Sunrise Valley is a Full-Time Advanced Academic Center school, which provides full-time advanced services to students within our community as well as students in neighboring elementary schools. Students who are found eligible to receive these services through a central selection screening process receive a challenging instructional program in language arts, math, science, and social studies.

In addition to our full-time program, Sunrise Valley provides the following Advanced Academic Services:

• Access to Rigor: All students in our community of learners receive instruction using 9 critical and creative thinking strategies. Students apply the use of mind mapping, questioning, encapsulation, point of view, visualization, decisions and outcomes, analogies, PMI, and fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration (FOFE) to their grade-level concepts. In addition to these thinking strategies, all students have access to AAP curriculum lessons.
• Subject Specific Advanced Differentiation: Students identified by our local Advanced Academic committee receive differentiated instruction in a content area(s) of strength. Instruction is delivered by the classroom teacher in collaboration with Sara Balcanoff the Advanced Academic Resource Teacher (AART).
• Part-Time Services (Grades 3-6): Students identified by our local Advanced Academic committee work directly with the AART each week in a small group setting. During this time, students are challenged with enrichment and extension activities developed to enhance grade-level curriculum.
• Full-Time Services (Grades 3-6): Full-time services are available for students in Grades 3-8 who are found eligible through a central selection process.  Eligible students use curriculum from the AAP Curriculum Framework in the four academic subject areas on a full-time basis.

Screening for Full-Time Services

Screening for full-time Advanced Academic services will take place at two points during the 24-25 school year. The timeline for screening is based on your child’s enrollment in FCPS.

• Fall screening will be held for students in grades 3-6 who are new to FCPS as of January 2024. If found eligible for services, placement in our full-time program would begin at the start of the third quarter. To initiate the screening process, please submit a Full-Time Referral Form to the school no later than October 15, 2024. In addition to this required form, you may submit the following optional information: A Parent/Guardian Questionnaire, up to 2 single-sided pages of work samples that demonstrate advanced and/or critical and creative thinking, achievement test results from a previous district or program, records of gifted services from a previous district, and ability test results from a previous school, through a licensed psychologist, or through George Mason University’s testing program.
• Winter screening will be held for students in grades 2-6 who are interested in applying for our full-time program to start in the fall of the 25-26 school year. To initiate the screening process, please submit a Full-Time AAP Referral Form to the school no later than December 15, 2024. In addition to this required form, you may submit the following optional information: A Parent/Guardian Questionnaire, up to 2 single-sided pages of work samples that demonstrate advanced and/or critical and creative thinking, achievement results from a school or program outside of FCPS, and outside ability testing taken through a licensed psychologist or George Mason University’s testing program.

Required and optional items for Level IV screening can be found at: FORMS

If you have any questions, please contact Sara Balcanoff at @email.