Mrs. Happe's Fall TAG News 2017
NAME CHANGE= GE? NOPE! We are now called "TAG"!
This newsletter is being sent to all families at Weaver Lake and Oak View (feel free to unsubscribe)
"Gifted individuals are born with unique brain functioning – a true cognitive difference – which must be addressed in school. They are simply not smarter – they think differently, they learn differently, they perceive differently, and they sense differently." Celi Trepanier, Crushing Tall Poppies Website
TALL POPPY SYNDROME FROM WIKIPEDIA:
“ a social phenomenon in which people of genuine merit are resented, attacked, cut down, or criticized because their talents or achievements elevated them above or distinguish them from their peers “
District Happenings
GE? Nope. Introducing TAG!
Happy Fall!
Time flies and here we are at the end of September with the first month of school already behind us! Before I share more information about the upcoming year, there is one important update to start with!
Over the past year our department has been working hard to refine what we do so we can better serve and meet the needs of students in our district. One of the refinements that you will likely notice first is you will no longer see Gifted Education or "GE" on any communication from me or our department. Our department will now be called "TAG", which stands for Talent Development, Academic Challenge, & Gifted Support, as we feel this better defines our program and the services we provide the students of District 279.
School Happenings
Conferences!
I will be at Weaver this Wednesday and Thursday evening. Conferences typically start around 4:30ish and last until 7:30/45.
I have a few conferences scheduled these two nights. My slots will only be ten minutes long this year, to try and touch base with more folks.
Oak View:
I will be available for conferences at Oak View Monday and Tuesday (October 16 & 17) in the morning from 8:00-9:00 am. I will also be available on Tuesday evening at Oak View from 4;45-7:45 pm.
I will have a sign up outside my door on these nights, with any prearranged conferences listed. You can sign up for a time when you get to the school and come back, or if I am available, we can meet at that time.
Pull Out Seminars for 3rd-5th Grade -WVR & OAK
We are starting the first round of pull out seminars at the end of October! Due to CogAT testing this fall, the TAG teachers can't wait to start our seminars!!!
In the past, there were four different pull-out seminars that lasted anywhere from 5-8 weeks. The first seminar was always the Affective seminar that worked to address the social/emotional needs of our students. This year, there will be three different pull out seminars, each lasting from 6-8 weeks. The social-emotional component will no longer be a stand-alone group, but will instead be infused into each of the other three seminars--Quantitative, Verbal, and Non-Verbal.
The seminar schedule will be the same for all three grades and will be as follows:
Nov-Dec: Quantitative
Jan-Feb: Verbal
April-May: Non-Verbal
I would love to tell you specifically what each topic will be for each subject, but I always end up lying. I am prone to change my mind about what will be best for each group of kids and our outcomes for each seminar. So.... not telling! I will attempt to continue popular offerings from the past~ such as Rubiks Cubes for NonVerbal-Quantitative options....
Students participating in each group will receive an informal and informational sheet about the seminar--including a description, outcomes, and a schedule--at the beginning of the seminar.
Participation is based on various data components along with the size of the building.
Why the size of the building matters? We strive to achieve a minimal base caseload of 10% of the schools/grade level's total population. For instance,~ in other words, if a school has 600 students, I would estimate at least 60 kids will have on my service list.
This lens is used as for each separate offering at each grade level. So, as the Quantitative Seminar approaches, I look at how many students are in that grade level at that school. (120 kids? 12 kids + as base caseload) Now I NEVER seem to be able to limit those numbers effectively. Therefore, my seminars are often base + half, or with the above example, 18 kids. This is JUST an example...!
Items used to determine who is in the top 10% for each service (which ends up to be about 15%)?
Often in order, as listed, but not always (often a case by case consideration).
- CogAT- Cognitive Abilities Test scores
- MAP- the last Reading and Math Measure of Academic Progress scores
- Recommendation / Observation by any and all of the following: Mrs. Happe, Classroom Teacher, other staff & or teacher, parents and (often impressively) by the student themselves.
Magnet School Lottery for Weaver Lake!!!
Here is the current information on our Magnet School Lottery.
The application for students to apply to attend WVR for next school year will go LIVE on Monday, October 16, 2017. It will remain open through December 31, 2017. The first lotteries will happen after winter break.
Karla Juetten
Curriculum Coordinator
Talent Development
K-5 TAG Lessons with Mrs. Happe!
Talent Development, which is a new component of services for our department, across the district, means we look closely to see how your child sparkles and why. We know that being intellectually gifted/advanced is just one 'flavor' of potential and ability. We are intentionally having classroom teachers observe students during a lesson with me, and asking them to search for surprises in their students (how they respond, react, communicate, and the level of thinking that a student is displaying). This is searching for talent in all of our kids (especially some that may not easily show up in an academic setting).
Students may share that in my class they learned about Multiple Intelligences, Habits of Mind, Growth Mindsets, Mindfulness or 'Calm', the importance of identifying your own strengths and weaknesses, and learning how to think creatively. Some additional buzz words to look for include fluency, flexibility, originality, elaboration, and evaluation.
