GIFTED IN FRANCE

May 14, 2014

 "I asked mom if I was a gifted child. 
She said they certainly wouldn't have paid for me."
 ~Calvin (Calvin & Hobbes) 

Dear Friends,

You are invited to join us for a meeting on understanding gifted children and their common and not so common characteristics. It will be held on Thursday May 22, 2014.  Choose from either midday or evening session. You are welcome to join us even if you've already attended this meeting in the past. Please feel free to pass the word to others who might be interested.

Gifted 101
Thursday May 22, 2014

Two presentations, choose one: 

Midday: 12h00-14h00 (Bring your lunch)

Evening 19h45-21h00 (Bring a small snack or a drink to add to the nibbles)

Location:  Paris 75016, Near Maison Radio France.  

IMPORTANT: Click here to reserve your spot. RSVP closes May 19. Space is limited, event is held at a private residence.

Participation Fee: Free for current GiF members and current Message members, 10€ for non-members. 

Payment needs to be mailed in advance to Gifted in France, 39 ave de Versailles, 75016. 

Two DVD presentations featuring, James T. Webb, 45 minutes each:
Followed by a brief discussion and getting to know other parents. 

A. IS MY CHILD GIFTED? IF SO, WHAT CAN I EXPECT? (45 mins)
  "Dr.Webb describes the most common basic characteristics of gifted children and shows how/why some of these traits can actually result in underachievement, power struggles and failure to be recognized as bright."

B. DO GIFTED CHILDREN NEED SPECIAL HELP (40 mins)
  "As they enter school, gifted children are frequently criticized for the very characteristics that make them who they are. Dr. Webb describes the traits, common behaviors, and challenges for gifted children from preschool through adolescence."

Resources: 

1. A useful book that is often used as a companion to the DVD is called: A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children, by Webb, Gore, Amend and DeVries.) I'll have a copy or two you can have a look at. 
2. What is Giftedness: http://www.nagc.org/index.aspx?id=574&ir
3. Gifted 101: http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/gifted_101.htm

4. Reducing the Risk of Medical Misdiagnosis, resources by SENG

Join us! The Creativity - Innovation Challenge, July 7-10, 2014 

Paris College of Art, Gifted in France and Université Paris Descartes invite you to attend the 11th International Conference on Excellence in Education: Parents, educators, psychologists, administrators, university students and policy makers are invited to join presenters and keynote speakers from across the globe for discussions and workshops on several main themes on education trends, policies and best practices.  Keynote speakers include experts from Belgium, Canada, Hong Kong, the UK, the United States and UNESCO. Click here for a list of keynote speakers.  Discounted registration fees apply to local participants and friends of Gifted in France; please contact beth@icieworld.net. Follow us on Twitter  and on Facebook. 

Conference location: 

Université Paris Descartes

Centre  Henri Piéron

71, avenue Edouard Vaillant
92774 Boulogne-Billancourt

Thanks so much for your continued support. 
Best regards, 
Helen Sahin Connelly
President, GiF

GIFTED in FRANCE

May 7, 2014

”I loved being outside. We'd hold lightning bugs in our fingers 

and pretend they were diamond rings,"

 ~Loretta Lynn 

LITTLE MAD SCIENTISTS' CLUB presents

                                      photo by HSC

CREEPY CRAWLIES With Matt Black

(Ages 7-9 years-old)

Sunday May 18, 2014

14h45-16h30

RSVP: Mandatory

First come, first served, space limited to 12 children,

GiF members have priority 

Creepy Crawlies:  You may live in a city, but there is a hidden world of animals right at our feet - buzzing bees, crawling ants and creeping critters in every direction. Did you know that for every person living in Paris, there are many millions of insects living here too? Come join Matt Black for a close-up investigation of these tiny and wonderful creatures that are all around us. We'll learn to tell the difference between insects, spiders, and "something else's" and then go see what real bugs we can find! 

How to reserve your spot? Please be sure to follow steps 1-3 below.

