If your child WAS NOT on the wait list for 2011-2012, and wishes to apply for grades 5-8 for the 2012-2013 school year:

Step 1. PREPARE your documentation
As noted below in step 4, when it is time to apply, the school will require a number of documents, including a copy of the student's birth certificate (and, if the child was born outside Canada, landing papers/immigration documents - ideally in the form of a Permanent Residency Card). A copy of the student's immunization records is also requested. Making the required photocopies/scans now will save you time later!

Step 2: ATTEND the information evening
As noted above, there will not be a specific information night for grades 5-8 this year, due to the limited number of spaces available in these grades. Parents may choose to attend the High School information night on January 25 (7:00 PM, Mid High Gym) in order to get a look at the mid-high building, and a general overview of Westmount's approach to giftedness.

Step 3: DOWNLOAD the application package
Application packages will be available HERE, starting the evening of January 18, 2012. If the form does not download immediately, click on F5 or refresh your web browser to ensure that you are working from the most recent version of the web page.

Step 4: SUBMIT the completed application package
There are TWO PARTS to completing the application:

Part One: the downloaded application packages are to be fully completed with all documents attached, and received by the school no later than 4:00 PM, February 8, 2012; late applications will not be reviewed until all applications received by the deadline are processed.

The following documents must accompany the application package:

- photocopy of Birth Certificate and, if applicable, Immigration Papers (ideally in the form of a Permanent Residency Card);
- any relevant medical information regarding your child (e.g. allergies or medical conditions plus details of all required treatments or accommodations);
- photocopy of school Report Cards (current year), Attendance Records;
- a current IPP, if your child has one. If your child is not receiving gifted programming in his/her present school setting, the school might not have developed an IPP;
- recent Psychological/Educational Assessment, if you already have one. Please note, however, that this documentation will be required of late applicants;
- immunization records (requested, but optional);
- recent photo of student (optional).

Completed applications, including all accompanying documentation, are to be scanned and emailed to registrar@westmountcharter.com, or delivered in person to Westmount's registration desk, located in the elementary office, 728 - 32 St NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 2V9.

Part Two: complete the nomination forms online and submit. These forms do not need to be printed out and e-mailed in, they are to be completed online. One form gets completed by the parent(s). The other form gets completed by a teacher or adult familiar with, but not related to, the student - please direct him/her to complete this form online.
The nomination form to be completed by the parent(s) is HERE.
The referral form to be completed by the teacher/other adult is HERE.

Step 5: WAIT until notified of a Student Assessment time
As mentioned earlier, we have limited openings for grades 5-8. In the spring of 2012 we will determine how many openings we have for each grade in 2012-2013. We will be inviting students for further assessment based on the number of openings at your grade level. We hope to have these invitations issued by late March, 2012.

Typically, the assessment includes the Canadian Cognitive Abilities Test (CCAT), which "provides information on the student's verbal, quantitative, and nonverbal abilities.  The verbal [assessment] is intended to determine a student’s ability to reason with words or language. The second part of the assessment [quantitative] attempts to evaluate a student’s aptitude to reason with numbers. The final section [non-verbal] measures the capability to reason involving shapes, patterns and abstract concepts."*

In order to prepare for this day, students should get a good night's sleep the night before - there's nothing they need to "study" ahead of time.

Step 6: WAIT for notification of our decision
After students have completed the Student Intake Assessment, a final decision will be made by the Selection Committee as to program suitability. All applicants will be notified by email of the Selection Committee’s decision, toward the end of April. Please ensure that we have your correct email address on file!

Step 7: COMPLETE the online acceptance/registration process
If a space is offered, families will need to complete the online acceptance/registration process and pay a non-refundable $100 deposit to confirm their acceptance at Westmount. Deadlines and instructions will be clearly stated when the spaces are offered.

