Resources GT/Talent Development

School District of Elmbrook

Table of Contents

RECENT UPDATES HIGHLIGHTED in BLUE

Summer Enrichment

        Multi-Age

                The Art of Writing

                Brookfield Academy Summer Days Program

                Center for Talent Development Summer Programs

                Danceworks Summer Creative Arts Camps

                Davidson Institute Young Scholars - Davidson Summer STARS

                Davidson THINK Summer Institute

First Stage Theater Academy

                iD Tech Camps

                Marquette OPUS College of Engin. - K-12 Engineering Academies

                Marquette High School Summer Math Problem Solving

                Milwaukee Art Museum

                Mt. Mary University Summer Camps

                North American Chinese School

                Red Oak Writing Camps

                Summer I.D.E.A.S. University School Milwaukee

                Summer Institute for the Gifted (SIG)

                UW-Milwaukee College for Kids and Teens Programs

                Wisconsin Precollege Program

                Wisconsin Center for Academically Talented Youth

                

                

Elementary

        Accelerated Weekend Experience in Evanston, IL

        Bricks 4 Kidz

        Brookfield Math Circle

        Camp Invention

        Discovery World Milwaukee Summer Camps

        Elm Grove Art Summer Camps

        Engineering for Kids

        Milwaukee County Zoo Oceans of Fun

        Milwaukee County Zoo Summer Camps

        Milwaukee Public Museum Summer Camps

        MSOE University Engineering for Kids

        Milwaukee Yacht Club Junior Sailing School

        Momentum Early Learning - Camp Velocity

        My Karate America Summer Camp Classes

        Prairie Hill Waldorf School Summer Garden

        Sharon Lynne Wilson Center Arts Camp

        Schlitz Audubon Nature Center

        Urban Ecology Center Summer Camps

        WCTC Lego Robotic Programming

        Wisconsin Humane Society Camps for Kids

        Wisconsin Center for Gifted Learners Milwaukee

        

        Middle

                Accelerated Weekend Experience in Evanston, IL

Art of Problem Solving

                Bricks 4 Kidz

                Brookfield Math Circle

                Discovery World Summer Camps

                Elm Grove Art Summer Camps

                Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast - Camp iGirl

                Milwaukee Yacht Club Junior Sailing School

                Urban Ecology Center Summer Camps

                WCTC Lego Robotic Programming

        

High

        Carroll University Pre-College Programs

Global Wisconsin

Marquette University OPUS College of Engineering

MIAD Summer Programs

MSOE University Summer Camps

Marquette University Summer Leadership Institute

UW-Madison Engineering Summer Program

Engineering Tomorrow’s Careers Camps

Competitions by Subject

Academic

        Academic Decathlon                                                          High School

        Destination ImagiNation                                                  K-12

        MIT Inspire                                                                         High School

        National Academic Championship- Questions Unlimited         High School

        National Academic League                                                Gr 5-12

        National Academic Quiz Tournament                                Middle/High

        Odyssey of the Mind                                                        K-12

        U.S. Academic Triathlon                                                        Gr 5-12

Art

        Art Smart Challenge                                                        All ages

        The Arts Olympiad 2013-2016

        Crafty Shops Monthly Art Contest                                        12 - under

        Doodle 4 Google                                                                K-12

        FreeKidsCrafts.com - monthly art contest                                Ages 3-12

        Holiday Art Contest                                                        19- under

        Institute for Global Environmental Studies Art Contest                Gr 2-4

        International Children’s Art Contest                                        Ages 4-12

        International Owl Coloring Contest                                        All ages

        Lion’s Club Peace Poster Contest                                        Ages 11-13

        Look and Learn Monthly Art Competitions                                18- under

        Mystery Build                                                                All ages

        Recycling is Bigger than the Bin Contest                                K-12

        Save the Frogs Art Contest

Scholastic Art Awards - WI Art Region                                Gr 7-12        

Science without Borders Challenge                                        Ages 11-19

