INSIDE THIS ISSUE

UW SPACE PLACE 2

HOW TO RAISE A CREA-

TIVE CHILD

2

ADVOCACY 2

MISDIAGNOSIS OF GIFTED 2

PEER PRESSURE 3

MENSA FOR KIDS 3

PREVIEW OF SUMMER

ATTRACTIONS 3

WAYS TO HELP YOUR

BRAINY CHILD 4

WEB RESOURCES 4

LIST SERVES FOR GIFTED 4

SUMMER FUN

Summer

opportunities

abound Summer is the time

to allow your child to explore

the areas that are of greatest

interest and a joy to your

child We have collected de-

scriptions dates ages and

live web links for you in a

document on our web site

Click HERE or type the URL

into your browser

http

wwwmcfarlandk12wius

familiesAdvanced_Learner

Summer202016pdf

February 2016

or blaming the child

Avoid making promises

you can not keep ldquoYou

are grounded for liferdquo is

unrealistic Focus on natu-

ral consequences

Write notes to your childmdash

tuck them in a pocket lunch

box or under the pillow

Valentines can be given year

round

More ideas can be found

in Chapter 3 of the follow-

ing James et al (2007) A

Parents Guide to Gifted Chil-

dren Great Potential Press

ldquoYour relationship with

your child is more im-

portant to her long-term

future than any educational

or enrichment opportunities

you could provide and it

will suffer without good

interpersonal communica-

tion (p 32)

Here are some ideas to en-

hance the communication

with your child

Remember that communi-

cation has multiple lay-

ersmdashbody language facial

expressions tone of voice

words Make sure your

body language matches the

words you are saying Be

genuine avoid sarcasm

Name your feelings This

helps your child develop a

vocabulary for expressing

themselves

Spend time together Lis-

ten to each other and share

your thoughts without the

distraction of electronic de-

vices

Accept feelings They are

neither right nor wrong

they just are Empathize

understand problem solve

together even if you think

the problem is minimal It

may be huge for your child

Separate behavior from the

child you love

Use ldquoIrdquo statements Ex-

plain how a behavior made

you feel instead of accusing

Right in our own back yard

Brainiac Bowl February 20

The Brink Lounge

Under the Starry Skies

throughout February at the

Monona Campus

Saturday Science March 3

Celebrate Aldo Leopold at the

Wisconsin Institute of Discov-

ery For the whole family

Wonder bugs for Preschoolers

Choose from a variety of Op-

tions Mice on Ice Moon

McFarland School District

Advanced Learner Newsletter

COMMUNICATION THE KEY TO

RELATIONSHIPS

Rope Me and My shadow

Prickly Pines

Summer Camps Looking

aheadAges 2mdash16 Control

click the link for all the options

UW Space

Place

The education and public outreach of the UW-Madison Astronomy Department Free for you

Family Workshops Feb 27 1000 Scribble Bots Ages 6-10

Guest Presentations Feb 10 Understanding Climate Change in Wisconsin by David Liebl UW-Madison College of Engineering Build Your Own Telescope Feb 19 600mdash700

Astronomical Events Fireballs in the sky More info Here

but still largely unknown to

healthcare professionals edu-

cators and parents To protect

our children from inappropri-

ate diagnosis evaluation and

treatment and to promote

their social and intellectual

development we must educate

In an informative and capti-

vating video SENG high-

lights the plight of children

who are misdiagnosed with

disorders such as ADHD or

Aspergers Syndrome

Misdiagnosis of gifted chil-

dren is a widespread problem

people about the potential

for misinterpreting charac-

teristics of giftedness as

symptoms of a pathology

Check out the YouTube

video at

httpwwwyoutubecom

watchv=9XN7IOteagI

THE MISDIAGNOSIS OF GIFTED CHILDREN

messagesmdashsomething your child really

enjoyed Offer to be a partner in your

childs education in whatever way the

teacher feels is most useful

Understand that gifted students are

as far removed from average in ability

and possibly performance as students

who qualify for other special education

services

Familiarize yourself with grouping

practices or clustering students of similar

ability Gifted student enjoy learning

together as they can share their ideas

more freely

Unless you feel you have no alterna-

tive dont request specific teachers

Rather request teachers who understand

respect and enjoy teaching gifted stu-

dents support inclusion dont use whole-

group instruction all the time participate

in professional development are sensitive

to students social and emotional needs

compact curriculum and differentiate

instruction use flexible learning groups

integrate basic skills and higher-order

thinking skills use assessments to deter-

mine students learning needs

Join and support the efforts of your

local and state advocacy groups

From Winebrenner Susan (2012) Teaching Gifted Kids in Todayrsquos Classroom Free Spirit Publishing Minneapolis