1. Please note the age group, location and date, then email Cretha and Cristiana at gifmadscientists@gmail.com  Subject: CREEPY CRAWLIES
2. Registration: to fill out the online registration form click here.
3. Participation fee, 12€, first come, first served. Check payable to Gifted in France, 39 ave de Versailles, 75016. Confirmation is sent once payment is received. Please note that payment is non-refundable as we have fixed costs associated with this activity. Thank you for helping us stay organized.
4. Location: on Champs de Mars, exact location will be emailed after confirmation.
5. For this event, parents need to stay on the premises during the event, which is one hour long, followed by a gouter. 

This is the last session with Matt, until we start up again in the fall. We are looking forward to planning more outings and activities for Little Mad Scientists in addition to starting up a Science Club for Girls!

Related articles:

In the Digital Age, How to Get Students Excited About Going Outdoors

Changing the Conversation about Girls and STEM

About Matt Black:  Matt Black has been a professional educator for two decades, and has always loved making science fun for kids.  His interactive programs incorporate humor, observation, movement, music, and multisensory and experiential learning.  Matt is a science teacher at the Lennen Bilingual School in Paris, and has previously served as an educator and program director for the Connecticut Audubon Society and the New Canaan Nature Center in Connecticut.  He was formerly on the Executive Board of the Connecticut Outdoor and Environmental Education Association, and has also served as a lecturer at Yale University and with the Yale Alumni College Abroad program.  He is also a children’s musician here in Paris and seldom presents a science program without a musical footnote.  You can learn more about Matt at www.musicwithmattblack.com.

The Creativity - Innovation Challenge, July 7-10, 2014 

Paris College of Art, Gifted in France and Université Paris Descartes invite you to attend the 11th International Conference on Excellence in Education: Parents, educators, psychologists, administrators, university students and policy makers are invited to join presenters and keynote speakers from across the globe for discussions and workshops on several main themes on education trends, policies and best practices.
Keynote speakers include experts from Belgium, Canada, Hong Kong, the UK, the United States and UNESCO. Click here for a list of keynote speakers.
Discounted registration fees apply to local participants and friends of Gifted in France; please contact beth@icieworld.net. Follow us on Twitter  and on Facebook. 

Conference location: 

Université Paris Descartes

Centre  Henri Piéron

71, avenue Edouard Vaillant
92774 Boulogne-Billancourt

Thanks so much for your continued support.
Best regards,

Helen Sahin Connelly
giftedinfrance.blogspot.com

Join us! The Creativity - Innovation Challenge, July 7-10, 2014 

Paris College of Art, Gifted in France and Université Paris Descartes invite you to attend the 11th International Conference on Excellence in Education: Parents, educators, psychologists, administrators, university students and policy makers are invited to join presenters and keynote speakers from across the globe for discussions and workshops on several main themes on education trends, policies and best practices.  Keynote speakers include experts from Belgium, Canada, Hong Kong, the UK, the United States and UNESCO. 
Click here for a list of keynote speakers.  

Discounted registration fees apply to local participants and friends of Gifted in France; 

please contact beth@icieworld.net

Follow us on Twitter  and on Facebook 

Conference location: 

Université Paris Descartes

Centre  Henri Piéron

71, avenue Edouard Vaillant
92774 Boulogne-Billancourt

Thanks so much for your continued support. 
Best regards, 
Helen Sahin Connelly
President, GiF

GIFTED IN FRANCE

February 12, 2014
"I am not absentminded.
It is the presence of mind that makes
me unaware of everything else."
~G.K. Chesterton

Dear Friends,

Our next meeting is about understanding commonly misdiagnosed features of gifted children. Below is the information for signing up. Please feel free to pass the word to other parents, teachers, school administrators, therapists, psychologist, and speech and occupational therapists. Registration closes Feb. 28.

Differential Diagnosis: A Logical Approach to Understanding Commonly
Misdiagnosed Features of Gifted Children
90 minute, recorded webinar presented by Paul Beljan, PsyD, in PowerPoint format.
Thursday March 6, 2014
RSVP, in advance is mandatory, please follow these steps, space is limited to 15:

Two presentations, pick your date and time and Click here to reserve your spot.Thursday morning March 6, 12h00-14h15 (bring your lunch)
Thursday evening March 6, 19h30-22h00

Location:   is at a private residence, 75016, near Radio France.
Participation fee: Free to current GiF and Message members; 10 euros to non-members. Event is open to the community.
Handout: handout of slides available for those registered in advance.
Deadline: Registration and payment closes on February 28, 2014

Description:
“The top diagnoses asked about by parents of gifted children in my private pediatric neuropsychology practice are: short term memory deficit, processing speed deficit, central auditory processing deficit, sensory integration deficit and working memory deficit. More often than not, these disorders are not present. This webinar reviews these diagnoses and offers simple and logical methods for how to determine if they really exist in the child or not.  We will further discuss why a gifted child may appear to have these disorders when in fact they do not.  Suggestions are offered for what should be involved in an appropriate neuropsychological evaluation that parents should look for when having their child tested. 

