience with BCD. And to be fair, it is possible my daughter did more then 21 days of Math. I am just working off what she brought home from school, not much. I have heard good things about the Middle School Math program. The new Math teacher is impressive.

BCD is probably a good school. But, I would not recommend the school for advanced/gifted children because the school does not have the resources and does not accommodate for advanced/gifted kids.

Gifted kids need stimulation in addition to challenging course work. BCD does not ability group or allow students to move up a grade level for Math or Reading. BCD uses boring work books and flash cards, no projects. Even the Art and Music classes are boring (i.e. recorder lessons).

Also, I disagree that BCD is grade levels ahead. First the IOWA test is not an accurate measurement of grade level competency and it cannot be used as a tool to compare BVSD schools since they don't take the IOWA test. Second it does not even make sense that BCD is ahead when you look at the daily schedule. BCD students go to school fewer days per year and fewer hours per day. Plus BCD students miss half a day every Friday for assemblies and hours during the week rehearsing for those assemblies. There is one teacher for Science and Technology who is expected to split her time among 400 kids, so they barely have any Science. I don't consider a ton (and there is a lot of it) of Art, Music, Choir, Reading Buddies, Library diversity in curriculum. Although I do love the French and Latin.

I have observed that young children flourish using the Core Knowledge curriculum. I love the way the CK system all works together. For example, last year my first grader learned about the early American Colonies, American Revolution and Lewis and Clark in her History class. So in Art, the teacher taught them to distinguish between the art of the Plains and Nomadic Native Americans. And he taught the class in a full size teepee! They made Native American shields and instruments in Art class, which were displayed in a fantastic art exhibit. The History and the Art all tied together. It was so fun and so stimulating the kids absorbed every bit of it and were inspired to learn so much more.

I don't know much about middle school and whether the CK curriculum is rigorous enough to meet their needs. These days middle schoolers are working at such a high level. I would guess that the BCD IB program in middle school is quite good.

We are new to Boulder and have loved this post for it's wealth of information. As it's now 4 months later, I'm wondering if anyone has any updated information on where RMS kids have gone in Boulder County and what schools are working, and which are not. I'm also wondering where larger groups of those kids have been grouped together. Any 4-month-later insight on any of the schools discussed would be so helpful as well.