September 24, 2025 • 15 mins
Have you noticed your child has a penchant for asking deep questions or noticing patterns and connecting ideas their peers don’t see? Perhaps your child is a fast-finisher who gets frustrated at having to wait for next steps. All of these signs could point to your child being a candidate for Canyons’ gifted and talented magnet program, SALTA.
“Some of us, when we learn to play an instrument, we learn one instrument at a time,” says Halley Kirk, Canyons SALTA Coordinator. “Gifted students are just wired differently. We hear one part of a song but they’re hearing the whole orchestra, what’s missing, what could be added, what can be adjusted.”
On this latest episode of Connect Canyons, we sit down with Kirk who talks about the benefits of CSD’s Supporting Advanced Learners Toward Achievement program for students as well as their families. Kirk also explains what families can expect with the testing process and how simply having your child take the test can be beneficial.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to Connect Canyons, a podcast sponsored by
Canyons School District.
This is a show about what weteach, how we teach and why we
get up close and personal withsome of the people who make our
schools great Students, teachers, principals, parents and more.
We meet national experts too.
Learning is about makingconnections, so connect with us.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Welcome to Connect Canyons.
I'm your host, frances Cook.
Right now, the window to applyfor students to test into SALTA
Canyons District's Gifted andTalented Magnet Program is open
for those interested in joiningnext year's program.
Joining me today to talk aboutthe benefits of SALTA and
provide tips for familieslooking to apply is our Cany
Canyon SALTA coordinator, hallieKirk.
(00:46):
Thank you for joining us, hi.
Thanks for having me.
Hallie, let's start with you.
I'd love to know how you becamethe SALTA coordinator, because
that's a very particularposition.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
I taught fifth grade at Peruvian Park Elementary in
the SALTA program for nine yearsand then a position opened up
to help support it at thedistrict level.
So I'd be working then with ourother school site, sunrise
Elementary, and then MidvaleMiddle School, where our middle
school feeder is supporting ourtesting process, programming,
(01:17):
curriculum, instruction, all thethings.
So I kind of leapt at theopportunity to advocate from a
classroom perspective for what Iknew my students needed.
This will be my fourth schoolyear in this role.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Fantastic.
So let's get into what SALTA isand what are the benefits for
both parents and students.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
Sure.
So SALTA is, as you mentioned,our Gifted and Talented Magnet
Program.
But what that means in ourdistrict and statewide in Utah
is we're really looking atcognitive giftedness, which
would be students who are in thetop 4 to 5 percent of their
peer group in terms of cognitiveability.
That can be sort of amisconception, because we're not
really saying that thesestudents are all getting
(01:58):
straight A's or they're getting100 percent on everything.
They certainly can be, butthat's not always the case.
Everything it certainly can be,but that's not always the case.
I like the analogy where youknow, for gifted learners, like
some of us, when we learn toplay an instrument, we learn one
instrument at a time.
Gifted students, they're justwired differently, where they're
hearing the whole orchestra,what's missing, what we could
add, what can be adjusted, andit's exciting, but it can be
(02:19):
overwhelming.
So it requires them to havesome specialized instruction to
develop their abilities andpotentials and not burn out or
feel alone.
These are students who are justrecognizing patterns,
connecting ideas in unique waysthat maybe isn't common for
their peer group, and sometimesthat thinking can be so advanced
that it does make school harder.
And so the idea of the SALTAprogram is we're giving them the
(02:41):
tools they need to helpcontinue to develop their
potential, while simultaneouslygive them supports for areas
that they do need help in.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
These are kind of the students that are asking all
kinds of in-depth questions thatmake the teachers go oh wow,
good on you for thinking thatdeep into it, right.
They're insatiably curious.
They're constantly looking forsomething else to expand their
minds.
But sometimes that can comeacross differently.
So I think that's a great pointthat you made.
(03:10):
It's not necessarily just thestraight A students.
It can be, but it can manifestin different ways.
So what does a day in the lifeof a student in the SALTA
program look like?
How is it different from ourstandard methods of teaching and
learning?
Speaker 3 (03:28):
Great question.
So I would start with that.
Our teachers in the SALTAprogram all have specialized
training in how to supportgifted students.