Topics include:
Why short term memory deficit, processing speed deficit, central auditory processing deficit, sensory integration deficit and working memory deficit are probably the most over-diagnosed disorders among the gifted population.
·       Why these diagnostic errors are easy to make.
·       Very simple methods for how to rule out each diagnosis.
·       What constitutes an appropriate evaluation to rule-in or rule-out these diagnoses.

About the presenter: Dr. Paul Beljan is the past president of the American Board of Pediatric Neuropsychology. He holds child and adult diplomate qualifications with the American Board of Pediatric Neuropsychology and the American Board of Professional Neuropsychology. Dr. Beljan completed two Post-Doctoral Fellowship programs in Pediatric Psychology and Pediatric Neuropsychology and has completed coursework for his post doctoral master’s degree in Psychopharmachology. Dr. Beljan’s professional focus is on Alcohol/Drug Related Neurodevelopmental Deficit (A/DRND), Gifted Intelligence, Learning Disorders, Traumatic Brain Injury, Trauma and Attention and Executive Functioning Deficit diagnosis and interventions. Dr. Beljan co-wrote Misdiagnosis and Dual Diagnoses of Gifted Children and Adults.”

This webinar was organised by SENG, in the United States, as part of their ongoing series to educate the public and mental health professionals around the world.

Gifted in France is a loi 1901 non-profit association. GiF does not endorse speakers or their material, but aims to provide a wide variety of ideas and discussions about the educational, emotional and social needs of the gifted and twice-exceptional population. In addition to meetings for adults, GiF also provides activities for children including the Little Mad Scientists' Club and the annual Paris Spelling Bee.

ICIE's learning and networking opportunity!   Gifted in France is proud to be collaborating with ICIE's 11th International Conference on Excellence in Education. This year’s theme is  The Creativity – Innovation Challenge, to be held at Paris Descartes University, in Boulogne, on July 7-10. Participants registering through Gifted in France will receive a discount. Please contact giftedinfrance@gmail.com if you are interested in registering through our organisation. More information about the conference is on this link and click here for a list of keynote speakers. This conference is for parents, educators, psychologists, policy makers, university students, and school administrators.

As always, thank you for your continued support and interest.

Kind regards,

Helen Sahin Connelly
President,GiF

GIFTED in FRANCE

December 14, 2013

“The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas." 

~ Linus Pauling

ELECTRICITY!
with Matt Black 
Saturday January 11, 2014 at 15h00-16h30

Presented by GiF’s Little Mad Scientists' Club
Ages 7-9 years-old

"We use electricity every day, but what is it and how does it work? Which materials conduct electricity and which ones are resistors? Come explore this electrifying topic with Matt Black as we build our own circuits and test out various household objects to check their conductivity. It all concludes with the world-famous "Pickle Day" experiment, you have to see it to believe it!" 

How to reserve your spot? Please be sure to follow steps 1-3 below. First come, first served. GiF members have priority until the given date:

1. Please note the age group, location and date, then email Bettina de Catalogne and Marcia Uriu at gifmadscientists@gmail.com  Subject: Electricity


Registration form: fill out the online registration form by clicking here . 
2. Participation fee, 12€, must be received no later than December 22 for members and December  29 for non-members. If payment is not received by given date the spot will go to the person on the waiting list.  Check payable to Gifted in France, 39 ave de Versailles, 75016. Confirmation is sent once payment is received.   Please note that payment is non-refundable as we have fixed costs associated with this activity. Thank you for helping us stay organized.


Location: Champs de Mars 75007.  Address and meeting point will be emailed following confirmation and payment.

