Quest Academy
for Gifted Education
Gifted Advisory Council
To be added to our Information & Contact List Click here
Q - Questioning personal values and feelings
U - Understanding personal, unique capabilities
E - Educating to full potential
S - Searching new ideas and new ways to view the world
T - Thinking through problems for the best solution
Latest News . . .
5/11/11 - Important letter to all Quest parents regarding the elimination of several state-wide gifted programs and the release of the new State Plan for Gifted Education. Click here.
ATTENTION MIDDLE SCHOOL PARENTS, End of Course (EOC) exam information for all middle school grades can be accessed here. For information regarding the Algebra I EOC guidelines, click here. Note, for the 2010-2011 school year, only middle school students currently taking Algebra I are required to take the EOC assessment. If your child took Algebra I in previous years, he/she is NOT required to take the EOC assessment. Click here for more information on this waiver.
INTERESTED IN ATTENDING THE GAC MEETINGS?
Open to the public, they are held in Challenger's Media Center the 1st Thursday of each school month, and the YMCA provides free child care in the cafeteria for all parents wishing to attend these meetings. If you would like to be included on our contact list for information and meeting reminders please Click here.
INTERESTED IN BECOMING A GAC MEMBER?
Vacancies are filled by a majority vote of the council. If you are interested in filling a vacancy, please complete the online Notice of Interest form at the bottom of this page. Upon receipt of your form, a council member will contact you. Terms are two years in duration, and our next election will be held in May or June of 2012.
New! SENGinars!
The GAC has purchased the recordings and slides to several of SENG's past webinars, and you can now access them via the links below! Many thanks to SENG for their generosity in allowing us to share and distribute this valuable information to our parents and faculty. Visit SENG (Supporting Emotional Needs of the Gifted) at http://www.sengifted.org/
Stress, Anxiety and Gifted: Coping with Everyday Life, presented by Michele Kane, Ed.D. on April 26, 2011.
Stressors in the life of a gifted child abound. Perfectionism, sensitivities, moral concerns, peers, expectations, and career confusion are only some of the issues facing youngsters. This SENGingar examines the sources of stress and explores specific strategies designed to minimize stress and develop self-awareness. Since each gifted child has a unique, differentiated profile of affective characteristics, there will be a discussion surrounding matching specific strategies to specific affective profiles to reduce stress and enhance well-being.
For the recording, click here. Slides, click here.
"You Can't Make Me Do It!" - How to Encourage Motivation from the Inside, presented by Cheryl Franklin-Rohr on March 24, 2011.
This presentation focuses on intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation, different perspectives of the key players, factors that help and hinder achieving the desired state, practical strategies to encourage a positive change, and brain research regarding motivation. Carol Dweck's book, Mindset, will also be discussed. Also included are suggestions for teachers as well as practical alternatives to using rewards.
For the recording, click here. Slides, click here.
Understanding Overexcitabilities: The Joys and the Challenges, presented by Susan Daniels, Ph.D. on January 31, 2011.
This SENGinar provides an overview of overexcitabilities - psychomotor, sensual, intellectual, imaginational and emotional. Along with strategies for channeling their expression most positively, this presentation helps us to understand how OE's contribute to the talent development as well as the social-emotional development of gifted children, youth, and adults. If misunderstood and misinterpreted, OE's can result in inappropriate pathologizing of these qualities - especially in twice exceptional students. Attention is also focused on the role of OE's in contributing to the optimal development potential of the gifted as grounded in Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration.
For the recording, click here. Slides, click here.
May, 7, 2010: Update regarding gifted open house dates, the upcoming Gifted Advisory Council meeting and election, and the progression of the Academy's transition to Challenger K8. Click here.
February 17, 2010: Update regarding the progression of Quest Academy's transition to Challenger K8. Click here.
January 4, 2010: Letter regarding move to Challenger K8. Click here.