Academics
ECE
- TS GOLD curriculum solutions are used by early childhood educators across the country, helping them to offer developmentally appropriate programs that support active learning and promote children’s progress in all developmental areas.
Kinder-3rd Grade
- Literacy
- Benchmark Advance and Adelante’s rigorous, integrated reading, writing, speaking, and listening instruction meets the needs of districts implementing a reading collaborative, balanced approach, or workshop model, and enables all students to master rigorous learning goals with the support of strong differentiated instruction and responsive teaching based upon ongoing assessments.
- Math
- Bridges in Mathematics: The curriculum focuses on developing students’ deep understandings of mathematical concepts, proficiency with key skills, and ability to solve complex and novel problems. Bridges blends direct instruction, structured investigation, and open exploration. It taps into the intelligence and strengths of all students by presenting material that is as linguistically, visually, and kinesthetically rich as it is mathematically powerful.
- Science
- Amplify Science is a highly engaging, phenomena-based program for grades K–8 that integrates the latest practices in science teaching and learning, as well as interactive digital tools and hands-on activities, to teach students how to think, read, write, and argue like real scientists and engineers.
4th-5th Grade
- Literacy
- The Expeditionary Learning curriculum combines rigorous content with effective practice, bringing together the “what” and “how” of Common Core Success. Students are engaged and excited about learning through great books, compelling topics and ownership of their learning. At the same time, teachers get a vision of the instructional practices that support a Common Core-aligned classroom and the tools to create it.
- Math
- Bridges in Mathematics: The curriculum focuses on developing students’ deep understandings of mathematical concepts, proficiency with key skills, and ability to solve complex and novel problems. Bridges blends direct instruction, structured investigation, and open exploration. It taps into the intelligences and strengths of all students by presenting material that is as linguistically, visually, and kinesthetically rich as it is mathematically powerful.
- Science
- Amplify Science is a highly engaging, phenomena-based program for grades K–8 that integrates the latest practices in science teaching and learning, as well as interactive digital tools and hands-on activities, to teach students how to think, read, write, and argue like real scientists and engineers.
K-5 ELD
EL Achieve is a language acquisition program which targets students’ ability to construct meaning, paired with systematic ELD instruction.
- Constructing Meaning: Explicit support in acquiring the language needed to comprehend and express understanding of grade-level work. This is also referred to as integrated ELD.
- Systematic ELD: Instruction in the English language as its own subject of study designed to grow students’ proficiency in English. This is also referred to as dedicated or designated ELD.
K-5 Social Emotional Resources
- ECE-5th Grade
- Second Step: A social and emotional program (SEL).
- 3rd Grade
- Riding the Waves: A suicide prevention program.
- Gizmos Pawsome Guide to Mental Health: A mental health and SEL curriculum.
- K-5th Grade
K-5 Data Driven Instruction
GVE is committed to utilizing multiple data sources and individual student’s Body of Evidence (BOE) to make instructional decisions. Teachers meet weekly to examine data. Teachers identify student strengths and opportunities for reteaching, as well as collaborate with teammates and specialists to determine interventions, strategies, and acceleration.
Assessments
All students at GVE are given assessments. Some assessments are state required, some are district required, some are school specific, and some assessments are given at different grade levels. Assessments provide data that can be used for several purposes – all of them intended to deliver instructionally useful information to teachers, students, principals, district administrators, and parents.
- Colorado Measures for Academic Success (CMAS): State standardized tests are administered mid-March through the end of April and cover literacy and math for all 3rd – 5th grades, in addition to Social Studies for 4th grade only (on a three year rotation), and Science for 5th grade only.
- ACCESS for ELLs 2.0: A standardized test developed by the WIDA Consortium, given in January, to ELL students to determine English language proficiency.
- Interim Assessments: DPS interim assessment is administered at different intervals between instruction.
- Istation: Students at all grade levels take the Istation assessment in Literacy and Math.
- DRA (English) and EDL (Spanish) Tests: Reading tests given at each grade level to determine a student’s reading level. Usually administered at the beginning and end of year.
- Curriculum Unit Assessments: Math and Literacy assessments that are built into curriculums to assess students’ progression towards grade level standards.