        U.S. Kids Annual Cover Contest                                        Gr K-8

        Worldwide Kids Drawing                                                Gr K-8

        Your Best Shots Photography Contest                                13- under

Chemistry

        You Be the Chemist Challenge                                                Gr 5-8

        Wisconsin Crystal Growing Contest                                         Middle/High

Economics/Business

        Lifesmarts.org                                                                Middle/High

Wisconsin Economics Challenge                                        High

Language/Linguistics

National French Contest                                                Gr 1-12

North American Computational Linguistics Olympiad                Middle/High

The Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee                        Gr 3-8

Math

        American Mathematics Competitions                                 Gr 8-12

        American Regions Math League (ARML)                                Junior/High

        Caribou Mathematics Competition                                        Gr 3-12

Harvard/MIT Math Tournament (HMMT)                                High

Mandelbrot Competition                                                High        

        Math League                                                                Gr 4-12

        Math Prize for Girls                                                        Gr 11 - under

        MATHCOUNTS                                                                Middle

        Mathematical Olympiads for Elementary and Middle Schools (MOEMS)

National Number Knockout Math Competition (N2K)                Age 9-14

Noetic Learning Math Contest                                         Gr 2-8

        Ole Miss Problems of the Week                                        Elem/Middle

        Perennial Math                                                                 Gr 3-8

Philosophy

        Kids Philosophy Slam                                                        K-12

Science

        Bright Schools Competition                                                Gr 6-8

        Chemistry Olympiad                                                        High

        Clean Tech Competition                                                        Age 15-18

        Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge                Gr 5-8

        DuPont Science: Science Essay Awards Challenge                K-12

        FIRST - Robotic Competition                                                Ages 6 -up

        Google Science Fair                                                        Ages 13-18

        Intel International Science and Engineering Fair                        High

        National Science Bowl                                                        Middle/High

        National Science Olympiad                                                K-12

Physics Bowl                                                                High

        Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision                                                K-12

        USA Biology Olympiad (USABO)                                        High

You Be the Chemist Challenge                                                Gr 5-8

Social Studies

        American Model United Nations International (AMUN)                High

        C-Span’s StudentCam                                                        Gr 6-12

        Doors to Diplomacy - International         Competition                Middle/High

        Future City                                                                        Middle        

History Olympiad                                                                Middle/High

National Geographic Bee                                                Gr 4-8

National History Bee                                                        Elem/Middle

National History Day Competition

National High School Mock Trial Championship                        High        

National High School Model United Nations                        High

STEM

        eCyber Mission                                                                Gr 6-9

        Grand Challenge Stories: Extraordinary Stories Award

        High School Innovation Challenge                                        High

        Intel Science Talent Search                                                Seniors

        Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology        High

        Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Math and Science                        Middle/High

Writing

        Adventure Write Kids - Totem Head’s Writing Contest                 Under 19

        ARS Children’s Essay Contest                                                12- under

Building Stories: A Writing Contest for Students                        Gr 3-12

Creative Communication Poetry Contest                                K-12

DuPont Challenge: Science Essay Awards Challenge                K-12

Kids Are Writers                                                                Gr K-8

Meridian Stories

National Novel Writers Month Youth Writers Program                17- under

PBS Kids Writers Contest                                                Gr K-3

Poetic Power                                                                K-12

Poetry Out Loud: National Recitation Contest                        High

Resources

Book Lists

        Davidson Gifted Reading Lists

        Gifted UConn - booklists

Hoagies Gifted Reading Lists

        Johns Hopkins CTY

        PAGE (CESA 1) Recommended Books

        SENG - Resources for Parents

        Top Ten Books for Gifted Children

        WTAG

Organizations

        NAGC: National Association for Gifted Children

WATG: Wisconsin Association of Talented and Gifted

        PAGE: Partners for the Advancement of Gifted Education

        NSGT: National society for the Gifted and Talented

        SENG: Supporting the Emotional Needs of the Gifted

        Hoagies Gifted Education Page

        Institute for Research and Policy on Acceleration

Center for Gifted Education Policy

        

Twitter

        

Blogs/Websites

Summer Enrichment

Multi- Age

Elementary

                                                                       

        For student 8-11 years of age

Middle

High School

Competitions by Subject

Academic

High School. The Academic Decathlon is a 10-event scholastic competition for teams of high school students. Each high school enters a team of nine students: 3 "A" or Honor students, 3 "B" or Scholastic students, and 3 "C" or Varsity students.

