Download Filevirtual_conference_instructions.pdf Such a Deal!!!
Three Virtual Platforms...One Great Conference
Our annual conference is upon us. To join in the learning and fun, we will have three different platforms to bring this important information to you!
As we have made modifications to our lives to protect ourselves during this pandemic, we have found unexpected benefits. One of those is the ability to learn virtually anything, VIRTUALLY! Another is the discovery of tools available to us to share information. The WATG board is using multiple platforms to present the information offered to you by many different speakers. We are using the tool most appropriate for the event that you will be participating in.
Here is the break down of Event registration costs and procedures:
The Annual WATG Conference “Hands On, Minds On-Now more than Ever!” is offered by VirtualConference. This is a separate registration. Click on the colorful Conference Banner at WATG.org and make sure you see watg2020virtualconference.com at the top. Register Here
Check out the schedule for the conference at WATG.org/schedule. There are many terrific breakout sessions plus an Unconference on Sunday night which is included in your registration. We hope you will join us for this opportunity to learn from the comfort of your own home.
This is going to be a dynamite conference, so please join us online!
Download Filevirtual_conference_instructions.pdf 
UnConference 2020
Please save time during the WATG Virtual Conference 2020 to join members of the WATG board for our Virtual UnConference. Several virtual ZOOM rooms (pick one) with various themes will be available for you to join, and will be moderated by WATG Board members. These are the RULES:
Rule #1: Whomever joins the UnConference will be the perfect mix for a great discussion!
Rule #2: Discussions may flow in various directions – you set the agenda for the topic on the fly!
Rule #3: Beverages are allowed (encouraged) during the UnConference!
Rule #4: It is over when it’s over!
Sunday, October 18, 2020 starting at 6pm
Topics will include: Equity in Gifted Ed, Parenting can be Lonely, Twice Exceptional Students (2e), Acceleration in our Schools, How to Become a WATG Board Member, Advocacy within a School, Advocacy at the State Level, and Gifted Potpourri (any topic about gifted that you want to discuss).
Register and pick your topic2020 WATG ANNUAL CONFERENCE KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
MONDAY, OCT 19
WATG Welcomes Dr. Marcia Gentry!
MARCIA GENTRY (Ph.D., UCONN 1996), Professor of Educational Studies, directs the Gifted Education Resource Institute at Purdue University. She has received multiple grants worth several million dollars in support of her work with programming practices and underrepresented populations in gifted education. Dr. Gentry’s research interests include student attitudes toward school and the connection of these attitudes toward learning and motivation; the use of cluster-grouping and differentiation to meet the needs of students with gifts and talents while helping all students achieve at high levels; the use of non-traditional settings for talent development; the development and recognition of talent among underserved populations including students with diverse cultural backgrounds including Native American youth, and children who live in poverty. She actively participates in NAGC and AERA; frequently contributes to the gifted education literature, and regularly serves as a speaker and consultant. She has collaborative projects across the country and around the world. She spent 12 years as a teacher and administrator in K-12 settings. Her latest work, Access Denied/System Failure, in which she examines access, equity, and missingness in gifted education across the U.S., is available together with report cards for each state from www.purdue.edu/geri
TUESDAY, OCT 20
WATG Welcomes Dr. Brian Housand!
Dr. Brian Housand, is the coordinator of the Academically or Intellectually Gifted program at University of North Carolina Wilmington. Dr. Housand earned a Ph.D. in educational psychology at the University of Connecticut with an emphasis in both gifted education and instructional technology. He served two terms on the National Association for Gifted Children’s Board of Directors as a Member-At-Large. Along with his wife Dr. Angela Housand and Dr. Joe Renzulli, he co-authored Using the Schoolwide Enrichment Model with Technology. He is also the author of Fighting Fake News! Teaching Critical Thinking and Media Literacy in a Digital Age. Brian has worked in education as a classroom teacher, a teacher of the gifted, and a university professor for over twenty years. As a speaker and consultant, he has presented in 40 states, Canada, Australia, South Korea, Kuwait, and Chilé. Brian is a lover of technology, Star Wars, Disney, video games, and fonts, and he proudly identifies himself as a geek. You can learn more on his website at brianhousand.com and by following him on
Twitter @brianhousand.Highlights for WATG 2020
Attend Kay Bloomberg's session on Mobymax on Monday, October 19th at 10:20 am
See Gloria Ladson Billings' session: Racial Disparity in Academic Achievement, Monday, October 19th at 1:45 pm
Join experts from the Belin-Blank Center as they share information on Acceleration! Monday, October 19th beginning at 8:45 a.m. - You'll also hear more about Wisconsin's Acceleration Report from the WATG Acceleration Team.
