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| Welcome to the GEARS website
GEARS was formed to communicate vital information to parents, educate parents about available resources, support parents who have issues and concerns and prepare parents to advocate on behalf of their children.
GEARS recently distributed its first monthly newsletter. Didn't receive a copy? You can access it here.
Our next set of Small Group Networking Meetings will be held Monday, May 14
at Panera Bread 154 W. Wilson, Batavia
Elementary Parents 9:30-10:30
Middle School Parents 10:00-11:00
High School Parents 10:30-11:30
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We had a very successful presentation on Highly Selective College Admissions
Presenters included:
Admissions Officer from The University of Chicago
Mary Jane Johnson, Geneva High School Guidance Counselor
Tina Tranfaglia, College Admissions Consultant
Parents of students admitted to highly selective colleges and universities
We plan to hold additional educational presentations throughout the year. To receive information about upcoming programs and meetings, please send an email to genevaaegroup@gmail.com and ask to be added to the GEARS distribution list.
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| Prior Meeting Notes The first meeting of the 2011-12 Year was held Thursday, October 27, 2011
Thank you to all who attended the meeting on October 27. Patty O'Neill updated the group on the status of the program and the new Common Core Standards for the State of Illinois (available at www.isbe.net/common_core/default.htm). A Parent Guide to the Common Core Standards is available here. A discussion of the middle school curriculum, the recent changes to the elementary program and other relevant issues was productive.
In addition to our two large group meetings, we will hold small group networking and Q&A meetings the first Monday of each month at Panera in Batavia (145 W. Wilson) Our January, 2011 speaker, Denise Lash, licensed clinical social worker and mediator presented a program entitled "KIDS BOUNCE BETTER ON SOLID GROUND--Parenting with Structure." Kids Bounce Better on Solid Ground covered topics applicable to all families wanting to provide a healthy balance of structure in their family life. The presentation addressed why structure is helpful; the four components needed to create structure to help your kids succeed in their family life and in their development; limit setting and appropriate consequences when limits are violated; and the importance of routines. Our May speaker, Patty O'Neil discussed the AE program in Geneva, responding to concerns about how the AE program will proceed after the elimination of the AE Coordinator position. A powerpoint of her presentation should be available on the District 304 website. Our April speaker, Karen Morse, from the Fox River Country Day School, gave an enlightening talk on the levels of giftedness and why it matters. If you want more information on this topic, you can contact GEARS via our Contact Us page and let us know what information you are looking for. Our March meeting included a presentation by Shelly Rolf, Guidance Counselor at Geneva Middle School South, on Perfectionism. The talk included many practical tools parents can use to assist students with perfectionistic tendencies. You can view the PowerPoint presentation here. Our February Meeting was well attended, Cathy and Carl Risberg presented The Highly-Sensitive Child Some children experience life on a level of intensity we find difficult to understand and frequently mislabel as something else. Cathy Risberg, a noted educational consultant who heads her own consulting company Minds That Soar, LLC (www.mindsthatsoar.com), shared about Dabrowski’s research on the five “supersensitivities or “overexciteabilities” he identified: psychomotor, sensual, emotional, intellectual and imaginational. Those who attended left with some practical strategies to help effectively deal with the intensities and challenges that are often present with a highly-sensitive child. I have requested permission to post her slides on the web site.
Our December meeting was a fun evening of mind-stretching "Brain Games" presented by The Scholarship in Geneva. Over 30 games were available for demonstration and purchase throughout the evening. Thank you to The Scholarship and a Geneva GEARS parent for donations of our Door Prizes. And a special thank you to all of our student volunteers who demonstrated many of the games. Our November meeting featured a wonderful presentation by Dr. Sally Thomson on Perfectionism, Procrastination and Under-achieving. Look for additional speakers on Perfectionism in 2010. Our October meeting featured Dr. Ann Butcher, the Director of the Scholars Program that offers enrichment classes for students from Pre-K though 8th grade at Aurora University and Fearn Elementary in North Aurora. Dr. Butcher presented topics on gifted education and led a discussion about popular misconceptions relating to gifted education. See our "Links" page for information on the Scholars Program offered at Aurora University and Fearn Elementary School in Aurora. Our September meeting featured at presentation by Dr. Ann Ramsey explaining the findings of the A/E Committee that was presented to the Board of Education on August 10. Dr. Ramsey's presentation of the committee findings is available in PDF format by clicking here. | |
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