Grades 4-6 Summer Online Program

Please note: Beginning for summer 2022, students are to apply to programs based on the grade they will enter the following fall.  Please apply for your student based upon the grade they will enter in fall of 2022.

The 2-week Live Online Summer Program is comprised of courses at the Emerald Tier.  Students may apply as Pre-qualified Review applicants, New Score applicants or Admission Portfolio applicants.

• Students who have taken a CTD course, with the same qualifying area (Verbal/Reading or Math) at the Emerald Tier or higher, may apply as Pre-qualified Review applicants.
• Students who have achieved a score of 90% or higher, within the last two years on a nationally normed test (e.g. NWEA/MAP, CogAT, etc.) in the requisite qualifying area (Verbal/Reading or Math) should apply as New Score applicants.
• Students who have not taken a previous qualifying course with CTD nor have qualifying test scores need to apply as Admission Portfolio applicants.  Students will need to provide their most recent grade report AND provide the teacher recommendation link to their current teacher.  The link will be available on the View Application Details tab of the application once it has been paid for and submitted.

You can access the application online at my.ctd.northwestern.edu.

Application Deadline

Applications must be complete one-week prior to the start of the class. Applications completed after the deadline may be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Requests for Grade Advancement/Acceleration

CTD course content is advanced or grade-level accelerated, as reflected in course descriptions and the standard admission requirements. Though course content is advanced, students can engage with intellectual peers who are also age- or grade-level peers. Therefore, most students should apply for courses aligned to the grade-level in which they are currently enrolled. Still, for some students demonstrating a need for an even higher level of instruction than CTD’s advanced and accelerated courses already provide, further acceleration may be an option. Visit the Requesting an Accelerated Placement web page for more information about the process, timeline, and required materials.

Tuition

• Daytime Course: $775
• Evening Course: $410

Withdrawals

Please see CTD's withdrawal and refund information for policies.

Financial Aid

CTD offers need-based financial aid awarded as requests are received. Families are encouraged to apply early because the amount of aid available is limited. Please see the Financial Aid page for details. 

• The deadline to complete a financial aid application for Summer programming is April 15, 2022.
• You will receive the FACTS application link in your application confirmation email once the $60 dollar tuition deposit is paid and the application is submitted.
• It is imperative that you complete the financial aid application as soon as possible as it may take FACTS up to ten days to process your information.
• If you previously completed a FACTS application for the 2020-2021 academic year for CTD, you must still attach the 2021-2022 FACTS application to your FACTS account. You will be able to link your FACTS account to this new FACTS information. You may need to update financial information.
• If you experience difficulties with the FACTS process please call the FACTS helpline at 866/412-4637.

Summer 2022 Sessions

• Dates are July 5 - 15 and July 18 - 29.   
• Each course is two weeks long.
• Day courses are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. Central Time.
• Evening courses are Monday through Thursday, 7 p.m. - 9 p.m. Central Time.


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Students engage directly with their instructor and classmates through an online video conferencing platform (Zoom) for the duration of the course. 

All course materials (documents, videos, discussion boards) are posted in Schoology, CTD's secure, online learning platform.

All courses have a daily 15-minute break. See Sample Class Agenda further down this page for details on how live classes are typically conducted.

Supplies: Some courses may have required or recommended supplies, including print-outs, that families will be responsible for obtaining prior to the course. Supply lists and recommended suppliers will be provided to parents at least 10 days prior to the course in which they are needed. No course will have supplies that exceed $30 (before shipping and handling), and many required supplies will be common household items that may already be in the student's home.

This is an example schedule for a CTD live online course. Times of activities are approximate, and schedules will vary from course to course (and day to day within a course).  

Introduction: Introduction to the topic(s) of the day, ice-breaker, reminders of class expectations, materials needed for class, and how to use the functions in the conferencing software

Course Work (two to three of the following activities during each course)

• interactive instructor lecture and/or slide deck
• introductory video
• instructor-led interactive demonstration
• read-aloud
• informational article that is read and discussed in small groups
• large-group discussion
• small-group problem-solving activity
• individual hands-on activity
• individual research
• practice with new skill or strategy
• written reflection

Share Out: Sharing out of student products or findings from small group/individual work and follow-up large-group discussion

Break: Students take a bathroom / snack break. While eating their snack, they might keep their computers connected to the conferencing software so that they can continue to build community and engage with classmates outside of the academic context of the course.

Debrief: Recap learning experiences, revisit essential question(s) of the day, complete exit slips 

Students are required to have a laptop or tablet with a camera, a microphone, speakers and/or audio jack, the ability to type/keyboard, and the ability to connect to the Internet. Students need access to a stable internet connection and an updated web browser. 

Zoom is the conferencing software that will be used for the live course sessions. We recommend watching the Zoom for Students tutorial video prior to the start of class. 

Course materials (including the link to the course’s Zoom classroom) are hosted in Schoology, which is a learning management system designed for K-12 students. Schoology is a web-based application, so no software is required. Login details for student accounts will be shared with students a few days prior to the start of the session.

Student acceptance emails will contain a link to a Family Information webpage that includes program information and the Student and Family Handbook.

Instructors will help students navigate the features that will be utilized within Zoom at the start of the class. CTD still recommends, however, that students watch the Zoom for Students tutorial video prior to the start of class.

Primary communication with the course instructor and/or classmates occurs within Zoom.

All students who successfully complete a Live Online course for grades 4-5 and grades 5-6 receive a brief evaluation that includes comments on the student's performance in class. These evaluations are typically available six weeks after the final class.

• For questions regarding admissions and financial aid, please contact:
  ctd-admissions@northwestern.edu
• For questions about current CTD Leapfrog-Spark enrollments, please contact:
  ctd-enrichment@northwestern.edu
• For questions about school partnerships, please contact:
  ctd-school-services@northwestern.edu