They're more prepared to beable to make adjustments to
grade-level curriculum and givethem those opportunities for
deeper, more complex thinking.
Really, the biggest differencein pedagogy with gifted students
(03:48):
is education, giving them moreopportunities to apply learning
rather than more repetition inacquiring these concepts.
So we do a lot of what's calledcurriculum compacting, where it
might take a typical secondgrader 10 days to get through
one's part of the mathcurriculum.
Let's say and we know that forour gifted students, a lot of
(04:09):
them come in with a lot of thatfoundational knowledge already,
or even if they don't have it,they need less repetition to
master it.
So we do a lot ofpre-assessment let's see what
they already know, let's givethem the instruction on the
things that they do need tolearn.
Often that could be two, threedays and then with the rest of
that time we're doing morereal-world, task-based
application of those concepts.
(04:30):
So we have things like ourhydroponics lab or our new
student-led podcast or reallythings where we're trying to get
them to apply what they'velearned in novel ways and make
connections that are a littlebit deeper because they're ready
, they're interested to do that,but also the teachers have more
space instructionally to dothat, to accommodate it within
the program.
Speaker 2 (04:50):
It sounds like it's almost a bit more regimented
instruction because, as we know,people who have that gifted
mindset or even, for example,people perhaps with ADHD, they
need a little bit more of thatstructure.
Can you lean into that a little?
Speaker 3 (05:06):
bit.
So I think I agree with youRoutine and structure is very
important for all students.
Cognitive giftedness actuallyis considered a neurodivergence,
just by definition.
So we do have a lot of studentsin our program that what we
call twice exceptional learners,where they have a diagnosis
like ADHD or autism andsimultaneously they're
cognitively gifted, and so a lotof the supports you would give
(05:27):
for students in one of thosecategories or another doesn't
necessarily fit with this groupof kiddos.
To your question about havingthe more rigid structure or
routines, I think it's moreabout having it be more student
driven and giving them the tools, especially those executive
functioning skills of how dothey evaluate what they already
(05:48):
know, how do they advocate forthemselves, how do they work
with their peer groups.
Those types of more durableskills tend to be areas where
gifted students need moresupport.
So a lot of what we're doing inthe classroom is really giving
them opportunities to beself-directed learners, because
they're not going to necessarilybe struggling with the material
necessarily.
It's kind of everything aroundit in terms of the application,
(06:11):
and I know personally as a fifthgrade teacher in the program I
was never the smartest person inthe room as a teacher, which is
the exciting part, but it canbe overwhelming if you're new to
the gifted world.
Speaker 2 (06:23):
Sure, sure.
That's very cool.
You're giving them thatopportunity to kind of learn and
grow on their own, whileproviding that extra level of
guidance when they need it.
While providing that extralevel of guidance when they need
it.
You mentioned we have threeschools that have SALTA programs
.
What does that entail?
So if someone say their studentis going to another school but
(06:43):
then they get into the SALTAprogram, are they switching
schools?
Are they being bused to thatschool?
How does that?
Speaker 3 (06:50):
look.
So we do have our giftedprogram just at the two school
sites for elementary.
So it starts in first grade.
The only places it's availablein our district right now would
be Sunrise Elementary orPeruvian Park.
If you don't live in thoseschool boundaries, you get the
permit along with yourenrollment Once you qualify and
I can kind of speak to ourenrollment process, our
(07:13):
evaluation process.
But if your student qualifiesfor enrollment in the program,
they will be assigned one schoolor the other.
Typically those schoolassignments correlate with where
the family lives boundaries.
But because we have to balanceout our resources across two
school sites, sometimes we dohave those kids that are like
right on the fence that end upat a different school.
(07:34):
Those are the two schoolsthey'd go to.
And then, in terms oftransportation, we have busing
from those elementary schools tothe middle school, midvale
Middle School and back.
So you wouldn't necessarilyhave busing if you lived in a
different part of the district,to Sunrise Elementary, let's say
.
But if your child stays in theprogram, we're one of the few
programs in our district that wedo offer transportation to at
(07:57):
the middle school level.
Very cool.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
You mentioned the application process.
It's very involved.
There's tests.
I know that can be a verydaunting word for some people.