SAVE THE DATES:

NEXT meeting for Parents, teachers and professionals:

• Wednesday evening January 8, 19h30-21h00 or Thursday morning January 9, 12h00-14h00, choose your date and time:                     Differential Diagnosis: A Logical Approach to Understanding Commonly Misdiagnosed Features of Gifted Children, recorded webinar in PowerPoint format presented by Paul Beljan, PsyD, Click here to reserve your spot. Location: near Radio France.

Next Children's activities:

• Saturday February 8, 15h00-16h00 -- Little Mad Scientists-- Rocks and Minerals. (Sign up link coming soon.)
• Saturday January 25, 12h00-14h00 -- Language Comes to Life: Prefixes and Suffixes at the American Library in Paris. To reserve your spot for this activity, email Celeste at rhoads@americanlibraryinparis.org

Gifted in France is a loi 1901 non-profit association. GiF does not endorse speakers or their material, but aims to provide a wide variety of ideas and discussions about the educational, emotional and social needs of the gifted and twice-exceptional population

Best regards,
Helen Sahin Connelly

giftedinfrance.blogspot.com
parisfrancespellingbee.wordpress.com

GIFTED IN FRANCE

October 6, 2013

 "You don’t have the moral right to hold one child back 

to make another child feel better."

 – Stephanie Tolan

Dear Friends,

You are invited to join us for a meeting on understanding gifted children and their common and not so common characteristics. It will be held on Thursday October 17.  Choose from either midday or evening session. You are welcome to join us even if you've already attended this meeting in the past. Please feel free to pass the word to others who might be interested.

Gifted 101:
Thursday October 17:

Two presentations, choose one: 

Midday: 12h00-14h00 (Bring your lunch)

Evening 19h45-21h00 (Bring a small snack or a drink to add to the nibbles)

Location:  Paris 75016, Near Maison Radio France.  

IMPORTANT: Click here to reserve your spot. RSVP closes Oct 14. Space is limited, event is held at a private residence.

Participation Fee: Free for current GiF members and current Message members, 10€ for non-members. 

Payment needs to be mailed in advance to Gifted in France, 39 ave de Versailles, 75016. 

Two DVD presentations featuring, James T. Webb, 45 minutes each:
Followed by a brief discussion and getting to know other parents. 

A. IS MY CHILD GIFTED? IF SO, WHAT CAN I EXPECT? (45 mins)
  "Dr.Webb describes the most common basic characteristics of gifted children and shows how/why some of these traits can actually result in underachievement, power struggles and failure to be recognized as bright."

B. DO GIFTED CHILDREN NEED SPECIAL HELP (40 mins)
  "As they enter school, gifted children are frequently criticized for the very characteristics that make them who they are. Dr. Webb describes the traits, common behaviors, and challenges for gifted children from preschool through adolescence."

Resources: 

1. A useful book that is often used as a companion to the DVD is called: A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children, by Webb, Gore, Amend and DeVries.) I'll have a copy or two you can have a look at.
2. What is Giftedness: http://www.nagc.org/index.aspx?id=574&ir
3. Gifted 101: http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/gifted_101.htm

4. Reducing the Risk of Medical Misdiagnosis, resources by SENG

GIFTED in FRANCE

September 21, 2013

“To learn more about science, 

turn off your electronic device and go outside and look around a bit. 

Nature is calling you. Go on. The internet will still be here.”

~ Neil deGrasse Tyson

BACKYARD BIRDS!
Sunday October 13, 2013 at 15h00-16h30

Presented by GiF’s Little Mad Scientists' Club
Ages 7-9 years-old

No matter where you live, you have amazing wildlife all around you - especially birds!  Some are colorful, others have good camouflage, some sing beautiful songs, others are quiet, some meekly eat seeds, while others are fierce predators!  Some of the birds you might encounter have lived their whole lives near Paris, but others might be in the middle of their fall migration from the Arctic Circle to the southern tip of Africa, traveling thousands of kilometers on the wing.  Bring binoculars (if you have them) to catch a close-up glimpse of these fascinating but often hidden creatures.  Rain or shine, so dress for the weather - the birds always do!

How to reserve your spot? Please be sure to follow steps 1-3 below by October 3. First come, first served. Space limited to 10-12 children. GiF members have priority:

1. Please note the age group, location and date, then email Bettina de Catalogne and Marcia Uriu at gifmadscientists@gmail.com  Subject: Birds 


Registration form: fill out the online registration form by clicking here . GiF members have priority within the given deadline.

