GATE

Students who display special abilities are provided for within the classroom programmes through differentiated learning. This is achieved by focusing on individual needs and different ways of learning and creating a variety of opportunities for students to self direct and self manage their own learning.

Gifted and Talented

Gifted students at Pigeon Mountain Primary School are those who have the ability or potential ability to achieve significantly beyond their peers, in one or more areas.

Talented students at Pigeon Mountain Primary School are those who demonstrate their ability through performance or achievement, significantly beyond their peers in one or more areas.

Gifted and talented students at Pigeon Mountain Primary School can be found in every culture and in every socioeconomic group.

Thinking Skills Programme:

All students are able to think, but knowing how to select and use specific thinking strategies to problem solve, make decisions and foster creativity requires a deliberate and structured thinking skills programme. Thinking is a key competency which underpins everything we do and teaches students to be reflective, life long learners.

External Academic competitions:

In Years 4-6, students can take part in the ICAS exams. These are run by the University of New South Wales. Students from New Zealand, Australia and Asia compete in external exams in writing, spelling, mathematics, science and computer skills. Students may participate in one or several of the exams.

P.E. Specialisation:

Students have the opportunity to be taught by our P.E. specialist.  The P.E. specialist takes whole classes for weekly 45 minute sessions and takes gifted and talented sports groups as well. We have many sports teams which participate in the local interschool competitions and field days.

Mandarin Lessons:

Students in years 1-6 who wish to learn Mandarin can opt for lessons after school on a weekly basis. These lessons are run by one of our Pigeon Mountain parents.

Speeches:

Each year, students from Years 3-6 participate in school speech competitions. Year 3 & 4 present a 1 minute hobby talk and Year 5 and 6 present a 3 minute speech on their chosen topic. The Year 6 students also compete to represent the school at the interschool speech competition.

Performing Arts:

Students are encouraged to join our choir and dance groups. Our Year 5 & 6 students audition for the choir and participate in the local school choir festival. We have 2 dance groups, Year 2 and Year 6. They represent the school in the local dance festival.

Environmental Education:

Students have many opportunities to get involved in environmental education. We have gardening groups, worm farms, an orchard, a vegetable garden and composting.

Maths Extension

Maths Extension classes at Pigeon Mountain typically run one afternoon a week, for each whanua and are aimed at Year 5 and Year 6 students. All senior students are allowed to sit the beginning of year test, so a very small number of Year 4 students are often accepted into the group.

The main focus of the group is to develop a range of strategies for Maths word questions (Problem Solving).  Throughout the year students are entered into a range of different competitions in 2022 this included Kangarous Sans Frontiere, Otago Problem Solving, Australian Problem Solving Maths Olympiad  (APSMO) Games and Junior division and the Australian Maths competition.