Abstract
Since the summer of 1975 the Gifted Department of the Rockford Public Schools has provided a pre-school program for pre-kindergarteners who are potentially able learners (P.A.L.s). The program has been for identified gifted children and their parents attending co-joint sessions with preschoolers in a classroom environment directed by a teacher and parents in a discussion/work group with a psychologist. Identification techniques have ranged from nomination of children by the district's elementary school staffs after pre-kindergarten screening in the Spring to individual testing with the Slosson Intelligence Test. Children have participated in a center-based classroom with some academic emphases. Parents met to discuss topics which included understanding the gifted child, parenting, further enrichment techniques, developing at-home learning experiences, and expressing feelings about topics of personal relevance.
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