2. Participation fee, 12€, must be received no later than October 3rd. If payment is not received by given date the spot will go to the person on the waiting list.  Check payable to Gifted in France, 39 ave de Versailles, 75016. First come, first served. Confirmation is sent once payment is received.   Please note that payment is non-refundable as we have fixed costs associated with this activity.


Location: Champs de Mars 75007.  Address and meeting point will be emailed following confirmation and payment.

Next Little Mad Scientists' event: Sunday November 17: Meet the Planets. Announcement and sign up coming soon.

About Matt Black: Matt Black has been a professional educator for almost two decades, and has always loved making music fun for kids. His interactive performances incorporate humor, movement, silliness, singing, and even some (gulp) learning. Apart from his work as a musician, Matt is a science teacher at the Lennen Bilingual School in Paris, and has previously served as an educator and program director for the Connecticut Audubon Society and the New Canaan Nature Center in Connecticut.  He was formerly on the Executive Board of the Connecticut Outdoor and Environmental Education Association, and has also served as a lecturer at Yale University and with the Yale Alumni College Abroad program. You can learn more about Matt at www.musicwithmattblack.com.

GIFTED in FRANCE

May 20, 2013
Whatever you are doing, ask yourself,
"What's the state of my mind?"
~Dalai Lama

Laying Waste to the Elephant in the Living Room:
Solutions for the Anxious Gifted Child
Recorded webinar presented by P. Susan Jackson, MA, RCC
Date: Thursday June 13 , 2013
Two screenings,  choose one:

• Morning: 11h30-14h00 (bring your lunch)
• Evening: 19h30-22h00 (bring a light snack for the table)

Location: 75016, near Maison de la Radio
RSVP: By June 5, 2013-  To reserve your spot:

• Email: giftedinfrance@gmail.com, Subject: Solutions for the Anxious Gifted Child. Please specify which time you are attending. 
• Online form: Complete the required online rsvp form, by clicking here.

Minimum attendance of 10 people is required. First-come, first-served. Space limited.  Handout: Photocopies of PowerPoint available to those reserved by June 5, latest!  Participation Fee: Free to current GiF and Message members. 10€ for non-members. Meeting is held at a private residence.

This is a 90-minute recorded webinar, presented in PowerPoint format

Webinar Description: "Anxiety is the most common mental health problem experienced by children. When left untreated, it causes anxiety-based disorders ranging from simple adjustment disorders to more debilitating maladies such as panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.
The relationship between anxiety and giftedness is largely unexplored in the literature and often overlooked or misconstrued in clinical practice, with potentially disastrous results. Truly insidious, with bona fide indicators eluding easy diagnosis, especially for the gifted, anxiety-based disorders are the 'elephant in the living room': a malady that eludes easy diagnosis, masked entirely or eclipsed by more obvious signs of distress such as perfectionism, underachievement, hyper-vigilance and depression. This interactive presentation provides parents, educators and mental-health professionals with information about the etiology of and powerful strategies for combating anxiety-based disorders."

Please join us and invite your partner, caretaker, friends to participate in this information-rich session.

About the Presenter: P. Susan Jackson, MA, RCC, is the founder and therapeutic director of The Daimon Institute for the Highly Gifted in White Rock, British Columbia, Canada. This international institute offers service to highly gifted children and adults supporting the educational needs and overall development of this exceptional population. She is an internationally recognized expert in the field and the author of numerous articles and chapters in the gifted education literature. Sue is currently the liaison for Parents and Curriculum for the Network Communications Committee of the National Association to Support Gifted and has served on the editorial board for SENG.

GIFTED in FRANCE

May 19, 2013
"Not all those who wander are lost."
~J.R.R. Tolkien

Giftedness and Learning Disabilities:
Unearthing the Missed Diagnosis
Recorded webinar presented by Dr. Paul Beljan
Date: Thursday June 6 , 2013
Two screenings,  choose one:
Morning: 11h30-14h00 (bring your lunch)
Evening: 19h30-22h00 (bring a light snack for the table)
Location: 75016, near Maison de la Radio
RSVP: By June 1, 2013-  To reserve your spot:

• Email: giftedinfrance@gmail.com, Subject: Giftedness and Learning Disabilities. Please specify which time you are attending. 
• Online form: Complete the required online rsvp form, by clicking here.

