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Each year we provide 3 to 4 Free Parent Seminars and 1 Educator Seminar per Term.
The parent seminars are developed with the same approach as the educator seminars with a focus on best practices for advocating and working alongside schools and teachers.
Parent-carer initiatives provide a space for parents and families to come together to share their experiences and learn from others. These may include seminars and workshops on topics such as developmental milestones, educational options, best practices in developing strong school-family relationships, assessments and career counseling.
Using research-based recommendations, the parent seminars aim to connect parents with their children and their children’s teachers, serving to not only strengthen community engagement but to also help build parental confidence in schools.
The seminars provide both a platform for parents to gain essential resources to support their parenting journeys and act as a forum in which individual parents can connect with other parents in similar situations to share their stories in a safe and supportive environment.
These seminars aim to set high standards for teachers and students and employ evidence-based strategies to support gifted and talented students.
The educator seminars on identification are relevant to all educators of kindergarten to Year 12 learners, including pre-service teachers, casual relief teachers, and early childhood professionals.
The VAGTC teacher seminars are aligned to the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) and meet the requirements under the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT). All registered participants who complete the seminar will receive a VAGTC Certificate of Attendance, citing the relevant standards addressed under the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.
For educators, professional development seminars and workshops range from the identification of high capacity students to understanding and working with assessments. Through our seminars, educators will learn how to interpret educational psychologist reports, and develop individualized learning plans, as well as working with families to support gifted children and young people’s education.
For example, identification for students who are gifted and talented includes identification of underachievers, EAL and culturally diverse students, as well as students with high capacity but present with learning challenges.
VAGTC also offers Tailored Seminars for Schools, Parent Consultations, and Mentoring for High-Ability Leaders.
Funded by the Department of Education
As parents of a gifted child, it can help to know what types of provisions schools could and do make for gifted children. This workshop will take you through some options for gifted programming, regardless of the sector of education your child’s school is in (government, independent, Catholic), from the classroom to external activities and competitions. The workshop will be interactive, so please bring your questions!
Funded by the Department of Education
School Reluctance/refusal
Facilitated by Victoria Poulos, a panel discussion including a psychologist, parent and past student.
School refusal is a common struggle for gifted children which may stem from a variety of factors, including perfectionism, asynchronous development, heightened sensitivity, social anxiety and mismatched educational environments. During the session, we will hear from a psychologist, a parent and a gifted young adult and will explore the crossover between giftedness and school refusal. By examining the underlying causes, identifying early warning signs, and discussing effective strategies for prevention and intervention we can better support our young gifted students.This informative session is primarily for parents, but is equally helpful for educators and well-being coordinators
Presented by Amy Horneman
As teachers in mixed-ability classrooms, the question often arises, “How do I know if my student is gifted?” While this is an important question to address, as there are implications on our daily practice if a student is indeed ‘diagnosed’ as ‘gifted’, a deeper question is often not asked or adequately answered: “Why does it matter if my student is gifted?” This session, the first in a 2-part series, will unpack some of the current understandings in the field of gifted education about why it is important to identify giftedness in our classrooms, and the broader purpose of gifted education in our world.
Cost:
$88 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$44 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
*Please note when registering for these seminars, TryBooking charges a .50c booking fee.
The session will be run via Zoom (link to be provided after registration).
Please note that this seminar will run subject to minimum registration numbers.
Presented by Amy Horneman
The second session in a 2-part series, this interactive workshop builds on the discussions from the previous seminar presentation on the importance and purpose of identification of giftedness and of gifted education more broadly. Ideas about what to do with the knowledge that a student is gifted will be shared, and participants will have the opportunity to workshop specific learning activities, lessons and unit planners, in an effort to build strategies and ideas for catering effectively for their gifted students. There will be a 30-minute presentation followed by breakout workshop rooms with facilitators focusing on different curriculum areas.
Cost:
$88 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$44 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
Group Bookings of 3 only
$211.20 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$105.60 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
Early Bird Prices
Offer of prices below end on Wednesday 22/5/2024
$70.40 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$35.20 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
*Please note when registering for these seminars, TryBooking charges a .50c booking fee.
The session will be run via Zoom (link to be provided after registration).
Please note that this seminar will run subject to minimum registration numbers.
Funded by the Department of Education
Parents of a twice-exceptional child, who possesses both high intellectual abilities and a learning difference or disability, often have specific concerns and questions about how to best support their child’s unique needs. If you are a parent or educator wanting to learn more about how to support your child/student, please join us for an informative discussion session. The session will include how to advocate for your child, how to balance strengths and challenges, supporting their social-emotional well-being and more.
Face to Face
Presented by Dr. Susan Nikakis & Laura Wilcox
Gifted students: who are they? Why do they need support? How do I teach them? What resources can I use to help the teaching and learning process? Once your school has identified gifted or highly able students, it’s often a challenge to find appropriate ways to support them in their learning. This seminar will address two major issues: what we as teachers can do in the classroom, and what we can do as a school. The first half of the seminar will provide ideas for classroom tasks and differentiation, and how to ensure that our gifted students remain engaged in their learning. The second half will outline school-wide steps for enrichment and extension, such as the creation of dedicated extension programs, opportunities for external competitions, etc. This is also an opportunity to network and share ideas informally with others, and with VAGTC experts.
A refreshement tea break will be provided.