Thank You to Our 2020 Conference Sponsors!
Call for Exhibitors & Sponsors!
THE WATG Conference has grown by 10% each year for the past 3 years! Meeting the needs of advanced Learners is a growing concern in Wisconsin.
Join over 300 school administrators, teachers, university faculty, and parents of gifted children for the first-ever virtual Wisconsin Association for Talented and Gifted conference on Monday and Tuesday, October 19th and 20th.
We see our exhibitors as partners in helping provide more engaging tools and strategies that align with best practice teaching to strengthen learning paths for our students.
Our conference offers exhibitors the opportunity to virtually showcase products and services to potential new markets and to network with key people looking for the right tools and strategies that provide programming and advocacy for gifted students throughout Wisconsin.
We offer a range of options for exhibitors, including sponsorship of specific activities during the conference. Unique, virtual networking events provide exceptional exposure for sponsors. Some sponsorship levels provide your company or organization with a guaranteed speaking slot in our conference presentation schedule.
New this year: Activities will run throughout the conference that encourages attendees to visit exhibitors! We want connections to be made!
Ready to join us? Please see the Exhibitor opportunity levels below, then complete the Exhibitor Registration online to secure your spot.
We look forward to you joining us in October, partnering to provide exceptional programming and supports to students with advanced learning needs.
Questions? Email us at watg@watg.org
Sunday, October 18, 2020
9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Virtual Conference
Register by October 9 in order to receive kit on time
Conference is free, ARDUINO® kit is $60
Limited Scholarships are available- Coding in C++
- Engineering Design
- Robotic Arm Motion Controls
- Electrical Circuits
- Computational Thinking
- Project-Based Learning
Presented by Peter Haydock and Maria Isabel Mendiola Ramirez
Authors of the The ARDUINO® Classroom: STEAM Edition
Maria Isabel Mendiola Ramirez
Isabel Mendiola is an award-winning teacher from Monterrey Mexico who has taught physics, chemistry, programming, and robotics in several schools.Maria Isabel Mendiola Ramirez
Peter
HaydockPeter Haydock is an award-winning curriculum developer who has worked for National Geographic and Smithsonian.Peter Haydock
Their first curriculum together is The ARDUINO® Classroom: STEAM Edition. It is a 240-page curriculum that presents 25 classroom-tested, engaging projects with step- by-step instructions. The Arduino® UNO is an inexpensive, flexible, and easy to use open-source microcontrollers perfect for learning engineering, design, and coding. The UNO is designed to work with hundreds of inexpensive connection, input, and output devices, ranging from Wi-Fi® connections to LEDs and buzzers to light, motion, and gas sensors.
Congratulations to Gracieanna Liegl, Waupaca!
Her logo was chosen to represent the 2020 WATG Conference -
Hands On, Minds On: Now More than Ever!Past Conferences
Access schedules and materials from past WATG Annual Conferences2017
Designed by Carly Schindler, HolmenINVEST IN THE POWER OF POSSIBILITIES
Keynote speakers: Dr. Richard Cash and Dr. Foley-Nicpon
Click here to access archived session materials for the 2017 conference2016
Logo designed by Brian FoxPOTENTIAL AND POSSIBILITIES
Keynote speakers: Dr. Dina Brulles and Dr. Frank Worrell
Click here to access archived session materials for the 2016 conference2015
UNLOCKING GIFTED POTENTIAL
Keynote speakers: Lisa Van Gemert and Dr. Mary Ruth Coleman
Click here to access archived session materials for the 2015 conference2014
GETTING TO THE CORE: GIFTED MATTERS
GETTING TO THE CORE: GIFTED MATTERS
Keynote speakers: Dr. Jonathan Plucker and Diane Heacox2013
40 AND FABULOUS: A CELEBRATION OF EFFORT AND INNOVATION
Keynote speaker: Dr. Marcia Gentry