Let's talk about what thatprocess looks like.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Each fall.
So right now in September, weopen up a window to register
students for testing and whatthis is is basically you just go
to our website, you fill outyour information and that puts
your student on the list ofparticipants.
For when we do go out to ourschools and administer the
assessment, we have a testingteam that is able to assess
(08:31):
students in every schoolthroughout our district.
So they'll do it during thechild's regular school day at
their regular school and thenfor out-of-district students or
kids that maybe aren't attendingdistrict schools but live in
our boundaries, we have testingat the district office.
That test for kindergarten andfirst grade we spread over the
course of two days.
It's about an hour and a halfeach day just because it's so
(08:53):
long for the little ones.
So we split it up.
Second grade and up.
That assessment's all done inone day.
It takes under three hours.
It's done on Chromebooks forgrades two through seven and
it's done on iPads for K-1, andK-1.
We also read aloud thequestions for them.
The testing process is prettyrigorous.
Once we have all of ourstudents who have registered to
(09:16):
be assessed, they've taken theevaluations, then our team looks
at all of the results.
We identify who qualifies whatstudents.
We might need additionaltesting done on or more data
points to determine whether ornot the program would be a good
fit.
Be a good fit.
And then we let families know inDecember whether their child
(09:37):
meets our qualificationcriterion and then they have to
accept the placement of theprogram.
This is where it can be kind ofconfusing for families.
They have to accept yes, wewould like our student to be a
participant in SALTA for thefollowing school year without
knowing which school they'reassigned to yet.
And that again is because wereceive our full-time employee
allocation as a program betweenthe two school sites.
(09:57):
So we want to make sure thatour class sizes between the
sites are as balanced as we can,that our teacher staffing, all
of that is as balanced as it canbe.
So Once we know all of thesekids are going to be joining us
for the following school year,we then go through and make our
school placements and then byusually we try to have that done
by the end of January forenrollment in the following
(10:18):
school year.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
So it's a very involved process.
Is that why it's the yearbefore and not during the summer
for the next school year?
Speaker 3 (10:28):
Yeah, for the next school year?
Yeah, and we do have.
We have occasional cases wherewe've got students moving in
from other districts or out ofstate that have been
participating in gifted programs.
We really believe here inCanyons that if a student
qualifies for gifted services,we should be able to offer them
those services.
So we don't do what like a waitlist, like some other districts
may do, because we feel like wewant to offer it to any student
(10:49):
who qualifies and would want toparticipate in it.
So that's where we have to kindof push our testing window up
really early in the school yearto give us time to go through
all of those checkpoints.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Can you tell us a little bit more about the test
and what students will be?
You call it a bit of anevaluation.
So what are they being testedon?
What kind of are they answeringquestions?
Is it multiple choice?
What can?
Speaker 3 (11:15):
they expect.
Our primary assessment tool iscalled the COGAT.
It's the Cognitive AbilitiesTest and it's really designed to
measure students' thinking, howthey're recognizing patterns.
There's a lot of analogieslooking for how do they go about
approaching a problem, ratherthan have they already learned
the concept.
So it's a little different thanwhat we would consider an
(11:36):
achievement test, like anend-of-year RISE assessment.
It's really designed to look athow they're thinking and the
website kogatcom has all kindsof resources for families and
students to kind of look through.
They have practice questionsyou can look through.
We really strongly discouragehaving students prepare for the
(11:57):
assessment Really, Because itcan kind of lead to what you
know, a sense of a falsepositive.
If you trained for the test,you're likely to do better on
the test, but that doesn't meanin practice then that you are
you know best.
So we're really just trying tosee how does your kiddo's brain
work?
And is that maybe a good matchfor the way our program's
designed?
Very cool.
Speaker 2 (12:17):
What message would you have for families who are
maybe on the fence about whetherthey should apply, or maybe
they're not sure if theirstudent would be a good fit for
the SALTA program?
What would you say to them?
Speaker 3 (12:29):
I would say that you don't have anything to lose.
There's no obligation to enrollin the program, even if your
student qualifies At the bareminimum.
I think it's a greatopportunity to learn more about
your child.
Have them take the assessment.
It gives your family moreinformation to make decisions
for their education.