Please note: families that are applying to join us in the coming school year need to notify us of any changes/additions to their child’s personal information. Examples may be: address, home/work phone numbers, e-mail addresses, custody issues, emergency contacts, medical conditions, allergies, and any psychological or educational reports. In order for us to better serve your family’s needs, it is imperative that the school be made aware of any changes.

If your child WAS on the wait list for 2011-2012, and wishes to apply for grades 5-8 for the 2012-2013 school year:

Step 1 (2011-2012 waitlisted appicants only): DOWNLOAD page 1 of the application package
Students who applied for grades 4-7 for the 2011-2012 school year, and were on the wait list, should download and complete only page 1 of the application package.

Application packages will be available ONLINE ONLY from this site, starting the evening of January 18, 2012. If the form does not download immediately, click on F5 or refresh your web browser to ensure that you are working from the most recent version of the web page. Applications will be accepted electronically (scanned to email) or in person.

Step 2 (2011-2012 waitlisted appicants only): SUBMIT application materials
If your child applied for grades 4-7 for the 2011-2012 school year, and was on the wait list, you should submit only pages 1 and 2 of the application package along with a photocopy of your child's most recent report card, and a copy of the assessment letter you received from Westmount last year. Along with these application materials, please (1) indicate that your child was on the 2011-2012 wait list and wishes to be considered for 2012-2013 admission, (2) indicate whether or not you wish to have your child attend the assessment day, since he/she has already done the CCAT test, and (3) include any information that you would like to update (for example, if your child now has a Psychological-Educational assessment, or an updated teacher referral, or if other information has changed substantially).

Application materials may be scanned and emailed to registrar@westmountcharter.com, or delivered in person to Westmount's registration desk, located in the elementary office, 728 - 32 St NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 2V9.

Step 3: WAIT until notified of a Student Assessment time
As mentioned earlier, we have limited openings for grades 5-8. In the spring of 2012 we will determine how many openings we have for each grade in 2012-2013. We will be inviting students for further assessment based on the number of openings at your grade level. We hope to have these invitations issued by late March, 2012.

Typically, the assessment includes the Canadian Cognitive Abilities Test (CCAT), which "provides information on the student's verbal, quantitative, and nonverbal abilities.  The verbal [assessment] is intended to determine a student’s ability to reason with words or language. The second part of the assessment [quantitative] attempts to evaluate a student’s aptitude to reason with numbers. The final section [non-verbal] measures the capability to reason involving shapes, patterns and abstract concepts."*

In order to prepare for this day, students should get a good night's sleep the night before - there's nothing they need to "study" ahead of time.

Step 4: WAIT for notification of our decision
After students have completed the Student Intake Assessment, a final decision will be made by the Selection Committee as to program suitability. All applicants will be notified by email of the Selection Committee’s decision, toward the end of April. Please ensure that we have your correct email address on file!

Step 5: COMPLETE the online acceptance/registration process
If a space is offered, families will need to complete the online acceptance/registration process and pay a non-refundable $100 deposit to confirm their acceptance at Westmount. Deadlines and instructions will be clearly stated when the spaces are offered.

Please note: families that are applying to join us in the coming school year need to notify us of any changes/additions to their child’s personal information. Examples may be: address, home/work phone numbers, e-mail addresses, custody issues, emergency contacts, medical conditions, allergies, and any psychological or educational reports. In order for us to better serve your family’s needs, it is imperative that the school be made aware of any changes.

QUICK LINKS:

Mid-School Application Downloads: all three must be completed in order to apply
Application package
Parent and student nomination form
Teacher/other adult referral form

Why Westmount? click here for a "white paper" by Martha Faulkner, entitled Choosing a School Program for Gifted Students.

Please note: Westmount Charter School's mid-high laptop program is currently under revision. If you wish to see the way this program has worked this year, click "one-to-one laptop program" in the links menu on the right hand side of this page.

Go to: High School Admissions • Grade 2-4 Admissions • Grade 1 Admissions • Kindergarten Admissions

24 January 2012

* - thanks to the Medicine Hat Catholic School Division for this explanation of the CCAT