Enrichment News
FROM MRS. BONFIELD ~ PRM'S GIFTED SPECIALIST
February ENRICHMENT NEWS
In this update:
NEW! Seeking Input about the Naturescape Development
- Enrichment Schedule Update
- Links for Keyboarding & Typing Practice
- Gifted Referral Testing February 1 - 15
- Conferences
- WordMasters Challenge February 22
- Brain Bowl February Schedule & Match Results
- NEW! Summer Camp Adventure Fair
- NEW! Gifted Resource Fair
- NEW! Mark your calendars for the PRM CultureFest
REGULAR Features:
PRM Schoolwide Enrichment Offerings
SumDog Math Enrichment
WordMasters National Challenges
First Semester Enrichment Pullouts--with pictures!
Great Sites To Check Out
Enrichment Opportunities Outside Of PRM
TEMOTAD ~ The Evil Mistress Of Torture And Doom
NO PULLOUTS DURING GIFTED TESTING
PRM NATURESCAPE DEVELOPMENT
Please send your ideas to me at bonfiej@cpsboe.k12.oh.us and I will share them at our upcoming meetings in February.
NEW ENRICHMENT SCHEDULE
FOR THE THIRD QUARTER
Enrichment for all identified gifted students in grades 1 - 6 takes place during part of technology class, after completing Mr. David's lessons.
I have introduced all students in grades 1-6 to SumDog, and students should have received a letter to bring home with username and password information. I am asking that all students answer at least 100 math questions each week. They can do this as part of their technology time or at home if they have online access. Some students do not want to use their technology "free choice" time to do SumDog, as they would rather play different games or engage in other online activities. They are free to make that choice. In addition, some students actually need their entire technology class time to complete their lessons. MANY students are struggling with keyboarding skills.
I would like to encourage ALL parents to work on keyboarding skills with their children.
I have added links to a few online typing games & activities below.
Grades 1-6:
All students have been entered in the weekly SumDog contests which run through May. Students need to answer at least 100 math questions per week to qualify for the contest.
Grades 3 & 4
THIRD AND FOURTH grade students will also focus on vocabulary & analogies to prepare for the next WordMasters competition.
Grades 5 & 6
FIFTH AND SIXTH grade students will continue learning how to use Tinkercad to design 3D objects that can be printed using the new 3D printer.
Small group pullouts will occur in the afternoons mainly for 9-12 students identified as cognitively gifted or in multiple academic areas.
Keyboarding & Typing Practice
Is your child one of them? Not sure? Sit down and watch them type a sentence or paragraph using the computer keyboard. Even if they are OK, they can strive to improve :-)
Some teachers are using TypingClub with their students, and Mr. David includes keyboarding skills with his weekly technology lessons.
I encourage all parents to include some form of keyboarding & typing skills practice at home.
Below are some online resources you might find useful.
GIFTED REFERRAL TESTING & ASSESSMENTS
Permission to test forms were sent home and were due back by January 18th.
Please contact me if you have any questions about this round of testing.
For more information on gifted testing in Cincinnati Public Schools:
CONFERENCES
I will be available for conferences on Thursday, February 14th from 4:15 to 6:15 and on March 7th from 4:15 to 6:15.
Please contact me if you would like to schedule a conference on one of these dates.
**PLEASE NOTE: My conference dates are different from the scheduled February 21st conferences on the PRM school calendar.
WORDMASTERS
There were 224 3rd grade teams that competed nationally. We submitted a score of 151, which was above the median score of 143. Great job! In addition, Vito Aiello was one of 68 in the country to score 19 out of 20! WAY TO GO VITO!
For the fourth grade competition, 271 teams enrolled. The median score was 150, and we submitted a score of 125. Lahela Richey is commended for having the highest 4th grade score at PRM. NICE JOB LAHELA!
The next WordMasters Challenge takes place February 22nd.
All students were given the new lists before winter break and should have been studying independently.
Word lists for the second challenge are posted HERE!
