CAG Santa Lucia Region, CAG, California Association for the Gifted, education, gifted education, gifted and talented, gifted and talented education, Santa Clara County, Santa Cruz County, Monterey County, San Benito County, Region 5

GATE News, Events & Ideas:

Capitol Hill Update: TALENT Act Needs Support in Senate Ahead of Committee Action; House Introduction Soon

The Senate committee that handles education is reportedly planning to consider the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) in June. The chance to include the TALENT Act (S.512) in ESEA increases with every cosponsor we secure for the legislation. Currently, there are 4 Senators on S.512 (Grassley (Iowa), Casey (PA), Mikulski (MD), and Boozman (AR)).

Please contact your Senators as soon as possible and urge them to support gifted students by becoming a cosponsor of S.512. Each Senator has an online form to use to send a message. Click here to connect to your Senators. Or you might want to use the online message that our advocacy partners at CEC (Council for Exceptional Children) have developed. The online message can be personalized to include information about gifted education in your state and sent along directly to your Senators. Click here for the CEC Action Alert.

For more information about the legislation, including a summary of the major areas of focus for the bill, visit the TALENT Act page on the NAGC website.

In the House, we expect that the TALENT Act will be introduced the week of May 20. Once that bill is introduced, NAGC and CEC will urge members to contact their Representative in support of the legislation.

(This is excerpted from the recent (5/9/2013) NAGC (National Association for Gifted Children) “Compass Points” e-newsletter.)

2012–2013 GATE Advocates Meetings

Our GATE Advocates meetings are held on Thursdays at Hobee’s in Los Gatos, 5:30–7:30 pm. The meeting dates are:

• Thursday, September 13, 2012
• Thursday, November 8, 2012
• Thursday, January 17, 2013
• Thursday, March 14, 2013
• Thursday, April 11, 2013
• Just added to the list: Thursday, May 30, 2013
  (Post-Stu-2-Stu Conference debriefing)

More information on the Events page.

This FREE conference offers students grades 3–12 an opportunity to shine, to share their interests, talents and passions in a 15-minute workshop that will be attended by other students. This wonderful event just keeps getting better! Hundreds of students and parents attend; dozens of students present workshops on a wide variety of topics; fun is had by all who attend!

Learn more about this great conference!

Download the printable flyer in 8½ x 11 or in 2-up (half-size)!

Check out our Facebook Page —and help spread the word about the conference by clicking “Like”!

Online registration is now open for the 51st annual CAG Conference, this year being held on March 15–17, 2013 at the Anaheim Marriott. The theme is “Magic of the Mind.” Leading GATE educators and experts will be speaking at this extremely informative event.

Outstanding Workshop Opportunity:
Differentiating Instruction Using the
Icons of Depth and Complexity

Saturday, December 1, 2012
9:00 am – 12:30 pm
Campbell MS, Campbell, CA

Come learn many different strategies for using the depth & complexity icons to differentiate and add rigor to your core curriculum. Eight workshops to choose from, with workshops targeted to elementary, secondary, beginners new to the icons and more advanced for people already familiar with using them. Register online today! Download and print the flyer, see the list of workshops, or print both in one file.

CAG Northern California Symposium for Educators and Parents:
“Unlocking Potential and Reaching for Excellence”

Saturday, November 3, 8:30 am – 4:30 pm
American Canyon High School,
3000 Newell Dr., American Canyon, CA
(Napa County, north of Vallejo, 2 miles from Hwy 80)

• Keynote address by Sandra Kaplan, Ed.D.
• Workshops on strategies for differentiation, technology and innovations for the classroom
• Workshops on parenting gifted children
• $75 includes catered lunch and free parking ($50 for CAG members)
• More info at www.cagifted.org. Register online now!