[Tag-Info] TAG Teacher Update #6
FIGGINS Stacey
Stacey.Figgins at state.or.us
Tue Mar 3 08:08:04 PST 2009
A text-only version of this newsletter is included in this email for those subscribers unable to open attachments. If you prefer, you can also view a more reader-friendly version of the newsletter with added formatting at: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=2319
Oregon Talented and Gifted Teacher Update #6
March 3, 2009
Please forward this issue of the update to interested professionals!
Teachers may sign up for this or other newsletters at: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=1843
Past issues are also available at this website.
1. Welcome to the TAG Teacher Update
2. Legal Reminder of the Month
3. Challenging High End Learners Curriculum Revision Work
4. Some Considerations for Selecting Literature to Challenge High Ability Learners
5. Maryland School District 100 Book Challenge
6. Gifted Education in Canada
7. Differentiating Writing Instruction
8. Professional Development Webinars-Differentiation for Gifted and Designing a Gifted Program Using NAGC Program Standards
9. Credit for Proficiency and TAG
10. Gifted Education in England
11. Unique Curriculum Resource
12. Resource for Creating Rubrics
13. Curriculum Resource-Webquests
14. Advanced Vocabulary Lesson Idea
15. The Importance and Challenge of Academic Failure for TAG Students
16. State Report Card Identification Data
17. Superintendent's Weekly Updates and Monthly Pipeline
18. Software to Aid Individually Designed Instruction
19. Eliminating Grade Levels
20. Online Resource for Gifted Kids and Parents
21. Carol Ann Tomlinson, Differentiation Guru, is Coming to Oregon!
22. OATAG Student Essay Contest
23. Student Website about Dual Exceptionality
24. Service Learning
25. PSU Differentiated Instruction Online Course
26. Opportunity for Aspiring Film Makers
27. Greenfield Peace Essay Scholarship Contest-$8,000 in scholarships to be granted by April 2009
28. Check Out Teacher Updates in Other Content Areas
29. How to Submit Articles
30. In Every Issue-Internet Resources
1. Welcome to the TAG Teacher Update
This newsletter is designed to provide current information concerning teachers of TAG students, guidance counselors, administrators, and coordinators of TAG programs. Please let your colleagues know they can subscribe to this and other ODE content area newsletters by visiting: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=1843
2. Legal Reminder of the Month
Identification of TAG students must be done by a team of professionals who consider multiple criteria. OAR 581-022-1310-2: A team shall make the final decisions on the identification of students using the information collected under sections (3) and (4) of this rule. No single test, measure or score shall be the sole criteria.
3. Challenging High End Learners Curriculum Revision Work
Some education professionals may not be familiar with the extensive curriculum document titled Challenging High End Learners: Addressing Oregon Standards and Benchmarks. The purpose of this statewide project is to provide Oregon educators with samples of differentiated curriculum across content areas, K-12, that challenge high-end learners while addressing the Oregon Standards and Benchmarks. The Oregon Department of Education (ODE) is the sponsor of this project and worked closely with TAG educators across the state to develop the differentiated curriculum samples. Extensive resources and support materials, such as graphic organizers for use with a broad range of students, are included. You can access this curriculum by clicking here<http://www.ode.state.or.us/teachlearn/specialty/tag/chel.aspx>.
This May I will be bringing together a small group of educational professionals for three days to update this curriculum with the current math and science standards. If you are interested in participating, please email me at stacey.figgins at state.or.us<mailto:stacey.figgins at state.or.us>.
4. Some Considerations for Selecting Literature to Challenge High Ability Learners
(Adapted from the World Class Reader Model)
* Does the book have strong characters with whom gifted children can relate and/or characters they can admire and emulate?
* Does the language used in the book enrich the text and challenge, stimulate, and stretch the reader?
* Is there complexity in the plot structure?
* Are students being exposed to a broad range of genres?
* Is the author skilled with his/her use of literary devices?
* Has the student had experiences with texts that have multicultural characters, settings, and themes to allow for different perspectives and view points?
* Has the student been exposed to books that explore deep issues of morality and philosophy?
5. Maryland School District 100 Book Challenge
Click here<http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/bal-md.co.reading21jan21,0,3211499.story> to read an article about a school district that has incorporated a powerful reading program that individualizes reading instruction and adds the power of choice.
6. Gifted Education in Canada
Click here<http://macleans.files.wordpress.com/2009/02/090220_gifted.jpg> to read an article about current issues in Canada's gifted education programs.
