Gifted Matters: May 2013

Welcome to the May 2013 edition of Gifted Matters. As we draw to the end of yet another school year, the madness of May is upon us- the frenzy of final exams and end-of-year parties, the overlapping award ceremonies and banquets and graduations, the anticipation of that last day of school, with the promise of lazy mornings and long summer days. Before it all becomes a big blur, we hope you will take time to read and enjoy the articles and information we have for you in this newsletter, our last one for this academic year.

Please join us in welcoming Deana Harrell as the new Director for Advanced Academics for CISD. Ms. Harrell has over 15 years experience in teaching, 13 of which have been at CISD. We look forward to working closely with her to continue to improve our wonderful GT program.

As we look back at yet another school year, we thought it would be a great time to tell you a little bit about the history of the Coppell Gifted Association. In March 2006, Todd Kettler (CISD Director of Advanced Academics at the time) in a presentation to the CISD Board of Trustees, stated that he wanted to start a parent group, to support gifted education in CISD. Coppell parent Tracy Fisher volunteered to help him with this task and the Coppell Gifted Association was born. Read more in Once upon a Time….the CGA story.

Please welcome the 2013-14 CGA Board of elected officers.  Elections were held at our April 30 speaker series event where CGA membership voted and approved the nominated slate. Are you interested in a more active role in CGA? If you would like to be a part of CGA in any way, please click here for a listing of open positions. We hope you will consider being a part of our team.

The CGA board believes that one of the best ways to improve education for GT students is to provide opportunities for educators to learn about gifted education. With that in mind, the primary focus of CGA fundraising efforts is to fund scholarships for CISD educators to attend gifted conferences. Over the past 6 years, the Coppell Gifted Association has provided scholarships to almost 200 CISD personnel who wished to attend conferences to expand their knowledge-base in the area of GT education. CGA is extremely excited to announce that the CGA Scholarship Grant Committee has reviewed and approved educator scholarships for summer 2013 for 5 CISD teachers.

As part of CGA’s ongoing Speaker Series, Gerry Charlebois (Executive Director of Advanced Academics for Carrollton Farmers Branch ISD) spoke to parents and teachers about Understanding and Influencing the Brain. Listen to the complete program through the recorded podcast.

If you are considering Academic Acceleration for your student, please remember that the CISD Deadlines to apply for Credit by Exam are:

• July 1 for Kindergarten acceleration (skip Kindergarten)
• June 4 for elementary grade skipping
• May 1 or July 1 for Math acceleration in middle school
• May 1, June 4, July 1 for High School Credit by Exam (either with or without prior instruction)

Please visit Credit by Examination and Acceleration Testing on the CISD website for more information.

Summer is almost upon us and that means lazy mornings and swimming and ice cream and CAMPS!! For student entering grades 4-8 in fall 2013, consider signing them up for one of CGA’s MOSAIC summer enrichment courses. Some of the courses are already wait-listed but there are few seats available in others. Be sure to click on the link above to see a complete listing of courses and pre-requisites.This month, our Summer Mosaic Spotlight is on the course MONEY. Be sure to check it out.

Camp Invention‘s new program, GEO-QUEST,will be available to kids in Coppell on July 15-19, 2013. Students entering grades 1-6 in fall 2013 are invited to explore the earthly realms of sky, sea, land and underground. Get all the details about registration dates and discounts here.

Camp Zimma Rimba (Aug 5th- 9th at Pinkerton Elementary) provides yet another unique outlet for a student interested in a non- traditional music class. Your student will learn to play African Music on Marimbas and Drums. Learn more about this non-traditional music class here

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