The Knox School of Santa Barbara Offers an Exemplary Program for Gifted and Talented Children

[King_of_lion]

The 2019 school year has just begun and Noozhawk's Private & Independent School Guide is sure to make things easy when planning for your child's education! Our school guide provides you and your child with all the necessary information about private schools in Santa Barbara County. To give parents the tools to help make informed decisions about which school is the best fit for their kids in Santa Barbara, Noozhawk has conducted a series of interviews with representatives of local private & independent schools for this year’s school guide. In this interview, Noozhawk talked with Angela Tanner, Founder and Director at The Knox School of Santa Barbara to learn more about what they offer at their school. The Knox School of Santa Barbara Question: What is the mission or vision for your school? Answer: The mission of The Knox School of Santa Barbara is to provide a stimulating and nurturing environment where, alongside an engaging and challenging curriculum, the social and emotional needs of gifted students are respected and compassionately supported. Our school provides a rigorous and stimulating academic environment and high caliber curriculum combined with an individualized, ability-based (instead of age-based), project- and inquiry-based approach to learning in order for students to develop critical and creative thinking skills and retain a deep love of learning. The school is committed to providing a variety of strategies to meet all learning styles and continuing to develop instructional strategies and academic and affective curriculum to serve the needs of our students. Q: How is your school operated or governed? A: Our school is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization governed by a Board of Directors and led by our Head of School. The School is also supported by an advisory board, which consisting of experts in gifted education, bio- and cognitive psychology, the sciences, business, and law. Q: What curriculum is available and taught at your school? A: The Knox School’s curriculum is based on the Integrated Curriculum Model developed at the Center for Gifted Education at the College of William and Mary and refined in gifted classrooms over the past 30 years. Specifically, each trimester at The Knox School is organized around a “Unit of Study”, such as Architecture, Natural Disasters, Africa, Renaissance & da Vinci, Space, Mystery, and the like. Within the Unit of Study, lessons span the disciplines, incorporating them into the broader Unit topic. The integrated curriculum at Knox organizes learning in a way that links together the humanities, natural sciences, mathematics, social studies, music, and art, and includes lessons and projects that are hands-on, high interest, and which encourage critical thinking, problem solving, creative thinking, abstract reasoning, higher level thinking skills, inquiry, and collaboration. Our curriculum creates opportunities for exploration, active learning, and meaningful connections across subject areas. Through this curriculum, students come to see the interrelatedness of disciplines, which in turn brings meaning and relevance to their education. While lessons are integrated when possible, there is also the recognition that each discipline has elements specific to its domain. The workshop model provides opportunity for whole group, small group, and individual instruction around specific skills within the domains of mathematics, reading, and writing and allows students to participate in the workshop which best matches their individual level. For example, a third-grade student is welcome to join the math workshop focusing on Geometry if that is where the student’s capabilities lie, even though it is “above” traditional grade level work. In this sense, all 3rd graders at The Knox School may not be reading the same books or doing the same mathematics, nor should they be, solely because they are 8 and therefore, in the 3rd grade. A curriculum for gifted students needs to be both rigorous and flexible to allow an ability-based program. The teachers consistently assess to ensure the student is not missing foundational elements of the skill, while allowing the student to progress through the curriculum at their own pace without being held back by artificial ceilings. Enrichment classes are offered to all grades K-8 and include Fine Arts (in collaboration with the Santa Barbara Museum of Art), Performing Arts (music, drama, debate), World Language, Physical Education, Science, and STEAM, and Electives such as chess, robotics, sailing, and cooking. Other programmatic elements include Social-Emotional Learning and Mindful Self-Discipline. Q: What extracurricular activities does your school offer? A: The Knox School offers First LEGO League robotics, Chess Club, and overnight field trips such as CIMI, Astrocamp, Yosemite and Washington DC for Upper School, and on-site after-school care for all grades. Upper School students can choose between electives that rotate each trimester; these electives have included chess, origami, debate, cooking, improv, robotics, yoga, and sailing. The Knox School of Santa BarbaraClick to view larger (The Knox School of Santa Barbara photo) Q: Describe the typical day in the life of a student at your school. Sign Up for the A.M. Report Keep up with Noozhawk's daily COVID-19 coverage, delivered at 4:15 a.m. right to your inbox. Enter your email address A: Our students begin their day with workshops in math, reading, and writing. Classes may consist of students of differing ages, but similar ability, due to differentiation needs. For example, a 3rd grader might be in the Algebra Math Workshop but in the 2nd grade Writing Workshop. This allows students’ varying needs to be met across the disciplines. The whole school enjoys snack time and morning recess together on campus, allowing for various friendships to span the grades. Lunch is held within the classroom and is a time for casual conversation between the students and teachers, followed by recess either on campus or at the nearby Kid’s World playground. Each afternoon, students connect with their homeroom for their integrated Unit study, which consists of projects that are hands-on projects, high interest, and which encourage critical thinking, problem solving, creative thinking, abstract reasoning, higher level thinking skills, inquiry, and collaboration. Unit projects might include mummifying a fish in their Ancient Egypt Unit to understand both the cultural practices and biology behind the custom; or waging a mock battle after studying the difference in Greek or Roman warfare in their Ancient Greece and Rome Unit; or videoing themselves