Minimum attendance of 10 people is required. First-come, first-served. Space limited.  Handout: Photocopies of PowerPoint available to those reserved by June 1, latest!  Participation Fee: Free to current GiF and Message members. 10€ for non-members. Meeting is held at a private residence.

This is a 90-minute recorded webinar, presented in PowerPoint format

Webinar Description: "Characteristics of gifted and talented children can result in incorrect diagnoses, such as overlooking learning disabilities. Learning disabilities can take the form of academics (reading and math) or innate abilities in general learning that may relate to social learning. In this SENGinar, Dr. Paul Beljan reviews some of the basic tenants of giftedness that include intellect and asynchronous development. He then discusses the nuts and bolts of learning disabilities: what they look like, how to assess them, and what to do about them in the contexts of the gifted population."

Please join us and invite your partner, caretaker, friends to participate in this information-rich session.

About the Presenter: Paul Beljan, PsyD, ABPdN, ABN, is a past president of the American Board of Pediatric Neuropsychology.

GIFTED IN FRANCE

January 5, 2013 
 Hide not your talents. They for use were made.
What's a sundial in the shade?
– Benjamin Franklin.

Dear Friends, 
Happy New Year!

Please join us for a meeting on understanding gifted children and their common characteristics. It will be held on Thursday January 24; chose from either morning or evening sessions. You are welcome to join us even if you've already attended this meeting in the past. Don't forget the other two events coming up for children: Owls on The Prowl (members have priority) and the annual city-wide Paris Spelling Bee, which is almost full.

Gifted 101:
Thursday January 24: 

Two presentations, choose one: 

Morning: 12h00-14h00 (Bring your lunch)

Evening 19h30-21h00 (Bring a small snack or a drink to add to the nibbles)

Location:  Paris 75016, Near Maison Radio France.  

RSVP by 17 January is mandatory as space is limited and event is being held at a private residence. Please fill out the mandatory form by clicking here to reserve your place. 

Participation Fee:   Free for current GiF members and current Message members, 10€ for non-members.  Payment needs to be mailed in to Gifted in France, 39 ave de Versailles, 75016. GiF is an non profit, association loi 1901.

Both morning and evening presentations will include: 

A. IS MY CHILD GIFTED? IF SO, WHAT CAN I EXPECT? (DVD format, 45 mins)
- James T. Webb describes the most common basic characteristics of gifted children and shows how/why some of these traits can actually result in underachievement, power struggles and failure to be recognized as bright.

B. DO GIFTED CHILDREN NEED SPECIAL HELP? (DVD format, 40 mins)- James T. Webb describes how as they enter school, gifted children are frequently criticized for the very characteristics that make them who they are. Webb describes the traits, common behaviors, and challenges for gifted children from preschool through adolescence.

GIFTED in FRANCE

December 27, 2012

“A wise old owl sat on an oak; The more he saw the less he spoke; 

The less he spoke the more he heard; 

Why aren't we like that wise old bird?” 

~Anonymous

Owls on the Prowl  Sunday January 27, 2013  at 15h00-16h30 Presented by the Little Mad Scientists' Club

What animal is armed with razor sharp talons, can fly as silently as a moth, can detect its prey even in pitch darkness, and is strong enough to hunt animals twice its weight?  Owls are among the champions of the predator world, with amazing adaptations that make them some of the most powerful, stealthy and deadly hunters in any habitat where they live.  Come join Matt Black, science teacher at the Lennen Bilingual School and children’s musician based in Paris, for a first-hand look at these incredible nocturnal predators and some of the special adaptations that make them unique in the animal world.  And for a special treat, we’ll actually dissect their pellets (coughed-up lumps of undigested fur and bones of the animals they’ve eaten) to see what prey they’ve been hunting!  Each student will receive his or her own sterilized pellet to dissect with Matt’s help.To RSVP, please email Heather at and fill out this online form for “Owls on The Prowl” by January 8, latest. Payment must be received before January 12 to secure your spot. Participation Fee 12 €

To reserve your spot, please be sure to follow steps 1-3 below, by January 8^th: