Seminars to Support your Professional Development Needs

Before spending another dime on Tier Two or Tier Three intervention materials, stop and focus on Tier One! Support systems begin in the general education classroom. We will explore instructional  and assessment practices using quick progress monitoring checklists and then learn how to incorporate intervention blocks into the typical day or learning period. Staff will become fluent with ongoing data collection and continual assessment. Differentiation becomes a natural response to the progress monitoring. A systematic framework will be designed and utilized school-wide to address challenges. Included in this MTSS framework will be tiers of interventions that can be amplified in response to levels of need. MTSS tiers help schools to organize levels of support based on intensity so that students receive necessary instruction, support, and interventions according to current data. Your team will be experts at the problemm solving model!

District administrators and coaches that serve as instructional leaders are powerful change agents. We will build the capacity to lead with discussions on climate, evidence based practices, and practical ways to recognize and encourage engagement and rigor. When empowered with the right questions, instructional leaders can ensure that students are learning, and also have a systematic plan in place when they are struggling.  We live in a data-rich educational environment; therefore, instructional leaders must know how to teach their teams how to actually use this data for instructional decisions. Effective systems of support depend on leadership; let's put a plan in place. In-service or professional development sessions, as well as follow-up sessions, goal setting and monitoring, surveys,  guided reflections and continuous feedback are available. 

Growth mindset is more than grit and open-mindedness. Growth mindset is the belief that effort will result in necessary change or growth. Without the desire for change, or belief that growth is possible, there is no effort. Teachers need to understand the “why” behind the district initiatives before they expend their efforts. We will learn the importance of research, desired outcomes and why we are asking for instructional change. For educators we will look closely at the need to recognize student “buy in” and effort. Students that work hard yet continually fail to see growth, eventually stop working. Often teacher assessment practices are counterproductive to the growth mindset of learners. Celebrating small successes, and providing multiple opportunities to show mastery result in higher student engagement and growth. We will explore the power of “Not Yet”and learning climate on student achievement. These growth mindset sessions move beyond the commonly used sport star analogies highlighting grit and perseverance, we will take an honest look at the realities and implications of growth mindset and student learning 

It is imperative to build a  professional community where educators have a clear and aligned goal for student success. The building climate and learning climate are part of this focus. In addition, educators will learn to collaboratively set SMART goals and success criteria to evaluate their goal and the effect on student learning. Educators and administrators will meet to discuss exactly  what their students need to know, how they will know if it was learned and most importantly, what to do if it was not learned.  Formative practices require a team approach to ensure learning and intervention is constantly assessed. Your team will learn to make decisions by building shared knowledge regarding best practices and data, rather than simply doing their own thing. PLC sessions are available for all stages of PLC growth.  Whether your team is just beginning, or perhaps you just need review and reminders, the PLC work will be customized to ensure that continuous improvement processes become part of your regular routine. 

Both teachers and students benefit with an intentional focus to each lesson.  ​Teachers will explore how to identify  the goals and success criteria of their lessons, know how well all students in their class are progressing, and know exactly  where to go next. There is such an impactful difference between rolling through a chapter or curriculum versus choosing a daily standard or target of focus with clearly identified success criteria for the lesson. Intentional teaching is strategic and measurable. It is more than just placing an “I Can” on the board. We will discuss how to ensure that the instruction is aligned to the intended curriculum from the state. Educators will practice identifying the standard of focus and prioritising specific parts of the lesson, while understanding that not everything they have used in the past is necessary.  John Hattie's research on the high impact of clarity and student growth will be explored. We will explore how to teach with a clear target, and how to break that target down to attainable subskills, and how to naturally assess the progression towards the learning goal. Feedback and intervention needs become apparent when educators are teaching and assessing with clarity.