Grades K-12. Destination ImagiNation is an international organization for kindergarten through college students and community groups that teaches life skills and expanding imaginations through team-based creative problem solving. Teams of five to seven members work together to apply creativity, critical thinking and their particular talents to solve a Team Challenge.

High School. With support from MIT’s School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences and several other departments at MIT, this is the nation’s first comprehensive high school research competition in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. High school students from across the United States showcase and present their original research in one of thirteen different disciplines, ranging from science, technology, and society to economics, political science, media studies, art and architecture, and music. Expert judges from MIT will award prizes for the most outstanding work in each category.

Middle/Junior high - High School. Questions Unlimited, supplier of questions and answers for academic competition, sponsors the National Academic Championship and the QuizNet on-line competition for high school students. Academic competition involves teams of students answering curriculum-based questions in an entertaining, fast-paced format. This competition generates the kind of publicity and attention for bright students that is normally reserved for star athletes.

Grades 5- 12. Awarding achievement should not be limited to athletic abilities. Students of all academic and athletic levels should have the benefit of excelling in their own unique talents and passions. Academic sports motivate participants to compete for honors and awards while teaching them the skills of teamwork and discipline skills that sustain them to be productive and successful adults.

Middle-High School. Premier quiz bowl championships in North America.

Grades K-12. This international, not-for-profit organization teaches students to learn creative problem-solving methods while having fun in the process. Students learn how to identify challenges and to think creatively to solve those problems. The creative problem-solving process rewards thinking "outside of the box." Memberships are purchased by a school or community group and then teams compete at the regional level, and/or at the state/province/country level.

Grades 5-12. U.S. Academic Triathlon is a five-person challenge for students. The Triathlon rewards strong performance in the areas of general intellect; specific academic abilities; leadership and psycho-social dynamics; visual and performing arts; and creative/productive thinking.

Art

Art competition for all ages. $5 entry fee

12 and under

Grades K-12. Use any materials. Fall contest.

Any original craft suitable for 3-12 year olds that can be made with basic craft or household items.

19 and under. 2015 Theme: My Favorite Winter Holiday

Since 1996, IGES has sponsored the annual IGES Art Contest for students in grades 2-4. Each year’s contest has a different theme and supports national science education standards. A panel of artists, scientists and IGES staff member judges the entries.Since they are reassessing how to conduct their contests, they don’t seem to have current contest information.

Ages 4-17. April deadline

No age limit. February deadline

Ages 11-13. Fall deadline.

Age 18 and under

The Challenge: Make a work of art using ONLY the materials in a Mystery Build Kit. Document your creative process and submit images and/or video of your project.  

The Twist: We can't tell you what's in the kit! Everyone gets the same materials and faces the same limitations. You can expect to find some common art materials like wood, clay, metal, fiber, and plenty of surprises!

K-12. December deadline.

        

Runs April-October. (Save the Frogs Day is April 30th)

        

Grades 7-12

Ages 11-19. The Science without Borders® Challenge was created to get students and teachers more involved and interested in ocean conservation through various forms of art. This yearly contest inspires students to be creative while using different types of media to promote public awareness of important ocean conservation issues.

        

Takes place July - October every year. Grades 1-4. Prize money awarded. 

Grades K-8. Submissions due Feb. 27, 2016. Theme: If I Had a Time Machine

Ages 6-17. Entry fee: $10

Anyone 13 or under may enter, with a parent’s or guardian’s permission. Ongoing contest. Nature photography.

