Highly Capable Program
Is your student up for an academic challenge? Washington Virtual Academies (WAVA) is a great option for advanced learners.
WAVA supports each student’s unique academic, social, and emotional growth. We offer our Highly Capable (Hi Cap) program to meet the needs of students who qualify for advanced learning opportunities.
What is the Highly Capable Program?
WAVA’s Highly Capable Program provides enrichment services for exceptional students in grades 1–12. Eligibility is determined through a formal nomination and approval process. The program provides additional challenges and rigorous coursework for gifted and talented students. Participants receive instruction from educators trained specifically to meet the needs of advanced learners.
Enrichment Opportunities for Qualifying Students
Here are examples of what highly capable students can expect by grade level. Class offerings can change each year depending on students, grants, scheduling, and teacher offerings.
Elementary Grades 1–5
Required Class
STEAM: All highly capable elementary students participate in a live weekly STEAM class. This is a hands-on, project-based course.
Independent Optional Classes
World Languages: We offer Spanish, French, and Chinese. Each language has at least 2 course levels, each intended for one full academic year.
Music: This class covers music theory, elements of harmony, melody, rhythm, and composition.
Other Optional Live Classes
Additional optional live sessions are available to elementary students enrolled in the Highly Capable Program. The selection varies each year but typically includes courses such as Outdoor Exploring, Creative Writing, Math Games, Typing, and Coding.
Middle School Grades 6–8
Classroom teachers serve highly capable students in the regular classroom for core courses. Advanced coursework may be considered on an individual basis with supporting data and teacher input.
Independent Optional Classes
World Language: Students can choose to study Spanish, French, or Chinese.
Music as an independent study with offerings for grade 6 or grades 7–8.
Optional Live Classes
Offerings include Creative Writing, Math Challenge, and STEAM classes.
High School Grades 9–12
WAVA meets the unique needs of our highly capable high school learners through their High School and Beyond Plan. This may include advanced math placement; honors classes in science, social studies, and ELA; and Career Technical Dual Credit classes.
Optional Clubs: Robotics Team, Music Club, Book Club.
Career Clubs: FBLA, TSA, HOSA, FCCLA, Skills USA.
Who is eligible for the Highly Capable Program?
Highly capable students are those who perform, or show potential to perform, at significantly advanced academic levels compared with others of their age, experience, or environment. Highly capable students generally have outstanding abilities in intellectual aptitude, specific academic abilities, and creative productivity within a specific domain. Students selected for this program typically rank in the top 5% of students as measured on a Cognitive Abilities assessment (95–99th percentile).
From Our Families
The gifted and talented program at WAVA has been instrumental in this progression. It showed him how quickly he could advance and provided supportive teachers who encouraged his rapid development. The program continuously challenged him with increasingly difficult coursework, proving to him that he could excel at the college level despite his young age.
James (father of Ari, who graduated from WAVA at age 14)*
Nomination Referral & Permission
Students must be nominated and assessed to be considered for acceptance into the Highly Capable Program. Anyone may nominate a student for the program, but they are most commonly nominated by their parents, Learning Coach, or teacher.
After a student is nominated, academic assessments are used to determine eligibility. Parents must give written consent for their student’s assessments through the online nomination form—regardless of whether the nomination comes from a parent or a teacher.
The nomination/referral form is only available during open nominations in the spring.
Assessment Process
A Multidisciplinary Selection Committee consisting of Highly Capable teachers, principals, psychologists, and certified administrators will analyze a variety of academic assessments to make placement decisions.
FAQs
How do I know if my student should be nominated for the Highly Capable Program?
Highly capable students may show:
- Capacity to learn with unusual depth of understanding, retention, and application
- Early tolerance for increasing levels of abstraction and complexity
- Creative ability to make unusual connections among ideas and concepts
- Ability to learn quickly in their area(s) of intellectual strength
- Capacity for intense concentration and focus
How does the Multidisciplinary Selection Committee determine eligibility?
The committee considers a wide range of academic assessments and observations, including but not limited to the following:
Academic Achievement Assessments, including but not limited to:
- Reading: Star 360, DIBELS
- Math: Star 360
- Washington Smarter Balance Assessment (SBA)
For more details about STAR 360, including how the assessments work and how results are used, please review the Parent and Student Guide to STAR360 Assessments [PDF].
Intelligence and/or cognitive ability assessments, including but not limited to:
- CogAT Cognitive Abilities Complete Test
Qualitative assessments, including but not limited to:
- Parent input: Highly Capable Program Nomination Inventory
- Teacher observation: Highly Capable Program Nomination Inventory Teacher
Highly Capable Program Team
*James is the parent of a 2024 student at WAVA, and their statement reflects their experiences at the school.