one size does not fit all volume - migiftedchild.org

Volume 16, Issue 3, Fall 2006

VOLUME 16, ISSUE 3, FALL 2006

One Size Does Not Fit All Kelley Senkowski 1

From the President Kelley Senkowski 2

A Story About Shoes 2

Midwest Academic Talent Search: Educational Options for Advanced and Accelerated Students Patricia Greene 3

Successful Strategies for Teaching Gifted Learners Davidson Institute for Talent Development 4 Share the Gift of Knowledge! 6

Angles for Advocacy Suzanne Hosking, VP for Advocacy 7

Book Reviews: Parenting Gifted Kids: Tips For Raising Happy and Successful Children and College Planning for Gifted Students: Choosing And Getting Into the Right College 7

2006 Student Summer Scholarships 8

2006 Adult Grant Recipient Creates “Experience China” Teaching Kit 9

Parent to Parent: “A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste” Haika Gay, Guest Columnist 10

Michigan’s 2006 Nicholas Green Distinguished Student Award Winner 11

Notes from the Webminder Kelly Schultz 12

Links, Links, Links … www.prufrock.com 12

Focus on Our Affiliates: FACTO/Ideas for Affiliate Meetings Marie Brucker 13

Alliance Affiliates 14

2006-2007 Board of Directors 15

One Size Does Not Fit All Kelley Senkowski Here is an answer to budget cuts in gifted education and sup-port... Educators and parents across Michigan—we are coming to you! We are bringing the 2006 East and West Conferences to your neighborhood.

You have asked for Michigan Department of Education speakers to address credit questions for accelerated learners—they are coming. Educators, you have asked for someone to present hands-on ideas you can use tomorrow in the classroom for your ac-celerated learners—one is coming. Parents, you have asked for someone to talk about how to understand and support the dif-ferences and social-emotional needs of your gifted child—one is coming!

We invite you to join us in Grand Rapids the evening of No-vember 1 and Birmingham the evening of November 16 for the 2006 East and West Conferences. The format includes your choice of a parent or educator breakout, followed by the main speaker from the Michigan Department of Education. A confer-ence brochure is included in this newsletter.

We are pleased and honored by the speaker lineup for the con-ference. Dr. Ellen Fiedler will lead the parent breakout session of the conference. Dr. Fiedler is an international speaker and author, past co-chair of the Global Awareness Division for the National Association of Gifted Children (NAGC) and recently retired Professor from the Gifted/Talented Master degree pro-gram at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago.

Jacquelyn Melin will lead the educator breakout session of the conference. Educators may know her from the College of Edu-cation at Grand Valley State University where her specialty is and has been gifted/talented and differentiation in the class-room. She is also author of Passport to Learn: Projects to Challenge High-Potential Learners, 2001, and co-author with Lisabeth S. Margulus of Performance Appraisal Made Easy, 2005. This session is geared to K-8, even K-12.

The main speaker following breakouts will be representatives from the Michigan Department of Education, filling in for David Mills. Sam Sinicropis and Charlotte Koger are Gifted (See SENKOWSKI, page 7)

Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education • Images • Volume 16, Issue 3, Fall 2006

FROM THE PRESIDENT Kelley Senkowski As a new school year begins, so does a new presidential term begin at the Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education.

I want to, first and foremost, thank Sharon Milberger for her leadership as she exits the President’s role. She has been a strong, yet calm leader, whom I greatly admire. She has set the stage to enable me to accomplish things in my term and have a year of ACTION for the Alliance. It is with great re-spect and admiration that we say goodbye to her in the presi-dential role and look forward to working with her in her role as Past-President and Board committee member. She is truly an asset to our organization and I am grateful for her contin-ued guidance in my new role.

A quick summary to introduce myself: I live in the Grand Rapids area and have spent years in leadership positions with the Alliance affiliate, GT Resource Network. I am an independent gifted consultant. As such, I have given state-wide presentations and teacher workshops. I am also a busi-ness owner and have three children, ages 11, 9, and 7 and am awaiting the arrival of a 6 year old and a 2 year old from Guatemala soon.

I have a passion to help gifted children be all that they were created to be, by helping others understand and support them. That is the basis for all that I do. I am confident that this mirrors many of your reasons for your activities.

As you all settle into another school year, I speak on behalf of the Board when I say, we are so glad that you are a part of the Michigan team to support the needs of the gifted child.

This year brings some exciting things from the Alliance! We are currently working on:

• New member benefits on our website • Bringing conferences to you this fall loaded with use-

able information on supporting gifted children (see in-sert in this issue of Images or the website for details)

• Updating the Michigan Alliance brochure • Beginning the lengthy project of updating the look of

the website • Implementing a tag line and promotion to be used state-

wide so we are united in a single message to brand the needs of the gifted children in Michigan. Many voices, with a single message, will be heard. More details to follow.

This issue of Images is packed full of articles and informa-tion of interest to both parents and educators. In fact, this issue is being mailed to curriculum directors all over the state. Highlights include:

• Our cover article introduces our 2006 East and West Conferences being held in November, “One Size Does Not Fit All.” You will find complete conference infor-mation and registration form stapled in the center of this issue of Images.

• Sue Hosking in her Angles on Advocacy column ad-vises that this election season is a great time to establish relationships with your legislators.

• Pat Greene, Michigan’s new liaison with Midwest Aca-demic Talent Search, brings us up to date on the MATS process.

• Written for teachers, but of equal interest to parents, is an article written by the Davidson Institute for Talent Development, “Successful Strategies for Teaching Gifted Learners.”

• We’re sharing some of the advice that members of the Alliance share with each other on our email mailing list, GT-Michigan. Haika Gay, a parent in southeast Michi-gan, has allowed us to publish her advice to another par-ent, “A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste.”

• Reports from our Michigan Alliance summer scholar-ship and grant winners.

• Marie Brucker’s Focus on our Affiliates column intro-duces our newest affiliate, FACTO (Fowlerville Aca-demic Creative Talented Organization).

Thank you for your partnership in helping these special chil-dren. We will see you at the conferences!

Kelley

A Story About Shoes What would you think if you heard the following conversation?

Salesperson to a customer coming into a shoe store: "I have a size 7 shoe that should fit you very nicely, and may be just what you need. No? You have a size 9 foot? Well, all I have are size 7 shoes. Try this one anyway."

Customer: "I can't get it on."

Salesperson: "Are you saying there is something wrong with my shoe?"

Customer: "Nothing is wrong with the shoe. It is a perfectly fine shoe. It just doesn’t fit me.”

Salesperson: "Well, maybe you would like my shoe if I put this pretty bow on it, or maybe a shiny buckle. Now put it on. I don't understand why it doesn't fit. What if I give you more size 7 shoes? Will three be enough?

Well, then something must be wrong with your foot. What's wrong with your foot?"

Customer: "Nothing is wrong with my foot. I have a perfectly good foot. It just doesn’t fit in your shoe."

I think you’d agree that the salesperson is convinced his shoes are so good they ought to fit all customers. However, reality tells us that in order for shoes to work well, they have to be the “right” size for the foot. Imagine what would happen if you had to walk around all day in shoes that were too small—you’d get a little cranky, wouldn't you? Maybe you’d decide to stop wearing shoes altogether!

