August Newsletter TopicsNew Leadership for NWGCA & Listening Tour SENG facilitator training Oct 12-13 WAETAG Conference Oct 17-18 ESD training sessions scheduled Enrichment Programs Getting ready for our yearly "Connections" conference Recent Articles New Leadership for NWGCAAfter many years of tireless dedication, Marcia Holland has decided to step down as President of NWGCA. Thank you to Marcia for her huge and continuing contributions in our state! Please welcome our new leadership team: Austina De Bonte, President Tawna Eggert, Vice President Marcia Holland, Secretary, Past President Pauline Bowie, Treasurer Listening TourWe are conducting a 3-phase Listening Tour this fall to better understand and shape our future organization around the needs of our community. For Phase 1 we are looking for: * Families with elementary or middle school-aged gifted children who are willing to do a short phone interview with a board member. * Names and contact info for current leaders (formal or informal) of gifted parent groups in towns, cities, and school districts across the state. We are planning to hold a meeting with these leaders in September. Can you help? Do you have ideas or suggestions for Phase 2 of our Listening Tour? Please email us. SENG Facilitator Training - Oct 12-13Want to learn how to be a facilitator for SENG Model Parent Groups (SMPGs)? Now is your chance to become a certified facilitator here in our own backyard! We are especially lucky to have the president of SENG, Lori Comallie-Caplan, and her colleague, Sheri Plybon, coming to do this training for us personally. This opportunity won't happen again in WA state for a long, long while--only a few facilitator trainings are held nationwide each year. No previous experience required--just a passion for helping families come together to discuss topics around raising gifted children, particularly around their social and emotional needs. If you have any questions about SMPGs or about becoming a facilitator, please email David Berg. Special thanks to the Seabury School for hosting this session! Registration & More Info "Oh, They'll Be Fine:" Addressing the Legitimate Needs of Highly Capable ChildrenOctober 18-19, 2013 Hotel Murano, Tacoma WAETAG's annual conference is coming soon, and is looking to be the best one yet, with a topic that is particularly relevant to parents as well as educators. The keynote speaker is Linda Silverman from the Gifted Development Center in Colorado--families fly to Colorado just to have their kids tested and assessed by Linda, she is that amazing. There is also a pre-conference day specifically for administrators with everything they need to know to get in compliance with the new laws--please spread the word to your school district's gifted coordinator! Conference Flyer Pre-Conference Administration Day Flyer Registration ESD Training Sessions ScheduledWAETAG trained 20+ people from each of the WA state Educational Service Districts (ESDs) over the summer to be able to give short courses on three topics:
Courses are intended for teachers and school administrators, but several sites said they would allow parents as well. Please encourage your teachers and school district coordinators to attend. Note that these classes are appropriate for regular program teachers who need to differentiate for a few gifted learners in their classrooms. These courses are already scheduled, more coming soon: ESD 112 (Vancouver) - Oct 24+ ESD 101 (Spokane) - Sep 25+ ESD 189 (Anacortes) - Nov 2 ESD 123 (Pasco/Yakima)- Oct 17+ To look up other ESDs, and for the full list of ESD training contacts, go to www.waetag.net Enrichment ProgramsLooking for school year enrichment programs? Here are some to check out: Prime Factor Math Circles in Bellevue - weekly sessions for grades 3-10 Challenge Math Online is a 20-week long practice program that helps young students develop problem solving and logical reasoning skills. CTY Online academic classes for grades preK-12, in a wide variety of subjects. Stanford EPGY academic classes for kindergarten to university level for gifted youth Gifted Homeschoolers Forum whose blog, facebook page, and group purchase discounts for members are useful even for non homeschoolers. New! CTY Cogito Research Awards for students ages 13-18 to support pre-college STEM research. Getting Ready for Our ConferenceWe are in the early stages of planning our yearly Connections conference, that seeks to bring together families of gifted kids in Western WA. This year we are looking into a full day format, and including a kids track as well as sessions for adults. If you have ideas for this year's conference, have a recommendation of a great place to hold the event, a speaker we should invite, or any other ideas, please email us at info@nwgca.org Recent ArticlesThis season's theme for articles is about advocating for your child's needs at school. Remember that both public and private programs take applications for next year in the fall, so it's not too late to start thinking about next school year!
13 tips for advocating for your child (or how to become "that parent") 'Same' and 'Equal' are not congruent terms I'm an advocate and so are you Should you let your child decide? Appealing your child's gifted placement decision |
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