as a newscaster explaining the weather patterns in their Natural Disasters Unit; or perhaps delving into mechanical engineering and prototyping a model boat en route to creating a life sized version based on their understanding of buoyancy, density, and the Archimedes’ principle for their Water Unit. Unit Study is followed by enrichment and elective classes, some of which take place off campus within walking distance of the School. There is no homework before 5th grade and minimal homework in Upper School (a maximum of 2 hours per week in 7th/8th grade) allowing our students time to assimilate their day’s learning and encouraging our students to dedicate their non-school time to the development of other skills and interests and the all-important quality family time. We have many students passionate about athletics and this allows open afternoons and weekends to participate in club sports and pursue other interests. Q: How does your school select/hire teachers? A: Our teacher selection includes a very long vetting process which ensures that our teachers understand the gifted po[CENSORED]tion's unique characteristics and can provide a nurturing environment, supportive and respectful of both the students' strengths and needs. Many of our faculty are gifted themselves and therefore have a unique perspective on our students’ needs; they “get” their students in a deep way. Qualities that are important in a Knox teacher include: • A love of this po[CENSORED]tion - these students are intensely curious and hungry; they can be sensitive; they can be perfectionists; they learn things quickly. While these traits sound wonderful, gifted students can often be humiliated for their curiosity and intense desire to learn, or for their innate sensitivities or asynchronies. Our teachers embrace their students’ passion and help them forge these traits appropriately. • A lack of ego - these students will invariably know more about certain topics than the adults will; our role is not to be the sage on the stage but instead to guide their learning, exploration, discovery, and experimentation to ensure students are understanding and mastering key concepts and skills. • Our teachers need to have deep expertise and be passionate about the disciplines they teach; when you learn from someone who loves what they are teaching, that excitement is contagious. Q: What professional development opportunities do teachers have? In what ways do teachers collaborate? A: We are committed to developing a professional and supportive faculty sensitive to the instructional and emotional needs of gifted students and who are strongly dedicated to providing the highest quality education. Understanding what giftedness is, and isn’t, is fundamental to understanding the needs of these students so they can be supported intellectually, academically, and emotionally. We provide professional development in: giftedness and its characteristics and challenges; differentiation within our curriculum; specific disciplines; social-emotional learning; mindfulness; and non-violent communication. We send staff nationally to conferences and programs that include the Reggio Emilia conference in Boston, the annual CAG (California Association for the Gifted) conference, the annual NAGC (National Association for Gifted Children) conference, SENG (Supporting the Emotional Needs of the Gifted), as well as local programs and conferences such as UCSB’s Math Project. Our teachers share students across the grades, not only due to individual student differentiation, but because we leverage teacher skills and passions to provide a richer experience in each grade. This makes collaboration and an exchange of strategies and insights key in our ability to reach robust solutions for our individual students’ needs. Q: What metrics do you use to measure and track your student progress? A: We measure and track student progress both quantitatively and qualitatively. With small ratios of students to teachers (8:1 or less), our teachers are able to monitor student progress closely, both formally and informally. Also, each trimester, a series of untimed MAP tests (Measure of Academic Progress by the Northwest Evaluation Association) are administered to assess where each child’s knowledge level lies in Language Usage, Reading, Mathematics, and Science. There is no prep for these tests; instead they are used to track a student’s concept understanding over time and give metrics for determining adjustments in a child’s curriculum. Educators use the data to develop targeted instructional strategies for each child. Q: How can parents get involved at your school? A: Our school encourages 100% parent participation. Parent volunteers have the opportunity to help in the classroom with activities like reading to the class, speaking to the students about their careers, and attending field trips. Our parent volunteers assist with planning events both for our students, such as Halloween and Thanksgiving celebrations, and also events for the school and community, such as our spring fundraiser, community STEAM event, and our gifted education conferences. We encourage relationship building between our parents. The parent group meets throughout the year for morning coffees, weekend meetups, and even parents’ nights out. Raising a gifted child can be an isolating experience. It is comforting to have a group who understand both the joys and challenges of raising a gifted child. Q: What are your schools greatest accomplishments? A: Gifted children require a unique educational setting to retain the joy of learning and the opportunity to maximize their potential. Our greatest accomplishments are re-igniting the curiosity and passion for learning in students who had lost those, and providing a "safe" environment where gifted and talented students can be their authentic selves, be challenged academically, and form lasting friendships with both age peers and intellectual peers. Watching our students matriculate to a variety of high schools has shown that the Knox program has supported them academically as well as emotionally. The inevitable challenges that come along with any intellectual, creative, or social endeavor offer opportunities to build greater capacity for resilience, perseverance, courage, and compassion, and our students graduate 8th grade feeling secure in who they are. Knox alumni are thriving in both public academies such as the Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy and in private school settings, such as Cate. Most Knox alumni are enrolled in a dual-enrollment program, taking college level courses in areas in which they are advanced alongside their high school classes, affording them the high school experience while continuing to meet their