What Is SPECTRUM?

SPECTRUM provides services for identified students in grades 6-8.  SPECTRUM is scheduled for a half block on a rotating day basis.  The program is designed to meet the needs of gifted learners with an emphasis on higher level thinking skills, problem solving, and decision making.  The program provides students with opportunities for self assessment and reflection on the problem-based learning activities.

Fall Eligibility: If you are interested in having your student evaluated for the Spectrum program, Email Claudia Walter. The deadline for fall evaluations is Friday, October 6, 2023.

Spectrum Teacher: Claudia Walter

Program Goals 

In the LCPS Gifted Education Program, gifted students have the opportunity to achieve district goals at the level commensurate with their talent.  Students are also challenged to apply their knowledge and skills in complex and advanced ways so that they can continue to develop academically.

LCPS Gifted Education Programs Goals:

• To become divergent creative thinkers who recognize problems and solve them.

• To construct personal meaning and understanding of others and of the world around them.

• To develop the capacity for self assessment (ownership of the learning). 

Scope and Sequence of the Gifted Education Program Curriculum

The LCPS Gifted Education Program curriculum spans grades K-12.  The pace of the curriculum is flexible, allowing for accelerated learning as appropriate, while providing a continuum of curricular options, instructional approaches, and resources to meet the unique needs of the individual gifted learners.  These units are aligned with the Virginia Standards of Learning, and are applied as increasingly challenging work for gifted children providing sophistication, depth, and breadth.

The areas of focus include:

Main Skills

• Complex Thinking Skills

• Research Skills

• Independent Learning Skills

• Interactive Skills

Additional Skills

• Creative Expression

• Affective Education and Leadership