So there's not really to me, Ithink, a downside decisions um
(12:51):
for their education.
So I don't.
There's not really to me, Ithink, a downside I do.
You know, as I mentioned, wedon't want kids prepping for the
test.
We also want to approach itwith a, you know, as low stakes
as we can, which is hard.
I know it's testing, but youknow, preparing your child
before.
Here's what we're doing.
We're just trying to see whatyou know, let's see how you're
learning, to make sure thatwe've got you in the right place
.
I think you can approach itfrom more of a lens in that
(13:13):
direction.
Very, cool.
Speaker 2 (13:17):
I myself have learned a lot about this program.
I've heard it, the termbantered around and it sounds
like just a great way to, likeyou said, find out where your
child is on their educationaljourney, and whether they take a
right or a left on the path isup to them.
Right, but the applicationwindow is open now through.
Speaker 3 (13:37):
October 1st Correct On our website.
There's also additional linkson our main Canyons page.
So for the next little whileyou'll see links all over the
place that you should be seeingflyers in your child's school.
Also, we do give all of thisinformation to teachers right
ahead of parent-teacherconferences so that if they see
students in their class that aremaybe exhibiting some of these
(13:58):
characteristics, they canencourage the family to have
them assessed.
Speaker 2 (14:03):
Very nice.
Any final words about theprogram.
Speaker 3 (14:07):
Just that.
These are really incrediblekids and teachers and amazing
things are happening in ourprogram every day.
So it's exciting to see thepassion that kids can have in
any context, but I think, withSALTA specifically, having kids
that are like-minded, that canbe a little quirky.
Finding their people is justreally, really special to see.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
We're all a little quirky now and then, right, yeah
, well, thank you so much forjoining us and for telling us
about this program and providingsome information for parents
who may have had questions.
Hopefully they have all thetools they need and they'll go
apply.
Speaker 3 (14:43):
Great Thank you, and if you do have any additional
questions, please feel free toemail me.
It's halliekirk atcanyonsdistrictorg.
I'm sure it'll be linked in theshow notes or something.
Speaker 2 (14:52):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (14:53):
Please reach out.
I'm happy to support in any wayI can.
Wonderful Well, thank you.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
Hallie, we really appreciate it, thank you, and
thank you for listening.
If there's a topic you'd liketo hear discussed on the podcast
, send us an email.
It's communications atcanyonsdistrictorg.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
Thanks for listening to this episode of Connect
Canyons.
Connect with us on Twitter,facebook or Instagram at Canyons
District or on our website,canyonsdistrictorg.
Welcome to Connect Canyons, a podcast sponsored by
Canyons School District.
This is a show about what weteach, how we teach and why we
get up close and personal withsome of the people who make our
schools great Students, teachers, principals, parents and more.
We meet national experts too.
Learning is about makingconnections, so connect with us.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Welcome to Connect Canyons.
I'm your host, frances Cook.
Right now, the window to applyfor students to test into SALTA
Canyons District's Gifted andTalented Magnet Program is open
for those interested in joiningnext year's program.
Joining me today to talk aboutthe benefits of SALTA and
provide tips for familieslooking to apply is our Cany
Canyon SALTA coordinator, hallieKirk.
(00:46):
Thank you for joining us, hi.
Thanks for having me.
Hallie, let's start with you.
I'd love to know how you becamethe SALTA coordinator, because
that's a very particularposition.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
I taught fifth grade at Peruvian Park Elementary in
the SALTA program for nine yearsand then a position opened up
to help support it at thedistrict level.
So I'd be working then with ourother school site, sunrise
Elementary, and then MidvaleMiddle School, where our middle
school feeder is supporting ourtesting process, programming,
(01:17):
curriculum, instruction, all thethings.
So I kind of leapt at theopportunity to advocate from a
classroom perspective for what Iknew my students needed.
This will be my fourth schoolyear in this role.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Fantastic.
So let's get into what SALTA isand what are the benefits for
both parents and students.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
Sure.
So SALTA is, as you mentioned,our Gifted and Talented Magnet
Program.
But what that means in ourdistrict and statewide in Utah
is we're really looking atcognitive giftedness, which
would be students who are in thetop 4 to 5 percent of their
peer group in terms of cognitiveability.