Advocacy Herersquos what effective advocacy for your child could look like

Support your school and its teachers

Know they work tirelessly and do the best

they can for your child

During any conference with teachers be

careful of what you say and how you say it

Gifted kids are no more special than any

other kids but they do have different learning

needs

Never ask for MORE work Ask for

DIFFERENT work

Sandwich any requests with positive

GIFTED AND TALENTED NEWSLETTER

Itrsquos over-glamorized about how easy it is to be gifted That itrsquos an effortless quality that yoursquove been handed The reality is that kids who are bright most times really work hard Theyrsquore dedicated to what theyrsquore doing and nothing is going to be accomplished without a lot of passion and work ~ Dr Colangelo (retired director of Belin-Blank Center)

Arguments of elitism are foolish This nation fosters a sense of elitism when it comes to sports or the

entertainment industry Certainly there needs to be no apology for those who wish

to nurture the minds of the best young studentsrdquo James Bray

How to Raise a Creative Child Step One Back Off

By Adam Grant

Practice makes perfect but it doesnrsquot make new Research suggests that the most creative children are the least likely to become the teacherrsquos pet and in response many learn to keep their original ideas to themselves To foster creativity Grant suggests

Allow children the freedom to sort out their own values

Let them discover their own interests

Support your childs interest and en-thusiasm in a skill by feeding their nat-ural curiosity ldquoIf you want your chil-dren to bring original ideas into the world you need to let them pursue their passions not yours ldquo

Excerpt summary from Grantrsquos new book Originals How Non-Conformists Move the World

