Bear Creek Elementary School

In April 2020, GCISD hosted a webinar to help parents learn about ASPIRE Academy at Glenhope Elementary. If you missed that webinar, you can watch it here or view the PDF version of the presentation here.

Grades 1-5 of ASPIRE Academy are housed at Glenhope Elementary School, where they are taught by a core team of teachers who are highly trained in meeting the academic and affective needs of highly gifted students.

ASPIRE students in grades 1-3 attend self-contained classes where they are taught science, social studies, and language arts by a dedicated ASPIRE teacher. In fourth grade, classes are semi-departmentalized, and in fifth grade, they are fully departmentalized, with ASPIRE teachers offering specific instruction in different content areas.

Because all math students in GCISD have the option of telescoping, students may have a different teacher for their math class. However, most ASPIRE students are taught math by an ASPIRE teacher, regardless of grade level. Glenhope students who are enrolled in 7th grade accelerated math or higher are taught by an ASPIRE middle school teacher at Cross Timbers Middle School. For the 2019-2020 school year, 45% of ASPIRE elementary students telescoped in math, with 11% telescoping two grade levels or more.

ASPIRE students attend specials classes (music, PE, etc.) and all-school activities with their same-age peers.

Campus Contact Information
Dr. Wynette Griffin, Principal
[email protected]

Glenhope’s ASPIRE Academy webpage

Grades 6-8 of ASPIRE Academy are housed at Cross Timbers Middle School, where they are taught by a core team of teachers who are highly trained in meeting the academic and affective needs of highly gifted students. ASPIRE middle school students receive core instruction in humanities, math, and science from ASPIRE teachers. Curriculum in all classes is accelerated, covering greater breadth and depth than traditional grade-level classes.

In humanities, students receive integrated instruction in social studies and English language arts. The Parallel Curriculum Model and Depth & Complexity  are the frameworks through which the humanities curriculum is extended. Students are routinely encouraged to make connections across time periods and disciplines; to recognize, analyze, and evaluate patterns and trends; to view events through multiple perspectives; and to write, research, and interpret information with a professional mindset.

Science curriculum is also framed using the Parallel Curriculum Model and Depth & Complexity. In addition, the science program is accelerated so that students receive five years of science instruction in three years and leave middle school with two high school science credits: Integrated Physics and Chemistry (IPC) and Biology.

Students continue along their accelerated path in mathematics. Students enrolled in 6th grade and 7th grade accelerated math complete three years of math in two years, taking the 8th grade math STAAR at the end of 7th grade. Students in Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II/Pre-Calculus can take those class at Cross Timbers with an ASPIRE teacher. Some students in Geometry and Algebra II and all students in AP Calculus take their classes at Grapevine High School or Colleyville Heritage High School, per scheduling needs.

Recognizing that the asynchronous development experienced by many highly gifted adolescents can result in unique social and emotional challenges, ASPIRE middle school teachers also offer a range of supports to help ensure the well-being of ASPIRE students. In addition to being responsive to students’ individual needs in class, teachers utilize Wolf Time (a campus-wide advisory period) to help further develop students’ self-understanding, independence/self-management skills, leadership skills, social skills, and service. 

Campus Contact Information
Dr. Jamie Halliburton, Principal
[email protected]

Cross Timbers’ ASPIRE Academy webpage

ASPIRE high school courses are housed at Grapevine High School. Humanities courses form the basis of the ASPIRE high school curriculum each year:

• Ninth Grade: ASPIRE PreAP English I and ASPIRE AP Human Geography
• Tenth Grade: ASPIRE PreAP English II and ASPIRE AP World History
• Eleventh Grade: ASPIRE AP English Language & Composition, ASPIRE AP Seminar, ASPIRE AP US History 
• Twelfth Grade: ASPIRE AP English Literature & Composition, ASPIRE AP U.S. Government, ASPIRE AP Microeconomics, ASPIRE AP Seminar, ASPIRE AP Research

As in ASPIRE middle school humanities, students have opportunities to engage with material at a deeper level and to approach the content in meaningful ways as professionals do. In addition to the academic content, specially-trained ASPIRE teachers support students as they continue to build the psychosocial skills needed to traverse increasingly challenging courses and the high expectations that accompany rigorous academic pathways.

For math and science, students have a variety of G/T and AP options from which to choose, based on their individual needs and interests. 

ASPIRE high school students have the option of choosing any high school endorsement as part of their diploma plan and may enroll in any electives and activities that accord with their personal interests and scheduling.

ASPIRE students who are zoned for Colleyville Heritage High School may choose to attend CHHS as their home campus and bus to GHS for either or both of the ASPIRE humanities courses.

All ASPIRE high school students also receive specialized support in the college search process through the Advanced Academics department and their ASPIRE high school courses.

Campus Contact Information
Alex Fingers, Principal
[email protected]cisd.net

Mandy Alexander, Associate Principal
[email protected] 

Grapevine High’s ASPIRE Academy webpage