Sonia is a gifted education specialist and author of "Designing Defensible Classroom Programs for Gifted Secondary School Learners"(2011), a handbook for teachers. Sonia works with school management, gifted education coordinators and teachers, providing professional development and mentoring in Secondary and Intermediate / Middle Schools. She also supports parents and gifted students. She was Gifted Education Advisor to schools for 8 years (2002 - 2009) - 2 years in Primary & Intermediate overlapping with 7 years in Secondary schools in Auckland, New Zealand.  In this role she worked for the University of Auckland in their School Support Services division in the Faculty of Education to facilitate development in gifted education in schools. Prior to that, (1988 - 2001) Sonia was Gifted and Talented Coordinator at Kristin School, working firstly in Primary and Intermediate, (9 years) then in Intermediate and Secondary (5 years).

Qualifications
Sonia is a trained teacher with a Masters Degree in Gifted Education (Flinders University). She has also been a trained Coach and National Evaluator in Future Problem Solving Programme; coaching 1991 - 1999, evaluating 1994 - 2005. Sonia was awarded the Keith Frampton Memorial Award as Outstanding FPS Coach, at the International FPSP Finals in Athens, Georgia, USA, June 2000.

Affiliations
Sonia is a member of:
The World Council for Gifted & Talented Children WCGTC
The International Centre for Innovation in Education (ICIE) ICIE
IRATDE - The International Research Association for Talent Development and Excellence IRATDE
giftEDnz (New Zealand's Professional Association for Gifted Education) GiftEDnz

Sonia is a member of the planning committee for the 2013 WCGTC Conference to be held in Auckland, NZ in August 2013,
She is consultant chair for SAGE (Secondary Auckland Gifted Educators) an Auckland/Northland network of professionals involved in Gifted Education SAGE


Work as an Advisor to Schools

Currently, and during her eight years as gifted education advisor to schools, Sonia's time is spent in teacher professional development, working with school management, Gifted Education Coordinators and teachers.  She facilitates workshops, seminars, keynotes, and provides one-to-one support in gifted education pedagogy, including: an overview of giftedness, establishing a school vision for gifted learners, defining giftedness, identification procedures and good practice, writing policies, acceleration, and provisions for gifted learners.   She supports teachers in implementing a wide range of provisions including: strategies for incorporating higher order thinking; differentiated curriculum models; analysis of unit plans; and writing schemes and units that differentiate for gifted learners. She supports key teams in examining the quality of school wide provisions, including multi-levelling and acceleration; identification of, and in meeting the learning needs of gifted underachievers, including Gifted with learning difficulties. Sonia has taken a special interest in supporting schools to identify gifted Maori students. An example of this may be found at http://www.nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Curriculum-stories/Moving-forward/A-rising-tide


International

Sonia has been involved in Gifted Education internationally since the 1990s, and has been invited to present at conferences and schools in Australia, Hong Kong. Europe and the USA.   Sonia has also been a frequent presenter and invited speaker at international conferences

Sonia has presented at the following International Conferences:

• The Slovakian Gifted Schools Seminar: Sole presenter at a two day professional development seminar on differentiation for gifted learners for teachers of Slovakian Schools for Gifted in Bratislava, Slovakia (August 30th -31st 2011).
• The 19th Biennial World Conference of the WCGTC "Making a difference for Gifted Children" Prague, Czech Republique,(August 8th-12th. 2011) Presented "Caring Thinking: Using Affective Thinking to Motivate Gifted Learners".
• The 19th Biennial World Conference of the WCGTC "Making a difference for Gifted Children" Prague, Czech Republique,(August 8th-12th. 2011) Presented "The DPI Model Catering for Gifted Learners: An Holistic Approach for Schools".
• The 19th Biennial World Conference of the WCGTC "Making a difference for Gifted Children" Prague, Czech Republique,(August 8th-12th. 2011) Presented "Key Principals in Developing Unit Plans Which Cater for Gifted Learners".
• The 11th Asia Pacific Conference on Giftedness (July 28-August 2, 2010), Sydney, Australia. Presented "Developing Gifted Learner Programmes with Confidence: Key Principles in Planning and Execution".

•  The 18th Biennial World Conference of World Council for the Gifted, (August 4-7, 2009), Vancouver, Canada. Presented "Creating Wow Factor Schools for Gifted Learners: Making it Happen".

•  The International Centre for Innovative Education Conference, Descarte University, Paris. Excellence in Education: Future Minds & Creativity Conference (Invited speaker). Pre conference workshops,  and paper presentation. (July 1 -4, 2008)

•  The “Rising Tides” National Gifted Education Conference sponsored by the Ministry of Education, August 3-5th, 2006, Wellington. Presented "Citizenship by design: putting humanity into thinking".