PRM BRAIN BOWL
PRM Brain Bowl Team Schedule for February & March
February 14 ~ 2:30 - 4:00 Practice in room 3301
February 21 ~ 4:00 - 5:00 Match at Dater Montessori (2840 Boudinot 45238)
February 28 ~ 2:30 - 4:00 Practice in room 3301
February 28 ~ 4:15 - 5:00 Match against Fairview at PRM in room 3301
March 7 ~ 2:30 - 4:00 Practice in room 3301
March 14 ~ 4:00 - 5:00 Match at Covedale (5130 Sidney Rd. 45238)
March 16 ~ 8:30 - 3:00 CPS Brain Bowl Tournament
PRM Brain Bowl Team Results
January 24 ~ PRM: 17 NAM: 20
January 17 ~ PRM: 16 Cheviot: 10
December 6 ~ PRM: 14 Hyde Park: 26
**Highest total points for a first match according to the moderator. Congrats to all!
PRM CULTUREFEST
Our PRM community came together to experience a variety of foods, displays and entertainment from all around the globe. The Cultural Committee hopes to build on the success of last year's event and will be looking for volunteers who are interested in participating.
Mark your calendar for this May 9th event. More information will be coming soon!
PRM ENRICHMENT OFFERINGS
ENRICHMENT PROGRAM
PEACE (Providing Equal Access to Curricular Enrichment)
Schoolwide Enrichment is offered to all students in grades 1 through 6 at the PEACE level. The monthly SUPRA ET ULTRA Critical & Creative Thinking Challenges are the foundation of our schoolwide program, and we encourage all students who desire an enrichment opportunity to participate.
PACE (Purposeful And Challenging Enrichment)
Students who are identified gifted in specific academic areas such as math and reading are provided appropriate academic enrichment based on their individual needs.
ACE (Academic & Creative Excellence)
Based on gifted identifications and individual student needs, enrichment is provided to develop academic and creative talents.
SUPRA ET ULTRA Monthly Challenges
The SUPRA ET ULTRA challenges are part of our Schoolwide Enrichment Program, P.E.A.C.E. which stands for Providing Equal Access to Curricular Enrichment.
All students at PRM are invited to participate in the SUPRA ET ULTRA monthly challenges, because all students benefit from this type of critical and creative thinking enrichment.
Each quarter, students who have participated in the monthly challenges are entered in a quarterly prize drawing. To be eligible for the drawing, it is not necessary for all ten challenges of the monthly SUPRA ET ULTRA to be completed, but the self-assessment must be completed in full for their name to go into the drawing.
Students who complete all ten challenges by the deadline and also complete the self-assessment in full, will receive a certificate, and have their name posted on the PRM ROCKS! website.
The SUPRA ET ULTRA challenge worksheets are available to ALL PRM students.
Parents and teachers can request them for students simply by sending Mrs. Bonfield an email at bonfiej@cpsboe.k12.oh.us
Students who are identified as gifted are assigned the monthly SUPRA ET ULTRA challenges and are encouraged to complete them as they are considered part of their gifted education.
*Supra Et Ultra is Latin for Above and Beyond.
Rubric
All students that are identified gifted in any area receive a SUPRA ET ULTRA from me each month. I use a rubric to assess the level of participation of these identified students. The rubric is one way to gather information about academic habits and skills.
SuperStar Certificates
Students who meet the deadline to complete all 10 challenges and the self-assessment receive a SUPRA ET ULTRA SuperStar Certificate.
Recognition
Monthly SuperStars are posted on this monthly newsletter and also on the PRM ROCKS! Website.
SELF-PACED THINKING SKILLS ENRICHMENT
CRITICAL & CREATIVE THINKING SKILLS ENRICHMENT is provided to all first, second, and third grade students who are identified gifted in any area.
The Thinking Skills Enrichment Packets are to be completed independently at school and are designed for self-paced enrichment. In some cases, a classroom teacher will include this work in a student's weekly work contract if they feel it is appropriate. In most cases, Thinking Skills Enrichment is considered free choice work, and should be done after completing assigned work tasks.