If you are accustomed to having your little one (K--2) in small groups with me, this year our focus will shift to working with whole classrooms. We may work with some small pullout groups in K, 1, 2 later in the school year depending on our progress.
I can't wait to see all of those bright shiny faces in the next few weeks!
Kris Happe
Academic Challenge
Oak View 3-5 All Classes; Weaver Lake 3-5 Some Classes (in regular classrooms, not TAG)
PARTICIPATION OF STUDENTS DEPENDS ON THE 3RD THROUGH 5TH GRADE CLASSROOM TEACHER'S DECISION TO DO THE CHALLENGE IN THEIR CLASSROOM, AS PART OF THEIR LITERACY INSTRUCTION. PLEASE RESPECT YOUR CHILD'S TEACHER'S CHOICE AS TO WHETHER OR NOT THEY CHOOSE THIS PROGRAM FOR THEIR CLASSROOM.
What is the WordMasters Challenge?
The WordMasters Challenge is a national competition for students in grades 3-8 that encourages growth in vocabulary and verbal reasoning. Each year, over 125,000 students from some of the best public and private schools throughout the United States 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 learn to think both analytically and metaphorically.
The contest addresses higher-level word comprehension and verbal reasoning in two ways:
*It challenges students to complete analogies based on relationships among words they have learned.
*It bases the analogies on special vocabulary lists, developed for each grade and difficulty level by experienced teachers, which participants are encouraged to study before each meet or quiz.
Excellence in the competition will require both a mastery of the meanings of the vocabulary words (of a difficulty appropriate to each grade level) and thoughtful reasoning about the relationships between these words and more familiar language used in the competition's analogies.
Students receive the first WordMasters list of 25 vocabulary words in the beginning of October. They will work on learning the multiple meanings of these words in their language arts class. They should also study at home. Words will be listed on this site as soon as they are available along with links to practice. The first challenge meet will be given the first week of December. The challenge meet consists of a 20 question multiple choice analogy test. The students have 20 minutes to complete the test. A second list of 25 words will be available in December. Challenge meet 2 will consist of using the new words as well as the first list words. The third and final list will be available in February and the third challenge meet will include analogies using words from all three lists.
The WordMasters website has general information about the competition as well as links to analogy practice activities. Use the following link to access the WordMasters site. Click on the "resources" tab to find links to additional practice opportunities.
http://www.wordmasterschallenge.com/home
General Analogy Practice:
Analogy Jeopardy: http://www.quia.com/cb/148767.html
Choices: http://www.quia.com/pop/14975.html
Hangman: http://www.quia.com/hm/242970.html
Speedy: http://www.sadlier-oxford.com/phonics/analogies/analogiesx.htm
Word Relationships: http://www.quia.com/quiz/748000.html?AP_rand=1225189222
WordMasters vocabulary words are sent to teachers when they are available. There is also a link for each grade to access the Quizlet website. The Quizlet website is excellent practice for memorizing the definitions. There are online games to play and tests to take. You can also use the "print" icon to print flashcards, tests, and a glossary.
Study Tips:
*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?
*Some words have more than one meaning. You should know the multiple meanings.
*Think about some categories into which several words might be grouped.
*Be sure you understand the part of speech of a word (noun, verb, adjective, adverb) as it is used in the analogy.
*Pay special attention to the prefixes or suffixes of words, because they are often clues to meaning and part of speech.
*Familiarize yourself with other forms of the words. For example, isolate can also be isolated or isolation. Imitate can also be imitation or imitator.
*Keep your first list. Some of the words will appear in the second and third WordMasters Challenge Meets later in the school year.
WordMasters words for 2017/18 will be posted when they arrive. Words are typically available in October, and the first Challenge Meet is held in December.
Events
MINNESOTA COUNCIL FOR THE GIFTED AND TALENTED ANNUAL CONFERENCE
Mrs. Happe will be presenting THREE sessions at MCGT this year!
Can't Wait to See You There!
Theme: “On Behalf of Gifted Kids...”
KEYNOTE SPEAKER: RICHARD CASH
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2017, 8:30-4:30
Location: Robbinsdale Middle School, 3730 Toledo Ave. N. Robbinsdale
*For adults & kids - Adults attend sessions with a variety of presenters & children in K-7 can take classes too
If interested, go to:
https://mcgt.wildapricot.org/resources/Documents/2017%20Conf%20Flyer.pdf
Host and co-sponsor: Robbinsdale Area Schools
Where: Robbinsdale Middle School, 3730 Toledo Ave N, Robbinsdale
The Day’s Schedule
8:30 - 9:00 Check-in and pick up program
9:00 - 12:00 Children’s morning session
9:00 - 10:30 Welcome, MCGT Friend of the Gifted Award, Keynote Address
10:45 - 11:45 Adult Breakout Session I
11:45 - 1:00 Lunch for adults and students
1:00 - 4:00 Children’s afternoon session
1:00 - 1:20 MCGT Annual Meeting
1:30 - 2:30 Adult Breakout Session II
2:45 - 3:45 Adult Breakout Session IV
4:10 - 4:30 Book Swap session for students
The Minnesota Institute for Talented Youth (MITY) has 4 weeks of Saturday classes for Grades 1-4 beginning October 28th. For more information contact www.mity.org or contact your school’s TAG specialist.