Chemistry

Offered in Waukesha/Dane Counties. Grades 5-8. The You Be The Chemist Challenge is an exciting academic contest that uses the drama of competition to encourage students to explore important chemistry concepts, scientific theories, and laboratory safety. The Challenge operates on three competitive levels: local, state, and national. The top student from each state wins an expenses-paid trip to the National Challenge in Philadelphia in June.

Middle School - High School. The contest starts on March 1 and ends on April 30. Why? To explore the beautiful, ordered, and symmetrical world of crystals. This is an exciting scientific competition as well as a fun, hands-on lab experience.

Economics/Business

Middle School - High School. LifeSmarts is a fun program, run by the National Consumers League, that encourages middle and high school students to learn about the consumer issues they face today and the new challenges that are right around the corner!

High School. The Wisconsin Economics Challenge is an opportunity for teams of three (3) or four (4) high school students (four team limit per school) to demonstrate their knowledge of economics concepts in a competitive and FUN atmosphere! Any Wisconsin student enrolled in a high school course for credit during the 2015-16 academic year can participate. Students can compete at one of three host sites and in one of two divisions

Language/Linguistics

Grades 1-12. Le Grand Concours, or National French Contest, is a French event in the form of a 60 minute national examination, designed, written, financed, and disseminated by the members of the American Association of Teachers of French. Its purpose is to help stimulate further interest in the teaching and learning of French and to help identify and reward achievement on the part of both students and teachers.

Middle and High School. The North American Computational Linguistics Olympiad (NACLO) is a contest in which students solve linguistic puzzles. In solving the problems, students learn about the diversity and consistency of language, while exercising logic skills. No prior knowledge of linguistics or second languages is necessary. Professionals in linguistics, computational linguistics and language technologies use dozens of languages to create engaging problems that represent cutting edge issues in their fields. The competition has attracted top students to study and work in those same fields. This high school olympiad in linguistics and computational linguistics leads up to the International Linguistics Olympiad (ILO).

Grades 3-8. This spelling bee is the nation's largest and longest-running educational promotion, administered on a not-for-profit basis by The E.W. Scripps Company and 238 sponsors in the United States, Europe, Guam, Mexico, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, The Bahamas, and American Samoa.

Math

Grades 8-12. Students have the chance to compete to be part of the USA Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO) or the American Invitational Mathematical Examination (AIME). The top 12 scoring students from across the nation are invited to the awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. Then, six of those 12 students compete in the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO).

Exceptional Junior high students - High School. This is an annual national mathematics competition. High school students form teams of 15 to represent their city, state, county or school and compete against the best students from the United States and Canada. The event consists of Team, Power, Individual and Relay rounds and usually takes place the first Saturday after Memorial Day. Currently, ARML is held simultaneously at three sites: Penn State, The University of Iowa and The University of Nevada - Las Vegas. The ARML Power Contest is open to classes of high school students and consists of several "long answer" problems to which the class submits a single solution written during a 45 minute period.

Grades 3 - 12. The Caribou Mathematics Competition is a worldwide online contest held six times throughout the school year. On each of the contest days, five contests are offered, one for each of the grade levels 3 through 4 (free); 5 and 6; 7 and 8; 9 and 10; and 11 and 12. Grades 5 through 12 are $12 per student per year. Each student's ranking in the Caribou Cup is determined by their performance in their best five of six contests through the school year. All previous contests are available for free online as practice tests. A teacher or librarian must register to receive student access codes (free or paid). For paid access codes, the teacher can buy codes themselves, or allow third parties to pay for them (e.g. parents).

High School. The Harvard/MIT Mathematics Tournament (HMMT) is committed to providing opportunities to mathematically gifted students looking for a challenging experience, as well as meeting others interested in math from around the country and the world. There are two tournaments: 1) HMMT February is one of the most difficult math competitions in the United States for students who can comfortably and confidently solve at least 6 to 8 problems correctly on the American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME) and write mathematical proofs; 2) HMMT November provides a more approachable alternative for students to gain math tournament experience, such as those who have performed well on the AMC exams.

