Alice Birney Elementary

DISTRICT MISSION
The mission of the Colton Joint Unified School District, a team of caring employees dedicated to the education of children, is to ensure each student learns the academic knowledge and skills necessary to thrive in college or in the workforce and be responsible, productive citizens by providing engaging, challenging and enriching opportunities and specialized programs in a safe environment in partnership with students, families and our diverse communities.

Statement of Purpose
The purpose of the Colton Joint Unified School District’s GATE Elementary Program is to provide an enriched and differentiated curriculum for scholars who demonstrate excellence beyond that of their peers.  Scholars at all levels need to be provided with appropriate learning activities and a differentiated core curriculum. Gifted scholars need to be able to exceed content standards. Standards need to be in place for gifted scholars in advanced levels of depth, pacing, complexity, novelty, and acceleration.  The inclusion of these five elements will ensure that our scholars are provided with challenging learning experiences.  Principles of differentiated instruction for the Gifted and Talented Learner are: content/ topic, process/activities, product, and environment.  These experiences should be designed for all gifted scholars regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status.