Mrs. Happe is speaking at MITY for parents the second weekend in November!
Monthly Article or Post
Gifted Support
NAGC- Back to School Resource Roundup
Welcome back to school!
NAGC has compiled essential resources and information for parents, administrators, and educators on gifted and talented, as well as
general knowledge and advocacy materials.
General Knowledge
Become familiar with the common terms, standards, and position statements that NAGC offers.
- Glossary of terms
- NAGC Position Statements
Position Statements represent the official convictions of NAGC and provide guidance for individuals working with gifted children. They are great advocacy tools for garnering support for high-ability learners. - NAGC Gifted Program Standards
- NAGC Membership
Are you a member yet? Explore the options and benefits of membership. - Gifted Education Practices
For Parents
Amid the flurry of mixed emotions, purchasing supplies, and confidence in your child’s ability; dealing with the start of the school year can be quite a challenge, especially if your school is facing budget and program cuts. Just as you purchased those markers, folders, and scissors, so you should look to the resources that NAGC has for parents.
- Parenting for High Potential (a digital copy is attached above for you)
- Connecting for High Potential
- Resources for Parents
WSSS: West Suburban Summer School-- It's Not Too Early:)
West Suburban Summer School (WSSS)
West Suburban Summer School is a program of Intermediate District 287's Gifted Education Services. The program serves identified gifted and talented students in our member districts and beyond. Instructors design classes in their area of expertise to provide gifted students with unique experiences to challenge their abilities.
For information and access to the brochure, look for a postcard that will be sent home with your child from the Gifted & Talented coordinator in your district. The postcard will provide a URL to access the online brochure and instructions for registration.
This year, there will be offerings for parent sessions!! Stay tuned~!
Returning Registrants: If you created an account, you will not need a postcard. However, Emergency Contact Information MUST be reviewed and confirmed in order to be eligible for enrollment. Please see instructions under the section "Emergency Contact Information Entry".
The West Suburban Summer School Brochure will be available to preview February 14, 2018.
Registration begins February 21, 2018, for member districts and February 23, 2018, for non-member districts.
Summer Sessions for 2018:
June 18 - 22
June 25 - 29
July 9 - 13
July 16 - 20
July 23 - 27
For more information, please contact:
Gifted & Talented Program Coordinator
lahanson@district287.org
Ph: 763-550-7167
Connie Fladeland
Gifted & Talented Program Coordinator
cefladeland@district287.org
Ph: 763-550-7264
Kim Kallroos
Program Secretary
kkkallroos@district287.org
Ph: 763-550-7245
Mrs. Happe (happy? really?) Yep!!
Who?
Kris Happe is the TAG Specialist at your child's school. She is a veteran educator who has two gifted children of her own. After 28 years in education, Kris has been an elementary classroom teacher, a gifted education program specialist, a district data & assessment coordinator as well as a district gifted coordinator. The Osseo District has been her home from 1989-2003, and then again from 2011-present.
Service:
I have had the honor of serving as a council board member for the Minnesota Department of Education’s Gifted Education Advisory Council from 2006-2017. Being part of the active gifted education movement in the state has been a privilege.
Kris loves conferences!
Whether it is conferences to talk with families OR conferences for learning, Kris is THERE and lovin' it!
Speaking:
She has presented at the Hormel Gifted Education Symposium in Austin, Minnesota, SENG and NACC's national conferences as well as tons of presentations and workshops with school folks or business people.
Requested topics Kris speaks about include gifted education, gifted programming, gifted families, sensitivities of gifted, gifted families~how to keep the boat afloat, creativity, growth mindset, who are gifted individuals, acceleration, rainforest minds (adapted from Paula Prober's work), academic acceleration, family stress management. My absolute favorite work gravitates toward partnering with parents with and of gifted families. Kris spends weekends as well as a guest speaker for local parents of gifted groups.
Learn with Kris as she presents in a few weeks at the MCGT Fall Conference in Robbinsdale, Minnesota. Details of the conference are listed above.
Parenting Support:
Please consider a special seasonal series for folks with gifted families. Kris is hosting for Intermediate District 287, West Suburban Summer School parents (which is open to all parents). This will replace GE Parent Forum nights for the 17-18. Registration and fee payment can be found here: www.brightspotting.com by Wednesday, October 11, 2017. Space is VERY limited and information will be sent to hundreds of families this week, which has space for 25 attendees. Good luck!
Email: happek@district29.org
Website: www.brightspotting.com
Location: Intermediate District 287, Xenium Lane North, Plymouth, MN, United States
Phone: 612-598-8571
Twitter: @brightspotting