That can be sort of amisconception, because we're not
really saying that thesestudents are all getting
(01:58):
straight A's or they're getting100 percent on everything.
They certainly can be, butthat's not always the case.
Everything it certainly can be,but that's not always the case.
I like the analogy where youknow, for gifted learners, like
some of us, when we learn toplay an instrument, we learn one
instrument at a time.
Gifted students, they're justwired differently, where they're
hearing the whole orchestra,what's missing, what we could
add, what can be adjusted, andit's exciting, but it can be
(02:19):
overwhelming.
So it requires them to havesome specialized instruction to
develop their abilities andpotentials and not burn out or
feel alone.
These are students who are justrecognizing patterns,
connecting ideas in unique waysthat maybe isn't common for
their peer group, and sometimesthat thinking can be so advanced
that it does make school harder.
And so the idea of the SALTAprogram is we're giving them the
(02:41):
tools they need to helpcontinue to develop their
potential, while simultaneouslygive them supports for areas
that they do need help in.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
These are kind of the students that are asking all
kinds of in-depth questions thatmake the teachers go oh wow,
good on you for thinking thatdeep into it, right.
They're insatiably curious.
They're constantly looking forsomething else to expand their
minds.
But sometimes that can comeacross differently.
So I think that's a great pointthat you made.
(03:10):
It's not necessarily just thestraight A students.
It can be, but it can manifestin different ways.
So what does a day in the lifeof a student in the SALTA
program look like?
How is it different from ourstandard methods of teaching and
learning?
Speaker 3 (03:28):
Great question.
So I would start with that.
Our teachers in the SALTAprogram all have specialized
training in how to supportgifted students.
They're more prepared to beable to make adjustments to
grade-level curriculum and givethem those opportunities for
deeper, more complex thinking.
Really, the biggest differencein pedagogy with gifted students
(03:48):
is education, giving them moreopportunities to apply learning
rather than more repetition inacquiring these concepts.
So we do a lot of what's calledcurriculum compacting, where it
might take a typical secondgrader 10 days to get through
one's part of the mathcurriculum.
Let's say and we know that forour gifted students, a lot of
(04:09):
them come in with a lot of thatfoundational knowledge already,
or even if they don't have it,they need less repetition to
master it.
So we do a lot ofpre-assessment let's see what
they already know, let's givethem the instruction on the
things that they do need tolearn.
Often that could be two, threedays and then with the rest of
that time we're doing morereal-world, task-based
application of those concepts.
(04:30):
So we have things like ourhydroponics lab or our new
student-led podcast or reallythings where we're trying to get
them to apply what they'velearned in novel ways and make
connections that are a littlebit deeper because they're ready
, they're interested to do that,but also the teachers have more
space instructionally to dothat, to accommodate it within
the program.
Speaker 2 (04:50):
It sounds like it's almost a bit more regimented
instruction because, as we know,people who have that gifted
mindset or even, for example,people perhaps with ADHD, they
need a little bit more of thatstructure.
Can you lean into that a little?
Speaker 3 (05:06):
bit.
So I think I agree with youRoutine and structure is very
important for all students.
Cognitive giftedness actuallyis considered a neurodivergence,
just by definition.
So we do have a lot of studentsin our program that what we
call twice exceptional learners,where they have a diagnosis
like ADHD or autism andsimultaneously they're
cognitively gifted, and so a lotof the supports you would give
(05:27):
for students in one of thosecategories or another doesn't
necessarily fit with this groupof kiddos.
To your question about havingthe more rigid structure or
routines, I think it's moreabout having it be more student
driven and giving them the tools, especially those executive
functioning skills of how dothey evaluate what they already
(05:48):
know, how do they advocate forthemselves, how do they work
with their peer groups.
Those types of more durableskills tend to be areas where
gifted students need moresupport.
So a lot of what we're doing inthe classroom is really giving
them opportunities to beself-directed learners, because
they're not going to necessarilybe struggling with the material
necessarily.
It's kind of everything aroundit in terms of the application,
(06:11):
and I know personally as a fifthgrade teacher in the program I
was never the smartest person inthe room as a teacher, which is
the exciting part, but it canbe overwhelming if you're new to
the gifted world.