academic and intellectual needs. Q: What challenges has your school faced or currently face? How did you overcome these? A: The two big challenges we’ve faced and continue to face center around (1) the myths surrounding giftedness, and (2) that gifted girls, being particularly susceptible to the desire to fit in, often sabotage their talents for the sake of conforming to their peers, and play down their intelligence. Gifted girls have the ability to fool teachers and parents alike into thinking that they are “doing ok”, leading to fewer girls finding their way into gifted programs. These challenges are discussed below. (1) We encounter many myths surrounding gifted children, such as "They're smart, they'll do fine on their own" or “Gifted children are good at everything and are always straight-A students”, and therefore myths of who we serve at The Knox School. But these myths are more than just inaccurate; they are destructive. They prevent the gifted child from being understood, accepted, and served appropriately. As any parent or teacher of a gifted child knows too well, most gifted students (especially highly to profoundly gifted children) face unique challenges and require specialized and focused attention to overcome impediments and maximize their talents. Without educational opportunity and challenge, children who are gifted may hide their abilities, bury them in underachievement, or become school dropouts. It is therefore incumbent upon us to identify these children as early as possible and to provide support for them from early elementary education onwards. One myth is that all gifted students show their talents in a school setting. When discussing the definition of giftedness, there exists a critical distinction that is important to make, and that is between ability and achievement. Ability and achievement are two very different concepts and are often confused in both the identification and the servicing of students. Just as there can be non-gifted high-achievers, there can be gifted children who are not high-achievers. Only a portion of gifted children demonstrate their ability through academic achievement in a school setting, especially when that setting does not meet their needs. Not all gifted children need progressive education in order to maximize their potential – those we call “school-house gifted” are able to perform with the demands of a typical educational approach and often do fine in a traditional setting, especially if some sort of advancement in the form of grade skipping is available to them. However, there remain many gifted students, particularly those creative or divergent thinkers as well as the highly and profoundly gifted, whose needs cannot be met by simple grade skipping and whose asynchronies create great confusion and challenge for educators (and parents!). Think of a 7-year old child who can do algebra in their head but who can’t tie their shoelaces yet; or the child who creates an entire story rich in detail in their mind, but whose small hands can’t get all the thoughts down on paper and so gives up, and is perceived as being an average, or even unmotivated, student. These are students with extraordinary potential and talent which may be lost if not attended to and nurtured. These are the children that are in danger of slipping through the cracks. A recent statement by researchers from the National Association for Gifted Children echoes what we observe every day at Knox: “National efforts to increase the availability of a variety of appropriate instructional and out-of-school provisions must be a high priority since research indicates that many of the difficulties gifted students experience disappear when their educational climates are adapted to their level and pace of learning." (2) Gifted girls, being particularly susceptible to the desire to fit in, often sabotage their talents for the sake of conforming to their peers, and play down their intelligence. In society, girls tend to carry a heavier expectation of compliance and conformity than boys, and certain behaviors that are considered acceptable in boys (such as holding to a viewpoint, asking lots of questions) are admonished in girls. Research has shown that females in particular become teacher pleasers in an attempt to maintain the status quo. They often sacrifice their authenticity and pretend to be someone they are not so that they are more acceptable to others. They learn very early in life to play the game. In Elizabeth Drews’ words, “Our children are taught to don masks before they recognize their own faces. They are made to put their tender, pliable forms into prefabricated shells”. This typically occurs by about 2nd grade, which incidentally is when many schools start testing for giftedness. We are currently working to highlight the needs of gifted girls and are providing a Gifted Girls Symposium on Saturday, November 16th for parents and teachers interested in learning more on this issue. Guest Speaker Dr. Linda Kreger Silverman is an expert in Gifted Education and will be speaking about the importance of identifying and supporting these at-risk girls. http://GiftedGirls2019.eventbrite.com Q: How does your school support students who have academic, social, or emotional difficulties? A: Giftedness and developmental asynchrony often go hand-in-hand. This means that a child’s academic, social, and emotional development may occur at different rates than those of their age-peers. A high IQ is commonly accompanied by social or emotional accelerations or delays, and many with high IQs are not academically advanced across all subjects. There are many traits common to gifted children that can play a part in difficulties that may occur at school such as perfectionism or fear of failure. In our curriculum and student life, each student’s varied needs are carefully considered and addressed. Each child’s abilities and needs are assessed in real time, not just for parent-teacher conferences or report cards. Our faculty and staff hone-in on how to best meet those individual needs. We believe that all children should be educated this way, but it is particularly crucial for gifted children. If unaddressed, a gifted child’s unmet needs can lead to low self-esteem, behavior issues, misdiagnoses, increased drop-out rates, and increased suicide rates. Our philosophy, based on much research in the field of gifted education, follows that a difficulty in academic, social, or emotional areas is indicative of a particular need being unmet. Our teachers and staff work together to help students through difficulties and collaborate with outside resources when needed to implement courses of action that support the child. This type of support is at the core of what our school accomplishes each day.