CODE Coordinator:

Stephanie Hill

School E-mail: Stephanieh@hickmanmills.org
School Phone: (816) 316- 7167

Our mission is to open the doors of opportunity for your child!

CODE stands for Center of Differentiated Education and academic enrichment program for gifted students grades 5th through 12th grade. CODE is a program for academically gifted and talented students based on research and program development by Dr. Joseph S. Renzulli and his associates at the University of Connecticut. Dr. Renzulli's work has provided the philosophical cornerstone for numerous gifted and talented programs across our nation. Our Hickman Mills C-1 School District CODE program has been designed to include those concepts advocated by Dr. Renzulli and to meet specific standards put forth by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

A day at CODE includes a wide variety of activities designed to meet the needs of gifted students: TYPE I - General exploratory activities such as speakers, field trips, learning centers, etc. TYPE II - Training sessions, group or individual, for developing competency in specialized areas such as research, computer use, critical thinking, creative writing, art techniques, photography, music composition, learning styles, genealogy, and many others designed to meet a particular student's need or interest. TYPE III - Investigations of a real problem in which an eventual product is presented to a specific audience. These investigations are the culmination of the CODE experience. The student uses the same techniques as a professional in the same endeavor. Products are based on student interests and are generally individual or perhaps small group ventures.

PEP (Primary Enrichment Program) is for high ability students in grades K-3. The program meets specific standards put forth by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.  Students are selected on the basis of standardized achievement scores, parent/teachers documentation, and I.Q. The assessment of these abilities involves a series of measures that require several months to complete.

Students are selected  The PEP curriculum focuses on content-process enrichment. The students participate in teacher-directed learning activities based on high interest topics not normally covered in the regular classroom. These activities emphasize the development of higher-level thinking, creativity, problem solving, and discovery learning on the basis of mental ability, creativity and achievement. The assessment of these abilities involves a series of measures that require several months to complete.

ACE (Artistic and Creative Exploration) is a fine arts component for students in grades 1-5 who demonstrate exceptional ability in one or more areas of the arts (visual arts, vocal music, drama, creative writing.) The program meets specific standards as set forth by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.  Students must demonstrate and document outstanding creativity and artistic ability in one or more of the following areas: visual arts, vocal music, drama, and creative writing. Students are selected on the basis of parent/teacher documentation, standardized creativity testing, and portfolio documentation.

The ACE curriculum provides artistically gifted students the opportunity to work on activities that focus on personal expression and experimentation in the arts. These activities emphasize the development of creativity, problem-solving, individual artistic facilities, as well as expand appreciation and understanding of the arts.