Gifted Jaguars and Eagles

Congratulations to Bloomington's National Merit Finalists. We are particularly proud that they are all DA students! Kennedy: Isaac Stein Jefferson: Alex Kiner Jamie Melville Joseph Shetaye

Congratulations to three of our Dimensions Academy alumni who have been selected as National Merit Semifinalists: Alexander Kiner Jamie Melville Joseph Shetaye All of them attend Jefferson and will graduate in 2021. We are very proud of their hard work!

Dear DA Sophomores, The Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) is a program co-sponsored by the College Board and National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC). It's a standardized test that provides first hand practice for the SAT®. It also gives juniors a chance to enter NMSC scholarship programs and gain access to college and career planning tools. The Gifted and Talented Dept will pay for you to take the PSAT to help you practice your test taking skills as a part of the DA program. If you are interested in taking the test it will be offered IN PERSON and there is not an online version. Jefferson is holding the PSAT on Wednesday, October 13th. Students will need to be at JHS by 7:50 am and will need to wear masks. Kennedy is holding the PSAT on Tuesday, October 26th. Students will need to be at KHS by 7:50 am and will need to wear masks. I have already reserved an exam for you. If you do not wish to take the PSAT that is fine. Pleas...

Congrats to Jefferson's National Merit finalists! Alexander Carpenter Benjamin Carpenter Joseph Carpenter Amy Wang Xiaoxin Zeng

In February students will be asked to register for next year. If you were not able to come to this morning's meeting I encourage you to watch the video. I'm including links to the resources I used: Video from today's Post DA Planning Meeting - https://youtu.be/2FmnXmsSvXg My PSEO planning guide document - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YkEVqdHSB_JR_2Z1ofjscKp7VGv6-xQ1mGmWnyKItkg/edit?usp=sharing The slideshow I used - https://tinyurl.com/yd9epeuu After the meeting Carl Pearson and I found this list: https://www.mnmsa.org/files/8013/1723/8071/PSEO_College_List.pdf Take care, Meredith

Dear DA Sophomores, The Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) is a program co-sponsored by the College Board and National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC). It's a standardized test that provides first hand practice for the SAT®. It also gives juniors a chance to enter NMSC scholarship programs and gain access to college and career planning tools. The Gifted and Talented Dept will pay for you to take the PSAT to help you practice your test taking skills as a part of the DA program. If you are interested in taking the test it will be offered IN PERSON and there is not an online version. I am sorry that means some of you will not feel comfortable taking it. Jefferson is offering the PSAT on Thursday, October 29, 2020. Students will need to be at JHS by 7:50 am and will need to wear masks. To register to take it at JHS compete this google doc. Meredith

Congrats to the Jaguar National Merit Scholars!   Pictured left to right:  Colden Longley, Charles Weismann, Christopher Melville, Henry Weismann, and Jillayne Clarke. Not pictured:  Katelyn Brandwick.   I have taught all of these kids and I am so proud of them!  I look forward to seeing what they can accomplish!  

Congrats to the following Jefferson students for placing as National Merit Finalists.  I had the opportunity to work with all these students in DA and in AP US Government & Politics.  They are amazing - both as thinkers and as producers of knowledge! Katelynn Brandwick Jillayne Clarke Colden Longley Christopher Melville Charles Weismann Henry Weismann

PSAT Registration is now open .  The PSAT will be given during the school day on Wednesday, October 30, 2019. The test will run from approximately 7:50 am-12:00 pm. The cost is $30 and the test is optional.  The Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) is a program co-sponsored by the College Board and  National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) . It's a standardized test that provides firsthand practice for the SAT®. It also gives juniors a chance to enter NMSC scholarship programs and gain access to college and career planning tools. The most common reasons for taking the PSAT/NMSQT are to: Receive feedback on your strengths and weaknesses on skills necessary for college study. You can then focus your preparation on those areas that could most benefit from additional study or practice. See how your performance on an admissions test might compare with that of others applying to college. Enter the competition for scholars...