Greater Testing Concepts will not be offering contests for a three-year period, until the 2017-2018 school year. The Mandelbrot Competition is voted the best round by round math contest in the United States according to a survey from the editors. In a nutshell, the goal of the contest is to introduce high school students of all ability levels to accessible new topics in mathematics while providing stimulating, challenging problems to stretch the best students in the country. The team test portion of the contest emphasizes mathematical writing skills and effective group work.

Grades 4-12. The Math League is dedicated to bringing challenging mathematics materials to students. The Math League specializes in math contests, books, and computer software designed to stimulate interest and confidence in mathematics for students from 4th - 12th grade. More than 1 million students participate in Math League contests each year. Contest problems are designed to cover a range of mathematical knowledge for each grade level. All of the problems on each contest require no additional knowledge of mathematics beyond the grade level they test.

11th grade or below and have taken the AMC 10 or AMC 12. The Advantage Testing Foundation sponsors an annual math competition for high-school girls, the largest monetary math prize for girls in the world. Their goal is to encourage young women with exceptional potential to become the mathematical and scientific leaders of tomorrow. Visit their website for eligibility criteria.

Middle School. MATHCOUNTS is a national math coaching and competition program that promotes middle school mathematics achievement through grassroots involvement in every U.S. state and territory. With over 20 years of experience, MATHCOUNTS is one of the country's largest and most successful education partnerships involving volunteers, educators, industry sponsors and students.

Grades 4-8. Mathematical Olympiads for Elementary and Middle Schools (MOEMS), is a non-profit public foundation offering premier math contests for grades 4-6 and grades 7-8. Their goals include: To stimulate enthusiasm and a love for Mathematics; introduce important Mathematical concepts; teach major strategies for problem solving; develop Mathematical flexibility in solving problems; strengthen Mathematical intuition; foster Mathematical creativity and ingenuity; provide for the satisfaction, joy, and thrill of meeting challenges. Created in 1977 by Dr. George Lenchner, an internationally known math educator, the Math Olympiads went public in 1979. Schools can enter teams or parents can get excellent mathematical supplies for their children.

Ages 9-14. The National Number Knockout (N2K) is an annual calculating competition. The goal of N2K is to improve the calculating speed and accuracy of students across the nation through an easy-to-learn game. Enter for a chance to for a monetary grand prize as well as a prize for their teacher.

Grades 2-8. The Noetic Learning Math Contest is a semi-annual math problem solving contest for elementary and middle school students. The goal of the competition is to encourage young students' interest in math, to develop their problem solving skills, and to inspire them to excel in math. During the contest, students are given 45 minutes to solve 20 problems. Many problems are designed to challenge students and to enrich their problem solving experiences.

Elementary and Middle School. Ole Miss Problem of the Week is an educational website that gives kids the chance to win calculators by competing in online math puzzles. The site features geometry, algebra, and middle school problems. Students can submit their answers by email for a chance to win.

Grades 3-8. Perennial Math offers two types of competition. The first is an annual membership competition with separate grade levels. A team can register up to 30 students, or students may register individually if their school is not participating. The competition consists of 4 monthly tests beginning in November and ending in February. The second competition offered is Virtual Tournaments. These occur each month and are in a video conferencing format. Students may register for a team tournament (4 members) or for an individual student tournament.

Philosophy

K-12th grade. The Kids Philosophy Slam is an annual program designed to make philosophy fun and accessible to all kids, as well as to help promote critical thinking skills and encourage dialogue with other students and adults. The Philosophy Slam asks kids to answer a philosophical question such as "Imagination or Knowledge: Which has a greater impact on society?" Depending on their age, kids can express themselves in words, artwork, poetry or song. Each grade level has its own national winner, and the top four high school students debate the question at the national finals. The winner earns the title of "The Most Philosophical Student in America" Schools also compete for the title of" The Most Philosophical School in America".

Science

Grades 6-8. The goal of the Bright Schools program is to create a learning experience that will help students, parents and teachers better understand the link between light, sleep and student health and performance. Through the Bright Schools competition, students will select a topic related to light and sleep and select one of three exploration options (developing a prototype, creating an awareness campaign or writing a research proposal) to create an original project.

