Archive
Solar astronomy workshop at Tellus Museum
Mom always said, “Don’t look at the sun!” Good advice, unless you’re at a solar astronomy workshop at the Tellus Museum in Cartersville.
On Saturday, April 23, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., kids 8 and up can observe the sun using solar telescopes. The workshop also includes a lecture by a Tellus scientist.
The program costs $25 for non-members, and all children must be accompanied by an adult, who also has to pay for admission to the museum.
I’m not sure why this workshop isn’t listed on the Tellus web site as of this posting, but I called to verify it’s happening. To register, call the museum at (770) 606-5700.
Registration starts today for Science Night Out at Fernbank
Fernbank Science Center will host its next Science Night Out on Friday, May 6. The theme for the program is, “Things that Wiggle, Squiggle, Creep and Crawl.”
Science Night Out is aimed at science lovers in 3rd – 6th grades. The program runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Registration, which is done only by U.S. Mail, is $15 for one child and $10 for additional siblings. The class will be filled on a first come, first served basis.
Atlanta Young Writer’s Institute programs for serious writers
High-school students can learn about the craft of writing from pros, then put what they’ve learned to work in the Summer Intensive program offered by the Atlanta Young Writer’s Institute.
During this two-week workshop, rising 10th to 12th graders will learn about different literary genres, then will write a chapter of a novel, a one-act play, a short story or a collection of poems.
This year’s intensive will be held June 6-17, 2011, at Agnes Scott College. Applications are being accepted now on a rolling admission basis. The class size is limited to 16.
Meanwhile, students can get a taste of AYWI at a fiction and poetry slam seminar, which will be held April 23 at Decatur High School. The event, which is open to middle- and high-school students, is a combination of instruction and open mic reading. See AYWI’s upcoming events page for registration information.
Apply now for NASA summer program
Rising 1st-12th graders can apply now to the Science, Engineering, Math and Aerospace Academy (SEMAA) summer program, a science and technology enrichment program. The program is sponsored by NASA, which also provides guidelines for the program; however, the local SEMAA programs are not actually run by NASA.
This free, one-week program will be held July 11-15, 2011 at Cedar Grove Middle School, a DeKalb County school. It is operated by the Fernbank Science Center. But don’t let the DeKalb connections fool you — kids don’t have to be DeKalb County students to apply.
Class size is limited to 20 students per grade level, and spaces are filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Applications must be sent by fax, mailed by U.S. mail or submitted in person. The application was posted today and will only be up until April 15, 2011.
Clean Air Campaign comic strip contest for elementary school kids
If spring break boredom sets in for your child, here’s something they can try: The Georgia Clean Air Campaign is holding a comic strip contest for elementary school students (pre-K through 5th grade).
Students are asked to create a comic strip showing how everyday choices — such as using mass transit, riding a bike or combining car trips — can help reduce air pollution.
No big prizes here, but winners will be featured in Clean Air Campaign promotional materials, and each winner can choose a science, environmental or art program at their school to receive a donation.
Spring programs abound at Georgia’s state parks
One of the responses to my most recent post (about travel with gifted kids) mentioned Providence Canyon State Recreation Area. Sometimes called Georgia’s Little Grand Canyon, this park is a geological treasure not far from Albany, about a 3-hour drive from Atlanta.
When I went to the park’s web site, I saw a couple of items on the calendar that caught my eye. First, on Saturday, April 9, the park will host Geology Day — a guided trip through the canyons, exploring their geological history. (If you can’t make it that day, they’re doing the event again on June 4 and Oct. 8.)
Looking forward on the calendar, Providence Canyon will welcome stargazers for Astronomy Night on July 30 and Nov. 19.
That got me wondering what’s happening at Georgia’s other state parks. The answer is, more than I had imagined. The state parks event calendar lists dozens of events for April alone. Here are just a few examples:
- An 18th century colonial market this weekend at Fort Yargo State Park in Winder
- An evening of astronomy this Saturday night at F.D. Roosevelt State Park in Pine Mountain
- Civil War history hikes throughout the month at Sweetwater Creek State Park in Lithia Springs
- A hike to see spring butterflies on April 16, also at Sweetwater Creek State Park
There’s much, much more, so I won’t try to list it all here. The events page has a well-designed search feature that lets you explore the calendar by month, by park, or by distance from your ZIP code, so it’s easy to see what’s happening that might interest you.
Parent to parent: Tell me about great trips with gifted kids
During a presentation yesterday at Georgia State’s Saturday School, a couple of parents emphasized that travel has been one of the best ways of enriching their gifted children’s education.
I have to admit, my family hasn’t done a lot of educational travel, but we’d like to. Problem is, there’s a whole world out there, and I don’t quite know where to start.
So I’d like to ask you, readers: What are some great places to travel with gifted children?
Please reply to this post with your ideas, and check back to read what other parents suggest. I’ll use some of the responses to create a new travel section on the Enrichment page of this site.
Thanks for your help!
Smithsonian and MIT present an online mystery game for middle schoolers
“An environmental disaster has taken place on Planet Earth and we need your help. The Smithsonian Institution and the MIT Education Arcade invite all scientists-in-training ages 10 ½ to 14 to log onto VANISHED and help decipher clues that unravel one of the world’s biggest mysteries.”
That’s the pitch from Vanished, a free, online, interactive game that will have middle-school students collecting scientific data, solving puzzles and playing online games. They’ll even have video conferences with Smithsonian scientists — all to find the clues that will answer the mystery.
The game will run for eight weeks, beginning on Monday, April 4. The MIT creators of the game say kids can follow along in as little as 10 minutes per week, but those who want to be actively involved will probably spend about 2 hours per week working on it.
Registration for Vanished is open now and will continue even while the game is in progress; however, if you aren’t signed up by April 4, you’ll miss the opening stages.
Well said: articles that remind me why I’m an advocate for the gifted
Whether working on this blog or advocating for my family’s particular needs, thinking about the needs of highly capable children takes up a good bit of my mental real estate.
Even so, sometimes I need an infusion of enthusiasm, something to remind me why gifted education matters so much — to my child, my school, my country. Here are two articles I read recently that have helped me stay fired up.
- Education reform: the problem with helping everyone reach ‘average,’ an opinion piece which appeared in the Christian Science Monitor, penned by the president of the National Association for Gifted Children
- Myths of Science Education, from Science 2.0. This blog post gives a quick overview and links to a video from the Baltimore Public Schools which looks at 10 common myths — one might also call them excuses — about gifted education. The video is a little hokey, so you might opt to go straight to the source: NAGC’s list of Common Myths in Gifted Education.
If these inspire you as they do me, and if you’re wondering what you can do about it, here’s an idea: Mark your calendar for April 29, 2011. That will be when the Georgia Association for Gifted Children puts on Gifted Day at the capitol downtown. I will provide more details on the day as I get them.
Registration opens today for Ben Carson Academy at Morehouse
The Morehouse School of Medicine is now taking applications for the Ben Carson Academy summer program.
This science enrichment program exposes middle-school students to topics in science, math and health. Although participation in the program is not restricted to minority students, the program does have a strong component of African-American culture and content.
During the year, Ben Carson Academy is a Saturday program, but in the summer, it’s a four-week camp in a classroom setting. Kids take field trips, partake in lab work, and work on developing science fair projects.
The application can be downloaded online. It must be mailed in by April 15.
Gifted Atlanta 