High potential and gifted education

At Mount Colah Public School, we prioritise a tailored and responsive approach to education, ensuring every student’s unique potential is recognised, nurtured and extended through innovative, evidence-informed teaching practices.

Teachers carefully identify students’ learning needs and use high-impact strategies to challenge, enrich and extend learners. We offer a range of flexible learning pathways, including enrichment, extension programmes and, where appropriate, acceleration.

Our supportive classroom environments foster a strong sense of belonging, encouraging students to take risks in their learning, persevere through challenging tasks and collaborate with confidence.

Learning groups remain fluid and flexible, students take on leadership roles, and feedback is strengths-based, supported by clear learning goals and opportunities for meaningful self-assessment.

Our teachers engage in ongoing professional learning to meet the diverse needs of all students, including those with high potential and gifted abilities, ensuring high expectations and excellence remain central to every classroom.

At Mount Colah Public School, every student is recognised as an individual, and our High Potential and Gifted Education (HPGE) opportunities are intentionally flexible and diverse to nurture each learner’s strengths.

• Enrichment opportunities – Students deepen their strengths through public speaking, debating, junior and senior choir, senior dance, and participation in both junior and senior bands, fostering confidence, collaboration and creative expression.
• Writing extension – Literacy is strengthened through enriched Kindergarten and Stage 1 writing workshops, with high-potential writers further extended in Stage 3 through our Write a Book in a Day (WABIAD) program.
• Performing Arts extension – Talent is celebrated through whole-school performances, assemblies and special events, giving high-potential learners varied opportunities to shine and share their strengths with our community.
• Creative Arts extension – Students participate in specialised creative workshops, including Operation Art, providing authentic opportunities for high-potential learners to develop and showcase their artistic abilities.
• Leadership development – Leadership is fostered through our Year 5 Buddy Program, the Student Representative Council (Years 2–6), Year 6 Peer Support Leaders and the School Student Leadership Team. Our Year 6 leaders also guide school tours for prospective families, building confidence and communication skills.
• Physical domain extension – The Hornsby Zone School Sports (HZSS) pathway provides opportunities for HPGE students to demonstrate their physical abilities and compete against other schools in a supportive, encouraging environment while striving for excellence.

We actively participate in a wide range of state-wide competitions and enrichment activities, providing students with valuable opportunities to challenge themselves, excel and take pride in their achievements. Through this collaborative and enriched approach, we ensure every student’s unique talents are recognised, developed and celebrated.

Our students engage in:

• Premier's Debating Challenge
• Premier's Spelling Bee
• Premier's Reading Challenge
• Multicultural Public Speaking Competition
• Festival of Choral Music
• Primary Proms Choir
• Skellern Cup
• Netball Knockout Competitions
• Academic competitions (ICAS)
• Sydney North Dance Festival
• HZSS Summer and Winter Teams
• Maths Olympiad (APSMO)

State-wide and NSW Department of Education support is available for high potential and gifted students. We assist with entries, preparation and reflection, ensuring every experience contributes meaningfully to student learning, growth and confidence.