7. Differentiating Writing Instruction
Writing assignments can be differentiated to meet a variety of needs. First, teachers can pre-assess students' writing abilities by looking at past assessment scores and collecting sample writing completed with no direct instruction. The teacher can assign the same mode of writing to all students, for example, persuasive writing. However, the teacher can differentiate the writing instruction by flexibly grouping students and completing separate mini-lessons with each group on a skill that matches their needs. One group might need a mini-lesson directed at avoiding fragments and run-on sentences. Another group might need a mini-lesson in using a variety of verbs and adjectives. An advanced group of writers might need a mini-lesson on using sophisticated transitions. Each student's writing could then be assessed for the skills that she/he has been working on. Another mini-lesson idea for advanced writers would be a focus on parallel construction for thesis statements. Click here for an ODE lesson plan resource on this topic.<http://www.ode.state.or.us/teachlearn/real/tlr/TLR_LessonPlan.aspx?id=124>
8. Professional Development Webinars-Differentiation for Gifted and Designing a Gifted Program Using NAGC Program Standards
On March 19th and 26th the Council for Exceptional Children will host the webinars listed above. Cost ranges from $90-194 depending on membership status and number of webinars subscribed to. More than one person can participate for that low price. Click here for more information. <http://www.cec.sped.org/Source/Meetings/webinars.cfm?section=Professional_Development>
9. Credit for Proficiency and TAG
The State Board of Education approved the policy "Districts may award credit based on proficiency" sometimes referred to as "Credit for Proficiency." This provides students the opportunity to earn graduation credits within Oregon's standards-based system by demonstrating what they know and can do. Students may demonstrate proficiency through classroom work or documentation of learning experiences outside of school, or through a combination of these means. This February the TAG Service Center at WOU partnered with the Business Education Compact to educate around fifty administrators, TAG coordinators, and teachers about the possibilities for TAG students with credit for proficiency. Click here<http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?id=35> to access the ODE webpage about credit for proficiency. Click here<http://www.becpdx.org/ctdi/cbp_workshops.htm> to access information on credit for proficiency from the Business Education Compact.
10. Gifted Education in England
Click here<http://www.teachingexpertise.com/articles/how-assist-gt-4080> to read an interesting article about gifted education from a British perspective.
11. Unique Curriculum Resource
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has some interesting free curriculum resources like games and stories about disaster preparedness available at http://www.fema.gov/kids/.
12. Resource for Creating Rubrics
Diane Smith from the Albany School District shared this online resource with participants at the TAG Credit for Proficiency workshop. It is free and helps teachers easily create a variety of rubrics to use for assessment. Go to: http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php.
13. Curriculum Resource-Webquests
A webquest is a learning activity that is organized entirely online. For example, this webquest called "Glass Slippers Just Won't Do." <http://www.sitesbysheridan.com/webquest/index.html> This interdisciplinary webquest asks students to research and report on the roles of women from the 1800s to today. Students move through various content on the web in order to learn new material. There are many wonderful webquests that have already been published and posted on the Internet. There are also online resources for making your own webquests. The following websites are a great starting point for finding and creating webquests: http://www.webquest.org/<http://www.webquest.org/search/index.php> http://www.zunal.com/ http://teacherweb.com/tweb/WQHome.aspx
14. Advanced Vocabulary Lesson Idea
Here at the Oregon Department of Education we have a colleague named Jan McComb who sends us weekly mini-lessons about how to use plain language to communicate more effectively. One of her recent lessons taught us about the dangers of circumlocution, which is the use of more words than necessary to express an idea. She included funny examples of common sayings translated to the point of confusion. For example, instead of saying, "A rolling stone gathers no moss," someone would say, "A mobile section of petrified matter agglomerates no bryophytes."
In addition to teaching a powerful lesson about word specificity, I thought her list of example sentences would make a fun mini-lesson for students with advanced vocabulary skills. You could even make a competition out of it. I got her blessing to share these sentences with you.
1. A mobile section of petrified matter agglomerates no bryophytes. (A rolling stone gathers no moss.)
2. Desist from enumerating your fowl prior to their emergence from the shell.
3. Scintillation is not always identification for an auric substance.
4. Products of ingenuity are the offspring of exigency.
5. A plethora of culinary specialists has a deleterious effect upon the quality of purees, consommés, and other soluble pabula.
6. A chronic disposition to inquiry deprived the domestic feline carnivorous quadruped of its vital quality.
7. Immediately upon the absence of the domesticated carnivorous feline, the common house rodent proceeds to engage in sportive capers.
8. Persons deficient in the faculty of determining values move with impetuosity into places which purely spiritual beings view with trepidation.
9. If John persists without respite in a constant prolonged exertion of physical or intellectual effort, he will develop into a youth slow and blunted in perception and sensibility.
10. It is the realm of possibility to entice an equine member of the animal kingdom to a source of oxidized hydrogen; however, it is not possible to force it to imbibe.
