GT 6-Hour Update Options

 GT 6-Hour Update Options

2009-2010

Choose from the options below to fulfill your 6-Hour Update requirement in Gifted and Talented Education.

GT 6-Hour Update -- DPISD

Interactive, strategy-based approach to the most current research and successful initiatives for instructing gifted and talented students. Topics will include underachievement, genius, the brain, and 7 categories of gifted behaviors. Strategies will include jigsawing, Socratic circles, zero-prep differentiation, and more. Teachers must attend all 3 days in order to receive credit.

Dates: 10/6/09; 10/8/09 and 10/13/09 OR 5/6/10; 5/11/10 and 5/13/10

Time: 4 – 6 p.m.

Location: Wolters 101

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Register: Through School Objects

GT Book Study -- DPISD

Join us in a Professional Learning Community book study as we read High IQ Kids: Collected Insights, Information, and Personal Stories from the Experts. Participants will meet for one hour prior to reading the book and one hour after reading the book. Teachers must attend both sessions and complete the reading and coursework to receive credit. A blend of personal stories and practical strategies, scholarly articles and entertaining essays from a community of voices – parents, educators, authors, researchers, and other experts – this book addresses the joys and challenges of raising and teaching, living with and understanding exceptionally gifted kids of all ages.

Dates: 10/20/09 and 11/10/09 OR 5/4/10 and /25/10

Time: 4-5 p.m. (plus reading at home)

Location: Wolters 116

Cost: None for DPISD Teachers

Register: Through School Objects

Intel Teach Essentials

Prepare yourself for the 21st Century Student. The goal of the Intel Teach Essentials Course is to help classroom teachers develop student-centered learning through technology integration and project-based approaches. The training consists of 20 face to face hours of instruction to be delivered via eight curricular modules. Seven face to face meetings are required.

Dates: 10/6/09; 10/13/09, 10/20/09, 10/27/09; 11/3/9, 11/10/09 and 11/17/09

Time: 4 – 7 p.m.

Location: Wolters 101

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Register: Through School Objects

Strategies for Differentiation Instructon: Best Practices for the Classroom – HAC[1]

Presented by Tracy Ford Inman, Associate Director of the Center for Gifted Studies at Wester Kentucky University.

Based on the book by the same name, this workshop offers practical strategies for teachers to use in the classroom—strategies that allow all students to learn at appropriately challenging levels and make continuous progress by focusing on their various levels of knowledge and readiness to learn.

Date: 9/12/09

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Alief ISD

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Addressing the Affective Needs of Gifted Learners -- HAC

Presented by Dr. Edward Amend

Dr. Amend is a practicing clinical psychologist at Amend Psychological Services, P.S.C., in Lexington, Kentucky with a satellite office in Cincinnati, Ohio. In his practice, Dr. Amend focuses on the social, emotional, and educational needs of gifted and talented youth, adults, and their families. He provides evaluations and therapy, facilitates child and parent discussion groups, and offers consultation to gifted children. As a strong advocate for the gifted population, Dr. Amend’s service has included the Board of Directors of Supporting Emotional Needs of Gifted; President of the Kentucky Association for Gifted Education; Chair for the National Association for Gifted Children Counseling and Guidance; and consultant to the Davidson Institute for Talent Development.

Date: 9/19/09

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Tomball ISD

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Preparing for the TExES GT Supplemental Certification -- HAC

Presented by Dr. Dolly Adams

This session will prepare participants for the GT TExES Exam. Teachers who pass the exam can be certified by the State of Texas in Gifted and Talented Instruction. Participants should register for the GT TExES Exam at

Date: 10/10/09

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Fort Bend ISD

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Creativity and Instructional Strategies for Teachers of the Gifted

Presented by Dr. Joyce Juntune

Dr. Juntune is the Director of the Institute for Applied Creativity in the Dept. of Educational Psychology at Texas A&M University at College Station. She has served as the Executive Director of both the American Creativity Association and the National Association for Gifted Children. Dr. Juntune is the recipient of numerous awards for her outstanding efforts in gifted education. Dr. Juntune’s extensive teaching experience includes students from pre-school through graduate school.

Date: 10/24/09

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Klein ISD

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Creativity and Instructional Strategies -- HAC

Presented by Dr. Terry Brandt

Dr. Terry Brandt is an associate professor at the University of St. Thomas. His career as an educator includes classroom teacher, multiple principal assignments, and assistant superintendent. He has served as a consultant in gifted education for over thirty years. In that time, he has assisted universities in designing their graduate degrees in gifted education, worked with districts in creating and implementing programs for the gifted, and made over a thousand presentations to audiences across the United States and around the world.

Date: 1/9/10

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Katy ISD

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Differentiating for Gifted Students – HAC

Presented by Dr. Nancy Weber

Nancy Weber has been presenting high quality seminars, keynote speeches and workshops since 1987. She is a former classroom teacher with over 25 years of experience in education. Participants in this workshop will learn simple and effective strategies for helping gifted students enjoy full-time, challenging learning in the context of a mixed-ability classroom. Educators will learn how to manage time and behavior while helping gifted students achieve maximum learning. There will be ample opportunities to share with colleagues and get answers to specific problems and concerns.

