Gifted Atlanta

Registration is open for the UGA-Duke TIP Scholar Weekend to be held Dec. 1-2, 2018 on the University of Georgia campus. This two-day program gives students the chance to study in depth a topic that is likely outside the curriculum of their school, and to do so in a college environment with like-minded peers.

Scholar Weekends are open to students in grades 8 to 11 who have been gifted identified by their school. This includes any students who are enrolled in honors, International Baccalaureate, Advanced Placement or accelerated classes.

Topics for the December weekend include post-apocalyptic literature, aircraft design, sports medicine, microbiology, marine biology, business, psychology, and the intriguing “Star Wars mock trial.”

Students will arrive on the UGA campus on Saturday morning, spend the day learning, stay overnight on the UGA campus, and continue their studies on Sunday. Courses are taught by UGA professors, graduate students, professionals, and gifted educators.

Registration deadline is Nov. 2. Popular courses typically fill up before the deadline. Cost is $450 if the student spends the night on campus, or $400 to attend during the day only. Financial aid may be available.

Duke University’s Talent Identification Program (TIP) is now enrolling students in its 7th Grade Talent Search.

To qualify for the TIP program, your child must have scored at the 95th percentile or above on at least one section of their 5th grade or 6th grade Georgia Milestones test.

Officially, registration will remain open through April 2019. But if you want your child to take the SAT or ACT during 7th grade, the deadline is sometime in September, depending on which test you want them to take and whether you’re applying online (preferred) or by mail.

Why would you want your 7th grader to take a college entrance exam?

First, if you have a highly gifted student who’s pegging the meter on standardized tests, the SAT or ACT can offer a better measure of their academic ability.

Also, Duke TIP uses these SAT and ACT scores to determine which students will be invited to participate in its highly regarded summer programs.

There is a fee to register; need-based financial aid is available.

Emory Math Circle is a place for kids who think math is cool.

Students in grades 6 to 12 use games, puzzles and problems to look more deeply at how math works and discover fundamental advanced math concepts.

Math Circle meets on Saturday afternoons — about twice a month — on the Emory campus. Groups are taught by Ph.D. students from the Emory Department of Mathematics and Computer Science.

The next session of Math Circle will begin on Saturday, Sept. 15. Registration ends August 31.

Not ready to commit to a whole semester of math enrichment? Check out the Julia Robinson Math Festival on Sept. 2 at Emory. At this afternoon drop-in event, students can visit multiple stations where they’ll explore math problems and concepts, with guidance from mathematicians. It’s free, but advance registration by August 31 is requested.