15. The Importance and Challenge of Academic Failure for TAG Students
Much has been written about the importance of academic challenge for TAG students. It is not uncommon for gifted students to sail through early grades with learning coming quickly and easily. When these students eventually confront an intellectual task that is not second nature and requires effort, a crisis can occur if there are not caring adults nearby to help navigate this challenge.
The article "Responding to Failure" by Ann MacDonald and Jim Riley from the Gifted Education Communicator includes resources for this issue I wanted to share with you. They suggest building a mini-unit plan around the theme of failure and challenge. The authors suggested leading conversations and investigations with students where they consider the types of failures and the purpose of failures. One suggested resource is the website for the Internet magazine Failure<http://www.failuremag.com/>. This resource even includes a section titled "This Day in Failure." Another suggestion included completing an analysis of a literary character's failure.
I think this type of mini-unit could be beneficial to all students, but might actually be critical for gifted students, particularly as they enter into adolescence where they are more likely to face their first intellectual challenges. If it is not possible for a classroom teacher to devote time to something like this, and there are not pull-out gifted classrooms in your school, I wonder if this type of activity could be organized by a guidance counselor. I see this work being organized in a once-a-week meeting for perhaps six weeks. If a middle school or high school could work this type of support group into its programming options for all TAG students I think the results could be very positive. I would love to work with and support any schools that are interested in this work. Please contact me at stacey.figgins at state.or.us<mailto:stacey.figgins at state.or.us> if this is something you are interested in pursuing.
16. State Report Card Identification Data
When comparing TAG identification data on the state report card from 2006-2007 to 2007-2008 it seems that we have done a very slightly better job of identifying students who are TAG and Hispanic or African American. A huge gap still exists, but every little gain is worth acknowledging. Students who come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds are still severely underrepresented. Last month I mentioned Dr. Paul Slocumb's book Removing the Mask: Giftedness in Poverty as one resource for this issue. In past newsletters I have also included other resources. I have two more to add to the list. The following websites contain comprehensive information about identifying students from underrepresented populations.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0NQM/is_2_44/ai_n13783926
http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/nrcgt/newsletter/spring96/sprng965.html
http://www.nwrel.org/nwedu/fall_97/article6.html
17. Superintendent's Weekly Updates and Monthly Pipeline
Check out Update<http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?id=364> (link to http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?id=364) and Pipeline<http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=684> (link to http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=684) online or email crystal.greene at state.or.us<mailto:crystal.greene at state.or.us> to be added to the distribution lists.
18. Software to Aid Individually Designed Instruction
Here is an article<http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-b1_5classroom.6761856feb09,0,6782473.story> about a Pennsylvania school district that uses computer software<http://www.compasslearning.com/> to make individualized instruction more effective.
19. Eliminating Grade Levels
One Colorado district is being as innovative as possible to increase student achievement. Instead of students advancing to new grade levels based on chronological age, they advance to the next level when they master the content. Click here to read more.<http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0210/p01s01-ussc.html>
20. Online Resource for Gifted Kids and Parents
Robert A. Schultz, Ph.D. and Jim Delisle, Ph.D. are two researchers and writers in gifted education who have added a website to their list of resources. Gifted Kids<http://www.giftedkidspeak.com/LLatHome.html> Speak<http://www.giftedkidspeak.com/LLatHome.html> is a "safe space to learn about giftedness, take part in some research projects, and probably learn a lot about yourself!"
21. Carol Ann Tomlinson, Differentiation Guru, is Coming to Oregon!
COSA and OASCD are presenting a two-day differentiation workshop with Carol Ann Tomlinson on April 16th and 17th in Portland. For more information visit the COSA website.<http://www.cosa.k12.or.us/profdev/cosaoascdcaroltomlinsonconference.html>
22. OATAG Student Essay Contest
The Oregon Association for Talented and Gifted is sponsoring a student essay contest. The theme of the essay is, "What I Wish People Knew About Being Talented and Gifted." Click here for more details.<http://www.oatag.org/Opportunities/page80/page80.html>
23. Student Website about Dual Exceptionality
15-year-old Trevor Dennis has learning disabilities and is also gifted. Click here<http://www.bclocalnews.com/surrey_area/surreyleader/community/39670744.html> to read an article about him, and follow this link to the website<http://www.gldnetworkbc.org/> he is going to create about his gifts and challenges.
24. Service Learning
I have heard from many teachers and administrators that TAG students, especially, seem to benefit greatly from engaging in service learning.
For an overview of service learning visit the ODE Service Learning website: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?id=143.
Program Brief: http://www.ode.state.or.us/pubs/eii/servicelearningbrief.pdf.
There are federal grants available to implement these programs: http://www.learnandserve.org/for_organizations/funding/nofa.asp.