SUMDOG MATH ENRICHMENT
SumDog Math Contests
All students identified gifted in any area have been set up with a SumDog Math account as part of their enrichment offerings. In addition, as part of our Schoolwide Enrichment Program, ALL PRM students who have the desire to develop their math talents are invited to participate. Parents can request a SumDog account by contacting me. at bonfiej@cpsboe.k12.oh.us
I enter all of our students in the weekly contests to promote participation!
Sumdog's math contests are a free, fun way to motivate students while developing math fluency and keyboarding skills.
How it works
To take part, students simply play Sumdog's math games.
Scores are based on accuracy, and questions tailored to each student's level - so everyone has a fair chance. Each contest runs from 8am local time Friday to 8pm the following Thursday - but students can play at any time during this period.
Rewards for students - and teachers too!
As a reward for taking part, each student who answers 100 questions will receive an item for their Sumdog House.
How do we take part?
To take part, students play Sumdog's free math games. In each game, they need to answer math questions to make progress. They can choose which game they play, while Sumdog automatically adapts its questions. Each correct answer they give counts toward their score.
During the contest period, students who are entered will see the contest activity on their homepage. Any games they play when this is showing will count towards their score. They can play any time, either at home or at school.
How are the scores calculated?
Students compete by playing Sumdog's games. Sumdog games are free to play, before, during and after the contest. Students are ranked on a leaderboard by the number of correct answers they give. If there's a tie, we rank them on average answer speed. Classes are ranked on the average number of correct answers. 10 students from a class need to play in the contest for it to appear on the leaderboard.
Are there prizes?
Each student who answers 100 questions in a contest will be rewarded with an item for their Sumdog house. There are also subscriptions for the first, second and third place class winners, and certificates of achievement for the first place class, leading students and daily winners. Find out more about prizes.
How do you make it fair?
Sumdog adapts its questions to each student's ability, so every student has a good chance of winning. To make contests fair for students with limited access to computers, every student is limited to 1000 questions. However, it's fun to take part even if students only answer a few questions. Teachers choose a grade level for each class, so that students don't get questions that are too hard. However, we can disqualify a school if it misuses this feature to gain an unfair advantage.
What's the catch?
There isn't one! Sumdog's contests are educational, engaging and exciting. It's free to take part, and your students can keep on playing Sumdog's free games - and answering math questions - after the contest ends.
WORDMASTERS NATIONAL CHALLENGE
All third & fourth grade students identified gifted in any area participate in the national WordMasters Challenges as part of their enrichment offerings.
In addition, as part of our Schoolwide Enrichment Program, ALL PRM 3rd & 4th grade students who have the desire to develop their vocabulary and analytical thinking skills are invited to participate.
About WordMasters
Using Analogies to Master Vocabulary
Each year, over 150,000 students in grades 3-8 from some of the best public and private schools across the country participate in the WordMasters Challenge™.
Unlike other language arts competitions for this age group – which focus on grammar, punctuation, spelling and other language mechanics – the WordMasters Challenge™ helps students to think both analytically and metaphorically.
The contest addresses higher-level word comprehension and verbal reasoning in two ways:
- It bases the analogies on special vocabulary lists, developed for each grade and difficulty level by experienced teachers, which participants study before each meet.
- It challenges students to complete analogies based on relationships among words they have learned.
The contest challenges students to use the words from the list in logical pairs that will look like this:
SLINK : CAT : : STRUT : ________
a. snail
b. whale
c. eel
d. grasshopper
e. peacock
To succeed in the competition, students will have to understand the exact meanings of all the words in the list, and will have to reason carefully about the relationships shown in the pairs. In the example above, the correct answer is (e) peacock because slink is a verb that can describe the way a cat moves about; in a similar way, strut is a verb that can describe the way a peacock moves about.
