For Parents of Gifted Learners...

Who are our students at Westmount Charter School?

Westmount Charter School's mandate is to provide an excellent, publicly-funded program for Gifted Learners. Our Charter defines Giftedness in this way: "Students are gifted when they perform, or show potential for performing, remarkably high levels of accomplishment in learning rate, depth of knowledge, and reasoning and problem-solving abilities when compared to others of their age, experience, and environment."

Another helpful definition of giftedness comes from the Columbus Group (1991, in Morelock, 1992): "Giftedness is 'asynchronous development' in which advanced cognitive abilities and heightened intensity combine to create inner experiences and awareness that are qualitatively different from the norm. This asynchrony increases with higher intellectual capacity. The uniqueness of the gifted renders them particularly vulnerable and requires modifications in parenting, teaching and counseling in order for them to develop optimally."

Since we honour the Multiple Intelligences, we use a variety of tools in the qualification process prior to registration. Our largest intake group is at the grade one level where there are 68 spaces each year. Since our high school program is still young, there will typically be some openings in grades 10, 11 and 12; the number of openings at any of the other grades usually ranges around 10 or fewer per grade level.

What Westmount offers for your gifted learner

-Small class sizes
-Differentiated programming where teachers and students make modifications to process, product and /or pace within the Alberta Education Curriculum to best reflect the student’s learning needs of the entire curriculum at their present level
-An emphasis on developing the Whole Child
-An emphasis on teaching students how to learn
-An emphasis on understanding concepts
-A caring learning environment that honours differences
-Qualified and dedicated staff
- A growing extracurricular program
-Over a decade's experience in educating gifted learners
-School bussing and easy access via Calgary's public transit system
-A teaching staff that models life long learning
-The opportunity to attend the same school from elementary grades to grade 12.

Click here for more information on how to select the right program for your gifted child - and click here to have a look at a recent Westmount school newsletter.

Differentiation: a key aspect of our teaching

Through differentiated instruction teachers respond to each learners needs where the teacher becomes more a facilitator of the learning than the traditional teacher role as director of the learning. Courses are still delivered in a classroom, with students allowed many ways to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding, and making full use of students multiple intelligences. When differentiation is fully in place, student enrichment is a daily occurrence, and time management skills, student engagement and personal responsibility are natural by products.

All students work from the same learning outcomes but students and teachers can differentiate content, process or product according to a student's readiness, interests and learning profile. Differentiated instruction incorporates a range of instructional understandings such as:
-problem-based learning
-compacting
-literature circles
-self-directed studies
-varied texts
-questioning strategies
-small group instruction
-full group instruction
-group investigation
-individual investigation
-project work
-presentations
-conferencing
-clubs & activities.

Westmount's fee structure

Westmount Charter School is a publicly funded institution. We cannot and do not charge tuition! Like most public schools, however, Westmount charges modest instructional resource fees, and some Middle School and High School courses carry additional fees. To see the school's fee schedule, click here.

Learn more about the Westmount program:

To learn more about our kindergarten, click here.
To learn more about our elementary grades (gr 1-5), click here.
To learn more about our middle school (gr 6-8), click here.
To learn more about our high school (gr 9-12), click here.

Information nights for Prospective Students & their Parents

Each year in February, we hold a Parent Information Night for parents wishing to have their child apply for elementary grades; and an information night for students applying for grades 6-12, and their parents. Last year these evenings drew roughly 900 interested students and parents, providing them with a key opportunity to hear about the school's program, and meet students, staff and administrators. The 2011 information night dates have not yet been set - check back in November 2010 for an update.

Check our "Admissions" links for more details about applying to attend Westmount!

18 July 2010