Speaker 2 (06:23):
Sure, sure.
That's very cool.
You're giving them thatopportunity to kind of learn and
grow on their own, whileproviding that extra level of
guidance when they need it.
While providing that extralevel of guidance when they need
it.
You mentioned we have threeschools that have SALTA programs
.
What does that entail?
So if someone say their studentis going to another school but
(06:43):
then they get into the SALTAprogram, are they switching
schools?
Are they being bused to thatschool?
How does that?
Speaker 3 (06:50):
look.
So we do have our giftedprogram just at the two school
sites for elementary.
So it starts in first grade.
The only places it's availablein our district right now would
be Sunrise Elementary orPeruvian Park.
If you don't live in thoseschool boundaries, you get the
permit along with yourenrollment Once you qualify and
I can kind of speak to ourenrollment process, our
(07:13):
evaluation process.
But if your student qualifiesfor enrollment in the program,
they will be assigned one schoolor the other.
Typically those schoolassignments correlate with where
the family lives boundaries.
But because we have to balanceout our resources across two
school sites, sometimes we dohave those kids that are like
right on the fence that end upat a different school.
(07:34):
Those are the two schoolsthey'd go to.
And then, in terms oftransportation, we have busing
from those elementary schools tothe middle school, midvale
Middle School and back.
So you wouldn't necessarilyhave busing if you lived in a
different part of the district,to Sunrise Elementary, let's say
.
But if your child stays in theprogram, we're one of the few
programs in our district that wedo offer transportation to at
(07:57):
the middle school level.
Very cool.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
You mentioned the application process.
It's very involved.
There's tests.
I know that can be a verydaunting word for some people.
Let's talk about what thatprocess looks like.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Each fall.
So right now in September, weopen up a window to register
students for testing and whatthis is is basically you just go
to our website, you fill outyour information and that puts
your student on the list ofparticipants.
For when we do go out to ourschools and administer the
assessment, we have a testingteam that is able to assess
(08:31):
students in every schoolthroughout our district.
So they'll do it during thechild's regular school day at
their regular school and thenfor out-of-district students or
kids that maybe aren't attendingdistrict schools but live in
our boundaries, we have testingat the district office.
That test for kindergarten andfirst grade we spread over the
course of two days.
It's about an hour and a halfeach day just because it's so
(08:53):
long for the little ones.
So we split it up.
Second grade and up.
That assessment's all done inone day.
It takes under three hours.
It's done on Chromebooks forgrades two through seven and
it's done on iPads for K-1, andK-1.
We also read aloud thequestions for them.
The testing process is prettyrigorous.
Once we have all of ourstudents who have registered to
(09:16):
be assessed, they've taken theevaluations, then our team looks
at all of the results.
We identify who qualifies whatstudents.
We might need additionaltesting done on or more data
points to determine whether ornot the program would be a good
fit.
Be a good fit.
And then we let families know inDecember whether their child
(09:37):
meets our qualificationcriterion and then they have to
accept the placement of theprogram.
This is where it can be kind ofconfusing for families.
They have to accept yes, wewould like our student to be a
participant in SALTA for thefollowing school year without
knowing which school they'reassigned to yet.
And that again is because wereceive our full-time employee
allocation as a program betweenthe two school sites.
(09:57):
So we want to make sure thatour class sizes between the
sites are as balanced as we can,that our teacher staffing, all
of that is as balanced as it canbe.
So Once we know all of thesekids are going to be joining us
for the following school year,we then go through and make our
school placements and then byusually we try to have that done
by the end of January forenrollment in the following
(10:18):
school year.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
So it's a very involved process.
Is that why it's the yearbefore and not during the summer
for the next school year?
Speaker 3 (10:28):
Yeah, for the next school year?
Yeah, and we do have.
We have occasional cases wherewe've got students moving in
from other districts or out ofstate that have been
participating in gifted programs.
We really believe here inCanyons that if a student
qualifies for gifted services,we should be able to offer them
those services.
So we don't do what like a waitlist, like some other districts
may do, because we feel like wewant to offer it to any student
(10:49):
who qualifies and would want toparticipate in it.
