Violet, thank you for your suggestion. Keep in mind that the majority of the writers will be between 13-15 years old.
This year's finalists were between 10 and 15 years old. The topic was self-control.
We'd like the topic to allow the kids to draw upon their personal experiences as a gifted student as material for their creative piece or support for their essay. Some of the ideas we've had so far are:
heterogeneous grouping vs. tracking
placement by age vs. ability
balance of programs for gifted vs learning disabled
balance of recognition for athletic accomplishment vs academic accomplishment
We would love to have more suggestions and recommendations for articles that the kids can read as the basis of the essay question.
