High potential and gifted education

Some students learn faster and more easily than others. These students may shine in creativity, thinking, leadership or sport.

At our school, we recognise and nurture these strengths early. We support advanced learners with great lessons and activities to help them grow and thrive.

Why choose us for your high potential or gifted child?

Recognising potential and developing talent

Our teachers find potential and nurture our students to be the best they can be.

Tailored lessons

Each student has different abilities. Teachers respond to each student’s ability by providing extra challenges and extension activities to keep learning exciting and engaging.

Rich opportunities and activities

Students can take part in opportunities to develop their talent in the arts, sport, leadership and more.

Opening doors to wider experiences

Our students can participate in a wide range of state-wide opportunities that aim to extend and enrich student potential.

What is high potential and gifted education?

High potential and gifted education (HPGE) is how our school supports students with advanced learning needs.

We do this through:

effective teaching strategies like enrichment, extension and acceleration

tailored support during lessons that stretch, challenge and inspire

access to a wide range of opportunities both within and beyond our school.

Our high potential and gifted education opportunities

The New South Wales Department of Education is committed to ensuring that all students, regardless of background or personal circumstances, have access to learning programs that meet their learning needs and support students to achieve personal excellence. The High Potential and Gifted Education Policy promotes engagement and challenge for every student across the intellectual, creative, social-emotional and physical domains. It aims to ensure students achieve their full potential through talent development opportunities as well as differentiated teaching and learning practices to ensure their needs are met.

At Menai High School, we strive to ensure students are part of an inclusive and diverse learning environment that enriches their personal growth. Our programs are designed in accordance with the Department of Education High Potential and Gifted Education Policy to provide opportunities that accommodate a range of learning needs, including talent development in a range of areas. Our staff are committed to developing the skills of each student at any stage of their learning and ensuring teaching, both within and beyond the classroom, is relevant, engaging, and differentiated in intellectual, physical, socio-emotional and creative domains.

In Our Classroom:

Intellectual Domain

Our enrichment program is part of our broader differentiation strategy. The enrichment classes cater for students who achieve notably high academic results and demonstrate a strong work ethic. Students in enrichment are exposed to more challenging, higher-order curriculum content and progress through this curriculum at a more rapid pace. We hold high expectations regarding work ethic and academic achievement.

Placement in Year 7 enrichment class/es is based upon students’ academic achievement in primary school, along with results from transition tests. These enrichment classes remain the same for English, Mathematics, Science, History and PDHPE. This structure continues in Year 8 but students must continue to earn their place in the class on the basis of their assessment and examination results, along with their focus and completion of work. New enrolments are considered for placement in the class on the basis of their most recent school reports.

In Year 9 and Year 10, our curriculum structure changes with students moving across classes in English/HSIE, Science, Mathematics and PDHPE. Differentiated structures exist in each of these core subjects, and, for example, students might be in a different level class for Mathematics, than for English/HSIE. As with Year 7 and 8, placement in classes is based upon academic achievement in that area.

Across our school

Physical Domain

All students at Menai High are engaged in various physical activities through the compulsory study of PDHPE in Year 7-10, alongside compulsory Thursday afternoon sport in Year 7-10. All students can participate in the Athletics and Swimming carnivals.

For students who are identified as physically gifted or who possess high potential, either through staff observation, parents nomination or previous achievements, or have an interest and/or history of involvement in sport, Menai High School offers:

A variety of grade sport options, with further selection pathways through Zone, Regional and CHS representative teams
NSW CHS knockout sports teams, along with regional sports
Access to training programs and the school gym

Social Emotional Domain

All students at Menai High are constantly challenged and developed to be skilled learners, skilled citizens and skilled for life. Students develop their social, emotional and leadership skills through incidental interactions with staff and students every day, and are all afforded opportunities to develop their leadership skills through targeted initiatives and programs that include:

SRC
Peer Mediation/ Wellbeing Ambassadors
Committees
Feel Good Friday

Creative Domain

Menai High School is a thriving creative environment where all students are actively engaged in the creative and performing arts curriculum, but also exposed to performances within the school assemblies. All students take part in art, music, drama classes across 7-8, with a number of further electives, including Dance, from 9-12. Further to this, for students who demonstrate interest or particular talent a number of opportunities are offered:

Bands (Stage and Concert)
Dance
Photography club
Plays/Musicals

Across NSW

Our STEM Enrichment Partnerships with ANSTO deepen our students’ intellectual curiosity while developing innovation and collaboration.

The Schools Spectacular is an iconic performing arts event that celebrates the talents, diversity and creativity of students from across NSW public schools.

Participation in (state/regional) drama ensembles promotes character exploration, storytelling and expressive freedom for our Stage 5 high potential and gifted drama students.

The Representative School Sport Pathway and PSSA and CHSSA events enable our students to trial and compete in sports at regional, state and national levels, fostering discipline, commitment and collaboration.