This course of study was developed for intermediate and junior high students in the Defiance (Ohio) public schools who are talented and gifted in the visual arts, providing for an in-depth and sequential development of skills and concepts. The program's philosophy stresses that, while the products of the arts are important, a need exists to emphasize the learning process as satisfying in and of itself. It focuses on sensitizing the whole person to the arts and to developing the imagination. Options in meeting the needs of gifted students in visual arts include accelerated educational experiences in cluster groups within regular classrooms or in enriched classrooms serving gifted children. A scope and sequence chart for grades 5 through 8 lists program and subject objectives for several components of a visual arts course of study, covering drawing, graphic design, painting, photography, printmaking, and sculpture. Within each component, objectives focus on enabling students to: (1) become aware of ways society expresses values and beliefs in art and responds to art; (2) develop their abilities to respond to works of art; (3) understand how artists express themselves; and (4) understand how art critics and historians respond to art. Methods of evaluating student progress are noted. (JDD)