So that's where we have to kindof push our testing window up
really early in the school yearto give us time to go through
all of those checkpoints.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Can you tell us a little bit more about the test
and what students will be?
You call it a bit of anevaluation.
So what are they being testedon?
What kind of are they answeringquestions?
Is it multiple choice?
What can?
Speaker 3 (11:15):
they expect.
Our primary assessment tool iscalled the COGAT.
It's the Cognitive AbilitiesTest and it's really designed to
measure students' thinking, howthey're recognizing patterns.
There's a lot of analogieslooking for how do they go about
approaching a problem, ratherthan have they already learned
the concept.
So it's a little different thanwhat we would consider an
(11:36):
achievement test, like anend-of-year RISE assessment.
It's really designed to look athow they're thinking and the
website kogatcom has all kindsof resources for families and
students to kind of look through.
They have practice questionsyou can look through.
We really strongly discouragehaving students prepare for the
(11:57):
assessment Really, Because itcan kind of lead to what you
know, a sense of a falsepositive.
If you trained for the test,you're likely to do better on
the test, but that doesn't meanin practice then that you are
you know best.
So we're really just trying tosee how does your kiddo's brain
work?
And is that maybe a good matchfor the way our program's
designed?
Very cool.
Speaker 2 (12:17):
What message would you have for families who are
maybe on the fence about whetherthey should apply, or maybe
they're not sure if theirstudent would be a good fit for
the SALTA program?
What would you say to them?
Speaker 3 (12:29):
I would say that you don't have anything to lose.
There's no obligation to enrollin the program, even if your
student qualifies At the bareminimum.
I think it's a greatopportunity to learn more about
your child.
Have them take the assessment.
It gives your family moreinformation to make decisions
for their education.
So there's not really to me, Ithink, a downside decisions um
(12:51):
for their education.
So I don't.
There's not really to me, Ithink, a downside I do.
You know, as I mentioned, wedon't want kids prepping for the
test.
We also want to approach itwith a, you know, as low stakes
as we can, which is hard.
I know it's testing, but youknow, preparing your child
before.
Here's what we're doing.
We're just trying to see whatyou know, let's see how you're
learning, to make sure thatwe've got you in the right place
.
I think you can approach itfrom more of a lens in that
(13:13):
direction.
Very, cool.
Speaker 2 (13:17):
I myself have learned a lot about this program.
I've heard it, the termbantered around and it sounds
like just a great way to, likeyou said, find out where your
child is on their educationaljourney, and whether they take a
right or a left on the path isup to them.
Right, but the applicationwindow is open now through.
Speaker 3 (13:37):
October 1st Correct On our website.
There's also additional linkson our main Canyons page.
So for the next little whileyou'll see links all over the
place that you should be seeingflyers in your child's school.
Also, we do give all of thisinformation to teachers right
ahead of parent-teacherconferences so that if they see
students in their class that aremaybe exhibiting some of these
(13:58):
characteristics, they canencourage the family to have
them assessed.
Speaker 2 (14:03):
Very nice.
Any final words about theprogram.
Speaker 3 (14:07):
Just that.
These are really incrediblekids and teachers and amazing
things are happening in ourprogram every day.
So it's exciting to see thepassion that kids can have in
any context, but I think, withSALTA specifically, having kids
that are like-minded, that canbe a little quirky.
Finding their people is justreally, really special to see.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
We're all a little quirky now and then, right, yeah
, well, thank you so much forjoining us and for telling us
about this program and providingsome information for parents
who may have had questions.
Hopefully they have all thetools they need and they'll go
apply.
Speaker 3 (14:43):
Great Thank you, and if you do have any additional
questions, please feel free toemail me.
It's halliekirk atcanyonsdistrictorg.
I'm sure it'll be linked in theshow notes or something.
Speaker 2 (14:52):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (14:53):
Please reach out.
I'm happy to support in any wayI can.
Wonderful Well, thank you.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
Hallie, we really appreciate it, thank you, and
thank you for listening.
If there's a topic you'd liketo hear discussed on the podcast
, send us an email.
It's communications atcanyonsdistrictorg.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
Thanks for listening to this episode of Connect
Canyons.
Connect with us on Twitter,facebook or Instagram at Canyons
District or on our website,canyonsdistrictorg.
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