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|  | | | | Meet the Gifted Services Coordinator. . . | |
Thank you for stopping by this site. My name is David Bollom and I am the full-time gifted and talented specialist at Highland Park Elementary (HPE). As such, I am the contact person at HPE for issues and events concerning gifted and talented learners.
I have been teaching gifted and talented children since 1993. I have been doing so in St. Paul since the 1999 - 2000 school year. Prior to coming to HPE for the 2007-2009 I worked primarily in a pull-out program with my own classroom teaching an advanced curriculum to gifted and talented children. Collaborating with classroom teachers, and teaching in their classrooms is the model used here at HPE.
One of the most enriching experiences of my teaching career, and the one that started me on the path toward working with gifted and talented children, was the practice teaching experience I completed in Adelaide, South Australia. I learned a great deal during that experience about designing lessons to meet the needs of high ability learners; something I was not trained to do during my undergraduate college courses. Within two years of beginning my teaching career I was completing a masters degree program and was offered a position working with gifted and talented children. I have been teaching gifted and talented children ever since. I enjoy the challenges of identifying and meeting high ability learners' diverse needs.
One of the most rewarding aspects of working with a whole school is the relationships I am able to develop with students over the course of several years. Working closely with many classroom teachers is an additional benefit to being a collaborating teacher. I have the opportunity to learn from many superb teachers through the course of each day. I strongly believe that learning is a life-long opportunity and skill. Everyone should have the opportunity to experience new learning each day.
Thank you for stopping by this site. I would be happy to hear from you if you have any questions or concerns about gifted education at HPE.
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