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.

What does HPGE look like at Sandy Hollow Public School?

Sustainability Groups at Sandy Hollow Public School aim to foster all students' potential in all domains of the Department of Education's High Potential and Gifted Education Policy. This promotes engagement and challenge for every student in every school. What looks like heaps of fun at school is nurturing the potential of our students, particularly in the Social-Emotional learning, Intellectual and Creative domains.

It gives students whose strengths lie in these areas the chance to grow in their creativity, leadership and mentoring capacity, as well as helping younger students develop their natural abilities in self-management, relating to, and interacting with others.

At SHPS we do all of this through our Sustainability Groups!

High potential and gifted education for all students

We strive to know our students to ensure that the full range of their abilities and needs is recognised.
We create a supportive and culturally safe learning environment. Our teachers use culturally responsive teaching methods, recognising that students’ cultural backgrounds influence their ways of knowing, thinking and communicating. We have a close connection with Muswellbrook High School, which, through extensive transition programs, ensures that our students’ potential is nurtured well beyond our setting.
We foster positive relationships with families and communities to support all students to reach their potential.

Our high potential and gifted education opportunities

Our students engage with HPGE education in the classroom, in our school, and across NSW.

In our classroom

At Sandy Hollow Public School, HPGE lives in everyday practice. Many students have high potential, and we help that potential to grow into something powerful.

Teachers identify students' learning needs in the classroom and use evidence-informed teaching practices to challenge and extend students. We provide learning pathways, including enrichment and extension programs and acceleration.
Our supportive classroom environments promote a sense of belonging and encourage risk-taking, creativity and collaboration.
Groups are flexible, students take lead roles, and feedback is strengths-based with clear goals and self-assessment.
Our teachers engage in professional learning to support the diverse needs of all students, including our high potential and gifted learners

Across our school

Every student is individual, so opportunities are flexible and diverse.

Being from a regional area gives our school the chance to be innovative in our approach to high potential and gifted learners. For example: varied age class groupings, virtual classrooms, school networking (Small School) opportunities.
Our school partners with other regional schools to deliver teaching and learning experiences and opportunities for all students to develop their potential in all domains: creative, intellectual, physical and social-emotional.
Our school partners with community organisations to provide opportunities for student voice and student advocacy.
We use technology to provide different ways of learning that help students develop their talent, regardless of distance, location or background.

Across NSW

Our students participate in a wide range of programs to extend and enrich student potential.

Our students have the opportunity to travel to different sporting events across NSW.

Our students participate in a wide range of statewide programs to extend and enrich student potential.
Statewide/NSW Department of Education level support is available for our high potential and gifted students.
We provide access to local, state and national competitions and events to help students explore and extend their talents.