Manitou Springs Middle School GATE

Writing Students Advance to Next Round

2010-03-08T09:08:00.000-08:00

Students Advance to Next Round

In October of last year, I began meeting with students who were interested in preparing an entry to this year's Letters About Literature Contest. After four supporting lessons, in early December, I submitted 22 entries from students in all three grade levels.

Last week, I received word that the following students have advanced to round 3 judging:
Agnes Navaratne, Keagan Vernon,Georgia Sinclair, Shelby Hickey, Isabel Dufford and Rachael Bradshaw.

In Colorado, only 60 students progressed to round 3 and six of them were from Manitou!! What an achievement!

State judging will be complete on or before March 22 and we should hear the final results shortly after.

Congratulations to all students who submitted a letter, To those students who have advanced, I hope everyone will join me in wishing them the best!

Student Responses to Gaston by William Saroyan

2010-02-04T09:32:00.000-08:00

In the short story, Gaston by William Saroyan, the 6-year old character's behavior is influenced by her parents. The fact that her parents are divorced and she spends time exclusively with one (and then the other) parent seems to create an internal conflict as to which behavior she should choose.

Can you relate to the character? How much of your behavior is influenced by others? Do your behaviors change according to the circumstances, settings or "characters" you are around? Give a specific example(s) to support your opinion.

After writing your post, read the posts of other students and comment on two.

NEW Zine Class

2009-09-07T14:10:00.000-07:00

Create Your Own Zine (a mini-magazine or comic on any subject!)

Saturdays: Noon to 1 p.m.

Sept. 12 - Oct. 3 and Oct. 17 - Nov. 7

Four sessions: $35 adults; $25 Teens

(Teen scholarships available - inquire through email to sandra@sandraknauf.com)

To be held at The West Center, 1628 W. Bijou St., 385-7920

Flyer Design by Catie Szabo

2009-09-04T14:21:00.000-07:00

GATE Parent Focus Group

You are cordially invited to participate in the Ute Pass BOCES/Manitou Springs School District’s upcoming Gifted and Talented Education Peer Review by participating in a Parent Focus Group. There will be two opportunities for participation on Thursday, September 10, 2009:

10:00-10:45 am
Manitou Springs Elementary School Commons or
5:00-5:45 Pm
Shared Integrated Learning Center (SILC)

This GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) Peer Review will be facilitated by a group of professionals from the Colorado Department of Education. The GATE Review Team will ask a variety of questions and be interested in any feedback you would be willing to share.

We believe you have important insights that would enhance the team’s understanding of the GATE programs in Manitou Springs School District and hope you are able to attend. If you have any questions, please call Pat Urban, Director of Speicial Programs 685-2013

Welcome to a NEW School Year

2009-09-02T21:01:00.000-07:00

The operative word here being NEW; The district has a NEW superintendent, the Middle School has a NEW principal, GATE has some NEW programming and of course, this blog is...NEW.

Let's start the new year by acknowledging some of the great things that happened last year.

GATE programming provided enrichment activities to over 100 students last year in a wide-range of interests including Chess Club, Academic Competitions, Appliance Dissection, Film Appreciation and Yoga to name a few.
New GATE pullout programming was successfully introduced to middle school students and included 'What Does It Mean to be Gifted", The 7-Habits of Highly Effective Teens, Logic and Problem Solving and High School Planning for College.
Academic Teams from all three grades competed (and placed) in Knowledge Master, Knowledge Bowl and Brain Bowl Competitions.
The GATE program sponsored two Destination Imagination Teams and both continued to the state level of competition. Congratulations!
GATE students attended a Leadership program at the Air Force Academy, spent a day at UCCS exploring what colleges have to offer and upper-levels spent a day in Denver participating in Legislature Day.

Yes, 2008-09 was a great GATE year but it's my goal to make 2009-10 even better!

To that end, 6th grade pullout students will again begin their middle school GATE experience by exploring their "gifts" in greater depth before engaging in a variety of activities designed to take lessons from their core subject areas to new heights.

Through a generous grant from the Manitou Springs Education Foundation (MSEF), we will bring Future Problem Solving to 7th and 8th grade pullout students. This internationally recognized program teaches fundamental problem solving techniques that can be applied to any problem. There will even be an opportunity for students who desire, to develop a competitive team.

Again, 8th graders will spend a portion of the 2nd semester engaged in activities that will familiarize them with the variety of post-secondary education options and equip them to make informed choices about their high school classes.

Advanced Learning Plans (ALPs) have been prepared for all Tier III students and will be shared with classroom teachers in order to make them aware of the specific academic needs of each student. To maximize the value of an ALP, I believe it require an ongoing dialog between the student, their parent, the classroom teachers and myself, so please share any and all information that you feel pertinent, at anytime.

Many of my students have stopped me in the hallway and asked, "When will GATE start?" The answer is, the week of September 7th. My time, these first few weeks back, are spent updating files, reviewing test data and sharing information with classroom teachers. The September start date also allows students to adjust to the routine and expectations of their classroom teachers before pullouts begin.

I intend to use this blog as a means to reach more parents and provide each of you with valuable information in the form of articles of interest, research, speakers and programs that are related to gifted students and their needs. Please share your ideas for the kinds of information that you would like to see here that will be most helpful.

Free PSAT - September 19

2009-09-01T17:23:00.001-07:00

National Free PSAT Day is almost here, so mark your calendars now! On September 19, students are invited to take a FREE full-length practice PSAT. This is a great opportunity to see how they would do on the actual exam without having to pay registration fees or report their scores to anyone. After they take the test, they'’ll get a free score report that details how well they did on each question and section of the exam. Only students and their families will see this report, which will give them helpful hints and a personalized study guide to help them raise their score before the official exam. Additionally, they can even sign up for a free results consultation to review their performance and answer any of their questions.

The free PSAT will be at Cherry Creek High School in Denver from 9:00am-11:30am. This event always fills up quickly, so please call 303-939-9100 if you have any questions or if you’d like to reserve your spot today.

Parents, there’s plenty of help for you too! While your student is taking the exam, there will be a FREE college admissions seminar. Experts from the realms of financial aid, test prep, and college planning all have information that will help your family navigate the college application process. Presentations include “Strategies to Cut the Cost of College” by Jay Murray, president of Solutions for Tuition, “Cracking the PSAT – Tips, Tricks, and the National Merit Scholarship,” by Stephanie Ronco (from The Princeton Review), and “Untangling the College Maze” by Robin Boren, the College Doctor. This seminar will be at Cherry Creek High School from 9:00am-10:30am. Be sure to call 303-939-9100 to save a seat while they’re available.