For the complete article click HERE

Childrenrsquos Theater

of Madison

Spring Classes start in April

Classes for all grades PKmdashGrade 12

Follow the link below to find out whatrsquos on the bill

httpctmtheaterorgtake-a-classtheater-

classes-2015-2016

Try this web site for some fun chal-lenges and ways to connect

wwwmensaforkidsorg

Peer Pressure

Peer pressure against students who want

to achieve in school can be seen in most

middle and high schools regardless o

socioeconomic conditions Many gifted

kids will ask themselves ldquoCan I still be

popular with my peers if I work hard in

school and get high gradesrdquo Gifted boys

who are also talented in sports can use

their athletic abilities to gain peer ac-

ceptance Girls donrsquot seem to have a

similar advantage

Silvia Rimm suggests that you encourage

your children to be true to their abilities

and to value their differences even if they

lose some friends along the way She tells

gifted kids to remember that the benefits

Concordia Language Villages

WwwConcordiaLanguageVillagesorg

Language and culture immersion programs

that address key educational and emotional

needs Experiential and challenging curric-

ula that is like living in a foreign land

Check out this unique opportunity Camps

are 1 week to 4 weeks in length and are

located in Minnesota Choose from Ara-

bic Chinese Danish Finnish French

German Italian Japanese Korean Nor-

wegian Portuguese Russian Spanish

Swedish or Swiss Family camps are also

available

Join other junior or high school music students for a week of creative skill-

building and performance in band or-chestra choir musical theater and jazz

ensemble Concert groups rehearse

throughout the week and your family and friends are invited to the final con-

certs

June 16mdash22 Junior Session for those

completing grades 6ndash 8

June 23mdash28 Senior Session for grades 9mdash12

httpcontinuingstudieswiscedusmc

WCATY Programs

All WCATY programs are designed for

gifted students Enrollment is by appli-

cation Students discover that there are

others their age with similar interests

passions and depth of understanding

Life long friendships are made

ALP Accelerated Learning Program is an

intense three week academic program that

gives students a high school or college-level

course at an accelerated pace Credits can be

added to the high school graduation require-

ment with prior approval Available at com-

muter and residential prices June 24mdashJuly 14

STEP Summer Transitional Enrichment

Program gives students two weeks residing at

Edgewood College studying one accelerated

course Small intense classes designed to

enrich accelerate and inspire July 15mdash28

completed grades 7 amp8

YSSP Young Students Summer Program

offers fast-paced week-long classes devoted to

the same topic to guarantee that students will

have a good knowledge of the subjects and a

basis for further independent study Classes

are small and designed to enrich learning and

introduce new disciplines helping students to

expand their knowledge about the world and

how much there is to learn For those com-

pleting grades 4mdash6

Wwwwcatyorg

PREVIEWS OF SUMMER ATTRACTIONS

WAYS TO HELP YOUR

BRAINY CHILD Make lots of books and magazines

available to feed that hungry mind

Be a learner yourself Show by ex-

ample that learning is something

people can and should do every day

Listen to your child about his expe-

riences and stories from school

Stay in touch with your childrsquos

teacher

Help your child learn and practice

social skills

Look for groups organizations and

special opportunities where your

child can meet people who share the

same interests

From You Know Your child is Gifted

Whenhellip by Judy Galbraith

PAGE 3 GIFTED AND TALENTED NEWSLETTER

Summer Music Clinic

of conformity end on the night of high

school graduation

Role-play with your kids about things

they might way to deflect peer ridicule

about their work in school Above all

make sure your children know the differ-

ence between real friends and people

whose friendship is not worth seeking

From Winebrenner Susan (2012) Teaching

Gifted Kids in Todayrsquos Classroom Free Spir-

it Publishing Minneapolis

Check out whatrsquos blooming

and what you can learn at

Olbrich Gardens

httpwwwolbrichorg

educationclassescfmyouth

Parent Group

Meets March 15 at 600 at the District Office

Kitty Ver Kuilen District Coordinator of Gifted Services

Mary Donagan Middle and High School Gifted Resource

Lisa Nyenhuis Intermediate School Gifted Resource

Carol Greig Primary Campus Resource Teacher

Philosophy The McFarland School District strives to meet the

needs of all of their students including those in the gift-ed population We recognize outstanding talents in chil-dren and youth from all cultural groups across all eco-nomic strata and in all areas of human endeavor We

strive to identify students in the five areas of gifted-

ness Intellectual Academic Creative Artis-

ticDramatic and Leadership and to provide them with continuous and systematic services McFarland

staff and parents work together to sustain the effective-ness of district GampT Services

Web Site httpwwwmcfarlandk12wiusmsdindexphp

On our Web Site

Is My Child Gifted Handbook for Families

Gifted Identification Process Power Point Frequently Used Terms Programming Options

NUMATS registration information And More

Advanced Learner

Resource Staff

SocialEmotional Issues

Sylvia Rimm wwwsylviarimmcom

wwwseejanewincom

SENG Supporting the Emotional Needs of the Gifted httpwwwsengiftedorg

Twice Exceptionalmdashthose who are gifted but have an Exceptional Education Need

The 2e Newsletter subscription www2eNewslettercom

List Serves

State wide Gifted Education Forum

httpwwwwatgorgwisgift-list-serve--join-todayhtml

General Information about Giftedness

National Association for Gifted Children

Hoagiesrsquo Gifted Education wwwhoagiesgiftedorg

Davidson Institute a Website supporting profoundly gifted children http

wwwditdorg

Wisconsin Association for Talented and Gifted httpwwwwatgorg

Center for Talent Development at North-western University wwwctdnorthwesternedu

Wisconsin Center for Academically Talent-ed Youth wwwwcatyorg

Gifted in Wisconsin httpgiftedinwisconsincomwelcome-to-gifted-in-wisconsin

More Resources

Prufrock Press Inc httpwwwprufrockcom

Free Sprit Publishing wwwfreespiritcom

Great Potential Press wwwgreatpotentialpressworpresscom and wwwgiftedbookscomproductsasp

MindWare wwwmindwarecom

Some of My Best Friends are Books

WWW RESOURCES FOR YOU

Gifted in Wisconsin circulates information regarding opportunities for gifted children Subscribe to their email distribution list at httpgiftedinwisconsincomconnectjoin-giw-e-mail-list

Statewide Gifted Education Announcement Forum (announcements only) Email lyr-islistmanageruwweduType SUBSCRIBE WIS_GIFTANNOUNCE-L in the message area

Leave the subject line blank

Statewide Gifted Education Forum

Questions for discussion and sharing of resources throughout the state Co-sponsored by Wisconsin Associa-tion for Talented and Gifted and UW-Whitewater httpwwwwatgorgwisgift-list-serve--join-todayhtml