GT Academy Newsletter
Pearland ISD / November 2025
One of our favorite GTA traditions is to visit the International Quilt Festival, held at Houston's George R. Brown Convention Center, each fall. This event gives fifth graders a glimpse into the beauty and intricacies of award winning quilts which serves as inspiration for quilts they will design and sew as part of their Texas Performance Standards Projects this year. Students analyzed the colors, textures and patterns and studied the stories behind the quilts. Thank you to the amazing parents who joined us! We hope to see you back in the hallway as we begin sewing after Spring Break.
We were fortunate to partner with the Brazoria County Master Gardening Association (BCMGA) again this year. The BCMGA are volunteers who work with Texas A&M AgriLife Extension to share their gardening knowledge throughout the community. They offer community service and outreach, as well as gardener training and educational programs.
The Junior Master Gardening mini course started with plant classification, basic plant parts, and the science behind photosynthesis. Many days were spent outside in the courtyard with sleeves rolled up and getting hands dirty. BCMGA volunteers came throughout the course to teach composting, fertilizing, container gardening, gardening design, irrigation, and plants vs. fungi. Students had a private tour of the Monterey Mushroom Factory to see how mushrooms differ from plants and how they grow.
Students revitalized the pollinator bed, planted carrots, radishes, broccoli, and pie pumpkins. They also made their own bucket gardens to take home and tend themselves. They cleaned out the courtyard garden beds, propogated their own seeds and learned about pollination, and pollinator plants. A professional bee keeper came to share the importance of bees to our planet.
At the end of the course, students created their own 'Master Garden' design and went on a field experience to Houston Botanic Gardens. By the end of the course, the students were bursting with gardening knowledge and the courtyard garden beds were bursting with life!
Texas Performance Standards Projects (TPSP) aim to provide students with the opportunity to produce high-quality, professional-level work that aligns with the goals outlined in the Texas State Plan for the Education of Gifted and Talented Students.
Students who participate in the TPSP:
- explore an area of interest;
- develop confidence in their abilities to complete an independent research project;
- use their own research to produce an innovative, discipline-based product;
- are stretched to discover what they are capable of doing academically;
- learn to accept challenges in order to perform at a high academic and intellectual level; and
- improve communication and presentation skills.
Academy students have already begun the first steps and will develop many useful skills along the way. Fifth grade students have chosen topics and are developing guide questions. Sixth graders finished taking notes and will begin writing rough drafts after Thanksgiving break. Seventh grade students chose a topic, know their partners and will draft guide questions after the break. Eighth graders chose a project and topic and will draft their guide questions in December.
If you missed the TPSP Parent Introduction in October, you can view the presentations linked below. They are also on the GTA webpages.
Based on the research of Joseph Renzulli, mini courses are designed to encourage the exploration of topics of interest and fields of study that would not ordinarily be covered in the regular curriculum. Students participate in field experiences to further extend their understanding of the topics in authentic settings.
In October, students traveled to the Lone Star Flight Museum, Houston Chronicle, Houston Botanical Gardens, Houston Sword Sports, the Holocaust Museum, George Ranch, Sea Center Texas, and other places to extend what they had learned in mini courses.
In December, sixth and seventh grade cohorts get to experience holiday performances at the Alley Theatre and the Ensemble Theatre, and mini course groups will travel to Brazos Bend State Park, Turner High School, Space Center Houston, the Health Museum, Maas Nursery, and Sundance Yoga, to name a few locations. Don't forget to turn in permission notes soon!
Marine Biology
Medieval Times
Mindfulness
Flex & Flow
Civics Bee
Reading Rainbow
With over 250 members and an active Board, the GT Academy Booster Club (GTAB) supports students and teachers in many ways. In addition to generously funding many of our field experiences, GTAB organizes opportunities to give back to our community throughout the year. Many thanks to Mrs. Kimberly Samuels, the GTAB Community Service committee chair, for all her hard work.
- Socktober - Through a bit of friendly competition between Sab and West, we collected over 2.000 pairs of socks that were donated to the Pearland Neighborhood Center, PISD Swap Shop, and Lord of the Streets. This year, West earned the Golden Sock trophy for collecting the most!
- Deck the Doors - We will return to the Harbor Assisted Living facility again this year to joyfully decorate resident doors. The sign up sheet filled up fast, and all doors have been claimed. Families, teams, and groups of friends will be letting their creativity shine as they spread holiday cheer.
- Winter Hoopla - This annual fundraiser will take place at Sablatura on Friday, February 20, 2026. We are looking for ten talented acts to showcase that evening. Students are encouraged to submit a one minute video to Mrs. Mueller by December 8th to be considered. Teachers will be sending requests for basket auction items soon, so be looking for links and suggestions through email. There are several ways to support this event. Please reach out to the Winter Hoopla chairperson, Mrs. Dana Buchanan (hoopla@gtabpearland.org) if you would like to join the fun.
