Approach

My Spectrum School’s mission is to develop the gifts of individual children, maximize their full potential, and foster a love of learning. Our facility is a safe and nurturing environment, built with 5000 square feet of carefully designed classroom space for stimulating and enriching your child's learning experiences. We strive to challenge and cultivate each student's distinct interests and abilities with an accelerated curriculum that is modeled after the Theory of Multiple Intelligences and Harvard University Project Spectrum in conjunction with New York State Next Generation Learning Standards. We implement contemporary theories of education through practical teaching applications, which has afforded My Spectrum School with continual support from renowned researchers and exceptional practitioners in the field of gifted and talented education. Each of our students are encouraged to explore the diverse spectrum of knowledge in breadth and depth, discover new concepts and ideas, and develop necessary skills for success in the modern world.

Gifted Children

According to the Federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act, gifted and talented children are:

Students, children, or youth who give evidence of high achievement capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic, or leadership capacity, or in specific academic fields, and who need services and activities not ordinarily provided by the school in order to fully develop those capabilities [Title IX, Part A, Definition 22. (2002)].

Characteristic Traits of Gifted Children

By the broad spectrum of giftedness, characteristic traits of gifted children generally include exceptional levels of cognition, language acquisition, emotional intelligence, and motor skills. More specifically, if a child demonstrates approximately three quarters of the following characteristic traits, it is likely that she or he is gifted:

• Works conscientiously, persistently, with a high degree of concentration.
• Has an extensive and detailed memory, especially in an area of interest.
• Has advanced vocabulary and communication skills.
• Highly inquisitive and loves to learn.
• Is able to identify important characteristics of new concepts and problems.
• Understands principles, forms generalizations, and uses them in new situations.
• Learns information quickly.
• Uses logic in arriving at common sense answers.
• Recognizes patterns.
• Has a broad base of knowledge.
• Understands abstract ideas and complex concepts.
• Uses critical thinking, logic, effective and efficient reasoning in problem solving.
• Observes relationships and sees connections.
• Understands and uses various symbol systems.
• Is reflective about learning.
• Displays leadership qualities.
• Has a heightened sensitivity towards moral, ethical, and social issues.
• Possesses a vivid imagination.
• Is original and creative.

Nurture

It is essential that educators and parents understand the needs of gifted children in order to develop their gifts. At My Spectrum School, we strive to maximize our student's potential and foster the cognitive, emotional, social, and physical growth of each child within a nurturing, stimulating environment that explores the seven domains of knowledge:

• Language
• Math
• Science
• Art
• Music
• Social Understanding
• Movement