The Gifted Kids Network

The pilot program of the Gifted Kids Network has just finished.  Students have been blogging all semester and many of the students reviewed the program in their blogs.   Many students discovered that taking online classes is more difficult than they imagined.  It takes a committed, organized, and motivated student to do well in online classes.   

Read one parent’s review of the program,

A new program, the Gifted Kids Network (GKN) is offering engaging, multimedia-rich classes that encourage student activism.  This is fantastic!
Bright, talented kids are learning how they can make this world a better place.

Eight-year-old Alex just completed the Beta program for the Gifted Kids Network.  Despite the work involved and the late start (we didn’t find out about the class until a month into the session), he loved it. 

Each week in his Space Colonies Class, he got to watch videos or play games that taught him about the factors to consider – such as atmosphere or geology – when assessing the habitability of planets. Later in the course, he read The Green Book, a story about a family that is forced to leave a dying Earth to colonize a distant planet.

If you ask him, Alex will loudly proclaim that “The Green Book is the worst book on the face of the planet.”  I still don’t know why he had such a negative reaction, but I suspect it’s because the main character was a girl.  And, even though he hated the book, it certainly inspired his latest writing, Alex’s Journal: Journey to the New Planet.

Take a look at all the amazing projects that these talented students completed in various classes on the GKN Student Blog Site.  You will be impressed.

I think that what he liked best about this class was the chance to connect with other kids who share his interests.  Alex has been asking for his own IM account for awhile, but I don’t think he’s old enough to handle a public account like AOL’s AIM.  However, on the GKN there is a “lounge” where the kids can chat in a safe, teacher-monitored environment.

Now, he’s looking forward to GKN’s Animal Planet Summer Enrichment Class where he’ll get to create a humane, virtual zoo.  Older sister Kayla is also excited about the Cool Tools Summer Enrichment Class where she will get to create an online multimedia project that will incorporate “digital photography, video creation, web design, and more.”

Personally, I’m thrilled that they will both get to participate in a fun learning experience from the comfort of our home, or wherever we take our laptops!

Gladiators were a rather brutal form of entertainment in ancient Roman culture. The first recorded gladatorial game took place around 264 BC to honor a man’s dead father. The games slowly transformed into public performances. A day at the arena began with animal hunts called venationes and animal on animal fights. Over lunch, criminals were executed in the arena. Many people of the nobility would leave and come back later because they considered it bad taste to watch these executions. After lunch, the gladiators would do combat. The popularity of the games began to decline as Christianity became the major religion of the Romans. The last known game took place in 404 AD on January first. The gladatorial games impacted Roman culture rather negatively because it caused them to view violence as entertainment. You can see the video at http://animoto.com/play/QityDR8fs1DS4pwR0GmGtw

Technology of the 21st century provides educators with new and exciting possibilities for engaging gifted and talented students in enrichment programs. Enrichment 2.0, a web based enrichment cluster that allows students who are not physically in the same space to collaborate in an area of interest. Enrichment 2.0 utilizes the tools of the 21st century including wikis, blogs, discussion boards, videoconferencing, podcasting, interactive graphic organizers, and social bookmarking. Students utilize these technology tools and literacies to interact with high level content and produce authentic products. I’ve started a Ning group for educators interested in collaborating on Enrichment 2.0 activities. Please join our group and share ideas and resources for creating online enrichment clusters.

View my page on Enrichment 2.0

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