Gifted, talented and creative kids “wear a different size shoe” and they don’t thrive (and probably get more than a little cranky!) if they don’t find shoes that fit. Like a good shoe, a good program must fit the wearer. One size does not fit all!


Midwest Academic Talent Search: Educational Options for Advanced and Accelerated Students Patricia Greene, Michigan Liaison, Midwest Academic Talent Search Midwest Academic Talent Search, coordinated through the Center for Talent Development at Northwestern University, offers Michigan’s bright third through ninth graders the opportunity to gain more specific information about their academic strengths. Their families and schools also obtain academic counseling materials as well as a wealth of infor-mation on courses and opportunities that can challenge these students both in and out of school.

Based on over thirty years of nation-wide, research-based studies, the Talent Search uses above-grade-level tests to obtain a more accurate assessment of students’ abilities. When only traditional grade level achievement tests are used with our bright students, we find that they already know most, if not all, the content tested. They have essen-tially “topped off” the grade level assessment; the “ceiling” of the test was not high enough.

The Midwest Academic Talent Search (MATS) uses the ACT and SAT Reasoning Tests, written for college-bound 11th and 12th graders, to provide us with a much more de-tailed profile of sixth through ninth grade students’ mathe-matical and verbal reasoning potential. The EXPLORE test, normed for eighth grade students, is used to more accu-rately identify the skills and reasoning abilities of third through fifth grade students.

With this research-based assessment, Talent Search partici-pants can then tap specialized curricula, advanced programs and accelerated courses of study, including Advanced Placement (AP) during 9-12th grades, and dual enrollment (simultaneous enrollment in high school and college courses) during 11th and 12th grade.

The MATS application process occurs during September-October of each year. Typically, families pay the approxi-mately $60 fee, which covers the registration, testing, and all follow-up materials sent to both the family and the school. Partial to full fee waivers are also available, and some Michigan districts offer partial to full support for their students’ participation. MATS information and application forms are sent to all elementary and middle schools’ coun-seling and principal’s offices, and to gifted coordinators at Intermediate School Districts. Students may register through their school or online at www.ctd.northwestern. edu. Information is also available from the MATS Michi-gan Liaison, Patricia Greene, at [email protected].

MATS Benefits for Students Students who participate in MATS gain several benefits:

• an individual assessment of abilities, which pro-vides a better basis for selecting courses and a long-range academic plan;

• practice taking tests used for college admissions;

• academic counseling materials designed specifi-cally for MATS students, including recommended middle and high school academic course se-quences;

• several academically related publications, includ-ing The College Guide—filled with information about colleges/universities-during 10th grade—and Talent magazine, a quarterly publication of CTD;

• information on outside-school academic programs, both summer and year long, throughout high school.

MATS Benefits for Schools

Schools also benefit from the MATS process, although no fees are assessed to districts when their students partici-pate. Districts gain:

• accurate and specific assessment information on advanced students. This can help districts assess programming needs, and document a “year’s growth for every child”;

• academic counseling information including recom-mended courses matched to the student’s advanced needs. These well-researched, professional quality materials can be used to meet Michigan’s require-ment to develop an appropriate educational plan for every high school student;

• information on educational options that include AP (Advanced Placement) and dual enrollment, in-cluding the sequence of courses that serve as pre-requisites;

• information on how schools and communities can plan fast-paced classes for gifted students.


Successful Strategies for Teaching Gifted Learners Davidson Institute for Talent Development Being a regular classroom teacher can be both an exciting and overwhelming experience. There are so many curricu-lums to cover, so many standards to meet, and so many things to learn. It can seem as though you're being stretched in an infinite number of directions. And, the most challeng-ing part generally isn't the teaching; it is managing student behavior. Without a doubt the most difficult student in your classroom is generally the one who finishes every assign-ment in less than five minutes and requires constant redirec-tion. When I first started teaching, I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what to do with these students and what I dis-covered was that very often, if I just adjusted my perspective and offered them more challenging experiences, the prob-lems disappeared—like magic! This is how I became pas-sionate about meeting the needs of gifted students. I came to see how making a few simple adjustments could change the entire culture of my classroom. With that in mind, here is a list of tried and true tips I recommend.

Tip #1: Familiarize Yourself with the Characteristics of In-tellectually Gifted Students Not all gifted students in your classroom will be identified and even those who are may not always appear to be gifted. As such, it is important that you don't allow yourself to be distracted by false stereotypes. Gifted students come from all ethnic groups, they are both boys and girls, they live in both rural and urban areas and they aren't always straight A students. Students who are intellectually gifted demonstrate many characteristics, including: a precocious ability to think abstractly, an extreme need for constant mental stimulation; an ability to learn and process complex information very rapidly; and a need to explore subjects in depth. Students who demonstrate these characteristics learn differently. Thus, they have unique academic needs. Imagine what your behavior and presentation would be like if, as a high school junior, you were told by the school district that you had to go back to third grade. Or, from a more historical perspec-tive, what if you were Mozart and you were told you had to take beginning music classes because of your age. This is often the experience of the gifted child. Some choose to be successful given the constructs of public school and others choose to rebel. Either way, a few simple changes to their academic experience can dramatically improve the quality of their lives—and, mostly likely, yours!

Tip #2: Let Go of "Normal" In order to be an effective teacher, whether it's your first year or your 30th, the best thing you can do for yourself is to let go of the idea of "normal." I can't encourage you enough to offer all students the opportunity to grow from where they are, not from where your teacher training courses say they

should be. You will not harm a student by offering him/her opportunities to complete work that is more advanced. Re-search consistently shows that curriculum based on develop-ment and ability is far more effective than curriculum based on age. And, research indicates that giftedness occurs along a continuum. As a teacher, you will likely encounter stu-dents who are moderately gifted, highly gifted and, perhaps if you're lucky, even a few who are profoundly gifted. Strategies that work for one group of gifted students won't necessarily work for all gifted students. Don't be afraid to think outside the box. You're in the business of helping stu-dents to develop their abilities. Just as athletes are good at athletics, gifted students are good at thinking. We would never dream of holding back a promising athlete, so don't be afraid to encourage your "thinketes" by providing them with opportunities to soar.

Tip #3: Conduct Informal Assessments Meeting the needs of gifted students does not need to be an all consuming task. One of the easiest ways to better under-stand how to provide challenging material is to conduct in-formal whole class assessments on a regular basis. For ex-ample, before beginning any unit, administer the end of the unit test. Students who score above 80% should not be forced to "relearn" information they already know. Rather, these students should be given parallel opportunities that are challenging. I generally offered these students the option to complete an independent project on the topic or to substitute another experience that would meet the objectives of the assignment, i.e. taking a college/distance course. With areas of the curriculum that are sequential, such as mathematics and spelling, I recommend giving the end of the year test during the first week of school. If you have stu-dents who can demonstrate competency at 80% or higher, you will save them an entire year of frustration and boredom if you can determine exactly what their ability level is and then offer them curriculum that allows them to move for-ward. Formal assessments can be extremely helpful, how-ever, they are expensive and there is generally a backlog of students waiting to be tested. Conducting informal assess-ments is a useful and inexpensive tool that will offer you a lot of information.

