Rise Learning Academy – Gifted and Talented Programs
Rise Maths and Writing are intensive programs targeted at gifted and talented children. Our Maths curriculum is pitched 2-3 years above the Australian Curriculum level, while for Writing it can be as high as 5 years.
Given our gifted and talented curriculum, it is important that parents recognise that lesson time is structured to maximise explicit teacher instruction and guided student practice.
Enrolling at Rise therefore involves additional responsibilities on the part of parents and students to consolidate content taught in class. This is similar to learning a musical instrument where without daily practice a student will make limited progress even with the best teacher instruction.
Parents are responsible for reviewing lesson content with their child, filling any gaps in their child’s understanding and supervising homework tasks.
For the student, fostering a gifted mindset means being an independent learner, showing dedication to task and taking responsibility for one’s own learning.
Rise Gifted and Talented Maths
Parents recognise that our gifted and talented classes cover far more content than might be expected in other learning environments.
Rise class materials include detailed explanations on the weekly topic, weekly homework questions and fully-worked solutions for the weekly homework questions.
The homework solutions provide an invaluable guide for parents and students to consolidate learning and to fill any gaps in understanding.
We expect that parents will:
- Review each week’s lesson content with their child to consolidate learning and fill any gaps in their child’s understanding.
- Supervise their child for completion of the weekly homework questions.
- Mark the homework with their child using the fully-worked homework solutions.
- Review the Week 5 and 10 tests to track their child’s progress and identify any gaps for further home practice.
- Provide ongoing practice during term or the school holidays using past Rise lessons, the New Wave Mental Maths book or NAPLAN / GATE practice books.
Parents understand that given the amount of new content we cover each week, teachers will not have the opportunity in class to review previous weeks’ homework or to check that individual students have completed the required tasks at home.
Rise Gifted and Talented Writing
Writing homework comprises reading comprehension and vocabulary questions (Year 2 – 6) and weekly writing tasks (all years).
Given the need to explicitly teach reading comprehension and vocabulary skills, teachers will spend lesson time at the start of each class reviewing comprehension and vocabulary homework. It is important that students bring their completed homework to class each week or they will miss out on valuable instruction time.
Weekly writing homework can be uploaded to our online learning platform Moodle. It is the responsibility of students to ensure work is completed and submitted to Moodle before the due date. This will allow teachers sufficient time to mark and provide detailed feedback.
We expect that parents:
- Review lesson content with their child focusing on text structure and literary techniques. Read the model text with their child and discuss language, structure and literary techniques.
- Review the Weekly Power Words with their child so they understand the meaning and can apply the words in context.
- Discuss the meaning of any unfamiliar words with their child.
- Supervise their child as they complete the weekly homework.
- Discuss ideas with their child before they begin the writing homework. Review their completed writing.
- Check their child’s writing homework for sentence structure, grammar, spelling and punctuation.
- Check that their child has uploaded the writing homework on Moodle by the due date.
- Review the detailed teacher feedback with their child to improve their writing.
Parents understand that teachers undertake considerable lesson preparation for the weekly classes so will not have the opportunity to mark late homework or to follow-up students who have not completed the required tasks at home.
Our philosophy at Rise is to give every child the courage to try and the knowledge to succeed. We also foster a gifted and talented mindset where children become independent learners, show dedication to task and take responsibility for their own learning.
For parents, it is a wonderful opportunity to work with their child – to celebrate their strengths and successes, and to identify opportunities for personal improvement.
Gavin Goh
Founder and Principal
LLB B.Com W.Aust LLM Sydney MA Deakin
Grad.Dip.Arts Monash Grad.Dip.Ed Edith Cowan