Here are some tips to help you get ready for the WordMasters Challenge™:
After you have learned the meanings of your words, think about possible relationships among them.
- Which words have similar meanings?
- Which words have nearly opposite meanings? Remember, some words have more than one meaning.
- Think about some categories into which several words might be grouped.
- Be sure you understand the part of speech of a word (for example, noun, verb or adjective) as it is used in the analogy.
- Many words on this list (such as “trot”, “swirl”, “strut” and “spurt”) can be either a noun or a verb depending upon how they are used. “Fleet” can be a noun or an adjective.
- Pay special attention to the prefixes and suffixes of words, because they are often clues to meaning and part of speech.
- Try to familiarize yourself with other forms of these words, for example:
- Not just “gust”, but also “gusty”
- Not just “rhythmic”, but also “rhythm”
- Not just “frisky”, but also “frisk” and “friskiness”
- Not just “whirlwind”, but also “whirl”
Some of the words from the first challenge will also appear in the second and third WordMasters Challenge™ meets so be sure to review all words!
FIRST SEMESTER PULLOUT ENRICHMENT BY GRADE
Third Grade Critical Thinking Detectives!
Third grade students have been thinking like detectives to solve the mystery of THE CAR THIEF!
Third graders read details of a car theft which included a statement by the witness and statements by the four suspects!
Third graders analyzed and evaluated the information, writing detective reports to submit to the Chief of Detectives!
FOURTH GRADE CREATIVE COMMUNICATORS
Hink Pink Word Riddles
Students have learned how to utilize a rhyming dictionary as a resource tool, and they will explore additional tools for writing and designing. Finished products will have to meet "standards of high quality" to be on display and published.
FIFTH GRADE DESIGN THINKERS
Maker Space Grant for 3D Puzzle Printing
To fulfill the requirements of the grant, my 5th grade students will be extending their design process lessons from fourth grade and will design and create 3D Scramble Square Puzzles for PRM's Breakfast Brainiacs program.
Getting started with Tinkercad
About Tinkercad
Tinkercad is a free and web-based application. This means that students may access and work on their designs both at school and at home using almost any computer that is connected to the internet, without having to install any software. Tinkercad accounts are open to Tinkerers of all ages! You may also create a parent account so that you can log in to see what your child is making, reset passwords, change usernames as necessary, and even start designing. For more information about this, please visit: www.autode.sk/tinkercadparentsandteachers
By using Tinkercad, your child is joining the largest community of 3D design and 3D printing enthusiasts of its kind. The skills they will be learning are directly connected to innovative careers such as building, architecture, animation, engineering, industrial design, and more.
Through the use of this learning tool, they will be able to go from mind to design in minutes.
To learn more about 3D design and modeling, please visit: www.makingstartshere.com
2D Avatar
3D Design
3D Printing
SIXTH GRADE LEGACY LEARNING PROJECTS
Gourds and Rain Gardens
Civic Garden of Cincinnati
GREAT SITES TO CHECK OUT
Spot The Difference Puzzles
Play the online version of SET
Dot-to-Dot Puzzles
KrazyDad Puzzles
Binary Puzzles
Play MathDice Online!
24 Game
Othello/Reversi
Balance Math Puzzles
ENRICHMENT OPPORTUNITIES OUTSIDE OF PRM
Please let me know if you are aware of additional opportunities that I should share.
Super Saturday
The Super Saturday Program is a quality enrichment program for intellectually gifted children, ages 4-14, in the Greater Cincinnati area. Starting in the Fall of 1981, the Super Saturday Program has grown from serving a handful of gifted children at the University of Cincinnati’s main campus to serving hundreds of children each session in classrooms at Walnut Hills High School.
Explore More! Enrichment Program
TEMOTAD ~ The Evil Mistress Of Torture And Doom
Mrs. Jackie Bonfield
Since 1999, I have worked with more than 2000 gifted students in grades K through 8 in various public school settings.
Email: bonfiej@cpsboe.k12.oh.us