High School. The U.S. National Olympiad (USNCO) is a multi-tiered competition designed to stimulate and promote achievement in high school chemistry. The Goals of the USNCO and the schedule are set by a subcommittee of the ACS Society Committee on Education (SOCED).

Ages 15-18. The Clean Tech Competition is a worldwide research and design challenge for pre-college youth. The program encourages scientific understanding of real-world issues and the integration of environmentally responsible energy sources. Each year, the Clean Tech Competition addresses an issue that is grounded in core technological competency areas and focuses on the next great engineering challenges. The competition is designed to foster a deeper understanding of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) related concepts, recognize outstanding talent, and prepare the next generation of globally competitive innovators. Teams of one to three students between the ages of 15 and 18 with a Team Leader (19 years or older) must register by the deadline listed on their website.

Grades 5-8. This contest fosters the exploration, understanding and communication of science. More than 60,000 children from around the country enter science projects in one of the science and engineering fairs affiliated with Science Service. Between June (the deadline for entering) and early September, judges choose 400 semifinalists among the entries. In October, 40 finalists receive an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. for the competition finals, consisting of a series of team challenges and oral presentations. The winners receive scholarships and semifinalists receive prizes.

Grades K-12. The DuPont Challenge is an essay of 700 to 1,000 words discussing a scientific or technological development, event, or theory that has captured your interest and attention. Winners of the DuPont Challenge Science Essay Awards Program receive national recognition and a significant financial grant. The program, sponsored by the DuPont Center for Collaborative Research & Education in cooperation with General Learning Communications, awards cash prizes totaling more than $13,000.

Ages 6 and up. FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) is a multinational non-profit organization that sponsors this competition, which teams professional and high school students to solve engineering problems. Get a hands-on, inside look at the engineering profession by designing, assembling and testing a robot.

Ages 13-18. Google seeks gifted students to participate in the annual Global Science Fair. The competition challenges students to submit projects that will be judged by a panel of scientists and researchers.

High School. Held annually in May, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) is the world’s largest international pre-college science competition, providing an annual forum for more than 1,700 students from over 70 countries, regions, and territories to  showcase their independent research and compete for about $5 million in awards in 17 categories.

Middle and High School. The Department of Energy's National Science Bowl® is a highly publicized academic competition among teams of students who answer questions on scientific topics in astronomy, biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, earth, computer and general science. The competition consists of a round robin followed by a double elimination final.

Grades K-12. The Science Olympiad is an international nonprofit organization devoted to improving the quality of science education, increasing student interest in science and providing recognition for outstanding achievement in science education by both students and teachers.

High School. The Physics Bowl is sponsored by the American Association of Physics Teachers a(AAPT). Every April, approximately 10,000 students take a 40-question, 45-minute timed, multiple-choice test under their school’s supervision. The exam is designed to be challenging, with average scores of about 50 percent. Questions are based on topics and concepts covered in a typical high school physics course.

Grades K-12. The Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision is a fun science competition that encourages students of all grade levels to imagine what technology might be like in the future. All it takes is a teacher sponsor to get students excited and fuel their excitement for learning.

High School. This premier competition, hosted by the Center for Excellence in Education, allows top biology students the opportunity to display their talents on a national and international level. Over 70 countries participate in this competition, which is open to any high school students nominated by their teachers. USABO awards individual achievement in theoretical and practical biology knowledge and understanding.

Offered in Waukesha/Dane Counties. Grades 5-8. The You Be The Chemist Challenge is an exciting academic contest that uses the drama of competition to encourage students to explore important chemistry concepts, scientific theories, and laboratory safety. The Challenge operates on three competitive levels: local, state, and national. The top student from each state wins an expenses-paid trip to the National Challenge in Philadelphia in June.

Social Studies

High School. American Model United Nations International (AMUN) strives to create a simulation of the United Nations which is as realistic as possible, while still allowing the fulfillment of the educational goals. In this, they continually seek to find new information about the United Nations, its member states and the topics discussed, in order to include this information in the simulations at every opportunity.

