One thing we do in STRETCH that is a little different than the regular classroom is our focus on thinking skills. We want the students to be challenged and really working their brains. In first grade the students are exposed to many introductory topics. We work on logic, analogies, verbal and nonverbal reasoning, sequencing, and inferencing. Students do many hands-on activities and games and are introduced to Sudoku Puzzles, Chess, Countdown, Blokus, Rush Hour, Katamino, patterning, and others.
I incorporate a lot of higher level questions into my daily lessons, and the students are also taught to ask challenging questions rather than ones that require a yes or no answer. We compare and contrast books and movies such as The Wizard of Oz and different versions of the same fairy tale. Students learn to evaulate themselves and how well their groups work together on projects and activities. They learn to defend their choices and how their personal learning styles affect outcomes.