Socktober Results
Winter Hoopla Talent
Deck the Doors
- TMSCA - The team is off to a great start. Students attended the first practice meet of the season, with many students doing very well. Overall, the Sab/West team placed 2nd in General Science, and 3rd in Calculator, Number Sense and General Math. We will host our annual TMSCA qualifying competition at West on February 28th. We will need many volunteers to serve as graders, proctors, or hospitality for this event so please save the date!
- FPS - Students are already thinking about the state competition in April and are working hard to prepare. We've had our first practice problem and students know what steps they need to improve. With last year's 6th grade team placing first at the International Competition, the bar has been set very high.
- Robotics -PJHW First Tech Challenge (FTC) teams attended their first practice competition and are revising bots and improving programs as they prepare for the next competition. Sab's First Lego League (FLL) teams are researching, programming and developing prototypes. Their first competition will be in January.
- Quiz Bowl - The Roaring Twenties is the theme for this year's competition. Super Quiz and General Trivia teams are meeting weekly to study together. Will Sab or West continue the championship streak at the competition in March?
- Destination ImagiNation - Ten teams are meeting weekly to develop creative solutions to challenges as they prepare for the February 21st Gulf Coast Region competition. We are thankful for our team managers who support these creative problem solvers each week.
- Chess Club - The November tournament was cancelled, but stay tuned. We will reschedule for the spring semester.
- Lux AI - A brand new GTA club, led by Mr. Dan with Smart Core Labs! Using Python coding skills, students will participate in an AI programming game competition.
FPS
TMSCA
Robotics
The goal of the Baylor Talent Identification Program is to identify exceptionally talented students and provide challenging learning opportunities through camps, online courses, clubs, and Super Saturdays. Several Academy students have participated in camp courses.
Another opportunity available through Baylor TIP is above level assessment. "The Indicator of Academic Readiness (IAR) is an assessment of the knowledge and skills that are predictive of success in post-secondary education. Specifically, the IAR measures knowledge and skills in the following domains: mathematics, science, reading, and writing." This assessment will be administered to Academy students who register in January.
For more information, parents can join Mrs. Mueller and the Baylor TIP representative at 6:00 p.m. at the December 1st virtual meeting or visit the website linked below.
"I forgot we had a test today." "I don't need to use a planner." "I'll do it tomorrow." "Skyward says I have five missing assignments." "I thought I turned that in." If this sounds like someone you know, you are not alone. Attributes that often define gifted individuals can interfere with productivity, which can result in missing assignments, incomplete projects, or emotional meltdowns. You can read more about unexpected traits of gifted students in the article linked below. It addresses perfectionism, anxiety, overthinking, and peer relationships. Also check out Seth Perler's website. He is an expert in executive functioning and we refer to him for soft skills lessons often.
Students are encouraged to use a planner to keep up with due dates, projects, and tests. Sticky notes, highlighters and bulleted "To Do" lists are also helpful. It is important to pay attention to information displayed on the board each day. Teachers display the daily objective, tasks for the day, upcoming tests and due dates. It may look different in each class (see photos below) but it is there.
Parents can support the growth of strong work habits and independence by asking reflective questions like “What’s the hardest part of getting schoolwork done?” and “When do you focus best?” These conversations help students understand how they think and identify barriers such as impulse control, time management, and organization. By building self-awareness, students become confident, capable, and increasingly independent.
December 1 - Baylor TIP Parent Session (virtual) 6:00 p.m.
December 3 - 7th Grade to Alley Theatre
December 3 - PJHW Spelling Bee 4:00 p.m.
December 8 - Winter Hoopla talent submissions due
December 9 - TX State Parks field experience to Brazos Bend
December 9 - Astronomy field experience to HMNS
December 9 - Yoga field experience to Sundance Yoga
December 10 - 6th Grade to Ensemble Theatre
December 10 - Nutrition field experience to Turner Culinary
December 11 - Sab field experiences
December 12 - Sab Spelling Bee 9:00 a.m.
January 17 - FTC Robotics @ LSA
January 31 - MathCounts competition
February 6 - Winter Hoopla Talent Run Through @ Sab 4:00-6:00 p.m.
February 12 - DI Run Through @ Sab 4:00-6:00 p.m.
February 14 - FLL Region Competition
February 20 - GTAB Winter Hoopla @ Sablatura Cafeteria 6:30-8:00 p.m.
February 21 - Gulf Coast Region Destination ImagiNation @ Katy ISD
February 28 - TMSCA Competition @ PJHW
March 6 - PISD Quiz Bowl @ Turner High School
March 9-13 - Spring Break!
April 11-13 - TMSCA State Competition @ San Antonio, TX
April 11-13 - FPS State Competition @ Waco, TX
May 6,7,8 - GTA Student Showcase @ ESC 6:00-7:30 p.m.
Smart Core Labs Camp
A Christmas Carol
Sab Coding Workshop
Ellie
Ellie is a hard worker, and her smile lights up the classroom. She is a valuable member of her Destination Imagination team and was recently selected to represent the Greater Houston Area at the Texas Bluebonnet Awards luncheon this spring. We are proud of you, Ellie!
Lanson
Cassie
Dr. Xiang
Mrs. Dennehy