Grades 6-12. This is an annual national video documentary competition that encourages students to think seriously about issues that affect our communities and our nation. Students are asked to create a short (5-8 minute) video documentary on a topic related to a specific theme. The competition is open to all students in grades 6 through 12.

Middle and High School. The U. S. Department of State sponsors the "Doors to Diplomacy" educational challenge to encourage middle school and high school students around the world to produce web projects that teach others about the importance of international affairs and diplomacy. Each student team member of the winning "Doors to Diplomacy" Award team receive a $2,000 scholarship, and the winning coaches’ schools each receive a $500 cash award.

Future City starts with a question—how can we make the world a better place? To answer it, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students imagine, research, design, and build cities of the future that showcase their solution to a citywide sustainability issue. Past topics include stormwater management, urban agriculture, and green energy.

Middle and High School. The International History Olympiad is a new competition organized by The International History Bee and Bowl which is designed to bring the top history students from around the world together for an unforgettable week full of various competitions with a history-based theme, and a chance to meet students with similar interests and talents from around the world.

Grades 4-8. The contest is designed to encourage teachers to include geography in their classrooms, spark students interest in the subject, and increase public awareness about geography.

Elementary and Middle School. The National History Bee is a history competition for elementary and middle school students. Participating students progress from the school level to the regional level and finally to the national level until one student is crowned the National History Bee Champion.

National History Day is not just a day, but every day! The National History Day program is a year-long education program that culminates in a national contest every June. For more than twenty-five years the National History Day program has promoted systemic educational reform related to the teaching and learning of history in America's schools. The combination of creativity and scholarship built into the NHD program anticipated current educational reforms, making National History Day a leading model of performance-based learning.

High School. The national mock trial championship was initiated in 1984 in Des Moines, Iowa. After the success of the tournament in Iowa, more states became interested in participating and the tournament became billed as an "All-State" Tournament.

The National High School Model United Nations (NHSMUN) works to offer a Model United Nations conference emphasizing accuracy, preparation and a problem-solving approach -- a conference that truly puts students into the shoes of diplomats -- is a uniquely powerful way to educate young people about global issues.

STEM

6th-9th grade. eCyberMission is a web-based science, math and technology competition. Compete for regional and national awards while working to solve problems in your community.

Planet Earth is faced with a set of Grand Challenges whose solutions are critical to humanity over the next decades. To be responsible stewards of the planet and to ensure human progress, we must find sustainable solutions for alternative energy, safeguarding our environment, improving health care, advancing knowledge, and creating the technologies that enhance the way we live. Five nominated individuals or teams will split a $15,000 prize. In addition, a professional video of each of the five winning projects, including new interviews and footage filmed during March and/or April, will be produced and featured at the April summit in Boston; and travel support will be provided to bring the winners to the Boston summit.

High School. Design competition hosted by select Northrop Grumman sites from February through April. The competition theme varies yearly and is inspired by a Northrop Grumman program or capability. Previous competition themes led to challenges which tasked students to build launcher systems, RC airplanes, airships and deployables. The High School Innovation Challenge strives to encourage students to actively engage in fun and rewarding Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) activities.

High School seniors. Since 1942, Science Service has been in the business of making dreams come true through the Science Talent Search (STS). In 1998, Intel became the new sponsor of this nationwide competition: America's oldest and most highly regarded pre-college science contest. Each year the STS helps the nation find and encourage especially talented high school seniors to pursue careers in science, math, engineering, and medicine.

High School. The Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology recognizes remarkable talent early on, fostering individual growth for high school students who are willing to challenge themselves through science research. Through this competition, students have an opportunity to achieve national recognition for science research projects that they complete in high school. It is administered by The College Board and funded by the Siemens Foundation.

TEAMS (Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics and Science) is an annual competition for middle and high school students designed to help them discover their potential for engineering. Using science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and 21st century learning skills, students work collaboratively to problem solve real-world engineering challenges.