Tip #4: Re-Familiarize Yourself with Piaget & Bloom There are many developmental theorists and it is likely that you encountered many of them during your teacher prepara-tion course work. When it comes to teaching gifted children, I recommend taking a few moments to review the work of Jean Piaget and Benjamin Bloom. Jean Piaget offers a help-ful description of developmental stages as they relate to learning. Gifted students are often in his "formal operations" stage when their peers are still in his "pre-operational" or "concrete operations" stages. When a child is developmen-

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tally advanced he/she has different learning abilities and needs. This is where Bloom's Taxonomy can be particularly useful. Students in the "formal operations" developmental stage need learning experiences at the upper end of Bloom's Taxonomy. Essentially all assignments should offer the stu-dent the opportunity to utilize higher level thinking skills like analysis, synthesis and evaluation, as defined by Bloom. I recommend using the Internet to learn more about these two important theorists. A couple of websites that may be of interest include:

Piaget's Stage Theory of Development (http://web.psych.ualberta.ca/~mike/Pearl_Street/Dictionary/contents/P/piaget's_stages.html)

Learning Domains & Bloom's Taxonomy (http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/bloom.html)

Tip #5: Involve Parents as Resource Locators Parents of gifted children are often active advocates for their children. If you are not prepared for this, it can be a bit un-nerving. The good news is that, at least in my experience, what they want most is to be heard and to encounter some-one who is willing to think differently. Generally, I found that if I offered to collaborate with them, rather than resist them, we were able to work together to see that their child's needs were met. For example, if they wanted their child to have more challenging experiences in math, I would then enlist their help in finding better curriculum options. I gener-ally conducted an informal assessment to help them deter-mine the best place to start and then encouraged them to ex-plore other options that could be adapted to the classroom. Most parents understood when I explained that I didn't have the luxury of creating a customized curriculum for every student, but that I would be willing to make accommoda-tions if they would do the research. Flexibility and a willing-ness to think differently helped me create many win-win situations.

Tip #6: Learn About Distance Learning Opportunities The choices available to teachers and parents in this area have exploded in the past several years. Distance learning opportunities have dramatically increased options for meet-ing the needs of gifted students. Programs such as EPGY math and the Johns Hopkins Writing Tutorials as well as online high school and college courses, including online AP classes, are a great way to substitute more challenging cur-riculum for students who demonstrate proficiency with grade level material. Of course, these classes generally aren't free, but they are an option. And, in my experience, they are an option that many parents are willing to fund. Search the free GT-CyberSource online resource database at www.GT-Cybersource.org to find resources recommended by stu-dents, parents and teachers.

Tip #7: Explore Acceleration ~ It's Free and It Works!

Another option is to allow students to attend classes with other students who are at the same developmental level, rather than with their age peers. If a 9 year old can demon-strate that he is ready to learn algebra, why should he be forced to take fourth-grade math just because he is 9 years old? Same goes for language arts, or science, or social stud-ies or any other area of the curriculum. Many well-meaning teachers worry that a student will run out of things to learn if they are given access to curriculum designated for older stu-dents. Whenever I hear this question I can't help but ask—can a person ever truly run out of things to learn? Indeed, if we let Susie, a third grader, learn fifth grade math this year, then fifth grade math isn't going to be appropriate for Susie when she gets to fifth grade. So, during fifth grade, Susie should have access to seventh grade (or higher!) math—depending upon her needs. What's wrong with that? Susie is learning at a rate appropriate to her abilities and will con-tinue to do so whether or not we "make" her do third grade worksheets. Why not accommodate her unique learning needs with a bit of flexibility. Susie may just be the one who discovers the cure for cancer or comes up with an alternative fuel source that is more planet-friendly. Besides, and I can only speak for myself, I don't believe ANY student should have their opportunities limited because of their age, their race or any other factor that is beyond their control. I believe education should be about creating true learning opportuni-ties for ALL students—including gifted students. If you have a student who is ready for fifth grade work, collaborate with the fifth grade teachers. There are great tools, such as the Iowa Acceleration Scale, that can help you to determine whether the student should be moved ahead for just a subject or two or should be grade accelerated.

Another reason that many teachers are afraid to try accelera-tion is that they are concerned about the student's level of social maturity. Research has demonstrated time and time again that acceleration is effective for many reasons and that social maturity is rarely an issue. Several studies have shown that social age is correlated with mental age—not chronological age. So, not only is it generally in the stu-dent's best interest academically to accelerate, it is in his/her best social interest as well! The same goes for students in high school. If a student is ready for college work, encour-age them to take college courses or to consider an early col-lege entrance program. Indeed the student might need a bit of tutoring to get up to speed and/or may need some extra support initially, particularly with writing and/or organiza-tion, however, gifted students learn very quickly and my experience has been that these supports can generally be removed after a reasonable adjustment period.

Tip #8: Learning from the Experiences of Others Many well-meaning teachers innocently commit the follow-ing blunders when they encounter gifted students. Don’t feel

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bad if you have committed them. I know I have and I wish someone would have pointed them out to me before I had to learn about them the hard way.

Blunder Number One: Asking Your Gifted Students To Serve As Tutors For Students Who Are Struggling. Gifted children think and learn differently than other students. Ask-ing them to serve as tutors can be a frustrating experience for all parties involved. This should also be remembered when putting together learning teams or group projects. Put-ting your strongest student with your students who are strug-gling is likely to be a painful experience for everyone. Imag-ine developing a cycling team with someone like Lance Armstrong as one member and then selecting other members who have either just learned to ride their bikes or are still relying on training wheels to help them gain their balance. It is unlikely that anyone in this group is going to have a posi-tive experience.

Blunder Number Two: Giving Your Gifted Students More Work When They Finish Early. It is common practice to give students more work if they complete their assignments early. This is counterintuitive if you consider that if the stu-dent is completing his/her work in an efficient manner, it is likely that the work is too easy. Let's once again consider our cyclist. Would you have the cyclist who finished the race first continue to ride, on a stationary bike no less, until all of the other cyclists finished the race? I hope not! What if that cyclist was given an opportunity to participate in more challenging races or had the opportunity to develop his/her talents in related areas—wouldn't that be a better use of his/her time?

Blunder Number Three: Only Allowing Gifted Students To Move Ahead When They Complete The Grade/Age De-signed Work Assignments With 100% Accuracy. It is im-portant to remember that gifted students think and learn dif-ferently and can be extremely rebellious. No one—not adults, not children and especially not gifted children—likes to be bored! Gifted students, thanks to their ability to reason, will purposely choose not do something merely because they "must" do it, particularly if it seems pointless to them. They would rather spend their time thinking or reading than com-pleting worksheets that are too easy. If you are truly inter-ested in doing what's best for your students, it is imperative that you focus on their strengths, not their shortcomings. Offer them opportunities that are consistent with their abili-ties—lead them from where they are. Depending how long they have been in the system, it may take them a while to trust you. So, don't be surprised if there isn't a miraculous overnight change. Be consistent and positive and remember, you may be the first teacher who has offered them an oppor-tunity to actually learn, rather than regurgitate and they may not know how to handle your responsiveness. Don't fall into the trap of saying, "See, I told you he wasn't gifted, I gave

him one tough assignment and he failed." Gifted students generally haven't had to work to succeed. Give them time to build their, often atrophied, wings in a safe environment.

Tip #9: Utilize Outside Resources There is a lot of information in this article, and it is likely you're feeling a bit overwhelmed! Here is the best news so far...you are not alone and you don't have to come up with all of the answers by yourself. There are several national organizations devoted entirely to assisting gifted young peo-ple and the professionals who serve them. The three most notable organizations are the National Association for Gifted Children (www.nagc.org), The Connie Belin & Jac-queline N. Blank International Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development (http://www.uiowa.edu/~belinctr/), and the Davidson Institute for Talent Development (www.Davidson-Institute.org). As a first step, I recommend joining the Davidson Institute's free Educator's Guild. Mem-bers have access to private electronic mailing lists and bulle-tin boards to exchange ideas, locate resources and discuss issues with educators all over the country. Members also have access to the Davidson Institute's in-house team of pro-fessionals for personalized assistance with identification, assessment, exploration of educational options, creation of Individual Educational Plans, and location and development of curriculum for highly gifted learners. All you have to do is call to receive answers to your questions—completely free of charge. And, the Davidson Institute also provides partici-pants of the Davidson Young Scholars program and their parents, free services as well. In addition to investigating these national organizations, you may also wish to investi-gate organizations at the state and local level that focus on meeting the needs of gifted students. It isn't necessary to turn your world upside down to be an effective teacher of gifted students, you just have to be flexible, knowledgeable, and be willing to try new things. Gifted students cannot fend for themselves and I wish you the best of luck as you begin the exciting adventure of making a difference to the gifted students in your classroom! After all, one person can and does make a difference. Reprinted with the permission of the Davidson Institute for Talent Devel-opment, which does not imply or constitute endorsement. The Davidson Institute for Talent Development is a 501(c)3 nonprofit operating founda-tion founded in 1999 to support profoundly intelligent young people. For more information on the Davidson Institute, please visit http://www.Davidson-Institute.org, or call (775) 852-DITD.

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Share the Gift of Knowledge! Gift subscriptions to Images or gift memberships in the Alliance are available. Share information and updates with others—teachers, admin-istrators, legislators, your child’s school or local library. A gift sub-scription to our quarterly newsletter Images is $15. A gift membership is $30 or, if through a local affiliate, $20, and brings all the benefits of Alliance membership. Fill out the Membership Form on the back of this newsletter with the gift recipient’s address. Then note clearly that it is a gift subscription or membership, and include your name and ad-dress so when the subscription or membership expires, you can be noti-fied.


ANGLES ON ADVOCACY Suzanne Hosking, VP for Advocacy It’s an election year! Many of you are all too well aware of that fact given the volume of televised political ads and signs prominent in your neighborhoods. One thing you may not realize is the golden opportunity available to you as an advocate for gifted learners.

Incumbent candidates and challengers will never be more willing to meet with you than they are prior to an election. Successful advocacy with policymakers at the local, state and federal level depends on your ability to connect and develop a relationship based on trust. Gaining credibility with legislators takes time as they become familiar with you and your expertise on the issues of gifted learners. This is your chance to make a critical connection with the candi-dates and begin to develop a relationship with them.

Start by making an appointment with your candidate. When you make your initial contact, simply introduce yourself as a constituent. A personal visit is really the best way to initi-ate a relationship. This meeting gives you an opportunity to find out the candidate’s position on key issues. It also en-ables you to share your views on education issues.

Many communities offer gatherings that bring together one or more of the candidates for local, state and federal elec-tions. Those are perfect venues to become acquainted with the people who will eventually represent you in office. It may be less intimidating to meet the candidates in a public forum before you schedule a personal meeting.

Finally, always send a note of thanks for meeting with you. Most people forget this simple act of kindness and it will help them remember who you are the next time you sched-ule a visit.

Successful advocacy will not happen without you. Take this opportunity to make that first contact.

and Talented Consultants for the Office of School Improve-ment, with administrative background in education. They are not ONLY coming to pass on information from the Gov-ernor's recommendations on dual enrollment, advanced placement, testing out and IB programs, but are also looking for YOUR direction and input to implement current and pending legislation. Don't miss this opportunity!

Please pass on this conference information to as many par-ents and educators as you can in your school, neighborhood and district. With budget cuts for gifted students, this is THE opportunity to learn how to help these children reach their

full potential, and use it this year, right now. It takes ALL of us to help nurture these incredible learners to be all they were created to be.

Thank you for your partnership to help nurture these accel-erated learners in your school, district and state. We will see you in Grand Rapids or Birmingham real soon!

Additional conference brochures or a brochure in pdf format for emailing is available. Please contact Sue Belaski at: 616-365-8230 or [email protected].

Kelley Senkowski is the new President of the Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education.

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BOOK REVIEWS The following is an excerpt of book reviews originally published in TEMPO, the Journal of the Texas Association for the Gifted and Talented (TAGT), Volume XXVI, Issue III, Summer 2006.

Written by Jim Delisle, Parenting Gifted Kids: Tips for Raising Happy and Success-ful Children (ISBN 1-59363-179-0), offers an engaging perspective on raising gifted children. Delisle offers 10 practical tips to parenting gifted kids. Topics include: under-standing a child's giftedness, examining over-excitabilities, working with the school sys-

tem, dealing with perfectionism in gifted kids, being adult role models for children, building a child's character, and helping kids achieve their goal and dreams. Delisle draws on his own experience as a parent of a gifted child and teacher of the gifted. For more information contact Pru-frock Press, PO Box 8813, Waco, TX 76714, (800) 998-2208, http://www.prufrock.com.

College Planning for Gifted Students: Choosing and Getting Into the Right College is a must have for any gifted or advanced learner planning to attend college. Sandra Berger, a nationally recognized expert on col-lege and career planning for gifted students, provides a hands-on, practical guide to col-lege planning in this revised volume of the

best-selling College Planning for Gifted Students book.

Berger focuses specifically on helping gifted students dis-cover who they are, and how that discovery corresponds to finding the perfect postsecondary endeavor. The author also provides useful, practical advice for

• writing college application essays • requesting recommendation letters, • visiting colleges, and • acing the college entrance interview.

For more information contact Prufrock Press, PO Box 8813, Waco, TX 76714, (800) 998-2208.


2006 STUDENT SUMMER SCHOLARSHIPS Every year, the Alliance funds several Student Summer Scholarships. This year we awarded three scholarships of varying amounts to students. The students reported back to us on their experience.

The 2007 Student Summer Scholarships Program and 2007 Adult Grants Program applications will be printed in the first issue of 2007. The due date will be March 1, 2007. Please watch for them!

Dear Michigan Alliance and Summer Scholarship Committee,

Thank you for the scholarship for my summer Algebra I Honors course through Northwestern University. I really appreciate your generosity and would not have been able to take the course without it. I took the course this summer, and it was extremely challenging. Northwestern University and my professor have both been wonderful. I learned many new Algebra skills, and had to learn how to use the online course setup, as it was new for me. I also learned that it takes mounds of dedication to go through with a course like this. It was exciting and exhilarating when I grasped the concepts myself. I appreciate your program and the scholarships you give to young adults such as myself. Once again, thank you for the scholarship.

Sincerely,

Dannie Fountain St. Clair, Michigan

Dear Michigan Alliance,

I attended the Quest Program during the summer of 2006 at West Middle School in Holland, Michigan. I learned in computer class how to do slide shows, make short movies, compose my own music, and how to make DVD's. In math class I learned the four geometric figures of shapes, such as a circle, with its thickness, size, color and shape.

The classes were not only very educational but fun too. Thank you for giving me the opportu-nity to attend Quest. I am truly grateful that you provided me with a special scholarship to at-tend this great program!

Sincerely,

Andrew Wobith Douglas, Michigan

Thank you for the $200 for my Earth Explore trip. I went to Grand Tetons and Yellowstone and stretched from Salt Lake City, Utah to Bozeman, Montana and from Afton, Wyoming to Cody, Wyoming. This was an exciting once in a lifetime experience to explore like I can hardly imagine. Old Faithful was outstanding and the Tetons were breathtakingly beautiful. This was an experience like never before. I was able to breathe western air for the first and maybe only time. Thanks once again for giving me the $200. Sincerely,

Tyler D. Wawrzyniak China, Michigan


Contribute to Images! Parents, students, teachers, administrators, counselors, researchers: Share your experience educating, parenting, advocating for or studying gifted children—or even being a gifted student yourself. Write an article for a future issue of Images!

Volume 16, Issue 4, 2006 Articles due: November 1, 2006 Publication date: December 31, 2006

Volume 17, Issue 1, 2007 Articles due: February 1, 2007 Publication date: March 31, 2007

Volume 17, Issue 2, 2007 Articles due: May 1, 2007 Publication date: June 30, 2007

Volume 17, Issue 3, 2007 Articles due: August 1, 2007 Publication date: September 30, 2007

Would you like your events and activities publicized in this newsletter or would you like to submit an article? Contact Sue Belaski, Executive Secretary of the Alliance at the contacts listed below:

Sue Belaski, Executive Secretary of the Alliance [email protected] 5355 Northland Drive, NE, Ste. C-188 Grand Rapids, MI 49525 616-365-8230 Website: www.migiftedchild.org

2006 ADULT GRANT RECIPIENT CREATES “EXPERIENCE CHINA” TEACHING KIT This year one grant for $300 was awarded for an adult to use in research in gifted education, implementation of a special project that will directly benefit gifted, creative and/or talented students or attendance at a class, extended workshop or conference which enhances their ability to work with or for the gifted, talented or creative. We’ll let this year’s recipient, Doris Duzyj, tell us about her project:

Dear Michigan Alliance:

Thank you for the Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education Adult Grant that made possible the sharing of information about my trip to Beijing, China with all of the social studies teachers in my district! I was thrilled to have been chosen as a Peo-ple to People Ambassador delegate to the US/China Education Summit in December of 2005. The trip provided me with insight into a culture that is influencing the global economy far beyond anyone’s imagination. The “Experience China” lesson plans and CD kit that I created for the district teachers will provide students with information that could never be learned from a textbook.

On the trip, over 300 American teachers from across the United States met with 177 Chinese educators to share and com-pare our educational systems. The highlight, of course, was actually visiting Chinese classrooms to watch the teachers and students in action. Their new educational philosophy called “marketism” was quite impressive since all students are tested in the 3rd grade, then immediately given the opportunity to attend special programs for Mandarin language learners, gifted schools, special education, music, art schools, etc.

Many teachers have favorably commented on the CD power point show that was included in the ‘Experience China’ teach-ing kit. Students who watched the slide show learned the process of making silk, the building of the Great Wall, the history of the Forbidden City, as well as the process of making the famous Chinese cloisonné vases. They couldn’t believe ALL Chinese students wore uniforms!

Thank you again for your financial support in this endeavor. Your wonderful support of adult projects is indicative of your continuing commitment to enrich the lives of students. For that, I am extremely grateful and highly commend your organi-zation.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Doris Duzyj Carleton Middle School Warren Consolidated Schools Sterling Heights, Michigan


PARENT TO PARENT Haika Gay, Guest Columnist The Alliance’s email mailing list, GT-Michigan, has been operational for over two years now. Sometimes several weeks will go by with no discussion, sometimes a query will create such interest and response that we marvel at the sharing that occurs. This is the first of an occasional article sharing with you the words of advice that GT-Michigan sub-scribers share with each other. Reprinted with permission of the author.

To: GT Michigan

I have a delightful, self motivated, well adjusted, straight-A, gifted 13 year old. A local school district is hosting an International Academy which will begin its first year in August, 2006. My daughter has applied and will test for this school. The Academy will be challenging and time consuming, three hours of homework per night. My husband and many other parents have told me to "back off, don't push your child, she will give up all her free time and her teenage years." "You can't live through your child, etc." I think that this is an amazing opportunity for a kid who loves to learn.

My delightful daughter is a "pleaser," and if she is accepted and if I push it, she will go to the International Academy. I am in need of feedback from parents of gifted children.

Pushy Parent

To: Pushy Parent

I'm not even sure where to begin on this one, so let me start with an explanation and a disclaimer. The short version of my opinion has already been stated in another letter, "A mind is a terrible thing to waste."

The long version is below. My apologies in advance for the soapbox. And it is a soapbox.

Gifted children have such potential. It has always been my opinion that if they are not offered the opportunity to ex-plore their potential, confront or rise to a challenge, learn the thrill of achievement after really hard work, they will never know what they are capable of.

To feed the love of learning that so many of them have when they are young, they have to be nourished with food of sub-stance. The light in their eyes has to be kept alive and their thirst for more to learn, see, touch, explore satisfied as much as it is possible by those who play the most important roles in their lives.

The window to keep that light burning is narrow. Too many years of sitting in boring classrooms, entering a classroom in September already knowing all that will be learned that year, and being discouraged, if not downright forbidden, to go too far ahead because what will next year's teachers do with the child, eventually dims the light and diminishes the thirst.

What's the point of all that passion when no one really cares?

Besides, at about this time, the gifted elementary school stu-dent turns into a gifted middle school student and has a whole slew of new things to worry about...a body that's changing by the day, moods that swing like crazy…and ex-istential questions like "who the heck am I anyway?"

And of course, the one main, overarching concern—fitting in. Well that's easy enough. The gifted mind that was never really nurtured before or celebrated for being different, turns inward to deal with the changes in their world. The passions fade, unless of course they are directed toward something cool like the latest fashion or music trend, and lo and be-hold, the gifted elementary student turns into the middling middle school student and eventually, into the average, just-get-by high school student. Motivation is lost since their intelligence allows them to get by with little to no work. And the potential fades.

A bright 8th grader has the opportunity to go to an IB high school. She loves to learn, and from the letter, she seems to want to go. However, some of the important people in her life think that a school like that might mean the sacrifice of her free time and even her teenage years. I disagree on so many levels.

A bright, motivated student can stay passionate, excited and engaged and not lose her teenage years. Think of all the things there will be to get excited about! Imagine the joy in her life if she loves her classes because they stimulate her mind and she's challenged? And she's surrounded by a bunch of kids who feel the same way she does? How happy will she be if she knows that every day she goes to school will be worth it because she'll learn something? And think about how her academic satisfaction will affect the other parts of her life. Doesn't it seem logical that if she's excited about school, she'll be excited about other things too?

Being involved in a challenging high school course of study does not preclude having free time and the life of a teenager. Bright, motivated teenagers quickly learn the fine art of bal-ancing the different parts of their lives. How to get the homework done and still run track, sing in the choir, be the president of the Spanish club. It might mean a few late nights, homework on the bus to the track meet or during the downtimes of rehearsals for the school musical, a tough de-cision between a night out with friends and staying home to get that paper written. She will still be a teenager, but just perhaps a busy, fulfilled and satisfied one.

My son took the toughest course of study in his high school, plus did a two-year math project with a professor at UM Ann Arbor which won him numerous state and national (Continued on next page)


Michigan’s 2005-2006 Nicholas Green Distinguished Student Award Winner Congratulations to Connor Bump of Lake-wood Elementary School, Huron Valley Schools in White Lake, Michigan, for be-ing named Michigan’s 2005-2006 Nicholas Green Distinguished Student Award win-ner. Marie Waters, Connor’s third grade teacher, nominated him as an exceptional young man both academically and socially. Connor’s talent, academic achievement and citizenship distinguished him among the other applicants who applied through the Michigan Alliance for Gifted Edu-cation.

Besides being an outstanding student, Connor challenges himself to “go the extra mile” and is a leader and role model in school and out. His curiosity, creativity and sensitivity to others have led him to take the initiative to independently pursue his interest in robots with the hope that someday he may find a way to use robots to cure cancer and change the world for the better.

Connor received a $500 U.S. Savings Bond, funded by the Nicholas Green Foundation. He will also be awarded a Cer-tificate of Excellence by the National Association for Gifted Children at a short presentation before a Huron Valley School Board meeting later this fall.

This award program was established through funds provided by Maggie and Reg Green to honor the memory of their seven-year-old son, Nicholas, who was killed in a drive-by shooting while vacationing in Italy in 1994. The Greens agreed to donate Nicholas’ organs and corneas, which went to seven Italians waiting for transplants. Reg and Maggie Green spoke openly to the media, with no bitterness, about their loss and decision. The world took the story—and the Greens—to its heart. In the first few days after his death, the number of people signing organ donor cards in Italy quadru-pled. The world’s response to the Green’s personal tragedy is called “the Nicholas effect.”

The Nicholas Green Award was established because Reg and Maggie felt it was important to recognize the gifts and talents in children who are now at the age that Nicholas was when he died and is given to encourage children to achieve to their fullest potential. The award program is a lasting trib-ute to the determination of the Greens to take a terrible trag-edy and turn it into a positive force of recognition.

Awards are made to one student in each state each school year. Winners must be in grades three, four, five or six, and have achieved excellence in any area of endeavor, whether visual or performing arts, academic achievement or leader-ship. Nominations are accepted from students themselves, parents, teachers, or community and civic groups.

Applications for the Nicholas Green Distinguished Student Award for the 2006-2007 school year will be available at our website, www.migiftedchild.org, when they become available and in the spring issue of Images.

awards (and some nice scholarship money). He graduated in the top 10 of his class, took 14 (yes, 14) AP tests scoring 5 on all but one of them, and is now a freshman in a first-rate out-of-state university. He worked hard but still had time for travel, family, friends, tennis, friends, parties, friends, and reading most of the books in the library (his choice). Now at his university, he dropped out of Calculus 3 after a week because it was "too slow," and voluntarily enrolled in Hon-ors Calc 3, and struggled like crazy, but loved it. He's on the editorial board of the university newspaper. He volunteers in the community. He's 17 and having the time of his life, busy as busy can be but still determined to carve out some free time for himself.

My daughter, now in 10th grade, is on a similar academic track and also takes piano and voice lessons, participates in marching band and choir, will perform in the school musical and volunteers once a week at the local elementary school, is an avid scrapbooker, and has time for family, friends, travel, etc. Both are living the life of teenagers—busy, en-gaged, productive, enthusiastic, excited teenagers.

I hate to drag in the often-used sports analogy, but if that gifted 8th grader happened to also be a gifted soccer player, it's likely that she would be offered opportunities to grow in her skill, play on first rate teams, and have top notch coaches. It's unlikely that complaints of not being able to be a teenager and losing free time because of all those practices and away games would be heard. So why is it that time and time again, that "worry" comes up when an academically gifted student is offered the opportunity for an exceptional, and by definition challenging, education?

Signed, another pushy parent (and wordy too),

Haika

Haika Gay is finally relaxing after having been actively en-gaged in the education of her two highly gifted children since the older set foot in kindergarten in Livonia in 1993. She is now using much of what she learned working as the Academic Enrichment Facilitator in the Academically Gifted program at the Charyl Stockwell Academy in Howell.

(Continued from previous page)


NOTES FROM THE WEBMINDER Kelly Schultz Have you checked out our website lately (www.migiftedchild.org)? We have lots of information on the website for parents, educators, and adminis-trators! This article will focus on the information for parents that is avail-able on our website and next month's article will focus on the information for educators.

There are two basic areas that have information directed at parents of gifted children. The Parents section has lots of links to places on the web that might interest parents. Places like SENG (Supporting Emotional Needs of the Gifted), Hoagies Gifted Education Page and Renzulli Learning. There are also links to several programs that focus on gifted kids, like MATS (Midwest Academic Talent Search), Summer Institute for the Gifted and Gifted Education Resource Institute. At the bottom of the page is a list of analogies to everyday ideas that help people understand the plight of the gifted child (or adult!).

The FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) page also has many resources for parents. There is a resource list of books and websites that are a good start-ing point for parents just starting on this journey. There are also answers to questions about kindergarten, parent-teacher conferences and high school students.

The Advocacy page is also a good page for parents to peruse. It has articles on advocating for your child as well as information on what is going on with the legislature pertaining to gifted education. The more we do in Lans-ing to promote gifted education, the fewer problems we will face at the school district level.

So, check out the web page, bounce around the information, and learn more about gifted education in Michigan. As always in this technological world, web pages are not static entities. We are always looking for more informa-tion that can help others in their gifted education journey. If you have any questions that aren't answered by the web page or have written (or will write) any articles that pertain to gifted education in Michigan, please con-tact me ([email protected]) so the information on the web page can be up to date and helpful.

GT-Michigan Mailing-List

Discussion Group Subscribe: To subscribe, send an email message to [email protected] with either “subscribe gtmich” or “subscribe gtmich-digest” in the body of the message. The first adds you to the regular mailing list which sends messages throughout the day. The second adds you to a digest version that bundles all the mes-sages sent that day into one email. Only per-sons who are subscribed to this list may post messages. If you use multiple email addresses, please subscribe from the email address you wish to use for both receiving and submitting messages. Unsubscribe: To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] with the words “unsubscribe gtmich” or “unsubscribe gtmich-digest” in the body of the message. Help: To receive a list of all the email commands for GT-Michigan, send an email to [email protected] with the word “help” as the body of the message.

Principles and Guidelines The following principles and guidelines will make GT-Michigan successful and informative: • This list currently is moderated and

only messages approved by the mod-erator will be forwarded to the list. No soliciting or using flaming or bad lan-guage will be tolerated and can be grounds for removal from the list.

• The environment is unique—remember that your neighbor could be on this list. Don’t divulge any information that you consider private.