25. PSU Differentiated Instruction Online Course
Beginning spring term PSU will offer "Instructional Strategies and Assessment of Student Learning." Students will learn various assessment techniques and instructional strategies to assist in designing respectful learning experiences for a range of students, including those in ELL, who are gifted, and with disabilities. For program information, go to http://www.ceed.pdx.edu/differentiate, or contact Cailín O'Connor, 503-725-8234 or caoconno at pdx.edu<mailto:caoconnor at pdx.edu>
26. Opportunity for Aspiring Film Makers
(This comes from the Superintendent's Update<http://www.ode.state.or.us/news/announcements/announcement.aspx?=4610>.)
The Green Screen, Clackamas Film Festival is looking for student submissions as part of this year's festival. The film festival will present a series of films and videos that focus on issues related to sustainability. Focusing on the triple bottom line of sustainability (the environment, economics, and social justice), entries will look at how issues in sustainability, the environment, ecologies, and economic and human relationships affect one another.
The top youth film maker (must be a middle or high school student) will receive a year's tuition waiver to Clackamas Community College and a laptop computer. Students can enter videos in any of the following categories: Short Digital Short, Short Films, Feature-Length Narratives, and Feature-Length Documentaries. Click here<http://www2.clackamas.edu/greenscreen/greensplash1.html> for more details about submission guidelines. All videos must be submitted by May 1, 2009.
27. Greenfield Peace Essay Scholarship Contest-$8,000 in scholarships to be granted by April 2009
(This comes from the Superintendent's Update<http://www.ode.state.or.us/news/announcements/announcement.aspx?=4610>.)
Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) announces the Greenfield Peace Essay Scholarship Contest. Oregon PSR strives to encourage and challenge young adults to make our nation a more peaceful one. Contestants should submit an original essay of a minimum of 500 words (not to exceed 600) describing their thoughts on the following statement by Wendell Berry, "If we are serious about peace, then we must work for it as ardently and bravely as we now prepare for war". The purpose of this essay is to stimulate students to think about their role in the causes and outcomes of war and necessary steps to build a more peaceful world.
Deadline for essay submission is March 2, 2009. The first place winner will receive a $2,000 scholarship; second place a $1,500 scholarship; and third place a $1,000 scholarship. The other seven finalists will each receive $500. Scholarship money may be applied toward any education-related expenses.
Contestants must be high school juniors and seniors attending school in Oregon and in good academic standing. Essays must be sent to Rachel Larson<mailto:Rachel at oregonpsr.org> or by U.S. mail to Oregon PSR, 812 SW Washington Street, Suite 1050, Portland, OR 97205. Essays sent by email should be included either as an attachment in Microsoft Word format or in the text of the email. Essays sent by U.S. mail must be typewritten. Include a word count with the essay. All essays must be accompanied by an entry form which is available on the Oregon PSR website<http://www.oregonpsr.org/>, on the Peace/Security page. For more information visit www.oregonpsr.org<http://www.oregonpsr.org>
28. Check Out Teacher Updates in Other Content Areas
There are fabulous Teacher Updates being published monthly in other content areas like foreign language, social studies, and mathematics. You can subscribe to
them by visiting: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=1843<http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?=1843>
29. How to Submit Articles
If you would like to submit information for this newsletter, please email publication-ready short articles by the end of the month to stacey.figgins at state.or.us<mailto:stacey.figgins at state.or.us>.
Please include links and contact information but no attachments.
30. In Every Issue-Internet Resources
Oregon Department of Education TAG
http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?id=76<http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?=76>
ERIC - Educational Resources Information Center
http://www.eric.ed.gov/<http://www.eric.ed.gov>
Supporting Emotional Needs of Gifted (SENG)
http://www.sengifted.org/<http://www.sengifted.org>
Council for Exceptional Children
http://www.cec.sped.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home
National Association for Gifted Children
www.nagc.org<http://www.nagc.org>
Oregon Association for Talented and Gifted
www.oatag.org<http://www.oatag.org>
REAL - Resources for Educational Achievement and Leadership
http://www.ode.state.or.us/teachlearn/real/
Get Ready Oregon web page: New Oregon Diploma information for the general public
http://www.getreadyoregon.org
Oregon Diploma web page: Resources and tools for educators
http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?id=368<http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?=368>
Contact the Education Specialist in TAG
Stacey Figgins, stacey.figgins at state.or.us<mailto:stacey.figgins at state.or.us> (503) 947-5701
****Disclaimer--The materials contained in the Oregon Talented and Gifted Teacher Update produced by
Oregon Department of Education are drawn from both internal and external sources and inclusion of
external materials does not necessarily indicate Oregon Department of Education endorsement.****
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