•  The 16th Biennial World Conference of World Council for the Gifted, (August 6th- 10th 2005), New Orleans, USA.  Presented paper "Perfectionism and Overexcitabilities in Gifted Students:  Research Findings".

•  Australasian Association for the Education of Gifted & Talented Children Conference, (15-17 August, 2004) presented paper "Integrating Critical Thinking into the Social Studies Curriculum".
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National

Sonia has been involved with the New Zealand national network of Gifted Education Advisors for the past 10 years, through attendance at twice yearly Hui (Conferences) organised through the Ministry of Education.  She has presented regularly at these Hui.  From 2003 - 2005 she was Co-Director of Gifted Education Community of Practice (a Ministry of Education contract for the development of an online gifted education community of practice).  She was an invited member of a Ministry of Education 'ICT and Gifted Think Tank' in May, 2005, and was a resident expert on the “Ask an Expert Panel” on TKI Gifted Education Parent Forum, from February - April 2005.  Sonia also served on the Ministry of Education Selection Panel for the Funding Pool for Developing Talent in Gifted Students: October 11th - 14th 2002.
Sonia presents regularly at the SAGE Focus Group workshops, and with the SAGE Committee has implemented New Zealand's first Gifted Student Conference for over 200 Yr 11, 12 and 13 students. (Massey University, Albany, July 7, 2011).

Sonia has also presented in recent years at

•  Christchurch Association for the Education of Gifted Children, (April 6th, 2006) Invited Keynote, presented "putting the Heart into Thinking".
•  Cognition Education's regional "Gifted Symposia" in North Harbour, Whangarei,and Nelson. Guest presenter of "The Bottom Line: What do Schools Need to Know?"(2010)

•  “Living with Gifted Children” Co-presenter at a 6 week course for parents at the Centre for Continuing Education, Faculty of Education, The University of Auckland, April - June 2009.

•  The New Zealand National Reaching Forward Conference, Rotorua, (March 12- 14 2009).  Creating Wow Factor Schools for Gifted Learners: Making it Happen.

•  Member of Panel of Experts at the NZAGC Early Years Conference & Workshops, Auckland, March 29, 2008.

•  The University of Auckland School Leadership Centre Gifted and Talented Education: "What you need to know Seminar for leaders in secondary schools" (August 10, 2006).

•  National Area Schools Conference, Auckland, (June 7-8 2006). Discussion session, plus seminar on Identifying and Meeting the Needs of Gifted and Talented: A School-wide Overview.

•  Christchurch Association for the Education of Gifted Children, (April 6th, 2006) presented paper on High Sensitivities in Gifted and Talented Students.

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PUBLICATIONS


Sonia's Blog: Gifted Chatter

Frequent articles and editorials in the SAGE newsletter "Gifted Conversations"

White, S. (2011). Designing defensible classroom programs for gifted secondary school learners". Auckland, New Zealand: Gifted Education Consultancy

White, S. (2010). Practical illustrations of global awareness activities in New Zealand schools. Gifted Education International, Vol.27, pp34-38.

White, S. (2009). Identification of gifted children in New Zealand Schools. In Y. Benito (Ed.), Superdotacion y Asperger (pp. 197-198). Madrid, Spain: EOS Editorial.

White, S. (2008). 'Wow' factor schools for gifted learners: making it happen. Paper presented at the The International Centre for Innovative Education Conference, Excellence in Education: Future Minds & Creativity, Descarte University, Paris.

White, S. (2008). So this child is gifted? Now What? Tall Poppies Magazine of the NZ Association for Gifted Children, 33(3).

White, S. (2007). The link between perfectionism and overexcitabilities. Gifted and talented International: The Journal of the World Council for Gifted & Talented Children, 22(1).

White, S. (2003). Reasons why gifted children sometimes underachieve: case studies, from http://www.tki.org.nz/r/gifted/reading/casestudies/underachieve/index_e.php/

White, S. (2002). Perfectionism: blessing or curse? Tall Poppies: Magazine of New Zealand Association for Gifted Children, 27(2), 6-12.

White, S. (2001). Catering for Gifted and Talented Students, from http://www.tki.org.nz/r/gifted/pedagogy/catering_e.php

White, S. (2000, October 3-5). Underachievement in gifted and talented students. Paper presented at the Now is the Future: the Gifted Student in Today's Secondary Schools, Auckland, New Zealand.
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