• Treat everyone in a friendly, positive manner.

• Please include your email address in your post so supportive or personal messages can be exchanged outside of this email list.

• Treat each other with respect—remember that the person posting the message knows a lot more about the situation than the reader does!

Links, Links, Links …

Prufrock Press is one of the nation’s leading publishers supporting the edu-cation of gifted and advanced learners. Their website at www.prufrock.com now features informative, research-based articles drawn from recent issues of Gifted Child Today or excerpted from some of their most popular new books. The site also features two blogs which address a variety of issues related to gifted children and gifted education. The blogs focus on topics such as ways to deal with perfectionism in gifted children, organizational skills and gifted children, strategies for teaching advanced thinking skills, and much more. The blogs offer a way to present information in a concise manner and allow teachers and parents to respond and share their opinions. Check it out.


FOCUS ON OUR AFFILIATES Marie Brucker, Vice President-Affiliates FACTO Develops Over Time The town of Fowlerville is situated on the far west end of Livingston County, part of the Alliance’s Region 5. It is one of those small towns where the caring teaching staff and the concerned parents work together to make a difference. Par-ents from Fowlerville have been in touch with the Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education for at least 15 years—thanks to Sheila Larson who has gone from teacher to a G/T coordi-nator to the district Curriculum Director in that span of time. Ms. Larson has held meetings from time to time that parents have enjoyed, although the parents did not feel the urge to formally organize.

There have been many parents coming and going, as their children progressed through the Fowlerville school system, who were active on a personal basis. However, it has taken several years of advocacy to demonstrate to enough parents the need for community involvement for advocacy of gifted and talented students. This change in parent stance can be directly linked to the continuing issues with state funding of education and the drastic reduction in gifted funding.

In 2004, Fowlerville parents started meeting formally, with assistance from Ms. Larson, to establish an organization to provide information to parents regarding the education of gifted children. In January of 2006, Marie Brucker spoke with the start-up group and provided assistance in the or-ganization of what is now known as FACTO (Fowlerville Academic Creative Talented Organization).

The very night the Fowlerville group made their decision to organize, they pooled their money so that a couple of mem-bers could attend some very informative conferences in the Brighton area. They went to work right away figuring out who would be officers in their group and they developed a name, FACTO. Their initial start-up fee was waived when five members joined the Michigan Alliance.

This fall, FACTO has been getting ready for their first offi-cial meeting on Wednesday, October 25, 2006, at 7 p.m. in the Fowlerville Junior High School. The focus will be to share the conference information about the characteristics of gifted children including gifted who are misdiagnosed or dual diagnosed. For more information about FACTO, please contact their president, Barb Parker at 517-223-7871.

We are excited that they are moving forward to provide op-portunities for the Fowlerville parents to increase their knowledge. They have become a source of support for par-ents who have concerns and may be seeking to speak with one voice to the district. They are ready to be a provider of activities where their children can get to know each other—to realize there are other children out there who think as dif-ferently as they do. They are in a position to work coopera-tively with the district to enhance opportunities for kids, in-stead of reducing opportunities as budgets are crunched. They are already planning how to expand the references in the local public library for parents who want to learn more. They also have discovered that affiliate members can join the Michigan Alliance at a reduced membership fee.

Hop on Board with the Michigan Alliance With the Alliance’s new president, Kelley Senkowski, and new board members, we see a new vision. There is great value in connecting with our affiliates through more fre-quent contacts from our Regional Representatives. We want to eagerly support these groups. We know that the action of the affiliates in communicating with legislators and commu-nity educators and leaders is a highly effective way of mak-ing a difference for gifted children. Thus, we are working to further increase our resources for our members to extend the breadth of this backing.

The Alliance has organized the state into seven regions, each one with its own “Regional Representative.” All the regions are represented at this time except for Region 2 (the fingers of the mitt). If you live anywhere in the mitt above Midland and are ready to “roll up your sleeves for gifted,” you could be that representative. It would mean helping the Alliance to connect with parents and districts in Region 2 who seek knowledge and support. It just takes a phone and a com-puter. Please contact Marie Brucker, the Vice President of Affiliates at [email protected]. She will answer your questions about what this role would entail. Is it your time to do your part helping gifted children?

Is your group, those four or five people who meet together, ready to hear about how one can advocate as an organized group? Becoming an affiliate group is a lot easier than you think and the Alliance is here to support you all the way. Contact the Regional Representative in your area or Marie Brucker, 810-227-5379.

Ideas for Affiliate Meetings ATLAS, our affiliate in Muskegon, is starting this year with a full slate of great meetings—learning about Midwest Academic Talent Search, enjoying a family day at the zoo, a special field trip to Grand Haven Board of Light and Power, getting their creative juices flowing as their families have an “art day” at a local art studio, offering a special workshop for teachers, and much more.

Your affiliate could do what ATLAS did—hold a brainstorming session while your kids enjoy an activity. Once ATLAS generated the ideas, they assigned a month/a date, two or three people to do the foot work, and it started to happen!

If you want more ideas, go to the Alliance website to see “Ideas for Parent Groups.” Gifted education has to do with opportunities. Are you doing your part to see that it happens?


REGION 1 - Upper Peninsula Carla Strome, Regional Rep., Houghton Email: [email protected] Phone: 906-482-4250

REGION 2 - Upper Lower Peninsula Open

*Alpena Area Group Contact: Megin Mitchell, 989-356-2112 Email: [email protected]

*Big Rapids Area Contact: Suzanne Hosking, 231-796-6627 Email: [email protected]

REGION 3 - Central West Ellen Fiedler, Regional Rep., New Buffalo Email: [email protected] Phone: 269-469-6225

*ATLAS (Advocates for Talented Learners and Advanced-accelerated Students) - Mus-kegon area Contact: Jamie Page, 231-759-2316 Email: [email protected] Website: www.muskegon-isd.k12.mi.us/ Departments/instr-services/adv-accelerated/ Parent-info/

**GT Resource Network - Kent County Contact: Elizabeth Alexander, 616-891-5589 Email: [email protected] Website: www.GTResourceNetwork.org

**IMAGE (Image Advocates) - Grandville Contact: Beth Boersma Email: [email protected]

*Newaygo County Group Contact: Nancy Melcher, 231-652-7735 Email: [email protected]

*Saugatuck Group Contact: Kathleen Piggins, 269-857-3038 Email: [email protected]

REGION 4 - Southwest Cindy Sprowl, Regional Rep., Sturgis Email: [email protected] Phone: 269-467-6893

**PLUS (Partners in Learning for Unlimited Success) - covering counties from Kalamazoo to Indiana, Lake Michigan to Coldwater Contact: Nan Janecke, 269-353-3757 Email: [email protected] Website: www.PLUSofSWMI.org

REGION 5 - Central Lower Lynn Pomerleau, Regional Rep., Clarkston Email: [email protected] Phone: 248-922-3169

**FACTO (Fowlerville Academic Creative Talented Organization) Contact: Barb and Joe Parker, 517-223-7871 Email: [email protected]

**HP4K (Hartland Parents for Kids) Contact: [email protected] **SOAR (Supporting Okemos Academic Resources) Contact: Laurie Koochesfahani, 517-349-3135 Email: [email protected] Website: www.soarokemos.com