Writing

Under 19 years old. Sponsored by the Adventure Write Website; free writing contest; cash prize; winner's story gets published. The contest's goal is to inspire the next generation of adventure writers.

Grades 3-12. Our rich history of innovation should encourage tomorrow’s innovators – today’s students. So, we’re inviting students from around the United States to write a creative story that celebrates Rosa Parks, one of America’s greatest social innovators. Students in grades 3-12 can enter for a chance to win prizes, with one talented student having his or her story published by The Henry Ford.

12 and younger. June deadline. Sponsored by American Rose Society

Grades K-12. The purpose of the poetry contest is to bring recognition to poets both young and old. In addition to the winning poems, other poems of high merit are accepted to be published in a hard bound anthology. There is no entry fee and no required purchase in order to become published.

Grades K-12. The DuPont Challenge is an essay of 700 to 1,000 words discussing a scientific or technological development, event, or theory that has captured your interest and attention. Winners of the DuPont Challenge Science Essay Awards Program receive national recognition and a significant financial grant. The program, sponsored by the DuPont Center for Collaborative Research & Education in cooperation with General Learning Communications, awards cash prizes totaling more than $13,000.

Grades K-8. Final year! Under the guidance of a project coordinator, children work in teams to write and illustrate their own book. March, 2016 deadline.

Annual subscription. Meridian Stories is a Maine-based non-profit founded in 2011. Every year, Meridian Stories offers 20 digital storytelling competitions in Language Arts, Mathematics, Science and History for teams of students in middle and high schools. Schools register for the program by paying an annual subscription rate that provides access to all 20 challenges and the capacity to compete with other schools in the Meridian community. Teams work collaboratively over a three to four week period to complete their media production and upload them to the Meridian site. While Meridian Stories is designed for use by the whole school, the local programs for the Gifted and Talented community of students have been its biggest advocates.

November is National Novel Writing Month! It's a fun, seat-of-your-pants writing event where the challenge is to complete an entire novel in just 30 days. For one month, you get to lock away your inner editor, let your imagination take over, and just create! That means participants begin writing November 1 and finish November 30. The word-count goal for the adult program is 50,000 words, but the Young Writers Program (YWP) allows 17-and-under participants to set reasonable, yet challenging, individual word-count goals. In 2014 nearly 90,000 young writers and educators participated through the YWP.

K-3rd. Held by many local PBS member stations, for kids who want to write and illustrate their own stories. If your local PBS station is participating, you can submit your story to your local station for judging, and a chance to win prizes!

High School. In this competition, created by the National Endowment for the Arts and The Poetry Foundation, high school students memorize and recite the work of great poets. This competition helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence and learn about their literary heritage while competing at the classroom level, then moving on through school-wide, city-wide and regional competitions. Each state-level winner receives $200 and an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington (with a chaperone) to compete for the national championship. The state winner's school receives a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry books. Finalists compete at the National Finals in May, where scholarships and school stipends totaling $50,000 are awarded.

Resources

Book Lists

Organizations

Twitter

@RaeEMcClain - GT/Talent Development Coordinator, School District of Elmbrook

@GiftedTalented  Information and advice for parents of the gifted and talented. Being GT isn't always easy.

@SENG_Gifted Supporting Emotional Needs of the Gifted (SENG) empowers families and communities to guide gifted and talented individuals to reach their goals..

@begabungs The Global Centre for gifted and talented children is the right place for gifted and highly gifted children as well as their families.

@TeacherCast http://TeacherCast.net  was created by@JeffBradbury, a teacher, to help teachers better use technology in their classrooms.

@giftedfunding Activism for funding gifted education.

@Hoagiesgifted Everything you ever wanted to know about gifted kids & gifted education

@prufrockpress The nation's leading resource for gifted, advanced, and special needs learners. Follow them for special offers, free giveaways, current events, and links.

@JeffCoGifted Non-profit group of parents, teachers, administrators & community leaders advocating and providing resources for gifted children's educational & emotional needs.

@teachagiftedkid This gifted and talented teacher posts articles and thoughts about working with the gifted.

Blogs/Websites