Program Overview

During the four-week session, students in grades 1-8 will dive into exciting and challenging courses designed to develop and enhance such skills as communication, leadership, problem solving, and inventive thinking. Working both independently and in groups, students will improve social skills while enhancing their academic abilities through the course curriculum.

Students are encouraged to work within their own specialty areas, resulting in a learning experience that is personalized and truly unique for each student. At the end of the program, students incorporate the skills and knowledge they have learned by building solutions to the projects introduced in each course and presenting them to their parents.

Grades 1 & 2 – Mathematical Mysteries – This problem-based learning course will extend students’ knowledge of mathematics, from addition and subtraction to expanded notation and probability, and allow them to practice the real-world applications of concepts such as place value, grouping and symbols. By applying knowledge of place value and numeration, students will solve codes and ciphers, unraveling mathematical mysteries from the past, present, and even the future! Students will work together to analyze an unusual problem, decide on areas where they need to conduct research and gain new knowledge, and then present solutions to the problem.

Grades 3 & 4 – Shuttle Huddle – As aeronautical engineers, students are tasked with a top-secret mission to help a shuttle from the future that has crashed into the nearby Hudson River so that the occupants can return to their own time. Students will become researchers and engineers as they discover new pieces of the ship that they are trying to reassemble, using what they know about modern-day transportation to transform a shuttle from the future into a working vehicle today. Students will explore the physics of motion and speed in air, land, and water, modeling the scientific process in order to restore the shuttle to working condition. To help the space shuttle take off and return home, students will need to analyze the problem, determine what information they need to solve the problem, and come up with solutions to the scenario.

Grades 5 & 6 – Sense-ible Sleuthing – Students will hone their sleuthing senses as they learn about gathering information through the world of detection. From computer and technological detection to observation of physical and psychological signs, from gold and metal detectors to finding evidence of the supernatural, detection is a booming business! Working together to solve a problem, students will research detection through senses, technology, signals, codes, and verbal and non-verbal communication. Students will decide what areas they need to investigate, how to gather the information, and then go about the process of securing the knowledge needed to solve their case. Students will leave with great skills for increasing their awareness of the world around them!

Grades 7 & 8 – Deer Diary – Students will work together as an investigative team created by the Mayor to solve the problem of deer over-population in the local area. In this problem-based learning experience, students are tasked with creating a solution to the problem brought forward by town residents, who are complaining that the deer are a nuisance, eating plants and spreading ticks around the town. The students are presented with the initial problem, and then determine the areas where they need further research and study. Students then begin the process of researching animal populations in order to strategize a solution to the problem. Students will put their mathematical and scientific skills to work in this in-depth exploration of population biology, honing their presentation skills through the final project, a proposal to the Mayor and town residents.

Dates and Fees

Our Saturday program will take place in Cornwall on Hudson, NY, from March 19 through April 9, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

There is a $95 application fee due at the time of application, which is non-refundable. The program fee due upon acceptance is $300. Payments can be made online or by mail.

SIG Eligibility

The SIG Saturday Program is open to students in grades 1-8 who have evidence of high academic ability and/or achievement. Students who meet one of the following criteria are invited to apply:

• Academically talented students currently in grades 1-8 who have scored in the 95th percentile or above in at least one of the major content areas or ability sections of a nationally-normed standardized test administered by their schools (IOWA, CAT, MAT, CTBS, SRA, TERRA NOVA, etc.).
  
  
• Students who have been identified as gifted and/ or who have participated successfully in a local or school gifted program.
  

If no local or school gifted program exists, or if no test scores are available, two Letter of Recommendation forms can be submitted. Students should submit one letter from a teacher and one letter from a school administrator who is familiar with the student’s record and performance. For children in grades 1-3, one letter may be from a parent.

Application Procedure and Deadlines

The deadline for The Storm King School is March 9, 2011.

Due to space limitations in the programs, we suggest that applicants submit their materials as soon as possible. Admission is on a rolling, first-come, first-served basis according to the postmark date on the application form envelope. Applications submitted after the deadline will be considered on a space available basis.

	Apply Online!
	Download the Brochure
	Download the Application
	Download the Recommendation Form

Please mail completed applications to:

Summer Institute for the Gifted
Admissions Office - SP
River Plaza
9 West Broad Street
Stamford, Connecticut 06902

Contact Information

If you have any questions about SIG Saturday, please contact Angela Lycan at (203) 399-5545 or email alycan@giftedstudy.org.