**WCAGE (Washtenaw County Alliance for Gifted Education) - Ann Arbor area Contact: Elaine Fisher, 734-663-1706 Email: [email protected]

*Jackson-Lenawee County Group Contact: Lynn Pomerleau, 248-922-3169 Email: [email protected]

*Pinckney Group Contact: Justine Hein Email: [email protected]

REGION 6 - Metro Detroit Paula Brennan, Regional Rep., W. Bloomfield Email: [email protected] Phone: 248-738-3918

**ABC’s (Academic Boosters of Clarkston) Contact: Andrea Schroeder, 248-760-4929 Email: [email protected]

**ASSET (Association to Support Students of Exceptional Talent) - Birmingham Contact: Thea Gochicoa, 248-646-3934 Email: [email protected] *E.D.G.E. (Encouraging the Development of Gifted Education) - Downriver Detroit Communities Contact: Toni Szymanski, 734-284-5889 Email: [email protected]

**L’CAGE (L’Anse Creuse Alliance for Gifted Education) Contact: Dennis Wise, 486-904-0804 Email: [email protected] Website: www.lc-ps.org/Parents/LCage

**MAPPEE (Macomb and Area Parents and Partners for Educational Excellence) Contact: Anne Norton Krawciw, 586-450-1246 Email: [email protected] Website: www.MAPPEE.org

**PLANS (Pursuing Learning Advancement for Novi Students) Contact: Lee Linton, 248-305-9043 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.whirlwindmonk.com/Plans_Site/ REGION 7 - Midland to Thumb Ron Helmer, Regional Rep., Freeland Email: [email protected] Phone: 989-797-1832

**ACE (Advocates for Challenging Educa-tion) - East China Area Contact: Pamela Stone, 810-326-4193 Website: www.east-china.k12.mi.us/ace/

*Bay City Group (BCAAT-Bay City Associa-tion for the Academically Talented) Contact: Kathy Babinski, 989-892-0832 Email: [email protected]

*Grand Blanc Group Contact: Andrea Roat, 810-603-0121 Email: [email protected]

*Lapeer Group Contact: Paul Hitch, 810-667-7218 (h); 248-524-1800, ext. 139 (w) Email: [email protected]

*Saginaw Township Group (STAATS-Saginaw Township Advocates for Academically Tal-ented Students) Contact: Mary Jo Wagner Email: [email protected]

Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education Affiliates Each of these local affiliates provide parents opportunities to share information, to work with the schools, to hear speakers on various gifted and talented issues, and to generate and promote enrichment activities for gifted children. Note that some affiliates also have their own websites. If you have further questions or would like to start a new affiliate in your area, please contact our VP Affiliates, Marie Brucker, at 810-227-5379 or [email protected]. This list is regularly up-dated; we apologize for any errors or any exclusions. If you have any changes, please contact Marie Brucker.

*Groups forming; not affiliated at this time. **Affiliates


President Kelley Senkowski Byron Center, MI [email protected]

Past President Sharon Milberger Farmington Hills, MI [email protected]

VP Advocacy Suzanne Hosking Big Rapids, MI [email protected]

VP Affiliates Marie Brucker Brighton, MI [email protected]

VP Programs Open

VP Membership Vikki Wandmacher Flint, MI [email protected]

Secretary Beth Brooks Flint, MI [email protected]

Treasurer Toni Szymanski Riverview, MI [email protected]

Region 1 Representative Carla Strome Houghton, MI [email protected]

Region 2 Representative Open

Region 3 Representative Ellen Fiedler New Buffalo, MI [email protected]

Region 4 Representative Cindy Sprowl Sturgis, MI [email protected]

Region 5 Representative Lynn Pomerleau Clarkston, MI [email protected]

Region 6 Representative Paula Brennan West Bloomfield, MI [email protected]

Regional 7 Representative Ron Helmer

Freeland, MI [email protected]

Parent Representative A Cindi Lardner Troy, MI [email protected]

Parent Representative B Margaret Trimer-Hartley [email protected]

Parent Representative C Lynn Hawkins Novi, MI [email protected]

Public School Representative Open

Private School Representative Suzanne Young Redford, MI [email protected]

ISD Representative Sylvia Buie Mason, MI [email protected]

College and University Representative Jacque Melin Rockford, MI [email protected]

Arts Representative Open

Trustee Jean Ellis Eagle Harbor, MI [email protected]

Trustee Mary Bailey-Hengesh Petoskey, MI [email protected]

Trustee Dorothy Lawshe East Lansing, MI [email protected]

Trustee Gloria Downing Brighton, MI [email protected]

Trustee Mary Nell Baldwin Grand Rapids, MI [email protected]

Michigan Department of Education David Mills Talent Development Consultant Lansing, MI [email protected]

2006-2007 Board of Directors Images Volume 16, Issue 3, Fall 2006

Sue Belaski, Production Editor

Mission

The Michigan Alliance for Gifted Educa-tion is dedicated to providing leadership, advocacy, and support of differentiated education and services for meeting the unique needs of gifted, talented, and crea-tive students in Michigan. Images is published quarterly by the Michigan Alli-ance for Gifted Education, Grand Rapids, MI as a benefit of membership in the organization. Opinions expressed in Images are not necessarily those of the organization. Publication of information in Images about any particular school, program, product, or service does not constitute endorsement by the Michi-gan Alliance for Gifted Education. The organization retains the right to refuse to accept submissions for any reason. Except for reprints from other newsletters or periodicals, material in Images may be reprinted if credit is given to the Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education. ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED: Please notify the Alliance if you are moving or if your mail-ing address has changed. Images is sent via third class mail and is not forwarded by the post office. Be sure to renew your membership. You will not receive Images after your membership expires.

Advertising Rates

Size Rate Full page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 230 1/2 page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 125 1/4 page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 75 1/8 page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 45 Business Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 40 These rates apply to members of the Alli-ance. Non-members must include an addi-tional $30, which will provide one year’s membership in the organization. Advertis-ing is a feature that is meant to serve the members of the Alliance. Endorsement by this organization of services or items ad-vertised is neither implied nor intended. Any ad may be refused at the discretion of the Michigan Alliance for Gifted Educa-tion. Ads should be submitted to the Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education, 5355 North-land Drive, NE, Suite C-188, Grand Rapids, MI 49525; [email protected].

Alliance Membership Form

I would like to join the Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education as an: □ Individual member - open to any individual interested in furthering the goals of the Alliance. Yearly Dues: $30.00 □ Institutional member - open to any organization or institution interested in furthering the goals of the Alliance. Institutional membership entitles the organization or institution to designate four individuals as members of the Alliance. Yearly Dues: $100.00 4 Individuals: _________________________________________________________________________ □ Affiliate member - Name of my Affiliate:____________________________________________________ Yearly Dues: $20.00 □ New □ Renewal □ Student □ Teacher □ Parent □ Administrator □ Other Name _________________________________________________ Referred by _______________________ Address _________________________________________________________________________________ City ___________________________________________ State _____________Zip Code _______________ County _________________________________ School __________________________________________ Phone __________________________ Email ___________________________________________________

Make checks payable to: Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education. Mail to: Michigan Alliance for Gifted Education, 5355 Northland Drive, NE, Ste. C-188, Grand Rapids, MI 49525

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