Identifying Students for the Program

Students with exceptional abilities and talents are found in all cultural and linguistic groups, across all economic levels, among individuals who also have disabilities, and in various domains of intelligence.

Any student may be referred for screening/testing by his or her teacher, parent, or other adult who knows him/her well (e.g. a psychologist, principal, counselor, or grandparent).  Referral forms are available at all sites or at this website.

Annually scores from the state achievement test (Terra Nova/AIMS) are disaggregated by stanines; all those students who score in the 9th stanine in math, reading, or the total battery are automatically referred for further testing by the S.U.N. Program, if parental permission to test is granted.

Research in the field of gifted education suggests that to be truly outstanding and productive in any career field, an adult will possess a constellation of abilities, and those are : a) an above average ability to learn; b) a high level of motivation; and c) a high level of creativity.  In grades kindergarten through eight, therefore, we place students who appear to have the same constellation of abilities in the S.U.N. (Serving Unique Needs) Program. 

These students must have a least an above average ability (7th stanine or above on a group or individual IQ measure); demonstrate high levels of task commitment and high levels of creativity--both represented through behavioral questionnaires, completed by teachers who know the students well.  These measures, coupled with nationally normed achievement test scores in reading and math are used to develop profiles predicting students' academic successes.

Students who score at the 97th percentile on any of the subtests or 97th percentile for a total IQ score are automatically placed in the S.U.N. Program, in accordance with state law, without the subjective inventories necessary with lesser ability scores.  Opportunities for under-achieving pupils who have been identified by a 97th percentile score are provided., as well. 

Please note that intelligence testing is administered in both English and in Spanish.

Students transferring from another school district's program for the gifted and talented will be placed in the Sunnyside Unified School District S.U.N. Program as long as the intelligence score upon which their identification was based was in the above average range (7th stanine or above). We make every effort for continuation of service, so that students do not suffer from their move and lose an educational opportunity.

 At the high schools, Honors classes in the various disciplines and the Honors Academy (Sunnyside High School) or the Program of Excellence (Desert View) are offered through an open enrollment* process.  Advanced Placement classes for upper classmen are available in the various disciplines to all students who have the pre-requisite abilities.

*open enrollment process means that no intelligence testing is required to enroll in any of the most rigorous courses