High potential and gifted education (HPGE)

At Byron Bay Public School, we proudly align our approach with the NSW Department of Education’s High Potential and Gifted Education (HPGE) policy, recognising the diverse strengths and needs of high potential and gifted learners. We are committed to fostering an inclusive, supportive environment that challenges and extends all students, ensuring they remain engaged, motivated, and able to reach their full potential.

Our programs identify and nurture talent across multiple domains, reflecting the Department’s focus on the whole child. By embracing a broad view of giftedness, we aim to support excellence academically, creatively, physically, and socially, preparing students for lifelong learning and wellbeing.

We focus on four key domains:

Creative Domain: Opportunities for innovative thinking, artistic expression, originality, and problem-solving.
Intellectual Domain: Enriched learning that promotes deep inquiry, higher-order thinking, and advanced understanding.
Physical Domain: Activities that build coordination, physical skills, and healthy habits.
Social-Emotional Domain: Support for emotional wellbeing, resilience, and positive relationships.

At Byron Bay Public School, we are dedicated to delivering the HPGE policy through a comprehensive, student-centred approach that nurtures the potential of every learner.

Recognising potential and developing talent

Our teachers find potential and nurture our students to be the best they can be.

Tailored lessons

Each student has different abilities. Teachers respond to each student’s ability by providing extra challenges and extension activities to keep learning exciting and engaging.

Rich opportunities and activities

Students can take part in opportunities to develop their talent in the arts, sport, leadership and more.

Opening doors to wider experiences

Our students can participate in a wide range of state-wide opportunities that aim to extend and enrich student potential.

What is high potential and gifted education?

High potential and gifted education (HPGE) is how our school supports students with advanced learning needs.

We do this through:

effective teaching strategies like enrichment, extension and acceleration

tailored support during lessons that stretch, challenge and inspire

access to a wide range of opportunities both within and beyond our school.

Learn more about HPGE here.

In our classroom

At Byron Bay Public School, HPGE lives in everyday practice. We challenge our students to think, create, lead and grow every day.

We recognise that high potential exists in many forms across all learners. Our approach to HPGE is embedded in everyday teaching and learning, guided by a strong focus on formative assessment, evidence-based practices, and effective differentiation to meet the unique needs of every student.

We offer:

Differentiated tasks that vary in pace, complexity, and cognitive demand
Ongoing formative assessment to track progress and inform instructional adjustments
Modified movement activities and focused skill development in PDHPE
Clear, targeted learning objectives to build coordination, agility, and control
Strengths-focused feedback paired with purposeful goal setting
Opportunities for students to take on leadership roles within the classroom
Structured peer collaboration with built-in reflection opportunities

Across our school

We recognise that every student is individual. We provide flexible and diverse opportunities for students to explore and grow their strengths outside the classroom.

These include:

School choir
School band
Debating workshops
Stage Sport groups
Representative sport pathways
Student Representative Council
School camps
Wellbeing programs
Curriculum aligned excursions and incursions
GRIP Leadership Conference
Intensive Swimming Programs
Byron Bay Writers Festival
Whole School Music/Drama/Dance Production
HPGE elective groups
Cultural Immersion Program

Across NSW

Our students engage in a wide range of statewide programs designed to extend and enrich their potential.

They take part in opportunities such as the DoE Game Changer Challenge, Premier’s Spelling Bee, Premier’s Multicultural Public Speaking, DoE Arts Unit Festival of Choral and Instrumental Music, and the Premier’s Debating Challenge.
Statewide and NSW Department of Education support is available for high-potential and gifted students. We assist with entries, preparation, and reflection, ensuring that every experience contributes meaningfully to student learning.