Our third graders are learning how to use creative thinking to come up with fresh solutions to problems they may face. They will be learning about real life innovators and how each used creative thinking to come up with great solutions. Students will then pick a scenario that requires a new perspective to design a new solution for. *Creative thinking can be fun for some of our thinkers but harder for others. Do not let your child get discouraged. Rather, encourage them to practice their creative thinking skills so they can grow this skill to later be able to apply it and help them solve problems.

Your fourth grader will be determining the cost of a large meal for a family reunion this month. He or she will get to practice some real-life skills learning to organize, keep track of each guest’s order, find the total price, and split the cost between the adult guests. It’s a great way for them to practice our competency, self-management, and get a sneak peek into the grown-up world with the occasional responsibility of planning a large dinner. After completing this large math task, he/she will determine the seating arrangement and justify why the guests are sitting where they are. One way you can help at home is to allow them to help you plan a meal, determine how much is needed for each ingredient, and shop with you.

In the fifth grade GT groups this month, we have some options for various higher-level math tasks after having a long focus on our competency “self-advocating” with our different units. Some students may be determining the location of a train wreck when two trains are traveling towards each other on the same track, and/or others may be determining today’s real-world cost of the gifts in the famous Twelve Days of Christmas song. And still, other students may be practicing perseverance and problem solving doing some winter-themed logic puzzles or breakout room puzzles. If you would like to practice our competency at home, this time of year is a great time to reach out and help others in and around our communities and help them with their needs.

Parents often wonder when and how to approach their child's teacher if their child seems unhappy or not challenged in the classroom. Click here to read more.

Use this link to view offerings for the whole month of December. Make sure to scroll to the bottom of each page where you can click through more pages of offerings. You’ll be amazed to see SO many activities in our surrounding Knoxville community for various events that you can attend this month; some related to the holidays and some not! There are many different options that your student can participate in and practice using perspective, perseverance, self-management, or self-advocacy.

https://tinyurl.com/2wsx2mmb

Sally Cunningham is one of our amazing GT Coaches. She has 30 years of experience in education! Before she joined the GT Department, Sally taught 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade. She even looped with a class from 2nd to 3rd grade and enjoyed being part of her students' lives for 2 years making it one of the highlights of her career! This is one of the many reasons she loves being a GT coach because she has the opportunity to teach students for multiple years!

Sally is blessed to have a big and loving family. She is married and has 6 daughters (ages 23 - 28), and she has 2 grandchildren (18 mo. & 4 mo.) that she plans to spoil rotten! She is always up for an adventure whether it is going through a haunted house, exploring a cave, or scuba diving, count her in! We want to thank Sally for being part of our “adventure” in the GT Department!

Click below to view the KCS Gifted and Talented website.