Ungifted: The Gifted Version

This year we asked English instructors to swap one of their free writes for a book review so that we could add new material to the blog and provide readers with ideas for great books to read. Below is the first of what we hope will be many such reviews.

Ungifted: The Gifted Version
by Malcolm Gaynor 

Donavan Curtis never expected to receive the gifted letter. He especially never expected it to happen because of one of his notorious pranks, a prank that seemed worthy of multiple detentions, or even a suspension. When the district administrator absent mindedly jots the trouble maker’s name on the list of new gifted kids, Donavan crash-lands in a place that he doesn’t belong: The Academy for Scholastic Distinction. He realizes that the only way to hide from his punishment is to go where nobody would ever look: the gifted program.

Donavan’s first impression with the students was that he clearly didn’t fit in. The students picked up on the fact that he wasn’t gifted, and that he didn’t belong there, but the teachers decided to give it some time. Donavan hardly passed (or didn’t pass) his classes, but made a bigger change to the school than all of the gifted kids combined. Donavan thought that he was only going to survive in the ASD (Academy for Scholastic Distinction) to avoid paying for his crime but makes more friends and fits in at the Academy better than he ever did at his old school.

               

Chloe Garfinkle, one of the gifted kids, solves all of her problems using the scientific method. Chloe yearns for a normal life, and instantly realizes that Donavan has what she wants. Donavan is normal. Chloe at first is almost jealous of the ease in which he goes about life, but soon realizes that he is smarter in many ways than all of the other gifted students combined. He may not excel in the classroom, but when confronted with a problem, he acts. The team at the gifted program wasn’t a team until Donavan joined. She learns that the whole is not always a sum of its parts. When Donavan wasn’t part of the school’s cherished robotics team, the robot was called just that: “The Robot.” When Donovan joined, he added nothing to the engineering except for images from Google and a name, but he changed the program drastically.

               

Ungifted by Gordon Korman reveals a unique perspective of an ungifted student working alongside students with the highest IQs of the state. It shows the change in characters after meeting Donavan and before meeting Donavan, showing that even if somebody doesn’t seem smart, it doesn’t mean that they aren’t good people. The Academy students grew more than anybody could have predicted in one year because of Donavan, the normal student, showing the gifted kids how to really live. Ungifted teaches kids that nobody is truly ungifted, no matter what their grades are, and that school isn’t everything in life. People still need to make time to have fun. When somebody that at first seems ungifted joins the gifted squad, he teaches the gifted kids more than they have ever learned in the classroom. While their IQs hadn’t gained any points, they learned how to solve real life problems and make friends, things that were not important to them in the past.

Ungifted: The Gifted Version

A Season of Giving   

It's great to receive gifts at the holiday season, no matter which holiday you're celebrating. But how can we give back? Because while we're all getting and appreciating what we've got, there are people around the country and around the world who aren't as fortunate. For some people the world just, well, sucks. To help them, you might want to check out the Project for Awesome. This fundraising drive on YouTube is the brainchild of John and Hank Green (The Fault in Our Stars author, Nerdfighters, Vlogbrothers creators), and is described on the website as follows:

The very first Project for Awesome was organized in 2007, and has been held every year since. [...] During Project for Awesome, thousands of people post videos about and advocating for charities that decrease the overall level of world suck. As a community, we promote these videos and raise money for the charities. In 2013, the community raised over $850,000, benefiting twenty charities. Legally speaking, the Project for Awesome is a project of the Foundation to Decrease World Suck, Inc. a Montana based 501(c)3 charitable organization (more info below).

We invite you to visit http://www.projectforawesome.com/ to see what it's all about, or see them at http://projectforawesome.tumblr.com/. So far this year they've raised over $1,225,000! You have until tonight at midnight to donate - but maybe more importantly, you have the chance to see what others around the world are doing to help those in need. What can you do? All of our ATYP students are impressively smart, and have so much to offer - use those smarts to make the world a better place. How can you give, not just in funds, but in your time and talent, to make the world suck less?  

Think about it...and have a great winter break! We'll see you in January!

Giving Thanks for Teachers

It's a little late, but we wanted to take a moment and give thanks for the instructors who teach for ATYP. The ten amazing people who work for us, who challenge and mentor and prod and encourage ATYP's students, are among the most dedicated and caring professionals you will find.

When people ask what the difference is between classes at a regular middle school and ATYP, think about the portfolio reviews conducted by our English teachers. Hours and hours of work goes into reading those papers, giving feedback, and then rechecking the work. Every time a student rewrites a paper it is reread by the instructor!

Not only do the teachers think about the actual material students cover, they also worry about their social and emotional needs, giving support when students struggle, frequently meeting with families to make sure that people get help when they need it. And all of our teachers make themselves available to students outside of class time should they have questions or need assistance.

So the next time you're able to use the skills you've learned at ATYP and transfer them to another situation - whether at your regular school or in your personal life - think about what these teachers do for you. And consider giving to ATYP in your teacher's honor, because it lasts longer than cookies and they don't have to burn off the extra calories.

Being an ATYP teacher is not an easy job by any stretch of the imagination, but our staff do it because they love the work and the students. And we know you love them - so be sure to say "Thank You!" to your teacher!