Cost:
$88 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$44 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
Group Bookings of 3 only
$211.20 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$105.60 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
Early Bird Prices
Offer of prices below end on Wednesday 27/05/2024.
$70.40 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$35.20 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
*Please note when registering for these seminars, TryBooking charges a .50c booking fee.
Please note that this seminar will run subject to minimum registration numbers.
Presented by Bernadette Sheedy
This session will explore the social emotional needs of gifted learners, including asynchronous development, perfectionism, imposter syndrome and twice exceptionality. We will also discuss the way teachers can support students to address these challenges.
Cost:
$88 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$44 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
Group Bookings of 3 only
$211.20 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$105.60 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
Early Bird Prices
Offer of prices below end on Tuesday 2/7/2024
$70.40 (Non-Members)
$35.20 (VAGTC Members)
*Please note when registering for these seminars, TryBooking charges a .50c booking fee.
Presented by Kathy Harrison
What does student engagement mean for different individuals? How do I know that my students are engaged in learning? How can I support and assess it in the classroom? In this session, we will explore different aspects of engagement: cognitive, behavioural, and affective, and strategies to help both teachers and students improve the effectiveness of learning and teaching. Some questions that we will explore are: What does engagement really look like in my context? Taking into consideration cultural norms and local school culture, how can we partner with students to improve engagement? To what extent is it my responsibility? How can I change things up? How can I support students’ self- awareness and agency?
There will be time to workshop –modify ideas and resources for your context.
Cost:
$88 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$44 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
Group Bookings of 3 only
$211.20 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$105.60 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
Early Bird Prices
Offer of prices below end on Tuesday 23/7/2024.
$70.40 GST Inclusive (Non-Members)
$35.20 GST Inclusive (VAGTC Members)
*Please note when registering for these seminars, TryBooking charges a .50c booking fee.
The session will be run via Zoom (link to be provided after registration).
Please note that this seminar will run subject to minimum registration numbers.
Funded by the Department of Education
It can be challenging navigating the complexities of making sure your gifted child has access to appropriate schooling and educational provisions. This seminar will give you practical tips and advice for proactively building positive relationships with the staff at your child’s school, as well as effective communication strategies for handling difficult situations. We will also discuss the importance of documenting dialogue with the school in the form of keeping records of important discussions and decisions. The workshop will be interactive, so please bring your questions!
Funded by the Department of Education
It can be challenging navigating the complexities of making sure your gifted child has access to appropriate schooling and educational provisions. This seminar will give you practical tips and advice for proactively building positive relationships with the staff at your child’s school, as well as effective communication strategies for handling difficult situations. We will also discuss the importance of documenting dialogue with the school in the form of keeping records of important discussions and decisions. The workshop will be interactive, so please bring your questions!
Thursday 9 November 7:00pm - 8:45pm
7:00pm VAGTC President Kathy Harrison will speak on what the VAGTC has achieved this year.
7:30pm formal business. Observers welcome but only VAGTC members may vote.
If you are a non-member but would like to sign up for any of the evening, especially the free discussion time, please register using the following link.
https://www.trybooking.com/CMXCK
AGM - Discussion Time
8:00 pm
In conjunction with this year's AGM, we are offering both members and other interested people the opportunity to join in informal discussion with members of the VAGTC committee. Participants will be able to join a room of their choice or split their time between rooms.
Break-out Room 1: VHAP Come and meet with two current teachers and original curriculum writers of the Victorian High Ability Program ("VHAP"). Claire and Kathy are also presenters of the VAGTC parent and educator seminars. Questions, suggestions and ideas welcome!
Break-out Room 2: Vision Come and meet with the current creative dream team - Laura, Karen and Amy - that designs, collects articles, edits and puts together the magnificent Vision magazine. Questions, suggestions for topics, contributors, and ideas on how to include student voice welcome.
Break-out Room 3: Variety of sector perspectives In this room you can meet with curren highly knowledgeable educators from the State, Catholic, Independent and home education sectors. Bernadette, Susan and Victoria are keen to engage with you on any subject to do with supporting gifted students in their settings.
Come and hear from a diverse group of gifted and high-ability young people as they share insights that will enlighten and inspire those who work with them.
Light Refreshments provided
Registrations are essential by Wednesday 17th May
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© Copyright Victoria Association for Gifted and Talented Children
These seminars aim to set high standards for teachers and students and employ evidence-based strategies to support gifted and talented students.
The educator seminars on identification are relevant to all educators of kindergarten to Year 12 learners, including pre-service teachers, casual relief teachers, and early childhood professionals.
The VAGTC teacher seminars are aligned to the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) and meet the requirements under the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT). All registered participants who complete the seminar will receive a VAGTC Certificate of Attendance, citing the relevant standards addressed under the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.
For educators, professional development seminars and workshops range from the identification of high capacity students to understanding and working with assessments. Through our seminars, educators will learn how to interpret educational psychologist reports, and develop individualized learning plans, as well as working with families to support gifted children and young people’s education.
For example, identification for students who are gifted and talented includes identification of underachievers, EAL and culturally diverse students, as well as students with high capacity but present with learning challenges.
As part of the VAGTC Membership, You are eligible for Free Membership at the Australian Association for the Education of the Gifted and Talented (AAEGT). To Receive this, you agree to pass on to them my email address, contact number, and postal address.