Nurturing Gifted Minds in PACE

Deeper learners and critical thinkers. For teacher Jeni Waller, those two descriptors serve as the goalpost when working with her students.

Waller is a PACE teacher at Holdeman Elementary and Wood Elementary. PACE, which stands for Promoting Actualization through Creativity and Excellence, is Tempe Elementary Schools’ pull-out gifted program for students from kindergarten through fifth grade.

The program focuses on providing enrichment opportunities and challenging content for students identified as gifted in at least one of three categories: Verbal, Quantitative, or Non-Verbal/Spatial. During the week, PACE students are pulled out for an hour of “integrated” instruction, which focuses on opportunities to explore all three gifted categories. In addition, students are pulled out for an hour of instruction for each of the gifted categories in which they qualify. 

In her third year of teaching PACE, Waller is inspired by the experiences the program provides students. 

“PACE gives students a time to think outside of the box, stretch their understanding, and do things that they wouldn't be able to do in a classroom,” she shared. “A lot of times when students are having to answer a problem, they don't have a chance to explore the whys and the hows. PACE allows students to do that.”

This format also provides an atmosphere of what Waller refers to as productive struggle. Waller saw this concept play out recently in her fourth-grade Spatial group at Wood where students worked in pairs to code Dash Robots. As one duo zipped through the first few coding challenges, their progress waned when they encountered a task with a much higher level of difficulty. 

“You could see that one of the students was getting frustrated, but he kept seeking out the opportunity to try to figure out what it was versus just saying, ‘I'm done,’” Waller said when describing what productive struggle looks like in her classroom. “A lot of times activities might come with some frustration, but you have to build students up so that they know they can do it, even if they don't know they can do it,” Waller said.

In addition to PACE, Tempe Elementary Schools’ K-5 gifted students also have the opportunity to attend ASPIRE Academy at Arredondo, a self-contained gifted model. But for those who choose not to attend ASPIRE Academy, PACE is a perfect alternative to meet their needs. Vanessa Johnson teaches PACE at Meyer Montessori and Rover Elementary. For her, Tempe’s pull-out gifted program provides enriching opportunities for gifted students, while also allowing them to thrive in Tempe’s diverse learning environments, including Montessori.

“Not everybody can go to ASPIRE Academy at Arredondo or have the ability to transfer to a gifted school,” she said. “So, the fact that we can meet their needs where they already are is really important.”

On top of providing an accessible approach to servicing gifted students, Tempe Elementary Schools’ PACE program is also unique in how students qualify. While the state of Arizona mandates that schools provide gifted services for students who score in the 97th percentile and higher on a state-approved test, Tempe Elementary Schools provides services for students who score in or above the 94th percentile. 

In addition, Tempe’s gifted program also enlists talent development strategies to work with students who are on the cusp of qualifying, developing skills to help them reach the threshold. In implementing these strategies, the team hopes to open the doors for more students to benefit from challenging opportunities presented through PACE.

Last year, over 1,000 K-5 students across the District participated in the PACE program. That number is expected to be duplicated this year as students are tested throughout the school year. 

“Gifted students need a chance to work with their peers,” 18-year veteran PACE teacher Pam Kraus from Broadmor Elementary said. “They need the opportunity to be challenged in a different way and to learn things that they're not learning in the classroom. It’s important because if you’re gifted, you're gifted 24/7.”

About Tempe Elementary Schools’ PACE Gifted Program
PACE (Promoting Actualization through Creativity and Excellence) is Tempe Elementary Schools’ pull-out gifted program. PACE serves students from kindergarten through fifth grade identified as gifted at all elementary and K-8 school campuses. Learn more about Tempe Elementary Schools' gifted education offerings.