Date: 2/27/10

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Spring Branch ISD

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Preparing for the GT Supplemental Certification Test -- HAC

Presented by Dr. Lynette Breedlove

This session will prepare participants for the GT TExES Exam for certification by the State of Texas in Gifted and Talented Education. Participants should register for the GT TExES Exam at

Date: 3/6/10

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Spring Branch ISD

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Strengthening Your Instruction for Gifted Students Through Advanced Differentiation Strategies – HAC

Presented by Dr. Richard Cash

Increase your teaching options and enrich your existing curriculum with practical, advanced differentiation strategies designed specifically for gifted and highly capable students. Learn advanced critical reasoning and creative thinking strategies your gifted and talented students can use in any content area. Models and templates are provided to help develop complex and rigorous lessons and activities.

Date: 4/10/10

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Cypress Fairbanks ISD

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Meeting the Intellectual and Emotional Needs of Gifted Children in a School Setting – HAC

Presented by Dr. Jim Delisle

Dr. Jim Delisle’s up-front, insightful, and personal approach to the education and guidance of gifted children and adolescents has led him to become one of America’s favorite experts on the topic. Dr. Delisle has written more than 14 books on gifted education, including: The Gifted Kids Survival Guide, When Gifted Kids Don't Have All the Answers and Parenting Gifted Kids. In this session, Dr. Delisle reviews the specific needs of GT students, including understanding the emotional intensities that often accompany giftedness, accepting personal imperfections (and those of others), finding and keeping true friends, and enjoying one's abilities in the context of the wider world. Following this overview, Dr. Delisle will highlight classroom-tested lessons and strategies that instill compassion, self-awareness and leadership among students.

Date: 5/1/10

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Alvin ISD

Cost: None for DPISD teachers

Differentiation Strategies for the Gifted/Advanced Student in Science-Elementary – Region IV ESC

Strengthen your ability to differentiate for gifted learners in the science classroom utilizing project based learning. Build lessons using technology, research strategies, and the engineering design process. Watch your student's creativity come alive as they explore new avenues for learning.

Date: 10/8/09

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Region IV ESC

Cost: $80.00

Meeting the Needs of the Twice Exceptional Student – Region IV ESC

Learn strategies to support students who are both gifted and have learning disabilities. Define the characteristics and behaviors of the twice exceptional student. Identify the principles of Universal Design in teaching that enable learning for all students. Explore hands-on instructional and assistive technologies that can support the success of the twice exceptional student. Bring at least one student case study to the session and design a differentiated lesson plan example.

Date: 1/7/10

Time: 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Region IV ESC

Cost: $80.00

Science Differentiation Strategies for the Secondary Gifted/Advanced Student – Region IV ESC

Explore practical strategies for meeting the needs of gifted and talented learners in the secondary science classroom. Discussions include planning and managing science differentiation, preparing students for differentiation, and assessing differentiated student progress. Science teachers will consider accommodation of gifted learners by examining a model of creativity applied to the science curriculum, recognizing personal qualities of creative science students, enabling creative problem solving, and developing rubrics to judge creative products.

Date: 10/8/09

Time: 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: Region IV ESC

Cost: $80.00

Raising the Roof: G/T Leader Update – Region IV ESC

Audience: Campus Administrators, Counselors, District Administrators, Teacher Leaders
Critically examine the elements of differentiated curriculums for gifted learners from the perspective of the leader. Participants will explore the core principals of differentiated instruction to accommodate the nature and needs of exceptional learners. An analysis of best practices will draw upon work from Carol Ann Tomlinson (Differentiated Instruction) and Robert Marzano (Classroom Management that Works) to allow participates to gain additional tools to build exemplary instructional practices on their campuses for gifted students. Training, evaluating and collaborating on program options and design will be a primary focus of this session.
Dates: 3/2/10 OR 3/29/10 OR 5/12/10 OR 5/26/10
Time: 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Location: Region IV ESC
Cost: $75.00
Register:

Gifted and Talented: Identifying and Serving Linguistic and Cultural Diverse Students – HCDE

English language learners, Hispanic and African- American students are often overlooked for G/T identification. Often--once identified--these students are under-served. In this one-day institute teachers learn to identify gifted traits of culturally and linguistically diverse students and how to differentiate instruction to meet their needs.
Date: 5/3/10
Time: 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Location: Harris County Dept. of Ed.
Cost: $90.00 (includes lunch)
Register:

Texas Association of Gifted and Talented Annual Conference

Whatever your role, wherever your location, the TAGT Annual Professional Development Conference is your premier opportunity to learn how to meet the unique needs of the gifted and talented children in your life, and to connect with thousands of your peers. We're working hard to make this conference the best yet, so stay tuned and mark your calendar!
Dates: 12/2/09 – 12/4/09
Time: varies by day
Location: George R. Brown Convention Center
Cost: $119-319 (check registration site)
Register:

 Page 1

[1] Courses listed as HAC are offered by the Houston Area Cooperative for Gifted and Talented.