aurora quest k-8
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Aurora Quest K-8. A Choice School for Academic Excellence. Dave Schoenhals, Principal Cari Roberts, Assistant Principal Casey Powell, Dean of Students Nanette Jones, GT Facilitator Erin Graves, Counselor. Vision. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Aurora Quest K-8Dave Schoenhals, Principal
Cari Roberts, Assistant PrincipalCasey Powell, Dean of Students
Nanette Jones, GT FacilitatorErin Graves, Counselor
A Choice School for Academic Excellence
VisionTo be an exemplary school that develops innovative thinkers and leaders who are driven by our guiding principles.
PhilosophyAurora Quest K-8 believes that gifted and high potential learners come from all socio-economic and cultural groups and deserve to be educated at their level of academic attainment and beyond to ensure motivation, authentic learning, and advanced opportunities. Working with students for similar ability in a school devoted to optimal learning practices for gifted populations provides a rich context in which learning can become a reality.
Philosophy Authentic Learning
Experiences Enrichment Opportunities Affective Development
Instructional Practices & Authentic Learning ExperiencesTeach and use interactive instructional
practices…
Open-ended questions and learning tasks
Inquiry approaches Critical thinking skills Metacognition strategies
Curriculum
Language Arts College of William &
Mary Junior Great Books Authentic Literature Units of Study (writing)
Mathematics K-5 Investigations 5-8th Connected
Mathematics/CORE Mathematics
Science Foss College of William & Mary
Social Studies Scott Foresman History Alive DBQ College of William & Mary
Enrichment Opportunities
Visual and music arts
Band and orchestra Foreign language
Drama Community service Sports Technology
Provide opportunities for students in all grades to discover and develop their passions, talents and interests.
Affective DevelopmentGoals:Develop self-understanding,
leadership and interpersonal skills
Develop emotional intelligenceExplore career options at grade
5 and above
Affective DevelopmentGuiding Principles:
Resp
ect
Adaptabili
tyCompassionExcellence
Integrit
y
Perseverance
Responsibilit
y
Cour
age
Who Should Apply?Students entering grades 1st through 8th
who have been identified as Gifted and Talented or High Potential at their home school and are:
Proficient in all core content areas (reading, writing and math)
Advanced in at least one core content areaHighly motivated
Complex thinkers In need of a challenging environment
Who Should Apply?Students entering Kindergarten next school
year and will be turning 5 years old by October 1st.
Some signs of a young gifted child may include:
Reaches milestones early Is verbally precocious/speaks in unusual
long sentences/extensive vocabulary Remembers everything Extreme curiosity/asks complex probing
questions
Who Should Apply?If your child turns 5 years old after Oct. 1st
and you feel she is school ready: You must contact Donna Buss for Early
Access testing [email protected] Your child must qualify for Early Access
to be eligible for Quest. Go through our application process and
we will get the Early Access results from the district.
Application Timeline Sept. 27th – Applications available Oct. 9th – Parent Information Night Nov. 8th – Deadline to notify school’s AGATE TL/Teacher Jan. 10th All Applications due to Quest by 3:00 p.m. Jan. 25th – Testing for grade 1st-8th applicants if needed Jan. 25th and Feb. 1 – Kindergarten testing & screening
appointments Week of March 24th – Decision letters mailed for all grade
levels May 7th 6:00 p.m. – Scheduling Meeting for new incoming
6th, 7th, 8th graders and their parents
Quick Facts $100 testing fee for out-of-district applicants Transportation from each quadrant of district 20-hour parent volunteer commitment Traditional school calendar No school uniforms Before/after school daycare After school enrichment opportunities
FAQQ: How many spots are there for each grade
level?A: For Kindergarten there are possibly 50
depending on the number of qualified applicants.For 1st-5th and 7th-8th we never know. Depending upon current students moving there can be 0 to 4, possibly more.For 6th grade there can 30 or so as we typically open a new section.
FAQQ: Do siblings take priority over other
applicants?A: Not necessarily. We look at all
qualified applicants equally and determine which students are best qualified for that spot. If we have equally qualified applicants for one spot, we will offer it to a sibling.
FAQQ: What are the chances for out of district
applicants getting a spot?A: For Kindergarten and 6th grade
applicants we have been able to take out of district students. At the other grade levels it is difficult for any applicant as there are very few spots available, but there has been years in which we have exhausted the waitlist.
FAQQ: What are your class sizes?A: Kindergarten through 2nd are typically
25-27 students.3rd-5th are 27-29 students.Middle School are typically around 30.
FAQ Students are considered “In district” if
they reside in the Aurora Public Schools boundaries in which their neighborhood school is an APS school.
Students are considered “Out of district” if they reside in a neighborhood in which they would attend a non-APS school (some Aurora neighborhoods are NOT in the APS district).
FAQ If your child is currently attending a non-
APS school, but you live in the district, she is considered in district.
If your child attends an APS school, but you live outside of the district, she is considered out of district.
Once your child has been accepted to attend Quest (in or out of district), you do not reapply each year, she is in.
FAQ If you missed the Parent Informational
Meeting this PowerPoint includes all of the information covered at the meeting.
As far as tours, our Videography class is preparing a virtual tour so that parents and student applicants can see our wonderful school. This helps keep our students’ instructional time from any distractions. So stay tuned as the video should be up in the next few weeks.