Congratulations to the following students from Jefferson and Kennedy High Schools for making it to semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship Competition! Katelynn Brandwick & Jillayne Clark &* Colden Longley &* Christopher Melville* Jordan Thomson* Charles Weismann &* Henry Weismann &* Congrats also to the following students from Jefferson for qualifying as commended scholars. Ingrid Anderson Wyatt Doppmann* Timothy Lueth* Ashley Marker Thomas Quiggle These awards are based on student PSAT scores during their junior year of high school. * - indicates Dimensions Academy High School graduate  & - indicates was in the GT pilot of AP US Government for 9th graders at Jefferson Photo is from Jefferson High School 

I read this article recently and it really connected with me as we are currently doing MCA/MAP testing and preparing for the AP exams in May.  https://www.edutopia.org/artic le/building-metacognition- test-prep

2019 National Merit Finalists are: Charles Maki* Ryan Martz* Amelia Miller Isabella Phan* Emily Wammer * are DAHS graduates

I had a great time at the Kennedy Honors Breakfast this morning.  Congratulations to all the hard working students who pushed themselves to take more challenging classes and stood out nationally on the AP and PSAT exams.  Here's a photo of some of the students recognized this morning.  

Six seniors from Bloomington’s Jefferson and Kennedy high schools have been named semifinalists in the 2019 National Merit Scholarship Program.  Charles Maki*, Max Mallinger*, Ryan Martz*, Amelia Miller, Isabella Phan* and Emily Wammer are candidates for a merit scholarship to be awarded early next year. More than 1.6 million high school juniors entered the 2019 National Merit Program by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which serves as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists includes the highest scoring entrants in each state. Another 10 students have earned National Merit Commended Student status, which recognizes students performing in the top 5 percent of all entrants on the qualifying test. Commended Students include  Joshua French,* Alexandra Janey, Kaija Johnson, Isabel Matias, Ryan Meany*, Claire Miller, Logan Redding, William Titus, Skylar Volden* and Jennavieve Zimmerman. Students with an *...

Congratulations to the following students for being recognized by the National Merit Scholarship Competition! Charles Maki (JHS) Ryan Martz (JHS) Amelia Miller (JHS) Isabella Phan (JHS) Emily Wammer (JHS) Skylar Volden (KHS) Max Mallinger (KHS)

The PSAT is offered this year on Saturday, October 13 . We have practice books to check out in the Career Center. You can also find practice materials on  Khan Academy  and at CollegeBoard's  website . I highly recommend Breakaway Test Prep if you would like to do some prep outside of school.  To register for the test go to this link and please turn in your money to the Career and College Center by October 8th .  

Today I had a great meeting with Becky Wallerick ( rwallerick@isd271.org), our new College and Career Counselor, at Jefferson High School.  We are really fortunate to have someone in this position who is focused on post-graduation planning with our students and we are especially lucky to have someone who truly understands gifted teens!  We are in the process of putting together an evening program for gifted jr and sr students and their parents for jump start in the fall to help guide college planning.  In the mean time I think these articles are a great starting point! Have a great summer! Meredith  What most parents of gifted children wish they had known about college planning  - June 1, 2018 Five tips gifted students need to consider when choosing a college  (2015) Ten essential tips to help your gifted teen plan for college  (2014)

The SAT: What Parents Need To Know By KC Wright * January 18, 2018 You’ve known this day was coming: Your high schooler is growing up, getting taller and beginning to think about what will happen after the 12th grade. College might seem far away, but it is never too early to begin considering important components of your student’s college application. One important factor in the college admissions process, particularly for those students who are applying to competitive or elite schools and/or applying for scholarships, is the SAT or ACT. How much do you know about these all-important tests? Here are some questions we frequently hear from Noodle Pros parents regarding the SAT. How long is the SAT? The SAT is either 3 hours long, or 3 hours and 50 minutes long; the longer version is for students who elect to take the optional essay component. Students are strongly encouraged to make a decision regarding the essay when they register for the exam, but the College Board notes...

I really enjoyed the Kennedy Honors breakfast on Thursday, October 26th.  Great job to the Eagles who are AP Scholars and National Merit Scholars!

Also have you registered for the PSAT on October 11th?  Please do so! Two recent articles for juniors and their parents: http://www.businessinsider.com/getting-into-college-tips-for-parents-of-juniors-2017-9 https://www.teenlife.com/blogs/share-college-do-list-your-high-school-junior