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Gifted & Talented

DPS Gifted and Talented's Commitment to Equity

The GT department fully supports the Black Lives Matter Movement and the disruption of systemic racism.  Last August, we began discussing the “Why” of our work and our purpose in gifted education. Throughout the 2019-2020 school year, our entire GT department (schools and central) focused to develop an understanding of the systems that perpetuate oppression of students of color.  The  current (and ongoing) racial injustices have only strengthened our focus on systemic racism and white supremacy culture to identify the barriers students are facing with identification, access, opportunities, and programming and make changes. 

Please check back for more information about how we are moving forward in this important work. 

A Notice on Magnet Testing (June 30)

As of June 30, 2020, summer testing of spring applicants has been delayed until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Testing cannot be conducted without clearance from district leadership and health departments.  Please check this website for updates.

Contact Stacey Pendleton with any further questions.

Characteristics of Giftedness
Identification Process
GT Programs and Services in DPS
Frequently Asked Questions
About Us & Contact Info
Testing Application

Department Closure Alert

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Denver Public Schools Gifted and Talented Department will be working remotely until further notice. GT teachers and coordinators will be available to support students and their families during this remote learning period.

We wanted to share some resources that may be of use to you and your family. We send our warmest wishes during this uncertain time.

Resources to Families: DPS has provided lists of resources for families. For more information and Frequently Asked Questions on COVID-19, please visit: https://www.dpsk12.org/coronavirus/faq-covid-19/ 

The National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) has issued a document on Supporting Your Gifted Child During COVID-19

Food Distribution: DPS is offering breakfast and lunch to students and families throughout the city. Food Distribution sites can be found here: https://www.dpsk12.org/coronavirus/#food 

How to Find My GT Teacher/Point of Contact: Click here for the point of contact list and remote learning office hours. Our department coordinators are also here to help! Visit the About Us page for contact info.

Engaging and Educating Students Virtually

We want to make sure that our GT students and families had access to a world of wonderful resources to keep them busy and engaged while at home!

Learning Videos
Education Videos
PBS Kids 
Education on Demand (Catalog of educational videos by topic) 

Bilingual and Spanish Language Resources: 100 Spanish Language Resources for Bi-Lingual Parents

YouTube Channels 
AsapScience
Bozeman Science
Bunsen Burns
ChemistNATE
Crash Course Kids
CrashCourse
Everyday Science TV
HighSchool Science 101
It’s Okay To Be Smart
Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell
Mastering Organic Chem
MinutePhysics
MIT Course Ware
National Geographic
Periodic Videos
SciShow Kids
SciShow Psych
SciShow Space
SciShow
ScienceMom
Smarter Everyday
Veritasium

Field Trip and Museum

Tours
Virtual Field Trips 
International Virtual Museum Tours
Butterfly Pavilion Education Livestream

Arts, Crafts, Movement
The Creative Collective
Beanstalk
50 Fun Things to do Outside with Kids as a Family
Metropolitan Opera (live streaming the an opera every day) 
Wild Free and Crafty Free Art Lessons

Science and Engineering Content Specific
Mark Rober – YouTube Channel on Science
Bill Nye the Science Guy
Tumble podcasts

Social Studies and History Content Specific
Liberty’s Kids – YouTube Channel
Extra Credit Extra History YouTube
Freakonomics Radio

We Need Your Voice! GT Family Advisory Group

Members of the GT Family Advisory Group will:

  • Work with the GT Department to identify areas of strength, challenge, and growth
  • Support the GT Department with awareness-building across the district for the needs of advanced learners
  • Work to suggest tools for communication

The advisory group will meet once every two months for 1.5-2 hours

Save the Date for upcoming evening meetings (5:30-7:00 pm)

  • Future Dates TBD

If you are interested, please go to the online form: https://tinyurl.com/yywmj9sq

English flyer
Spanish flyer

Contact Us

Phone: 720-423-2056
Email: giftedandtalented@dpsk12.org
Mailing Address: 1860 Lincoln St, 8th Floor NE, Denver, CO 80203
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dpsgifted/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/dps_gt

School Programming Plans

The programming plans for the 2019-2020 school year are now available.
Gifted and Talented Teacher/Point of Contact

A Note About Activities

As of May 2019, the Gifted and Talented department no longer houses activities.

For questions related to Destination Imagination, please email Minda McGurk at denverdico@gmail.com

For questions related to Semantics/Spelling Bee contact Bill Shaeffer at bcs640@msn.com

Interested in Magnet Testing?

The spring testing window is no longer accepting applications. All applications received after April 1st will be held for testing in the fall. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the scheduled date for Saturday, April 25th is now cancelled based upon city and state stay-at-home and social distancing guidelines. We will be offering sessions in the summer to allow for the testing to occur for School Choice placement. The dates are yet to be determined, but will likely occur in June or July. We will wait until we have a more firm timeline based upon district recommendations. For more information, please read the COVID-19 Impact on Spring Testing email that was sent to families of current applicants on April 9th. 

Nominate your child for magnet testing.

haga clic aquí para nominar a su hijo para la prueba de enfoque especial (Magnet) para Estudiantes Altamente Dotados.

Downloadable application- English

Downloadable application – Spanish

Fall Testing Appeals Process

It is the goal of  DPS  to provide all of our students with appropriate academic services. When there is a disagreement on matters pertaining to the identification, evaluation and eligibility for gifted services the appeals process may be initiated.

Written appeals based on one of the following criteria may be sent to the Gifted and Talented Department:

  • Additional information about my child which may include, but is not limited to, newly obtained district assessment data, parent examples of advanced abilities, etc. Please note: Private testing will not be considered as a reason for appeal.
  • A condition or circumstance believed to have caused a misinterpretation of the testing results.
  • An extraordinary circumstance occurred during the testing period that may negatively affect the validity of the test results such as a death in the family or extreme physical ailment.
  • The suspicion of an error in the administration of the assessment.  For example: The designated proctor did not follow assessment prescribed protocols.  Testing day or time of assessment within the school day are not considered to be errors in administration.

Written appeals must include:

  • your name, address, phone number, and email (if available)
  • the student’s name, student identification number (if known), date of birth, and school of attendance
  • reason for the appeal based on the above criteria
  • any supporting additional data that would be helpful to the Appeal Review Team (e.g. district testing data, observation scales, personal observations of the child’s advanced abilities/thinking)

Appeals must be completed and sent to the district office following the notification of identification decision. Please send appeals to:

Attention: Appeal Review Team Gifted and Talented Department
1860 Lincoln Street 8th Floor NE
Denver, CO 80203

Please do not email.

The Gifted and Talented Department’s Appeal Team will notify you of next steps within 10 business days of receiving the appeal.

All appeals will go before the Appeal Review Team, and you will be notified of the decision by email. The team may contact you for additional information if necessary.  The decision of the Appeal Review Team is final.

About Us

The Gifted and Talented team is focused on leading the nation in providing equitable, high impact gifted programming.

We strive to ensure that gifted and talented students are engaged, rigorously challenged and supported to reach their full emotional, intellectual, and creative potential. By equipping students to become successful, critical, compassionate, and collaborative individuals, we are preparing them to become leaders and citizens of the 21st century.

Our Services

We provide services to gifted/high potential students and their families. Gifted and Talented Services oversees gifted and highly-gifted identification in the district. Gifted identification begins at the school level with the GT teacher and ends with a district level identification team review process. In addition, we support and monitor each schools’ gifted programming in order to support best practice for gifted learners.

Resources and Links