The following illustrations are used both in explaining Integrated Curriculum as well as part of the Teacher planning guide.

The backward planning model starts with big concepts and leads to progressively smaller pieces.

Innovative

GPA innovates by using the time-tested methods of Maria Montessori, combined with classical resources and Core Knowledge to emphasize practical application in education. Evaluation will be through competencies aligned with State Core Standards and Gateway's curriculum. Parents and teachers track student progress through a web-based reporting system and end-of-term student projects.

Individual

GPA believes that a child's learning style and pace is unique. Independent and small group work will replace much of the traditional lecture format. Through assigning teacher mentors and allowing personal pacing, a student with more interest in a particular area will be allowed to advance at their own rate while a student that struggles in a particular area will be able to receive more help.  

Integrated Curriculum

GPA teachers working in teams will create themes that integrate individual subjects. Student projects provide a meaningful education where individual subjects clearly relate to real-world skills. Academic levels encourage role-modeling, student mentoring, and individual progression.

The GPA philosophy and curriculum for all students are based on the same concepts that ultimately make the microcosm of Special Education efficient at meeting diverse student needs. Specifically, we believe that the IEP and individualized pacing plan for mastery are integral to every student, not only those identified with special educational needs. With these keys to success in mind, Gateway Preparatory Academy will provide a mentor and student success team comprised of parents, teachers, student, administrators and counselors as appropriate to every student.

Tracking Competencies and the Utah Core Curriculum

The computerized tracking and recording system will record student progress towards competencies. Students will be listed as either having achieved a specific competency, be in-progress on a specific competency, or the default of not having yet attempted a specific competency.

A specific student's competency page will indicate for that student whether they have achieved each prerequisite competency. There will be space for additional comments by the approving instructor, the student and their parents, as well as for links to relevant digital copies, photographs, etc... of the student's work product so that it can be later reviewed and displayed in a portfolio. All of this information will be securely made available online or through alternative methods to Academy teachers, staff, the individual student, and their parents.

Competency-Based Instruction

Under competency-based methods of instruction, the question for determining what material to cover next becomes not "Did the teacher cover the material?", but instead "Did the students learn and demonstrate their knowledge of the material to a specific standard?"

Some common characteristics of competency-based education are that teaching and learning is:

• Explicit and clearly aligned with expected competencies
• Criteria driven and focused on accountability
• Grounded in real-life experiences
• Using strategies that are focused on fostering the learners' ability to self-assess
• More individualized, providing opportunities for independent study

Curriculum Overview and State Standards

The Academy's curriculum is divided into three levels:

• Level 1: K-1, 2-3
• Level 2: 4-6
• Level 3: 7-8

The classical learning ideas of grammar, logic and rhetoric are incorporated in the Academy's curriculum to allow for a logical progression of learning and ideas for the students.

Specifics from the State Standards form the basis for the curriculum. Additional textbook and specialist resources are added to the curriculum in order to provide an interdisciplinary learning experience and to modify existing learning resources to fit better with the competency pedagogy.

Our curriculum is aligned with state standards and uses the Montessori Method and an integrated, interdisciplinary environment as its base.

Summary of Philosophy

Gateway Preparatory Academy believes that children are individuals who have their own unique learning style and pace. By discovering and catering to children's strengths we believe they will acquire the proper tools of learning to facilitate a well balanced education.

Utilizing a competency-based system of education allows students to be directly involved in their own education. This fosters self-discipline and a life long thirst for learning and knowledge.

The use of an interdisciplinary curriculum creates an understanding of how subjects complement and complete one another. Students are better able to integrate the skills they learn into real world contexts.

Through practical application and applied knowledge, students comprehend that they learn in order to create. The students make a difference in their own life and in the world around them.

Gateway's academic curriculum is based on three major foundational elements.